The Avila Perspective Chapter 12: An Old School Showdown

Millennials, welcome to old school boxing.

When undefeated Ryan “the Flash” Garcia (15-0, 13 KOs) meets Carlos “The Solution” Morales (17-2-3, 6 KOs) at Fantasy Springs Casino in Indio on Saturday, Sept. 1, it’s reminiscent of the days when fighters from the same gym battled against each other.

That’s old school.

Garcia, 20, and Morales, 28, both trained at Legendz Boxing in Norwalk and know each other well. With more than 100 gyms in Southern California that’s becoming rarer each year. The battle will be shown on Facebook at the Golden Boy Fight Night page.

Back before 1950s television, the main event fighters had only a few gyms in Southern California. The Main Street Gym was the primary choice for the top fighters of the day and often boxers would cross paths every day before facing each other at the Olympic Auditorium, Hollywood Legion Stadium or other venues.

Guys like Chalky Wright, Richie Lemos, Henry Armstrong, and Ceferino Garcia in the late 1930s saw each other regularly and fought each other. In the late 1940s you had Manuel Ortiz, Enrique Bolanos, Art Aragon and Carlos and Fabela Chavez who were not related.

A song was composed by the late Lalo Guerrero about the Chavez boys who fought everybody and were known for their bloody wars. They were raised in the “Palo Verde” area, a Latino neighborhood until bulldozers smashed their homes and many others to build Dodger Stadium in the late 1950s.

The song is called “Corrido de Boxeo” and was sung by Guerrero and produced by Ry Cooder on the album called “Chavez Ravine.” It mentions the Chavez boxers who were regulars on the Los Angeles fight scene and lived in the area where the Dodgers now play. It’s a classic album from 2005, the year the old Chicano crooner passed away. He was a big fight fan and attended many of the wars at the Olympic.

A new golden age has emerged with Southern Californians battling each other once again.

Facebook

Garcia and Morales represent the new era of prizefighting with social media armies built up via cell phones and likes. Both live in Southern California which has been a bastion for prizefighting since the late 1890s. It’s only growing bigger each year.

Facebook with its army of analytic experts has uncovered this fact and will showcase the coming boxing card on its mammoth platform. They already streamed one fight card that garnered more than 17 million reacts.

No other area in the world boasts as much interest in professional boxing as Southern California. Golden Boy Promotions, which is based in Los Angeles, has hooked into the population by signing many local fighters to its company. Morales and Garcia are among the thousands that visit and train in local boxing gyms on a daily basis hunting for the golden goose.

“I get hit for a living,” says Morales proudly who works at a Los Angeles area diner when not slipping on the boxing gloves.

It took Morales five pro fights before he ever was announced the winner. It describes the natural tenacity of the Mexican-American fighter who has three kids and works a daily job. After tasting his first win Morales did not lose another bout until fighting in Puerto Rico where he gave Alberto Machado all he could handle for a regional title a year ago.

Morales will need that tenacity against the tall and talented Garcia whose rabid fans will arrive to witness the fight on Saturday.

“The kid has a lot of followers,” said Morales who knows Garcia has more than 1 million followers on a social media account Instagram.

Garcia has a youthful energy and openness that surprises people who meet him for the first time. There’s no false modesty, in fact there’s the opposite. The Victorville boxer will tell you he’s good and politely ask that you watch his next fight.

Girls openly ask him for dates and propose marriage.

“It’s going to be bigger than the last show. I think there is going to be even more girls this time,” said Garcia about the return to Fantasy Springs and about his marriage proposals. “I get them (proposals) every day. I get about 10 offers every day.”

But can he fight?

Blessed with speed, power and height, the energetic Garcia has basically knocked out everyone he’s faced except his last opponent Jayson Velez who’s known for having an iron chin. Another opponent in Tijuana was blasted down numerous times but allegedly biased referees refused to acknowledge any of the knockdowns.

Garcia shrugs at the past.

“I just want everyone to be hyped when I fight,” says Garcia.

In a mere two years the Southern California-bred prizefighter has blitzed through competition with the blinding speed of one of his combinations.

This match up permeates nostalgia.

These bouts between local fighters were regular before the age of millennials. But now with the burgeoning Southern California fight scene and the interest by social media giants like Facebook, what’s around the corner?

“This Facebook deal was made for me,” says Garcia.

Social media recognition is a millennial thing, but locals fighting each other, that’s old school.

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