Minnesota’s Boxing

Posted on May 25, 2009 by Todd

Thank you for your support! Our readership has hit a new high over the last two months. This last week was our best ever! The holiday weekend has been a time to decompress after all the happens of the last couple weeks. We have some exciting changes coming over the next few weeks and months and I just want to thank you for your continued support. Now back to the reason you’re here in the first place, BOXING. Below are some punches in bunches from around the state.

Gary “Stone Cold” Eyer was in great spirits after his second TKO of Scott Robinson. Gary again told me how scared he was going into the ring, but those who were there or have watched the web-cast know Eyer was more scary than scared.

I had an opportunity to talk with “T-Rex” RJ Laase Saturday. He gave credit to Hecotor Orozco for coming to Duluth and taking care of business. RJ is a very smart young boxer and understands the opportunity this gives him to learn from Thursday nights action. I have no doubt the next time we see Laase, he will be better than ever.

Tyler Hultin lived up to the talk. You really could not ask for a better start to a professional career than an early knock out. I was able to chat with Tyler after his fight Thursday night. First off, Tyler, his dad, his fans, were all class. This is another talented and classy fighter from Fergus Falls MN. He was in great spirits after his fight with Craig, he said he was really looking forward to being able to fight in Duluth again.

Phil "The Drill" Williams/ SnapLocally.com

In just under two weeks the most stacked announced card will take place at Grand Casino Hinckley, June 5. Phil “The Drill” Williams is living up to his talk in taking on a very difficult challenge in Jaidon Codrington. Marcus Oliveira will be facing another TV show star in Otis Griffin. ”Golden” Caleb Truax is stepping up competition and taking on a lefty in his quest to get a shot at Minnesota’s middleweight champ, Andy “Kaos” Kolle. Willshaun Boxley looks to finally get in the ring with Thomas Snow.

Courtesy of Walters Photography, all rights reserved

June 6, Shooting Star Casino has a show featuring, Chris Holt vs Jonathan Corn. Also on the card will be, Patrick Cape, Marty Lindquist and more.

Zach “Jungleboy” Walters and Andy “Kaos” Kolle will be making their return to the ring June 18 at Grandma’s Sports Garden. It looks like they will be giving their desired weight class’s a shot, Kaos at 154 and Jungle at 168. Those that want to see the action in person, please get in touch with one of Horton’s fighters, Horton’s gym or Grandma’s for tickets as soon as possible, with both Kolle and Walters on the card, tickets will be gone soon. You can also reserve tickets by going to our contact page and leave us a message with “tickets” in the subject line and how you can be contacted.

“T-Rex” RJ Laase Interview

Posted on May 19, 2009 by Todd

RJ Laase started boxing in the 8^th grade. He had watched his older brother box and compete in Golden Gloves competitions. “Chuck Horton had a flyer hanging in our gym and I decided to check Horton’s gym out. I got there and I was spooked, Chuck likes to say I cried, but that didn’t happen.” RJ was boxing and fighting in competitions a few months later. Laase had an amateur record of (40,3,1). With a style that consists of clean effective punches and being a counter puncher, RJ decided that the Pro game fit his style better. “I had a fight in Sturgis SD, where I knocked the kid down and gave him two standing 8 counts and still got the loss. That put it in my mind that my style is more suited for the pros. I like to make people miss then make them pay.”

Zach Walters was a huge influence on RJ, both in training and going about the business of boxing. “I would go out with Zach and hit the streets selling tickets. I saw how he and Chuck built up a fan base. It allowed me to make my professional debut in front of 2500 plus fans. When guys like Zach and Andy say good things about you, people listen. Those guys paved the road for Gary and I.” RJ couldn’t say enough about the impact of being able to train with the likes of Walters, Kolle, and Eyer on a daily basis had on his growth.

RJ, in dark trunks, lands a vicious body blow. Courtesy of Walters Photography

After Laase had his big victory over Tyler Gould things looked very promising for him. But a scheduled November card fell through and after taking time off for the holidays RJ thought there was a chance to be on the March card in Hinckley featuring Andy Kolle vs Anthony Bonsante. Apparently Laase was too hard to match due to his devastating performance against Gould. “Right before the scheduled November fight I found out that my mom had breast cancer. It was a tough time, my mom was going through chemo and I was going broke. My mom is a very strong women, she raised four boys. She has one chemo left out of 6 then she will be doing radiation.”

I asked RJ if there were any local names out there he would like to face. “There are some guys I’d like to fight. Patrick Cape was a guy I wanted to fight, but he is almost to the point of it not making sense. He just lost to Laboda and it took him 3 rounds to take Danny down. Gary and I were beating Danny up as kids. When I knocked Tyler Gould out, it stopped a lot of people from wanting to fight me. After my fight with Mike Davis people were saying Tyler would knock me out, but I knew Gould had a glass jaw. Tyler used to work out at Horton’s gym. He never liked me. I would bring it to him in sparring, we had some bad blood. To be honest, I really don’t know why Tyler took that fight, but it was a good feeling to knock him out.”

“I will fight anybody. If Chuck says fight somebody, I fight them.” RJ has great perspective on his boxing career. “I just need to win each fight I’m in, that’s how you get your picture and name featured on the poster.” Laase concedes that he didn’t have a big, lustrous amateur career and needs to build his presence through the early portion of his professional showings.

Watching RJ work in the gym is really a beautiful thing. His way of attacking the bags and shadow boxing allow the viewer to see his imaginary opponent. “I always see an opponent when hitting the bags. When I’m shadow boxing, I’m fighting myself. You have to visualize or you are just there throwing punches. In my opinion Gary is the most technical boxer in our gym.” RJ also mentioned he always has a rhythm in his mind while training and that can definitely be seen while he works.

RJ is quick to point out that Chuck Horton is a level 4 Olympic boxing coach when discussing his training at Horton’s gym. “There aren’t too many places you can go and get a better coach. On top of that we always know Chuck has our backs no matter what the situation. Its like a family.”

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention one of RJ’s other passions, music. One of my first conversations with Laase was about music, his music. This artist in the ring is also one creating beats for various local talents. I have to be honest, I had the fear brought to me due to RJ’s beats. He invited me to his car to listen to some of the stuff he had been working on. The short walk to his vehicle was filled with mixed emotion for me. I hoped with all my might that his music was good, cause I sure as heck don’t want to tell T-Rex otherwise, for goodness sakes, I’ve seen what this man can do to another. Thankfully, RJ’s talents do go beyond the boxing ring and can be heard through his beats.

I asked RJ before we concluded our interview if he had anything he would like to add. His comment, “Gary Eyer is a pussy”. It was a fitting way to end our conversation, with the aforementioned Eyer and his coach Chuck Horton approaching us. One big happy family.

RJ Laase will be facing Hector Orozco this Thursday, May 21 at Grandma’ Sports Garden in Duluth MN.

Todd

“Unfinished Business”, Results / Guess Who’s Back

Posted on April 19, 2009 by Todd

All photos courtesy of snaplocally.com jason_litzau2

The Midwest Sports Council and the Target Center worked together to put on the best show of 2009 thus far. It’s hard to imagine getting any better than their last effort with Kolle/Bonsante, but this card was entertaining top to bottom. The 3,595 people in attendance witnessed the fulfillment of a feud, the mighty return of Jason Litzau, and a very controversial decision in Vanda/Pudwill. This is what live boxing is all about. The two biggest highlights for me were Allen Litzau vs Wilton Hilario and Jason Litzau’s furry.

Donny Tierney UD (38,37/38,37/38,37) over Zach Schumach – What a great start to the night. This was boxer vs brawler. Donny used his obvious boxing skill advantage to keep control throughout most of this fight. Zach brought the action and looping bombs, but it was not enough to beat the slicker boxer.

Jon Laboda TKO between rounds 2 and 3 over Patrick Cape – Round one had Cape looking to unleash his big right hand, and he had some success, taking the round in my opinion. The second round came with Laboda tearing into Capes body and mind. Following round two, Cape’s corner decided their fighter had felt enough.

jason_litzau

Jason Litzau TKO round 5 over Phillip Payne – The crowd was going crazy for Litzau as he entered the ring. Once in the ring and the bell rung, Jason began to ring a different bell, Payne’s. This fight was all Jason and I can see why most local fight fans see Jason as cream of the crop. I understand that Payne’s record was lacking, but what a come back fight for Jason. Fast hands is not nearly descriptive enough to talk about the artillary Litzau was throwing. I give Phillip credit for making it to the 5th, as Jason was on him at every turn, popping him to every portion of his body above the waist.

Cerresso Fort TKO round 4 over Robert Kliewer – This would have been fight of the night on many occasions. Bombs away could describe the action between these two Rice Street Gym fighters. Fort didn’t look as impressive in this victory as he had in Hinckley but Kliewer makes all fights look a little different due to his style. I give Kliewer credit for making it as far as he did with the monsters Fort was throwing. I had Fort taking every round until the stoppage.

hilario-litzau

Wilton Hilario TKO round 5 over Allen Litzau – Rounds 1 through 3 were all action as these two rivals showed their dislike for one another. Both Allen and Wilton were landing big shots on each other. Wilton’s straight right had Allen seeing stars early on. After round three my notes just say WOW. Come round 4, the wear and tear seemed to be getting to Litzau, and Wilton was clearly in control of both the 4th and 5th rounds. Round five started with Hilario and Litzau charging each other, firing off punches, then Wilton again was doing the giving until the fight was mercifully stopped. The crowd was not happy with the stoppage but those at ringside all agreed. This is one of those fights that did live up to the hype and will stay in peoples memories for a long time. Great fight.

vanda-pudwill

Matt Vanda MD (76,76/77,75/77,75) over Tocker Pudwill – According to the crowd, the writers, Vanda and his Corner’s reaction, the judges were watching a different fight. After it was through, I was able to talk to Anthony Bonsante and Jake Wagner, who were both broadcasting the nights events, and they both had it for Tocker by a landslide. At best this could have been a draw, but two judges giving Vanda the win by two points is beyond me. The fight itself was entertaining. The first 4 rounds I easily gave to Tocker because of his activity and reach. It just didn’t seem like Vanda could figure out how to get inside. Tocker had great defense and in those first 4 rounds didn’t get touched by much. The second half of the 8 round affair was a much closer bout. Vanda definitely landed the bigger punches and had Tocker hurt on a few occasions. I could have scored the last four for Vanda, giving him a draw but didn’t. I had Tocker winning by 2 points. This fight did show why people love Vanda– he shows no fear, and he is always on the prowl. If he had fought the whole fight like he did the last four rounds, I don’t know if it would have gone the distance, but I’m sure that had something to do with Tocker. A lot of credit needs to be given to Vanda for understanding the slight given to Tocker. He immediately offered Tocker a rematch and Vanda didn’t stay for the post fight interview. Tocker’s people were heard saying that they would take a rematch, just not in Minnesota.

What a night at the Target Center. I cannot wait for their next boxing event. There was not a fight on the card that wasn’t fun to watch. The Midwest Sports Council did a great job on lining up the cast for 2009′s best show to date.

Todd

Weigh-in Action

Posted on April 18, 2009 by Todd

Photos Courtesy of snaplocally.com

Wow! This was the most exciting prefight event I have been to. Matt Vanda and Tocker Pudwill stepped on and off the scale with no drama. Then the show began. Allen Litzau and Wilton Hilario both made their weight no problem, but had major problems when it came to who got to go in the ring last. Enough problems that both sides had to be restrained. If you haven’t gotten your tickets yet, do so, these two mean business. Phillip Payne started off almost ten pounds heavier than Jason Litzau but came back 5 pounds less and the fight is on. Patrick Cape got down to nothing to make weight.

matt

Phil “The Drill” Williams saw his opponent weigh 166 fully clothed and decided he wasn’t going to fight. He shouted that he wanted somebody big enough to fight with him. Phil hit the scale at 176, one pound over the contract weight of 175. Phil exclaimed he wanted Walters.

drill2

Press Release, Updated Fight Card for “Unfinished Business”

Posted on April 12, 2009 by Todd

Matt Vanda [won 39 (KO 22) + lost 9 (KO 1) + drawn 0] v. Tocker Pudwill [won 40 (KO 14) + lost 6 (KO 3) + drawn 0]– 8 rounds – 160 lbs.

Wilton Hilario [won 10 (KO 08) + lost 0 (KO 0) + drawn 1] v. Allen Litzau [won 13 (KO 7) + lost 3 (KO 2) + drawn 0]– 10 rounds – 130 lbs.

Cerresso Fort [won 5 (KO 5) + lost 0 (KO 0) + drawn 0] v. Bobby Kliewer [won 9 (KO 4) + lost 7 (KO 5) + drawn 2]– 6 rounds – 160 lbs.

Jason Litzau [won 23 (KO 19) + lost 2 (KO 2) + drawn 0] v. Phillip Payne [won 16 (KO 08) + lost 22 (KO 4) + drawn 1] – 8 rounds – 132 lbs.

Phil Williams [won 10 (KO 9) + lost 1 (KO 1) + drawn 0] v. John Turner is nolonger on card – 6 rounds – 175 lbs.

Jon Laboda [won 4 (KO 3) + lost 0 (KO 0) + drawn 0] v. Patrick Cape [won 5 (KO 3) + lost 4 (KO 3) + drawn 0] – 5 rounds – 147 lbs.

Donny Tierney [Pro Debut] v. David Duncan [won 0 (KO 0) + lost 1 (KO 1) + drawn 0] – 4 rounds – 152 lbs.

March 28, 2009, Hinckley Grand Casino, A Night to Remember

Posted on March 29, 2009 by Todd

All Photos Courtesy of Walters Photography, >waltersphotography.us

Photo Courtesy of Walters Photography, all rights reserved

Hinckley Grand Casino and the Midwest Sports Council put on an event to remember. Not only were the fans treated to a changing of the guard in the middleweight division, Andy Kolle’s TKO of Anthony Bonsante, they were witness to Minnesota boxing at its best. A couple future stars shined in Gary Eyer and Cerresso Fort. I live and report out of Duluth Minnesota, so Eyer’s and Kolle’s performances are strongly etched in my brain, but Fort and Joshua Rodriguez probably had the most entertaining fight of the evening. My oh my, how I love Minnesota boxing. Below is my fight by fight report. Winners are in bold.

Patrick Cape (KO round 3) over Daniel Schlienz – You could tell from the start that these two fighters were also teammates. Cape came in on one days notice because Tyler Gould could not make it out of Fargo ND due to flooding. Cape was the aggressor for most of this bout. Cape seemed to be able to land his overhand right at will, bloodying Daniels nose in the first round. The second round was pretty much the same, but Shlienz seemed to come alive towards the end. By the third round, the one day’s notice seemed to be showing on Cape until he landed a huge right hook that ended the fight.

Gary Eyer (TKO round 1) over Scott Robinson – Scott started this fight the aggressor, feeling Gary out with his jab. Then Gary began his snapping hooks to Scott’s body. Robinson hit the canvas but showed tremendous courage in continuing his charge towards Eyer. This courage was met with more body blows sending Scott to the mat again, the fight being called by the ref after. The headline for this bout would be ” Gary to the body”.

Cerresso Fort (TKO round 4) over Joshua Rodriguez – Fort entered the ring to his very own rap tune. This fight was high action and courage from start to finish. Fort seemed to be landing heavy shots and monster combinations at will. He was always a hair quicker to the punch. The speed in which Fort threw his combos was truly impressive. I cannot say enough about the toughness Rodriguez displayed in continuing to bring the fight back at Cerresso. However, Joshua could not get his punches off fast enough. Rodriguez was knocked to the ropes in the 4th round by a lightning fast flurry of punches from Fort. Usually when I see punches in bunches like Fort was throwing I don’t see the power that Cerresso was able to sustain with those quick combos. Mercifully the ref stopped the fight when Joshua got to his feet. For those that are lovers of the jab, this was not the fight for you. For those who love non stop action, much joy was had.

Brad Patraw (UD 60-54, 59-55, 59-55) over Antwan Robertson – While Antwan seemed to be the slicker boxer, this fight was all Patraw. To start the fight, Antwan seemed content to test his defense and quickness, unfortunately for him, he continued that approach for pretty much the whole fight. Brad was slinging shots at Antwan from opening bell through fights end. I’m sorry I don’t have more to write about this fight, but it was pretty much Patraw chasing Robertson around the ring, landing punches on occasion.

Photo Courtesy Walters Photography, all rights reserved

Andy Kolle (TKO round 3) over Anthony Bonsante – This is what boxing is all about. Fans were chanting, “Kolle, Kolle” and heard “Bullet, Bullet” in response. The crowd was electric and you could feel all of the emotion and anticipation in the air. Andy “Kaos” Kolle fans were happy to see “Pimp” James bringing out Kaos for this event. The fans were vocal for each fighter’s presentation. Round 1 started out with the usual feeling out process. Kolle was using his jab to keep Bonsante at distance. The Bullet seemed a little tentative until the end of the round when he threw some meaningful punches. I had round 1 as Kolle’s. Round 2 started with Bonsante throwing serious power at every portion of Kolle, body shots, hooks, straight rights, many of which landed. As the round progressed Kolle was able to keep Bonsante at bay using his jab and straight left. Kolle also landed a couple big hooks to the Bullet’s head. This was a close round. I could see it being scored for either fighter, but I had it going to Kolle. Round 3 started again with Tony on the attack. Bonsante landed a big 1-2-3 combo, all with big power. This barrage of power shots had Kaos retreating. When Kolle was able to gain control of the action he landed a big left to Tony’s head, but the Bullet waved his hand calling Andy to continue the pressure, that’s just what Kaos did. A monster straight left hit Bonsante on the button, sending him to the canvas. The bullet popped up at the count of 8 but told the ref two times that he was not ready to continue. The fight was stopped after Tony showed no interest in taking more shots from Kolle. In a show of tremendous class, Bonsante took the microphone after the fight to congratulate Andy Kolle on becoming the new Minnesota middleweight champion. He also stated that if he had to lose the fight and belt, Kolle was the man he would want it to be against. Andy Kolle was also very gracious and classy in his comments after the fight. Andy stated that he would like to begin fighting at 154 lbs, saying getting to 160 lbs was no longer a challenge to him.

Photo Coutesy of Walters Photography, all rights reserved

The biggest winners of the night were the fans. What a show. Team Horton came away 2 for 2, as did Rice Street Gym. Enough cannot be said of how good this event was for boxing in this state. Although attendence numbers varied, I can tell you, I have not seen that many fight fans at a boxing event in Hinckley before last night. It was great to see all of the professional boxers in attendance: Zach Walters, Phil Williams, Jason and Allen Litzua, Caleb Truax, Willshaun Boxley, RJ Lasse, to just name a few. Seconds Out Promotions was there in support of this event as well. Our hats go off to all the fighters along with Hinckley Grand Casino and the Midwest Sports Council for giving us this show.

Todd

Andy “Kaos” Kolle is the new MN Middleweight Champion

Posted on March 29, 2009 by Todd

Courtesy Walters Photography, all rights reserved

I will have a full report of the fight card Sunday. Hickley Grand Casino and the Midwest Sports Council put on a fantastic show. This was great for Minnesota boxing. Team Horton went 2 for 2 with Both Gary Eyer and Andy Kolle winning impressively. Below are the results with the winner in bold. Again, there will be a detailed report on Sunday.

Andy Kollevs Anthony Bonsante

Brad Patraw vs Antwan Robertson

Cerresso Fort vs Joshua Rodriguez

Gary Eyer vs Scott Robinson

Patrick Cape vs Daniel Schlienz

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Tag Archives: Patrick Cape

Minnesota’s Boxing

“T-Rex” RJ Laase Interview

“Unfinished Business”, Results / Guess Who’s Back

Weigh-in Action

Press Release, Updated Fight Card for “Unfinished Business”

March 28, 2009, Hinckley Grand Casino, A Night to Remember

Andy “Kaos” Kolle is the new MN Middleweight Champion