On a crisp October night a scant 4 days from Halloween, Englebrecht Promotions & Events put on yet another sold out Fight Club OC show (1500 in attendance) from the Hangar at the OC Fair & Events Center in Costa Mesa, CA. The capacity crowd was enthralled and the cheers began almost immediately as veteran ring announcer Mike Hart greeted the crowd.
Opening the show was an energetic 4 round super lightweight boxing contest between San Diego’s Juanito Ornelas and Hemet’s Fernando Gaytan. Ornelas 1-1-1 started off a little slow in the first round as he looked to gain his footing against Gaytan 0-1. It didn’t take long for Ornelas to figure out his opponent and ultimately he cruised to a 4 round decision to win the contest over Gaytan. Ornelas improves to 2-1-1.
After giveaways by sponsors Primero Gloves, Kings & Legend’s clothing, and Randy’s Donuts (which the audience loved), Reseda’s Mathias Radcliffe 4-0-1 (3KOs) battled Shafter, CA’s Andres Gerardo 3-0 (3KOs) in a lightweight battle in which someone’s O had to go. And what a bout it was as Radcliffe stalked Gerardo in the first and second round. He scored a knockdown in the second and it looked like it would be an early night for Radcliffe, but Gerardo roared back and went toe to toe after that. There was a lot of back and forth action, with Radcliffe retaining a cut over his eye, but he powered through and ultimately took a decision over the very worthy Gerardo.
After announcing that tickets were available for the film 18th & Grand as well as a Gina’s Pizza giveaway, we moved into the realm of MMA which saw Rowland Height’s Adam Garcia taking on Anaheim’s Sam Hwang in a scintillating lightweight bout in which both fighters were making their pro debuts. It didn’t take long for Garcia to catch Hwang with a shot to the head that he never recovered from. At that point, sensing the end was near, Garcia showered punches on the durable Hwang and after about 25 unanswered punches, the referee saw fit to stop the contest.
After even more giveaways from Descano’s Restaurant and Randy’s Donuts (both in Costa Mesa, CA), San Fernando’s favorite son Sonny Robledo 5-0 (2KOs) battled Banning’s Jacob Serrano 3-1 (3KOs) in a measured super lightweight boxing match. It was all Robledo from the opening round as Serrano just didn’t seem to have an answer for Robledo’s speed and angles. Round after round, Robledo tattooed Serrano, closing out the last round by bloodying his game but outgunned opponent to take a decision.
In between bouts, there was another giveaway for the sumptuous Newport Rib Company, and then Anaheim’s Miguel Ceja (0-1) fought Alhambra’s Jay San Luis who was debuting. This flyweight MMA bout did not disappoint as Miguel Ceja took the first round and seemingly bloodied the nose of the cautious San Luis. San Luis came out of his shell in the second round and took the fight to Ceja. Ceja was even taken to the ground but managed to get up without taking too much punishment. In the third round, Ceja had San Luis retreating again and that was the difference as Ceja took a decision over San Luis that was met with cheers from the sell-out crowd.
Headlining the card was blue chip prospect Jesse Gonzalez (5-0 2KOs) from Santa Ana vs. Rodolfo Gamez 2-6 (1KO) from Tucson, AZ. This four round super welterweight battle saw Gonzalez drop Gamez in the first and third rounds. Gamez was game and landed some shots of his own, but Gonzalez was perpetual motion all the way and pounded out a decision. Apparently, Santa Ana has never had a world champion from its hallowed streets, and it seems like Gonzalez is looking to change that. With the way he’s going, it just might become a reality.
It was a grand night at Fight Club OC! This was the second to last bout of the year with the final show on 12/1.