2007RBTNews

Boxing: Cantu ready for Ramos after eating,
sleeping, dreaming of bout

Web Posted: 02/21/2007 01:00 AM CST

John Whisler
Express-News

If James Cantu loses to Hector Ramos tonight, it won't be because he wasn't prepared. Cantu has been
focused on beating Ramos for the past year.

"My coach told me I have to eat, sleep and dream this fight," Cantu said. "That's what I've been doing."

The question is, will it be enough? The light welterweights, arguably the two best boxers in this year's field,
are set to square off in a highly anticipated 2007 San Antonio Regional Golden Gloves bout at Woodlawn
Gym.

Both Cantu and Ramos won first-round, open-division bouts Tuesday at Woodlawn as the local Golden
Gloves tournament kicked off its 69th year before an overflow crowd of 650 with 29 bouts.

Cantu, 17, who only became eligible to compete in the tournament this year, advanced by beating Pete
Villarreal of the Kelly Air Force Boxing Club on Tuesday. Cantu knows he will have a more difficult time tonight
(first bell is at 7).

Ramos, 25, is ranked No. 2 in the nation by USA Boxing and is a veteran of international competition. He
recently returned from the Pan American Games trials in Colorado Springs, Colo., and last December he
traveled to Azerbaijan to compete in the World Cup.

Cantu says he and his coach, Joe Lopez of Angel's Boxing Club, have been studying tapes of Ramos' fights
on the Internet.

"He's going to have to stay on the inside and pressure Ramos," Lopez said. "That's easier said than done,
though."

Ramos, the two-time defending San Antonio champion, says he'll be ready.

"I love it when they come right at me," said Ramos, who won a bronze medal at the U.S. Championships in
2005 and a silver medal last year. "This should be a great fight for the fans and Golden Gloves boxing."

Ramos, of Ramos Boxing Team, stopped Paul Rangel of Scholar Warriors Boxing in just 40 seconds Tuesday.

Another 141-pound boxer in the open division, Matt McCoy of Kelly Air Force Boxing Club, advanced with an
impressive one-punch, right-hook knockout of Corwyne Smith of Austin. McCoy is scheduled to meet Steven
Hall of the San Antonio Parks & Recreation team tonight. Hall had a first-round bye. The winner advances to
Saturday's open division finals against the Cantu-Ramos winner.

In Tuesday's other action, John Valdez of Team Morones Boxing defeated Victor Munoz of Scholar Warrior
Boxing Club 5-0 in a high-action battle of sub-novice light welterweights.

'Piano Man' takes talents to ring as Golden Gloves open tonight

Web Posted: 02/19/2007 10:07 PM CST

John Whisler
Express-News

For Alex McCumba, the same gifted hands that tickle the ivories soon will be punching people in the nose.
A recent graduate of the Berkeley College of Music in Boston, McCumba says he came home to San Antonio,
in part, to pursue his childhood passion — boxing.

"It's something I've had a love for all my life," he said.

McCumba joins a field of 145 boxers determined to test their skills at the 69th annual San Antonio Regional
Golden Gloves Tournament that opens tonight at Woodlawn Gym.

Preliminary bouts run through Thursday with the novice and sub-novice division finals set for Friday at
Woodlawn.

Saturday, the action shifts to Alzafar Shrine Temple for the open division finals.

First bell each night is 7 p.m.

McCumba, 23, has been playing the piano since the age of 11. He became something of a prodigy and, after
two years at Central Catholic High School, he enrolled at the North East School of the Arts on the Lee High
School campus.

At Berkeley, McCumba majored in film scoring, the composing of music written for a movie.

He works at a local recording studio during the day and trains at Calderon Boys & Girls Club in the evenings
before going off to his night gig playing in a band at Dick's Last Resort on the River Walk.

McCumba said boxing was a sport he always wanted to try, but never was able to because of the demands of
his music.

The two endeavors are surprisingly similar, he said.

"Both take a lot of practice and dedication," McCumba said. He pointed out that the late Miles Davis, the
famed jazz musician, was once a boxer.

McCumba's coach, Ton Pastran, said so far his pupil — whom he calls "The Piano Man" — has been hitting
all the right notes in the gym. McCumba started training at Calderon five months ago.

"He trains very hard," Pastran said. "He's one guy I don't have to keep after. He's very disciplined."

McCumba, a welterweight, will compete tonight in the sub-novice division, which means it will be his first bout.

He says he's not worried about hurting the hands that he depends on for his music. But he is anxious to get
going.

"When I first started, it was all physical," McCumba said. "Now it's all mental."

The field is led by Hector Ramos, the two-time defending San Antonio champion at 141 pounds. Ramos is the
No. 2-ranked light welterweight in the nation by USA Boxing.

He will have plenty of competition. The 141-pound division is crowded with talented boxers. They include
James Cantu of Angel's Boxing Club and Steven Hall of the San Antonio Parks & Recreation Department
team.

Hall, 28, a native of Manchester, England, who recently became a U.S. citizen, knows he's going to have to be
on his game in order to win and advance to state.

"You always want to fight the best, and this is the best," he said.

The state Golden Gloves Tournament is Feb. 28-March 3 in Fort Worth. Only the winners of the open
division — boxers with more than 10 career bouts — in San Antonio are eligible to advance to state.

The Parks & Recreation team, led by head coach Joe Souza, could have as many as 32 boxers at the
tournament this week, the most of any gym.