The turnout was a bit light at The Palladium Ballroom for Black Gloves Promotions’ A New Year’s Knockout, but that didn’t take away from the energy once the fights began. Fans know they’ll get their money’s worth with Hatleys on the card, and this night was no different.

Charles Hatley (r) Lester Gonzalez (l) photo by T. Warner.

The Future (l) jabs Lester Gonzalez Photo by T. Warner

The main event featured Black Gloves’ own Charles “The Future” Hatley (17-0-1, 12 KO’s) and Lester “El Cubanito” Gonzalez (12-6-3, 6 KO’s) of Havana, Cuba. Gonzalez looked calm and confident as he entered the ring to take on the undefeated Hatley, no doubt wondering if this would be the fight to break Hatley’s record, a thought that is on everyone’s mind when Charles Hatley enters a ring. But Hatley once again gave the crowd what they expect from him: victory.

Round one was not too eventful; both fighters stared intently at each other, gauging the other’s moves. Gonzalez was much more reserved in this round than Hatley, who threw more punches but still seemed hesitant. In round 2, both fighters still seemed to be calculating more than hitting, but Hatley was much more aggressive this round and unleashed a battery of punches in the last fifteen seconds, a preview of what was to come. By the end of round 3, Gonzalez was staggering a bit and looking tired as Hatley grew increasingly generous with the punches. Gonzalez attacked in the beginning of round 4 with what seemed to be a burst of regained confidence, but he quickly lost that as Hatley maneuvered him into the ropes and once again left him sprawling when the bell rang. Hatley dominated round 5, though he did receive a reprimand for what appeared to be a head butt. Gonzalez started the final round with another burst, charging at Hatley in his last chance to take him down. But this only added fuel to Hatley’s fight; determined to protect his undefeated status, Hatley ferociously countered Gonzalez’s attack, pounding his opponent mercilessly until the bell rang. Hatley won by unanimous decision, all three judges scoring the fight 60-54.

Greg Hatley (r) and Tyrone Jackson Photo by T. Warner.

Greg Hatley (l) and Tyrone Jackson Photo by T. Warner.

Light Heavyweights Greg “The Technician” Hatley (6-1, 5 KO’s), also of Dallas’ Black Gloves Promotions, and Tyrone “Sandman” Jackson (8-38-3, 5 KO’s)of Tyler, TX entered the ring for the second bout of the night. Jackson was previously defeated by Greg’s brother Charles in October of 2011 and now has the honor of having been defeated by both Hatleys. From the beginning of round 1 Hatley’s superiority over his opponent was clear. Hatley’s moves were refined and controlled in contrast to Jackson’s, whose were more like those of a bulldozer. Hatley truly showed himself to be a ‘technician’, using his length to keep his opponent at a distance and then landing precise and powerful blows when he attacked. Jackson tended to flail a bit more, seeming to relyon his heft rather than strategy. Rounds 1 and 2 showed a more reticent Hatley, but in round 3 the pace changed as he closed the gap between himself and Jackson multiple times, each time meeting his mark with force and precision. As the bell ended round 3, Jackson’s left eye was swollen and he struggled to remain on his feet. By round 4, it was clear that all of Jackson’s flailing and bulldozing had left him tired. At one point, he came out of his stance and just stood with his hands down by his side, looking dazed. This would have been the perfect moment for Hatley to get a knockout, but he missed the opportunity, perhaps surprised at how wide open Jackson had left himself. Bolstered by the crowd, who was screaming at him to finish off his tired opponent, Hatley let loose a succession of blows that almost brought Jackson to the canvas as the bell ended the fight. Hatley won by unanimous decision, all three judges scoring the fight 40-36.

Kuin Evans (r) lands as Noe Bravo covers Photo by J. Escobar.

Noe Bravo (l) and Kuin Evans Photo by J. Escobar.

The night opened with two featherweight fighters making their professional debuts, Kiun “The Boss” Evans (1-0) of Little Rock, AK and Noe Bravo (0-1) of Tyler, TX. Evans is a two-time Arkansas Golden Gloves State Champion, Bravo a Golden Gloves Regional Champion. Before the fight, Evans spoke of his readiness to win: “I’m as ready as I’ve ever been.  I’m focused; I’ve never been so focused about anything. This is what I’ve trained my whole life for, and I’m ready. I’m going into this fight like it’s the last fight of my life.” Evans proved himself to be both ready and focused when he entered the ring with Bravo. Within the first ten seconds of round 1, Evans knocked Bravo to the ground and sent his mouthpiece flying. Bravo immediately returned to his feet, however, and the fight continued. Evans had an impressive first round, in which he really showed his skill. His long arms and legs gave him an advantage over Bravo, as he was able to keep his distance fairly well, while still landing quick, double body shots at every opportunity. By the end of round 1, Bravo struggled to remain standing. In round 2, Evans showed his impressive ring generalship, not only hitting home with most of his punches, but also ducking Bravo’s attempts, leaving Bravo swinging at air many times. Bravo did manage to land some effective blows, but Evans dominated his opponent overall in round 2. Bravo took a beating in round 3, as Evans continued with well-placed body shots and uppercuts. At one point, his jab hit Bravo directly in the face, snapping his head back and leaving him stunned and faltering. He showed amazing recovery though and remained on his feet. Bravo began round 4 aggressively but quickly succumbed to Evans’ ability to take advantage of almost every opportunity. He lost his mouthpiece three or four more times in round 4, which frustrated the crowd as well as Evans as the fighting was halted each time. The fight ended when referee Wayne Fletcher stopped the fight at 2:00 in the 4th, when Bravo took another hit to the face that left him reeling. Though he insisted he was ok to fight and seemed frustrated by the decision, Bravo lost to an elated Evans, who won his professional debut fight by TKO.

Before the fights began, two other Dallas boxers, Larry “Slow Motion” Smith and Jesse “The Dallas Kid” Lara came into the ring and spoke to fans about their fights being cancelled. Smith’s scheduled opponent, Jorge Suarez (5-0, 5 KO’s) of San Antonio, TX, defeated Smith in October 2011, but, as Smith explained to the crowd, he had in his opinion won that fight. He encouraged fans to watch it on YouTube as they were going to miss out on what he said would have been a “revenge fight.” The crowd cheered and laughed as Smith told the crowd that Suarez needed to “quit running.” Lara, who has not been in the ring in 18 months, was disappointed that his scheduled opponent, Khalik Memminger (6-8-3, 3 KO’s) of Killeen, TX had been a no-show at the weigh in and said he hoped to be back in the ring soon.

Black Gloves Promotions had generously offered fans a refund since the card had been reduced to three bouts as a result of the no-shows, and though some did take advantage of the offer, the fans who remained made the venue feel much more crowded than it was as they yelled for their favorites. Despite the obstacles, Black Gloves Promotions gave Dallas fans another memorable night of fights.

The ring girls another highlight of the night.