All Army Boxing Championships begin with a night of qualifying bouts

FORT HUACHUCA – The first night of the 2017 All Army Boxing Championships kicked off here yesterday at Barnes Field. Seven bouts in five weight classes were contested.

Championship bouts take place Saturday. Doors open at 6 p.m. and boxing begins at 7 p.m. The public is welcome to join us to cheer on our Army boxers and admission is free.

Fort Huachuca has a rich heritage of Army Boxing beginning in 1987. Lt. Gen. Emmett Paige, Jr., then commander of the Army Information Systems Command, gave the go ahead to host the first All Army Boxing Championships here, which were followed by the hosting responsibilities for the 1988 Olympic team.

Two Army boxers garnered gold at the games in Seoul. Sgt. 1st Class Andrew Maynard and Sgt. Ray Mercer earned their places on the top platform of the Olympic medal podium.

Army Boxing remained at Fort Huachuca until 1996, when it was temporarily moved to Fort Carson, Colorado to be close to the Olympic Training Center. The team returned home to Fort Huachuca in 1999, due in large part to the support of the installation and surrounding communities, and the All Army Boxing Championships have been hosted here ever since. Fort Huachuca has also hosted the 2000, 2004, and 2008 Armed Forces Boxing Championships and the 2004 CISM (International Military Sports Council) Boxing Championships.

FORT HUACHUCA — Every boxer still brings something individual on their journey into the ring. It can be a long road to climb through those ropes.

Spc. Edward Sosa has been boxing on and off for 14 years. Given that he’s 24 years old, the sport has been a part of most of his life.

And it was somewhat of a homecoming for Sosa when he arrived on Fort Huachuca from Fort Riley, Kansas, last month to take part in the All Army Boxing Team, which is celebrating its 30th anniversary on the southeastern Arizona military installation. Sosa originally hails from about three and a half hours north of here, in Glendale.

He was part of the seven-fight card Thursday night at Barnes Field House featuring preliminary bouts with bids for Saturday night’s championship rounds up for grabs.

He and Sgt. Jeremy Rendon, out of Fort Drum, New York, treated the big crowd to one of the better fights of the evening, at the 152-pound level, which isn’t even Sosa’s lighter fighting weight.

Rendon had the definite reach advantage but both punchers landed big blows in a thrilling first round packed with activity, jabs and the night’s first real buzz from the audience.

Sosa took control in the second round with some big haymakers. Rendon’s face was starting to swell inside his headgear.

The third and final round was just as exciting, but Sosa had enough in him to emerge victorious by decision, landing several from his relentless punch approach.

“That’s basically my strategy,” he said afterward. “I don’t have much power. I’m too small for the weight class. I just try to throw as many punches as I can, win or lose.”

Sosa’s been fighting for much of his life, including some personal battles.

“I guess you could say I was obese as a kid, and my dad signed me up (for boxing),” he said. “The first year I hated it, but after I sparred the first time — I sparred an older kid — I just felt this was something I want to do. I just never had the opportunity to do it consistently.”

He’ll have another opportunity this Saturday night, again at Barnes Field House, with a spot in the championship round.

As he looks to fight in his more natural weight class, Sosa figures to drop some weight between now and Saturday, but he has other plans also.

“I’m just gonna relax,” he noted.

The boxers will all look to relax soon as they near the end of a strenuous training camp. All Army Boxing made its first appearance on Fort Huachuca in 1987, followed by hosting responsibilities for the 1988 Olympic team.

Several boxers from that first Army Tournament not only qualified for the Games that year in Seoul, South Korea, but two Army soldiers — Spc. Andrew Maynard and Sgt. Ray Mercer — won gold medals, to help put the Sierra Vista Army base on the map for amateur boxing training.

Fort Huachuca also has hosted the 2000, 2004 and 2008 Armed Forces Championships, and the 2004 Military World Boxing Championships.

Despite all that history, Thursday night on the base was all about the current crop of soldier boxers.

“It’s about them,” Ssgt. Quentin McCoy, the team’s head coach, said while watching the bouts Thursday night.

“I’m happy for them to finish up the trial camp. We put ’em through three weeks of hell. They’re here to showcase their talent for Fort Huachuca and the rest of the soldiers here. So I’m happy for them to make it this far.”

Saturday’s champions will qualify for the National Police Athletic League Boxing Tournament, which gets under way June 19 in Oxnard, California.

The championship rounds on Saturday start at 7 p.m. and are free and open to the public.

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