Jorge Guerrero (left), of Kalamazoo Eastside Boxing Club, is pictured boxing in a Intermediate Novice bout at a boxing event at G-A High School March 22.
A natural goal in the sport of boxing is to defeat your opponent. However there’s more to the sport that is appealing to athletes and coaches.
Kalamazoo Eastside Boxing Club owner and trainer Curtis Isaac networked with Galesburg-Augusta Athletic Director Mike Woodard in the 1990s and again in 2023 holding boxing events at G-A High School to give local residents and students a closer look at boxing.
A similar 21 bout card at G-A High School March 22 was held before a large crowd and brought some entertaining matches.
The event also brought insight why the young boxers and their coaches enjoy the sport.
Philip Severinski, a seventh grader at Monroe Middle School who was fighting in his fourth fight at G-A High School since he started training with Joe’s ALCC Boxing Club out of Monroe, feels boxing brings discipline. The 13-year-old feels the sport is a motivator to get better and he uses each match as a learning experience.
“You can’t succeed all the time. You just can’t succeed from one thing. You have to keep moving straight to get better and better and better. It doesn’t matter if you’re a professional boxer or amateur boxer and you lost your first or second fight. It doesn’t matter. You have to correct what you’re doing and you have to figure out what you did wrong and then fix that.
That’s what my dad says and that’s what I’m doing,” said Severinski, who said Mohammad Ali was his all time favorite boxer and inspired him to try the sport.
Jorge Guerrero, who competed in an Intermediate Novice bout he won by a decision, said boxing can be similar to life. He said if he loses, he has to be motivated to get right back up and figure out how to get better.
“You don’t give up. If you lose, then that’s just a reminder that you need to improve more to win a lot,” said Guerrero, who said he has been training at Kalamazoo Eastside Boxing with Isaac for nearly two years.
Oscar Sandoval, who enjoys playing soccer, said his friends turned him to boxing. The 20-year-old said he embraced the opportunity to participate in a sport that pushes him to be better individually.
“With soccer, and a bunch of these other sports, you’re focused on team. You’re not just relying on yourself, you’re also relying on your team. But in boxing, it’s just more independent.
It’s just you relying on yourself. It’s all on you. Just to be able to play effectively,” said Sandoval, who attends Western Michigan University where he is majoring in accounting.
Sandoval, who trains under Isaac at Kalamazoo Eastside Boxing Club, also feels boxing creates discipline.
“There’s a lot of rules that come with boxing that helps you become more disciplined and respect other people. There’s always going be other people that are better than you. So it’s good to have an open, mind, be humble, so that you could be better off growing yourself. As a boxer, you could take that into other places, whether that would be school or work. I feel like for me personally, it has helped me in that way,” said Sandoval, a 2022 graduate of Kalamazoo Loy Norrix who lost his Elite Novice match to Jeremiah Richard.
Sieyumbe Arrington, who coaches boxers at the IronFist Boxing Club and Learning Center out of Kokomo, Indiana, feels boxing pushes an athlete to improve and be a better person.
“Boxing is a very disciplined sport. It keeps them out of trouble, it keeps them focused and it holds them accountable because it’s a sub-sport. It’s one on one. So you only have yourself to blame if you don’t put the proper work in. There’s no teammates to put the blame on. So if you want the results you have to put the work in,” said Arrington, also known as Coach Law.
“It’s going to keep you on the straight and narrow because it takes hard work and dedication in order to box. You have to eat right, you have to get the proper rest, you have to stay away from all of the mayhem and all of the B.S. So yes, boxing helps our children to stay on the right path. It’s big time discipline,” said Arrington.
Arrington said he wants what’s best for young people so it becomes very rewarding to him as a coach when he sees a young person use boxing as an avenue to become more disciplined and motivator to stay out of trouble.
“I use the sport to help advance them mentally and physically. I like to keep highlighting, keep them held accountable. So you don’t have no one to blame but yourself if you don’t show up and perform. Because that means you didn’t put the proper work in,” said Coach Law.
Isaac said the event at G-A was in honor of former Kalamazoo Central High School Principal John Caldwell and Dr. Jack Hunt, a family practitioner doctor for 64 years and the team physician for Comstock Public Schools, Kalamazoo College, and Hillsdale College.
Bruce Williams, a school psychologist for 45 years in VanBuren County, a clinical psychologist 30 years for Kalamazoo Psychology services and business owner of the Tap Room and Lamplighter in Comstock, was recognized at the March 22 event for his support of amateur boxing and the Kalamazoo Eastside Boxing Club.
The event also brought insight why the young boxers and their coaches enjoy the sport.
Philip Severinski, a seventh grader at Monroe Middle School who was fighting in his fourth fight at G-A High School since he started training with Joe’s ALCC Boxing Club out of Monroe, feels boxing brings discipline. The 13-year-old feels the sport is a motivator to get better and he uses each match as a learning experience.
“You can’t succeed all the time. You just can’t succeed from one thing. You have to keep moving straight to get better and better and better. It doesn’t matter if you’re a professional boxer or amateur boxer and you lost your first or second fight. It doesn’t matter. You have to correct what you’re doing and you have to figure out what you did wrong and then fix that.
That’s what my dad says and that’s what I’m doing,” said Severinski, who said Mohammad Ali was his all time favorite boxer and inspired him to try the sport.
Jorge Guerrero, who competed in an Intermediate Novice bout he won by a decision, said boxing can be similar to life. He said if he loses, he has to be motivated to get right back up and figure out how to get better.
“You don’t give up. If you lose, then that’s just a reminder that you need to improve more to win a lot,” said Guerrero, who said he has been training at Kalamazoo Eastside Boxing with Isaac for nearly two years.
Oscar Sandoval, who enjoys playing soccer, said his friends turned him to boxing. The 20-year-old said he embraced the opportunity to participate in a sport that pushes him to be better individually.
“With soccer, and a bunch of these other sports, you’re focused on team. You’re not just relying on yourself, you’re also relying on your team. But in boxing, it’s just more independent.
It’s just you relying on yourself. It’s all on you. Just to be able to play effectively,” said Sandoval, who attends Western Michigan University where he is majoring in accounting.
Sandoval, who trains under Isaac at Kalamazoo Eastside Boxing Club, also feels boxing creates discipline.
“There’s a lot of rules that come with boxing that helps you become more disciplined and respect other people. There’s always going be other people that are better than you. So it’s good to have an open, mind, be humble, so that you could be better off growing yourself. As a boxer, you could take that into other places, whether that would be school or work. I feel like for me personally, it has helped me in that way,” said Sandoval, a 2022 graduate of Kalamazoo Loy Norrix who lost his Elite Novice match to Jeremiah Richard.
Sieyumbe Arrington, who coaches boxers at the IronFist Boxing Club and Learning Center out of Kokomo, Indiana, feels boxing pushes an athlete to improve and be a better person.
“Boxing is a very disciplined sport. It keeps them out of trouble, it keeps them focused and it holds them accountable because it’s a sub-sport. It’s one on one. So you only have yourself to blame if you don’t put the proper work in. There’s no teammates to put the blame on. So if you want the results you have to put the work in,” said Arrington, also known as Coach Law.
“It’s going to keep you on the straight and narrow because it takes hard work and dedication in order to box. You have to eat right, you have to get the proper rest, you have to stay away from all of the mayhem and all of the B.S. So yes, boxing helps our children to stay on the right path. It’s big time discipline,” said Arrington.
Arrington said he wants what’s best for young people so it becomes very rewarding to him as a coach when he sees a young person use boxing as an avenue to become more disciplined and motivator to stay out of trouble.
“I use the sport to help advance them mentally and physically. I like to keep highlighting, keep them held accountable. So you don’t have no one to blame but yourself if you don’t show up and perform. Because that means you didn’t put the proper work in,” said Coach Law.
Isaac said the event at G-A was in honor of former Kalamazoo Central High School Principal John Caldwell and Dr. Jack Hunt, a family practitioner doctor for 64 years and the team physician for Comstock Public Schools, Kalamazoo College, and Hillsdale College.
Bruce Williams, a school psychologist for 45 years in VanBuren County, a clinical psychologist 30 years for Kalamazoo Psychology services and business owner of the Tap Room and Lamplighter in Comstock, was recognized at the March 22 event for his support of amateur boxing and the Kalamazoo Eastside Boxing Club.
Full access to public notices, articles, columns, archives, statistics, calendar and more
Three-County & Full Pass also available
