April has turned out to be a busy month in the Langley boxing scene.
Dan Csaszar, an 18-year-old super middleweight, has joined the City Boxing Club. Csaszar may be the best young prospect in B.C. and if there were such a thing as a first round draft pick in boxing to advance to the pros, Dan would be the guy.
City Boxing manager Dave Allison says Csaszar is not yet ready for the pros but is close and will appear in "Clash @ The Cascade 8" for all to see.
Two of Langley’s young and up-and-coming boxers ventured down south and challenged two Americans earlier this month. Fighting in the U.S. is always a challenge for Canadian boxers due to the depth of competition on the U.S. side.
Mat Andreatta, who just turned 17 in January, had the toughest challenge when he took his 6-0-1 record into the ring with 20-year-old Nestor Garcia. The age difference was the big difference and a challenge for Andreatta.
Andreatta's last fight was against 22-year-old Derrick Wong, however, Wong weighed 118 lbs. to Andreatta’s 125 lbs. This time weight was in the slight favour of Garcia, as was experience, and this created a tough, grinding contest. The first two rounds went to Garcia by a slim margin, however, Andreatta was able to turn the tide in the third. This was not enough for the judges who saw it for the American, handing Andreatta his first loss. The young prospect falls to 6-1-1.
Club-mate Dustin Oster, 16, had an easier assignment and looked great in nearly stopping his opponent Jose Gualip, 15, in the second. Oster could not seal the deal and had to settle for a unanimous decision win. Oster now sports a 2-1-0 and looks to avenge his only loss May 6 when he rematches Ibrahim Ibrahim at Clash 8. Allison says both fighters handled themselves very well and can be proud of their performances.
CLASH 8 WILL SEE RUBBER MATCH
Shawn McDonald, 21, and Jake Weitzel, 29, will rematch for Weitzel's B.C. Welterweight title May 6 at Clash @ The Cascade 8. These two have one victory against each other over the past year and both were split decisions; this will be the tiebreaker.
This will be a chance for Langley boxing fans to get a look at Dan Csaszar, when he meets a very tough Ty MacDougall, who is favoured to defeat Csaszar. MacDougall was the 2008 B.C. Golden Boy as the outstanding boxer at the Golden Gloves. MacDougall took a try at the pros, however, returned to the amateurs, regaining his amateur status with Boxing Canada.
The seven-bout show will also include Langley’s Darren Cooper and Aldergrove's Luke Davies. Allison says on paper this may be the highest quality-boxing event yet at the Coast Hotel and Convention Centre series.
City Boxing now works out at The Revolution Fitness Centre and is part of the Revolution Fight Team. They are now able to offer younger athletes who are interested in boxing. They have some eight-year-olds coming along and on the June 24 show there will be Tyke Boxing. This is a program allowing for youngsters to box from the ages of eight to 10.
Also returning to City Boxing is Sarah Pucek, now Sarah Lowry. She will be teaching an all-women’s boxing class once a week for beginners, for fitness and recreation. It will also be considered a beginners class for anyone who wants to continue and be part of the overall boxing program.
"With this facility and the support of the Revolution team we are offering the best boxing program here in Langley," says Allison. "Where else can you get this level of specialty training and the opportunity to compete?"
Call 604-550-7897 for information.