by Christine Maynard, photos by Gaby Vila – Victor Bonet performed brilliantly in his “neoprofesionales” four round match against Mariano San Jose, of Madrid. The “Victor” appeared much younger than his opponent, yet he fought with precision and tenacity. He has learned well both accuracy and timing, under the tutelage of his father, Bartula Bonet, who is the trainer for Ibiza Boxing Club. All three of Bartula’s sons are boxers; Victor’s elder brother achieved a very good measure of success, but is no longer fighting.
Neoprofesionales fight without any head gear, which made baby-faced Victor, fighting in camo, appear even more vulnerable against the lean and hungry, more seasoned Mariano.Yet Victor did much more than hold his own. He was totally focused throughout the match. He exhibited excellent control and well practiced footwork. His resounding “two rights in a row” hit their mark, repeatedly. Yet, Mariano hardly flinched. He has a long reach, and he responded to Victor’s assaults with streaking jabs and combos..
In the second round, gloves flew. There were many connecting shots, yet both boxers were also quite good at slipping the punches. The audience responded to their well honed dance of careful footwork and positioning, as they anticipated each other’s moves, with as much gusto as they displayed once the onslaught of punches began.
Mohamed Hanine, Ibiza Boxing Club, easily won his match against Ricardo Sarmiento of Madrid. Sarmiento’s feet crumpled under him in the last seconds of the fight, an apparent KO, but Hanine held him up on the ropes. Sarmiento seemed to recover, but the bell rang before the count was finished, and it was not an official KO. Sadly, Sarmiento was later taken from the arena on a stretcher, for dizziness, and it was rumored he had difficulty with his speech.
Mohamed, the Moroccan, steps into his hooks like a bear mauling its prey. His footwork, and the percentage of body shots he lands brings to mind the style of Mexican boxers. He fights with intention, and always seems to finish what he starts.
Ricardo Samiento is an awkward fighter. His head gear flew off three times. Mohamed appeared frustrated by the delays; the last stop was followed by lots of fire flying from Mohamed.
Mohamed has very good technique, and heart. He was kind and warm during our interview before the fight. When asked how he would like to see his career proceed, he responded, ” where the luck will bring me.”
Mohamed is a middleweight, but his hits seen to land hard and solid, like those of his favorite fighter, Mike Tyson.
Alin Beke, from Romania, with Ibiza Boxing Club, was defeated by Emmanel Melo of Madrid in a very close match which brought rousing applause. Beke, dressed in black on this Halloween, had an almost sinister appearance. Formidable. Aggressive. Edgy and compact, he has many qualities one would expect to find in a superior boxer. Yet, his combos became predictable. And the winner, Melo, out thought his opponent by dancing and punching- getting out of the way of the often too static style of Beke.
Melo took a few jarring punches to the face from Beke. His hands stayed down too long, and his stance appeared quite wide. Yet he has a strong right and fights also with his intelligence which allowed him to foresee the actions of Beke and ultimately win.
Rafael Martinez, “Bravo,” from Ibiza Boxing Club provided great entertainment with his boxing as well as with his showmanship, before and after the fight. He carried Mauricio Maqueda Of Gino Boxing Ibiza, whom he defeated, around the ring, and bowed, with flair, to the audience. He fights with flair,too. He came out very strong. He is often on his toes. His advances have a rhythm like a samba-right hand down, accompanied by a twist with each step toward his opponent. He allowed Maqueda to corner him on the ropes too many times, but he always managed to escape.
Maqueda fought with discipline and a plan. He is a very methodical fighter. He fought well, landing a solid hit on Bravo’s chin, and repeatedly pinning him on the ropes. Both fighters seemed to tire by the final round, and they had to be separated many times.
Javier La Fuente of Club Luminar Ibiza fought Fran. Jose Garcia of Gino Boxing Ibiza. The victory went to LaFuente when the fight doctor, Dr. Santiago, stopped the bout due to an injury to Garcia’s upper arm.
Xavier Gilabert from Barcelona defeated Alejandro Valencia, also of Barcelona. Xavier landed good, hard hits and employed a wide swing. His reach and positioning at times, combined with a proclivity for hopping, seemed to leave him unstable. His opponent, Valencia, was a good slipper, and connected well with some pummeling combos as well as a pop to Gilabert’s nose.
I was fortunate to sit with a very lovely,statuesque witch (Halloween) cloaked in black velvet, and her boyfriend, an ex-boxer, from Poland. Ruth, an Oxford grad in biochemistry, traded in her job as a chef in London at The Eagle, for a life in Ibiza. This was her first exposure to the sport of boxing, although she did recall that a friend from London designed Carl Froch’s boxing shorts. Darius is a fixture at the Ibiza Boxing Club, when he is not working as a chauffeur or photographer, as his passion for the sport is still strong.
He was very kind and exuberant and introduced me to trainers and fighters.
One fighter Darius introduced me to, Miguel Angel Jimenez, was not on the evening’s venue. I noticed him on many posters, and he is referred to as “the best boxer in Ibiza.” He has a tattoo covering his entire left side, something he composed himself, which I expect references boxing and life, but I couldn’t translate the Espanol in beautiful calligraphy as his blue jean jacket kept falling over the words, and the match was about to begin.