Sweat, grunts, body blows, and head shots. Restaurant Rumble 2012 was no exercise in shadow boxing. On July 25, 28 fighters entered the ring with the same commitment to do their best, as they were committed to the cause of supporting troubled and underprivileged youth of East Vancouver. Their efforts paid off, and now the kids will get a new gym.
Evelyn Calado & Aya Garcia weigh-in to confirm their fight category.
Title fight contenders, Romano Castillo & Chris Cho, at weigh-in.
Over 400 people showed up at the Fei & Milton Wong Experimental Theatre in SFU’s Goldcorp Centre for the Arts for an extravaganza that had all the atmosphere of a professional boxing match. The spectators were presented with eight undercard exhibition fights, two Olympic-style non-title fights, and four ”Old-Style” title fights. The beginning bouts featured fighters wearing headgear, shirts, and 16oz (cozy) gloves, slugging it out in 3 x 1-minute rounds. The remaining matches were fought without headgear, using 10oz/12oz gloves, for 3 x 2-minute rounds.
Jason Browne getting psyched up before the fight.
Singing of the national anthem.
The Alibi Room cheering section / staff party.
Restaurant Rumble 2012 ring girls.
ensemble Tap's Chris Cho, Aprons for Gloves Super Featherweight Champion of the World.
Simon Kaulback knocks out Chris Dzaka in the last round of the last fight of the night.
Simon Kaulback proclaimed Aprons for Gloves Light Heavyweight Champion of the World.
Arthur Wynne & Nigel Springthorpe share a beer after giving each other a beating for a cause.
The four title fights saw Shay Washburn face off with Kaitlin Daur (Women’s Junior Lightweight), Chris Cho against Romano Castillo (Super Featherweight), Chen-Wei Lee squaring off with Kristofer Betts (Middleweight), and Simon Kaulback opposing Chris Dzaka (Light Heavyweight). Winning a belt and an official amateur boxing record in their respective categories, were Shay Washburn, Chris Cho, Chen-Wei Lee, and Simon Kaulback. The boxers who didn’t get an opportunity to fight last week, will have another chance in the fall. They may be able to challenge the July 25th winners for their title belts.
For stories behind this event, see the excellent documentary series, The Road to the Restaurant Rumble, by Soren Johnstone and Michael Babiarz of Warren Lane Pictures, and the Adventures in Boxing blog by Nathan Hudon. To find more information about the Aprons for Gloves Boxing Association, visit their Web site or visit them on Facebook.
~ RG, photography by Brian K. Smith
