Gonzales Loses on Decision for First Professional Defeat

Raymond (Leoncito) Medel says he fought his dream fight Friday night, defeating Olympic gold medalist Paul Gonzales. But Gonzales thinks Medel was a winner only in his dreams.

Before 4,000 hometown fans at the outdoor Japanese Sunken Gardens, Medel took a 12-round unanimous decision from Gonzales to retain his U.S. Boxing Assn. flyweight title. It was Gonzales’ first loss in nine professional fights.

Medel improved to 15-3 with the unanimous decision.

Gonzales said the rowdy Alamo City crowd influenced the scoring of the fight.

“I feel that I won,” Gonzales said. “I’m not even going to count this as a loss. He flurried, but the best thing he caught me with all night was a head butt in the fifth.

“I should’ve known better than fight on his home turf. I feel maligned. It’s robbery.”

Medel said the victory was his greatest to date, adding:. “He’s tough, but I’m in great shape. I started with his body, working him, moving him around. I hurt him.

“This is the greatest thing I’ve done. He’s a gold medalist.”

Both fighters came out aggressively in the first round, but Medel’s continuous body punches seemed to take its toll.

Gonzales adjusted to the body punches in the third and began to counter with jabs at Medel’s face. Medel countered with jabs and combinations in the eighth, coming on strong to put Gonzales on the run. The barrage seemed to wear him out.

The crowd chanted for Medel, but the fighters remained consistent, Medel going to the body and Gonzales jabbing at the head.

Gonzales continued to stack up points with jabs to the face, but Medel was making him take some punches to do it.

Going into the 12th round, Medel sneaked in some powerful right hooks to Gonzales’ face. Gonzales tried to counter with body punches, but Medel’s combinations put the bout away.

Judges David McCullough and Robert Gonzales gave the fight to Medel, 115-113. Judge Charles Bertini scored it 117-112.

Medel, 20, said he will use this fight as a stepping stone to a world title bout, against either Sot Chitilada, the World Boxing Council champion, or Rolando Bohol, the International Boxing Federation titleholder.

“The world title is next,” Medel said. “I’ve just got to take it one step at a time.

“Fighting in San Antonio is great. My family was here. This fight was great for San Antonio.”

Gonzales had been injury-prone since turning professional, accounting for his small number of fights in three years. A hand injury suffered at the Olympics kept him out of the pro ranks until 1985.

In early 1987, Gonzales tore ligaments in his knee during a car accident, then cracked his hip in a bicycle incident earlier this year.

But the injuries have not kept Gonzales from the top of the rankings. The 5-foot 9-inch fighter was ranked No. 4 by the WBA and No. 8 by the WBC going into Friday’s bout.