| 12 October 2011
Boxing coach Hector Pena from Dallas, Texas, has been around the business for quite some time, but his age does not show it. He started his career in the late sixties, won a couple of Golden Gloves championships and was runner up in several state championships. He turned professional in the early seventies and retired with an outstanding lightweight record of 12-3-3, with 5 KO’s, but fighting all the way up to super welterweight.
But after ending his career he turned his passion to coaching. It all started with the kids in the neighborhood who looked up to him as a boxer and as a friend. Wherever he could hang his boxing gloves, in a car garage, or somewhere else, that was where he trained his boxers. His first gym was called La Familia Boxing Club and he has been coaching ever since.
He now is the head trainer at the Ring of Hope Boxing Gym in Dallas, Texas. A huge boxing gym and maybe one of the biggest in the metroplex. He say’s he is fortunate and is blessed to train at this gym, which is sponsored by Stephen Bolos, President of United Renovations and Wil McCall, President of the Dallas Leadership Foundation. This facility is a state of the art boxing gym which has two regulation boxing rings, heavy bags, and a multitude of training equipment. It is not only a boxing gym, but it has a mentoring program to help the young boxers to succeed in education and life as well.
In addition to the Ring of Hope Boxing Gym trainers, Arnold Alejandro, Pena’s assistant coach has been his right hand man for a long time. Pena said he is the one who does all the leg work. Alejandro has coached at Westside Boxing and in Irving and his sons were once trained by coach Pena. Alejandro is considered one of the best in the business and coach Pena is glad to have him at the gym by his side. Also, Johnny Carrasco, who was once coached by Pena is an assistant trainer as well.
Coach Pena is a humble man and is passionate about the boxing game, but at the same time a true competitor. Among the many professional fighters he has trained, that would include Quincy Taylor, the former WBC Middleweight champion of the world. Early in Taylor’s career, many people had wrote off the champion, but Pena recalls the time he helped train him. It was during that time that Pena helped him get back on track and beat a number four ranked fighter in the world. The rest was history for Quincy Taylor.
In addition to Quincy Taylor, most recently, Pena was an assistant trainer to Dallas’ own Roberto Marroquin (20-1, 14KO’s). A fighter who is signed with Top Rank and on his way up in the boxing world.
This Friday night at the Quiktrip Park in Grand Prairie, Pena will be in the corner of Jose Rodriquez (1-0), a fighter from his gym, who will be taking on Gerardo Dominguez (1-13). Rodriquez is from Pleasant Grove, a suburb of Dallas, Texas and he has been training for two and a half months. He had already been training for the previous rained out fights at Quiktrip and is in superb shape for this fight. He said he plans to win and hopefully by knockout. Pena expects a good outing for his fighter and Dallas will be hearing from future champions from his gym.
Photos © Edward Garza
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