RGV Sports Capsules: Undefeated Perales ready to shake off 'ring rust' against Almanza
Brownsville super bantamweight Sergio "Time To Shine" Perales (17-0, 12 knockouts) is the first to admit it's been too long since his last fight.
"I hope I don't have too much ring rust," said Perales as he prepared to face Colombian Omar Felipe Almanza (18-25-4, nine KOs) in the scheduled eight-round main event of Saturday's "Night of Knockouts" show presented by Julio Marines at Harlingen Municipal Auditorium. Doors open at 6:30 with the first fight to start at 7:30. Six bouts are scheduled.
Perales, a 2006 Los Fresnos graduate, last fought on Dec. 10, 2010, in Harlingen and prevailed over Mexican fighter Ruben Sanchez Leon (31-17-1, 14 KOs) on an eighth-round technical knockout. Perales could have fought in April, but he bypassed the opportunity to concentrate on his studies at the University of Texas at Brownsville and Texas Southmost College.
"It's been a while since his last fight, so Sergio's very hungry (for a win)," trainer Robert Campos said.
Fellow Brownsville fighter Jerry "Chicanito" Guevara (5-0, four KOs), a super bantamweight also trained by Campos, is set for a rematch against Edson Renteria (1-4) of Odessa in a four-round co-featured event. Guevara beat Renteria on a four-round unanimous decision on March 5, 2010, in Harlingen.
"I didn't really like the way I fought against Renteria the first time, so we're taking the rematch," said Guevara, a 2008 Porter graduate. "Some people have said that it's going to be like before, but every fight is different. There's always a different taste. A rematch usually means a better fight. You have to do better (to win). Hopefully, I fix my mistakes from when I fought him the first time and come up with a better victory."
Guevara is coming off a second-round win by TKO over Victor Hernandez (1-2) of Matamoros on April 16 in Edinburg.
The four-round co-main event will feature Raphael Murphy (3-0, three KOs) of Harlingen, a cruiserweight fighting this time as a heavyweight, going against Larry Hopkins (0-2) of Houston.
Also scheduled to fight in separate four-rounders on the undercard from the Valley are featherweight Oscar "El Torito" Tovar (1-0, one KO) of Pharr, junior welterweight Juan Reyna (1-0) of Brownsville and junior welterweight Hector Garza (3-2, two KOs) of Harlingen. Garza will face Angel Hernandez (0-1) of McAllen. The others are going against opponents from out of the Valley.
Marines said the boxing show will feature appearances in the ring during breaks by Valley Playmate Search contestants.
For ticket information, call (956) 206-9543.
Roy Hess writes for Valley Freedom Newspapers. You can reach him via e-mail at rhess@brownsvilleherald.com
Vipers Coach Finch joins the Rockets coaching staff
The worst kept secret in the NBA Development League became official on Friday when the Houston Rockets announced Rio Grande Valley Vipers coach Chris Finch has joined the NBA team as an assistant to coach Kevin McHale.
“Obviously, I’m excited and grateful for this opportunity from Kevin and the Rockets,” Finch said. “I’ve always strived to focus on the job I’ve had and maximize the things that I need to do. I’m looking forward to working with a quality staff and a quality organization.”
The news of Finch’s departure is not new. Rockets general manager Daryl Morey told the Houston Chronicle last month that Finch had been hired as and an assistant to McHale. However, Friday was the first day Finch had spoken about his new job.
The Rockets announced the hiring of Finch, Kelvin Sampson, J.B. Bickerstaff and Brett Gunning as McHale’s assistants on Friday. Sampson will be the Rockets’ lead assistant coach.
Finch coached the Vipers the past two seasons, leading them to the NBA Development League Finals each time. The Vipers won the 2009-10 league title in his first season. Finch believes those accomplishments had an impact on the Rockets’ decision to give him a chance to coach in the NBA.
“Our success was certainly the catalyst for this opportunity,” Finch said.
Finch said he’ll fondly look back at his time in the Valley and not only because of the team’s success.
“I’ll remember the people, without a doubt,” Finch said. “It was one of the most warm and welcoming places where we’ve ever lived. It’s always a thrill when you have a team that wins and produces excitement and creates something that the community could be proud of.”
After controlling his own roster moves in previous years in Europe, Finch said coaching the Vipers allowed him to transition out of that routine because the Rockets dictated most of the personnel transactions. He said that was one of the most difficult things he had to do.
“I had to embrace it,” Finch said. “This is what I signed up for and I had to manage it. It was not an easy thing to do, but it was done with a higher purpose. … If you want to coach at the highest level, you are not going to have control of the team.”
The Rockets have long considered Finch an NBA coaching candidate since his arrival to the Valley. Houston hired Finch, who also coaches the British national team, from Europe where he had a successful coaching career and brought him to the Valley shortly after the Rockets obtained the basketball operating rights for the Vipers two summers ago.
“It’s very rewarding to see his growth in terms of coming back to the states and the level of success that he had,” said Gersson Rosas, who serves as both the Vipers general manager and Rockets vice president for player personnel. “He helped out team become one of the top D-League teams. … His body of work speaks for itself. The D-League is a hard platform to be successful with the travel, injuries, roster turnover. I felt like we had a highly-qualified candidate.”
McHale said that Finch impressed him during the Rockets’ draft preparation.
“I had an opportunity to work with Chris Finch a few weeks leading up to the draft, and I am very impressed with his success in the D-League and internationally,” McHale said in a news release.
Rosas said the search for Finch’s replacement would begin soon. The Rockets plan to take a similar approach to filling the spot that they did when the hired Finch — find someone they could develop into an NBA coach. Finch’s assistants with the Vipers, Paul Mokeski and Jai Steadman, don’t appear to be top candidates, however they could be retained as assistants.
“It’s going to be a very thorough process,” Rosas said. “We’ll talk to our current coaches. We value the continuity. They have been a part of it. It will ultimately come down to the next head coach. As of now, those situations haven’t been decided.”
David Hinojosa covers the Rio Grande Valley Vipers for Valley Freedom Newspapers. You can reach him at (956) 683-4442.
