For the next six weeks the City of Angels boxing gym will be the home for the LAPD boxing team. The fighters will be spending a lot of time at the gym preparing for the Battle of the Badges event April 11, 2015. On Saturday afternoon, Eddie Montano, Hector Mendoza, Chris Andrade and Quincy Mirage were put through a workout by their new coach. The fighters are training and learning under the tutelage of coach and former fighter, Jorge Gonzalez who has created a specific game plan for each fighter. He is building on each fighter’s strengths and weaknesses. Gonzalez looks to catapult the team to new heights. He is pushing each fighter to be the best they can be. Gonzalez spoke with confidence about his fighters doing well on April, 11th. “We know what we have to do and we are going to win.” Gonzalez said. Don’t miss it! Battle of the Badges Saturday April 11, 2015 Hanford Civic Auditorium. Tickets are on sale now. General admission $30.00 Reserved Ringside $50.00. To see workout photos from Saturday visit United Combat Association Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/pages/United-Combat-Association/219484084768767?ref=hl

Can Flores stop the undefeated 2nd ranked UCA Jr Welterweight Shant Sheklanian, Madera Police Dept. 5 people have tried and 5 people have failed. Does Sheklanian have what it takes to defeat the champion? Will Sheklanian become the new UCA Jr Welterweight Champion? Will Sheklanian suffer his first defeat? Those questions will be answered April 11, 2015 at the Hanford Civic Auditorium. Tickets are on sale now. General admission $30.00 Reserved Ringside $50.00. Doors open at 5pm fights start at 7pm.

On Friday, February 27, 2015 Oxnard PAL played host to the UCA Jr Middleweight State Champion Dustin Rodriguez, Santa Monica Fire Dept.  Rodriguez will make the first defense of his title at the SoCal Battle of the Badges event March 28, 2015, Pechanga Resort & Casino.  Rodriguez will square off with the fearless and aggressive 3rd ranked Brandon Manning, Los Angeles Sheriff’s Dept.  Rodriguez trains in Oxnard an area that has produced some great fighters. He is trained by David Rodela a professional fighter and one of Manny Pacquiao’s main sparring partners.  Rodela puts Rodriguez through the same exercises and drills he learned from being in camp with Pacquiao. There is no doubt Rodriguez is the best  Jr Middleweight in California and with a trainer like Rodela to give him the advice and knowledge he needs Rodriguez may be a champion for a long time. To see Fridays workout photos visit United Combat Association Facebook https://www.facebook.com/pages/United-Combat-Association/219484084768767

Brent Farris, Butte County Probation and Zach Farris, California Highway Patrol will compete alongside each other on the same fight card when each steps into the ring to make their Battle of the Badges debuts on Saturday April 11, 2015 at the Hanford Civic Auditorium. These identical twins are on the fast track to reach the top of the division. The strength of their brotherly bond is immediately apparent to anyone that sees them together. Brent and Zach push each other to be better. They critique each other in a positive way and motivate each other to push harder in training. Both brothers are supremely confident in their training and knowledge given to them by their trainers. Brent trains at Latasha Marzolla Muay Thai, The Hive, Chico, CA under coach Latasha Marzolla and Zach trains at Institute of Martial Arts, San Jose, CA under coach Jerome Turcan. Don’t wait, purchase your tickets now online or at the door. General Admission $30. Reserved Ringside $50. Doors open at 5pm first fight at 7pm. Hanford Civic Auditorium 400 N. Douty St. Hanford, CA. To see workout photos see UCA Facebook https://www.facebook.com/pages/United-Combat-Association/219484084768767

The UCA Jr Welterweight Champion Francisco Flores, Stanislaus Sheriffs Dept. will be making his first title defense against undefeated 2nd ranked Shant Sheklanian, Madera PD on Saturday April 11, 2015 at the Hanford Civic Auditorium. Flores is less than 4 weeks away from the biggest challenge of his career.  The champ is training four to five days a week in the evening and does calisthenics in the morning. His roadwork consists of two to three mile runs with sprints mixed in. “I will be ready come fight time” Flores said. When asked if Sheklanian will be his toughest challenge, He said, “I think so. Shant and Walter I feel are my toughest challenges. When Flores was asked if this will be his last fight he said. “The competition is getting harder and harder. I’m the champion and I have to fight anyone regardless of how many fights they have. This will be my last fight unless I can get a 3rd fight with Walter (Walter Lavarro, Long Beach PD). I feel I owe it to him. He beat me, I beat him, I think we need a 3rd fight.” Flores is not looking past Sheklanian. “I will be ready, if Shant beats me, he is the better fighter, I have no excuses” Flores is a champion who knows what it takes to win and is not about to relinquish his crown. Don’t wait, purchase your tickets now! General Admission $30, reserved Ringside $50. Doors open at 5pm first fight at 7pm. Hanford Civic Auditorium 400 N Douty St Hanford California.

The title fight contract is signed as 3^rd ranked Brandon Manning, LASD looks to pull off a huge upset win over Dustin Rodriguez, Santa Monica FD and become the new UCA Jr Middleweight Champion. If he wins it will be the second upset in a row for Manning. On November 14, 2014 Manning defeated the former title challenger Eddie Montano, LAPD by split decision.  Manning is preparing harder than ever as he looks to dethrone the champion Rodriguez.  The timing may be perfect for Manning. He is in peak condition, getting great sparring and is already close to the Jr Middleweight limit of 154lbs. Fans can expect Manning to bring his hard charging, technical brawling style into the ring next Saturday night.  There are no easy fights with Manning he forces his opponents into a war. Will Manning make it two in a row and become the new UCA Jr Middleweight Champion? To see workout photos visit UCA Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/pages/United-Combat-Association/219484084768767 SoCal Battle of the Badges Saturday March 28, 2015 Pechanga Casino & Resort. Doors open at 5pm, first bell rings at 6pm. Purchase tickets at https://www.pechanga.com

The most significant Super Heavyweight matchup in California is finally here. Chris Lewis, Fresno SD the Hard-hitting UCA Super Heavyweight State Champion is set to defend his title against the unbeaten technical specialist Pierce Masse, Fresno PD.  This fight is on the hype train and there is nothing that is going to derail it. Masse, is ready to make a big splash in the Super Heavyweight division by defeating the highly favorited champion Lewis. Masse punched his ticket to the UCA Super Heavyweight title fight by defeating the ultra-competitive Iulia Tuua, CDCR in last year’s NorCal Battle of the Badges UCA Fight of the Night performance. The lights will shine twice as bright on Lewis and Masse when they face off in Saturday night’s main event.

By Shannon Williams Staff reporter

One local public safety officer will be making his debut and another will be defending his UCA title at the second annual Central California Battle of the Badges, slated to take place in April.  The charity boxing event will pit firefighters, law enforcement and military personnel from across the country in the ring to see who is worthy of being crowned a United Combat Association champion. The event will kick off at 7 p.m.  April 11 at the Hanford Civic Auditorium. Hanford police officer John Henderson will be the first Kings County representative stepping into the ring against Madera police officer AJ Forestiere. The undercard Super Middleweight match-up marks both Henderson’s and Forestiere’s first amateur fight. “I’ve done a little boxing training in the past,” Henderson said of his fighting experience. “But I never actually been committed like I am now.” Henderson said in preparation for the match, he has been following a regimen consisting of a strict diet plan along with rigorous workouts on his days off. “It’s been a lot of work,” Henderson explained. “And the more and more I have been training, the more confident I am.”  Making his second appearance in the ring is Avenal police officer DJ Vargas. In his first UCA fight, Vargas beat Big Bear City Firefighter Ricky Seward to claim the UCA Middleweight Championship title. This year he will be brawling for his first defense of the title against Quincy Mirage of the Los Angeles Police Department. Vargas, who has been training for the event since December, said he will be treating this match much like his last. “I’m going to stick to the same game plan,” Vargas said. “Getting into condition, sparring and roadwork.” With only a few weeks left before the contenders hit the ring, both Henderson and Vargas said they are looking forward to going pound-for-pound with their challengers. “I’m hoping we can put on a good show for the supporters of Kings County law enforcement,” Vargas said.

Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office fighter Steven Lee has been added to the April 11th card. Lee is traveling from Kansas and will touchdown in California on Thursday April 9th to compete in the Battle of the Badges. Lee will square off with Zachary Farris, CHP in a 3 round welterweight bout. Lee has a record of 1-1 and looks to add a victory over a California fighter to his resume. Lee has a tough task in front of him. Farris is hungry and anxious to get into the ring with someone. Despite having two fighters back out, he continues to train and improve. On Saturday April 11, 2015 Farris will finally get his chance to show the fans what he is made of.  The Battle of the Badges takes place at the Hanford Civic Auditorium. Doors open at 5pm first fight at 7pm. $30 General Admission, $50 Reserved Ringside.