SJC Boxing

The sixth annual Community Thanksgiving Day Dinner is in 7 weeks at the SJC Boxing Gym, 4220 Cleveland Ave, Fort Myers 33901 from 2pm to 5pm. Mark your calendars - Thursday, November 26, 2026. Details to follow.

Wishing a very happy birthday today, October 8, to boxing trainer and FBHOF Class of 2011 Inductee Alton Merkerson.

Coach Merk is a very special longtime friend who I met in the mid 80s when he was training the Fort Hood Army boxers along with Ken Adams. He was a great trainer and is a special person who has favorably impacted many lives.

Coach Merk was born in Alabama but grew up in East Chicago and Calumet, boxing off and on until he entered the army in 1969 at the age of 19. After serving a tour in Vietnam, he returned to boxing at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, where an eye injury ended his promising boxing career. No longer able to fight, Merkerson’s coach, Carlton Brooks, talked Merkerson into becoming his assistant trainer along with James Grant. Following the death of Brooks a short time later, Merkerson was named head coach of the Fort Campbell boxing team.

Merkerson helped train the 1988 US Olympic Boxing Team and has also worked as a professional trainer in Las Vegas with Hall-of-Fame trainer Ken Adams. Along with Adams and trainer Hank Johnson, Merkerson won the nationals five consecutive years while coaching the All-Army boxing team.

Some of the fighters he‘s worked with include Roy Jones Jr., Derrick "Smoke" Gainer, Al “Ice“ Cole, "Merciless" Ray Mercer, Andrew Maynard, "Cool" Vince Phillips, Donald Curry, Charles Murray, Keith Mullins, David Izon, Ezra Sellers and Kennedy McKinney.

A father of four, his oldest son, Alton Jr., played football for the University of Las Vegas-Nevada and his middle son, Ronnie, played six years in the NFL. His youngest son, David, is a pre-med student at Florida Atlantic.

Enjoy your special day my friend and may you have many more happy and healthy ones.

Wishing a very special birthday to a very special friend today, October 8, Rick Folstad. Rick was a top amateur in his native Minnesota and a world-class professional Jr. Welterweight.

He was involved in boxing over 50 years as a fighter, promoter, trainer, cornerman and is an excellent journalist. His boxing columns have won several writing awards, including three first-place awards.

Rick was inducted into the inaugural Class of 2009 of the Florida Boxing Hall of Fame. Wishing you a very special birthday my friend.

SJC Boxing has always supported and honored the old great fighters. It is important to recognize their achievements and keep their memories alive. Because of this, we have always invited a past great to be our special guest at every professional boxing show we have promoted.

We provide a special VIP dinner prior to the show, and they are at the weigh-in the day before fight-night. At the fights, they are seated at ringside, brought into the ring for a formal introduction and presented with a plaque to have a keepsake of their special night with us.

The older fans get to enjoy seeing their childhood heroes and the younger fans finally get to meet fighters they had only heard about. Our guests are always available for autographs and pictures. It is truly a special night. I hope this brings back some wonderful memories. It will be a three-part posting. PART ONE.

Happy Birthday to trainer/manager and Florida Boxing Hall of Fame Class of 2010 inductee Al Bonnani. Enjoy your special day my friend.

Wishing a very happy birthday today, October 5 to former hard-punching, exciting and popular Jr. Welterweight contender Troy Crain.

Troy, a Pensacola, Florida native, recorded 11 KOs in his 14 wins. He fought such fighters as Zab Judah, David Diaz, Jesse James Leija, David Armstrong, Hector Camacho Jr., Harold Warren, Pedro Saiz and the list goes on.

Troy still lives in Pensacola with his close-knit family, and owns his own Stucco and Handyman company. It's always a pleasure seeing him at various events. Happy birthday my friend and many more happy and healthy ones.

Birthday wishes go out to Micky Ward today October 4. Hope your day is filled with happiness and there are many more happy and healthy ones ahead my friend.

Former world champion Johnny Saxton died on this date twenty-two years ago (October 4, 2004). Thinking of you today champ. Rest in peace my friend.

Happy birthday today to FBHOF Class of 2023 Inductee Marc Lichtenfeld, hope there are many more happy and healthy years ahead. Enjoy your special day my friend.

Wishing a very happy birthday today, October 3, to a very special person - FBHOF Class of 2024 Achievement Award recipient, Ivan Echevarria. Enjoy your special day my friend.