And Still

By Angelo Torres

“WE ARE ALL BORN CHAMPIONS. RETAINING YOUR TITLE IS THE HARD PART. “– ANGELO TORRES

In the pages to come we will travel back in time, and although I can only remember as far back as four years of age, I will share factual events with you. I will tell you how I became and still am a Champion. Ok…fine, I’m no longer the official featherweight Champion per say, but a Champion at heart. So, come along and join me on this wild and exciting ride that all began in Bushwick Brooklyn, New York.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Nov 29, 2019
• ISBN: 9781796074789

Book preview

Copyright © 2019 by Angelo Torres.

ISBN:       Hardcover         978-1-7960-7480-2

                 Softcover           978-1-7960-7479-6

                 eBook                978-1-7960-7478-9

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Rev. date: 11/26/2019

Xlibris

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In loving memory of my Mother Francisca Rolon, my Sister Mary Morales and childhood friends Anthony Rec Yonko, Damion Hardy, Kelvin Hardy, Delphin Petey Vasquez and Timothy Moses. May you all continue to rest in peace.

To my beautiful wife Cynthia. Thank you for all the support you’ve given me and for putting up with all my shenanigans throughout these last few years. I love you with all my heart.

CONTENTS

Prologue

Inspirational Introduction

Momma’s Boy

School & Stuff

Unforgettable Summer

The Beginning

Concrete Jungle

Birth Of A Champion

The Big Fights

Life After Boxing

To My Boys

Family & Friends

From The Author’s Twisted Mind

Fun Facts About Me

Memorable Mentions

PROLOGUE

I t was April 28 th , 2005 in Grain Valley Missouri. We were in the twelfth and final round of this championship fight. I could feel the warm blood dripping into my left eye. The Missouri crowd was ecstatic as they cheered for their hometown Champion Austin. It was my Trainer Anthony and I against Austin and the hundreds of spectators that had come out to see him win the Vacant Featherweight Championship. Austin was amped up from the crowd cheering his name. With the vision in my left eye partially impaired, I began moving backwards. I could see Austin coming forward full of energy and confidence. The closer he got, the more I moved. I could hear Anthony yelling from the corner, Hands up Champ, hand s up!

INSPIRATIONAL INTRODUCTION

B oxing isn’t a sport for everyone. You will either love it or hate it from the first moment of contact. As for me, I fell in love with it during my first sparring session. The adrenaline rush was like no other I had ever felt before. Some people may never understand how a sport such as boxing can positively influence someone, but I can tell you that it probably saved my life.

Hello, my name is Angelo Torres. I am a former boxing Featherweight Champion of the world, and although this may not mean anything to you, I can assure you that it meant the world to me and didn’t come at an easy price. In reading this book you will discover how I got started in boxing at the tender age of twelve, and the struggles I had to overcome as a young man. I’ve decided to write this book with the hope that whoever reads this will understand that anything is possible in life and with hard work and determination…dreams can become reality.

In the pages to come we will travel back in time, and although I can only remember as far back as four years of age, I will share factual events with you. I will tell you how I became and still am a Champion. Ok…fine, I’m no longer the official featherweight Champion per say, but a Champion at heart. So, come along and join me on this wild and exciting ride that all began in Bushwick Brooklyn, New York.

WE ARE ALL BORN CHAMPIONS. RETAINING YOUR TITLE IS THE HARD PART.

– ANGELO TORRES

MOMMA’S BOY

G rowing up the youngest of eight was not an easy thing to do. I’m talking about four bull headed brothers, three tattle tailing sister and one lovely yet strict mother. We shared one television and one bathroom in a two-bedroom apartment. At the time this was plenty of room for me. You see, I was a very petite kid. Also known as the runt of the family, I was later given the nickname of Chispa, which in Spanish meant a small flash or spark. I had acquired the nickname due to my size and because I had more energy than your average kid, or so I was told.

Allow me to fill you in from the beginning. I was born in the spring of 1971 and raised in Brooklyn, New York. Born in May and the last creation of my Mother who had conceived me at the age of thirty-eight, I was the only member of my immediate family not born in Puerto Rico. Mother did not speak a lick of English, except for the few curse words she used whenever she needed our immediate attention. I spoke Spanish at home because it was my only way of communicating with Mother. I remember being very attached to her and sleeping in the same bed until I was about ten years of age. However, sleeping in the same bed wasn’t by choice, but rather because of the limited room and number of beds we had. Because of this, I was called a MOMMA’S BOY by my brothers and sisters, but little did they know at the time, they were creating a little monster in me.

My Brother Eddie, who is two years older would be the one to get in trouble if I did something wrong while we were together. Besides age, the difference between us was, I was a Momma’s Boy and he wasn’t. Mother thought that as an older brother, Eddie should’ve set a better example for me. The other boys weren’t too happy about how spoiled I was and made that very clear to me. Whenever they got the opportunity, they would scare or play tricks on me.

Unfortunately for me, being a Momma’s boy wasn’t always easy. Sure, it had some perks, but I still spent a lot of time watching my back. I had created some animosity and jealousy within the household, and although it wasn’t my fault being the youngest, I often used it to my advantage. Mother took me to the store with her most of the time and treated me to whatever I wanted. Upon arriving at home, I would flaunt whatever she bought me in front of the others, just because I could.

My brother Eddie and I were the closest amongst the guys, but we also got into some fights. Being that he was the closest to me in age, we shared a lot of the same toys. Ownership of toys was something we fought over constantly but Mother usually separated us until we got along.

I remember having a gold colored dog named Chopper that spent most of his time chained up in the corner of the living room. He didn’t seem to like me much, and I wasn’t too fond of him either. He seemed vicious at times and scratched up the