Boxing is a Family Affair

For Angel Villareal Sr. (67) and Angel Villareal Jr. (45), their boxing family stretches beyond the two generations of father-son Villareals we met at the United Community Center on Monday night. Villareal Jr.’s 17-year-old son Jesse was showing up to the gym to train just as fellow MAC Maker Samer Ghani and I were leaving. 

Angel Villareal Jr. (left) & Angel Villareal Sr. (right)

We stopped by the UCC to see what a typical weeknight is like. About 50 people were spilling out of the gym (less than half the size of the MAC lounge), and every square inch was occupied by a moving body. Each age group has its own time slot between 4-8 p.m., but nationally ranked amateurs, emerging professional boxers, and kids just starting off were all coexisting. 

The racial and ethnic diversity was also a surprise, considering the UCC is located in the heart of Milwaukee’s Latino community. Just like a family, they lift each other up and the elders act as role models by showing up, staying committed, and helping with skill development. 

“For a lot of these kids it's about having a place to go after school to be a part of something and the sport is secondary,” says Villareal Sr.

In For The Long Fight

Along with local boxing legend Israel Acosta, Villareal Sr. began developing the boxing program at the UCC in 1973. Now it has over 200 members and is ranked the third-highest gym in the country for national championships.

After moving from New York City to Milwaukee when he was 12, Villareal Sr. started boxing when a friend from church introduced him to the sport. His first fight was when he was 14. Now, 120 fights (with a 111-9 record) and three Golden Glove titles later, he has stopped competing but stays active in the sport as a coach and official. And although he hasn’t fought in many years, his gloves still hang from his bedpost. Boxing has taken him all over the world, including to two Olympic games as an official (Rio de Janeiro in 2016 and Tokyo in 2021) as an official. 

Villareal Jr.’s first fight was when he was 11. When he started boxing in 1989, Wisconsin State law required all competing boxers to be 17 years old. Villareal Jr. had to travel to South Dakota to fight on Native American reservations since they are sovereign governments. After about five years of advocacy work, Villarreal Sr. and others from the UCC were able to have new legislation created and passed to allow children as young as 8 years old to compete.  

Villareal Jr. works full time during the day at Marquette University’s Dental School as a sanitation specialist and still puts in 20 hours a week or more coaching and traveling with boxers to tournaments. 

“Probably only 1 in 40 people compete at an amateur level and it typically takes 8 years of training to get to the level of competing,” explains Villareal Jr. “So if they start at 8 years old, they can compete from 17-24.”

Villareal Sr. talks a lot about boxing IQ and defines it as having a high acumen for the strategy behind the sport. After being around the sport for 40 years, it’s something his son possesses and it makes him an effective coach.

Boxing at MAC

This Friday for the MAC’s 2023 Boxing Night, the UCC will present 8-10 bouts, from mostly new fighters ages 15-28. Watch out for one female this year. 

Most members of the boxing gym of the UCC pay a small monthly fee to train there. Funds raised from the MAC’s Boxing Night support travel to national tournaments that are otherwise cost-prohibitive to many of the boxers. 

Villarreal, Jr. is committed to growing the sport in Milwaukee. In addition to his role as head coach at the UCC, he recently formed and coaches the Marquette University Boxing club that he has incorporated into his UCC family.