He's Fighting For A Chance -- Everett High Grad Holcomb Finds Success In The Ring

-- EVERETT

Lance Holcomb keeps coming home with black eyes and bloody noses, and he's constantly looking to get into fights.

Not to worry.

Holcomb, 18, graduated from Everett High School last month, but he graduated from the amateur to the professional boxing ranks a year ago. In 10 pro fights as a 135-pound junior lightweight, Holcomb has recorded nine wins, three by knockout.

"I was never comfortable as an amateur," Holcomb said. "My style was always more compatible with being a pro than with being amateur."

His pro career took him to Irvine, Calif., Monday for a six-round fight with Ramon Gomez. Holcomb won by a unanimous decision.

"I think that was my best pro fight," Holcomb said. "It felt like the things that my trainer has been teaching me are starting to come together."

As an amateur, Holcomb was 105-20. He said although he was young to be a pro, he was ready to make the jump.

Eddie Rogers, Holcomb's trainer, has worked with his young pupil for four years, three as an assistant to Mike Tisdale, Holcomb's amateur coach. He said he began counseling Lance toward a professional career early.

"I used to be a professional fighter myself," he said. "I've seen a lot of fighters chase after that (Olympic) gold medal and fall short. They have 200 or 300 amateur fights, all chasing the gold medal - all chasing that dream. Once they realize that dream is all over, they're all over as fighters."

Further, he said, amateur boxers can't pick opponents. In his 10 pro fights, Rogers and Holcomb have been able to choose opponents that allow growth and promote ring savvy.

"We've been real happy with his performance," Rogers said. "We've picked opponents that let him work on certain things from fight to fight."

Not that there haven't been some surprises.

"We didn't know that (Gomez) was a lefty," Holcomb said. "I hate fighting lefties because they make you look bad."

The one loss on Holcomb's pro ledger also came as a surprise.

"That one loss was a shame," Rogers said. "But it was a good lesson."

The fight was in Montana against a fighter from that state.

Rogers believes Holcomb won the fight, and considered it a home-town decision.

The schedule calls for Holcomb to fight an average of once a month. If the right card comes along, he could fight twice a month.

Holcomb already has fought on some impressive cards. He was in a preliminary bout in Reno, Nev., on the Hector Camacho-Greg Haugen undercard. He was also on the same card with George Foreman at Fort Lewis - all while earning good grades in high school and working as a clerk for an Everett grocery store.

"My classmates all looked up to me," Holcomb said. "It was interesting to be getting paid for competing in a sport while the rest of the kids in school were doing it for free."

Understandably, Holcomb never got into a fight at school. On the contrary. "I'm a pretty likeable guy," he said.

Now that he has finished school, Holcomb will concentrate on his job and his boxing career. He looks forward to the day when he can leave the irregular hours of his day job behind.

Currently, he and Rogers are scheduling six-round fights. Soon he will move up to eight-rounders. After three or more of those fights, he will graduate to 10-round main events.

As he moves up, his paydays get bigger.

"Right now, you earn about $100 a round," he said. "I make about $600 to $700 dollars for a six-round fight. When I move up to eight-rounders, I'll make between $800 and $900 per fight. Once you get to 10-round main events, the money really takes off.

"I'd like to be able to just take off a week before a fight and go spar. There isn't anyone to spar with around here, and because of my job, I can't just go away to find someone."

Rogers figures those days are coming soon.

"I figure we're about a year away from looking for a name contender," Rogers said.

Holcomb said there are aches and pains involved with being a professional boxer. "That goes along with it," he said.

This time his face was bruised and his black eye is fading. His elbow has occasional shooting pains.

But tomorrow he goes back into training. Three potential fights beckon. One, again in Montana, could put him on ESPN for the first time. Another, in Los Angeles, would put him in front of some potential financial backers - the kind of money people that could make his dream of proper preparation come true soon.

A third fight card would have him fighting in Fife - a chance to appease his friends.

"My friends from school have always been excited about my fighting and have been begging me to fight here in Everett so they could come see me," he said. "But there just aren't that many fights around here."