A Boxing Love Letter to the Carson War Grounds

What to Know

• The 7,500-seat open-air boxing arena in Carson, California, has had multiple names, but boxing insiders all know it as The War Grounds.
• The War Grounds has hosted some of the greatest all-action fights of the 21st Century, beginning with Vazquez vs Marquez II and III.
• From 2003 to 2016, five Fights of the Year have taken place in Carson at The War Grounds

Maybe you know it as the StubHub Center, or the Home Depot Center. Or you know it by its current name, Dignity Health Sports Park. The compact Carson, California boxing venue earned its most fitting name from the all-action fights it became known for: The War Grounds.

Since its opening in 2003, the 7,500 open-air venue originally constructed for tennis has hosted 59 boxing cards. It will host its 60^th boxing card on Saturday, July 18 when Matchroom Boxing returns to Carson. It is the first boxing card at The War Grounds in two years.

Matchroom Boxing also staged the last card on August 31, 2024, which also featured super middleweight Diego Pacheco in the main event. Pacheco knocked out Maciej Sulecki in the sixth round.

War Grounds: Hallowed Ground for Boxing

The War Grounds hold a special place in the heart of everyone in the Southern California boxing community, and well beyond for those fortunate enough to have attended at least one of those 59 cards. I’m one of them. I rarely missed a Carson card the last dozen years, and I’m thrilled to return although I will need to pack sunscreen by the gallon.

What made the War Grounds such hallowed ground? In part it’s the setting, an open-air venue where every seat seems right on top of the ring. The acoustics are impressive, letting you hear every body punch and shouted instructions from a trainer, while also making those 8,000 fans sound like 80,000. The fans are exceptionally knowledgeable, know their fighters, and support the local talent.

Steve Kim, veteran boxing scribe and reporter and host of the 3 Knockdown Rule podcast with co-host Mario Lopez, has sat ringside dozens of times in Carson. I could think of few better to ask what makes the War Ground unique among boxing venues.

“’The War Grounds’ really is a place that is special; it has great sight lines, and it’s sizable without being too big. I’d say that after the third chapter of Israel Vazquez – Rafael Marquez (when this venue truly became a fight hub) there was a certain mystique to it,” explained Kim.

“Fans wanted to go there because it was always a good time, and I believe fighters bought into the expectations of the fans. There was a period of time about a decade ago that no matter what was scheduled, you’d go here because something memorable was bound to occur.

“There really is nothing like watching a good fight card on a warm day, as the sun finally sets and the lights go on,” concluded Kim.

Fighters and Fans Deliver in Carson

For another viewpoint, I asked Bernie Bahrmasel of Double B Sports to offer his impressions. Bahrmasel is a well-known figure in boxing whose public relations firm has worked with dozens of promoters and boxers. Of the 59 boxing cards in Carson, I’d place a bet that Bahrmasel has been to 50 of them, working with promoters including Tom Loeffler, Dan Goossen, Tom Brown, and the Top Rank team.

Bahrmasel offers plenty of credit to “the Southern California boxing fans, passionate, loud and loyal, neither rain, wind, cold or heat can keep them from turning up at The War Grounds to enjoy boxing in a backyard BBQ setting with friends and sometimes foes.”

The War Grounds are merely the frame for the artwork: the fights themselves. Any boxer who’s crossed the canvas in Carson can tell you about the energy there. It inspires performances even the fighters themselves didn’t expect. During a ten-year stretch from 2007 to 2016, five of the consensus Fights of the Year took place in Carson.

After decades of sitting ringside in Carson, we offer our long overdue list of the War Grounds Memorable Fight Nights.

The Foundation: Vazquez vs Marquez II and III

Without a doubt, there should be a statue at the entrance to the Dignity Health Sports Park depicting Israel Vazquez and Rafael Marquez, honoring their two fights in 2007 and 2008 in Carson, both Fights of the Year.

This legendary Mexican rivalry started with Vazquez getting his revenge in the rematch on August 7, 2007, with a brutal six-round war, ending in a TKO win for Vazquez after dropping Marquez with a vicious right uppercut followed by a left hook combination. He had to walk through fire for six rounds with Marquez opening up severe cuts over both of Vazquez’s eyes.

The pair came back for the trilogy fight on March 1, 2008. It amazingly lived up to expectations with a brutal 12-round war, the first of the three fights to go the distance. Vazquez was the first to suffer a knockdown in Round 3 by a left hook. Marquez was dropped near the end of the final round with a right hook. Though he survived to the bell, it made the difference and gave the razor-thin split decision to Vazquez, 114-111 and 113-112, and 114-111 for Marquez.

The Epic Title Fight: Timothy Bradley vs Ruslan Provodnikov

WBO World Welterweight champion Timothy Bradley Jr. of Indio, California, was a well-established champion with slick boxing skills. Coming off his highly controversial victory over Manny Pacquiao, Bradley Jr. had a chip on his shoulder from the critics who felt Pacquiao was robbed.

Bradley was expected to run rings around his next opponent. Instead, he decided to wage war with the relentless Siberian Rocky, Ruslan Provodnikov.

In the surreal, dangerous battle, Bradley Jr. set aside his tactical skills to stand and trade with Provodnikov. Bradley now admits he fought most of the fight severely concussed. He rallied with movement and high-volume output, surviving a late-round surge by the Russian to escape with a decision win, 115-112, 114-113, 114-113.

Fans ringside in the less-than-full venue on March 13, 2013, were thrilled, then concerned while witnessing the viciousness in front of them – the kind of fight you watch through your fingers. Bradley vs. Provodnikov was universally named the 2013 Fight of the Year.

The Two-Fisted Shootout: Lucas Matthysse vs John Molina

Fight of the Year honors returned one year later on April 26, 2014, with the battle between Matthysse of Argentina and rugged Molina Jr., the hometown favorite from Covina, California.

No title was involved, but the stakes were huge for Matthysse. He badly needed a win after a loss to junior welterweight champion Danny Garcia. The Machine ran into The Gladiator, who had no intention of making it just another night at the office.

Four knockdowns later, Matthysse stopped Molina at the start of the 11^th round after the pair exchanged fire, with the body punching of the Argentine fighter finally draining Molina’s tank. Even the fans in Carson were exhausted.

Bernie Bahrmasel picks up the narrative, calling it “an extraordinary battle of will and guts that truly epitomized the name of the venue.

“On a very chilly night, I sat between Greg Beacham and Damian Calhoun on press row as we huddled to keep warm with the action inside the ring creating its own bonfire. The fight is up on YouTube, and I strongly recommend watching it again. Kudos to Joe Goossen for his remarkable work in Molina Jr’s corner,” added Bahrmasel.

And The New: Kell Brook vs Shawn Porter

Kell Brook of England found himself in the lion’s den in Carson on August 16, 2014. He was a massive underdog against undefeated powerhouse and IBF World Welterweight champion Shawn Porter of Las Vegas.

Sitting ringside, the news media began to exchange looks among us as Brook out-boxed Porter’s attempts to bully and roughhouse with Brook, showing a stiff straight jab dressed up as a power punch.

As loud as the fans were during the fight, there was an eerie silence while waiting for announcer Jimmy Lennon Jr. to read the scores. 117-111, 116-112, and 114-114, and then Lennon Jr. offered a dramatic pause. Among the small group of dedicated British fans on hand, a voice rang out clear as a bell, shouting, “And the new!”

Seconds later, Lennon Jr. said the same, as Brooks dropped to his knees in tears, while the Carson fans all applauded his well-deserved upset. The raw emotion of the moment was unfortgettable.

Mexican Style Thrills: Gennadiy Golovkin vs Marco Antonio Rubio

Southern California fans embraced “Mexican Style” middleweight Gennadiy Golovkin of Kazakhstan as one of their own. His hotly anticipated West Coast debut on October 18, 2014 sold out in 24 hours, generating talk of moving the fight next door to the LA Galaxy soccer stadium. Instead, high-rise bleachers were added to the top deck, setting an all-time attendance record of 9,323 fans.

Fans showed up in “Mexicans for GGG’ t-shirts. Los Angeles rappers Mario Ruiz and Omar Cruz created a music video celebrating the unlikely Mexican boxing hero.

Bernie Bahrmasel was tasked with managing the event promotion and found himself in the eye of the storm.

“Gennadiy Golovkin’s first LA fight against Marco Antonio Rubio, just an amazing night. The excitement level from the record attendance was thick with anticipation for the Southern California boxing fans and other fighters to finally see Gennadiy fight in person.

“With helicopters flying overhead, an overflow celebrity-filled crowd along with national and local media from a wealth of newspapers and websites, Gennadiy walked around the entire floor level to the standing and cheering crowd as ‘Seven Nation Army’ played on. Decked in boxing shorts with the colors and images of the Dodgers, he was treated like royalty as he stopped Rubio in the second round.”

Triple G was at the absolute peak of his destructive punching power. Mexican veteran Rubio failed to make weight. It mattered not to Golovkin. He went at Rubio with heavy body shots in round one, and his work was nearly done. He finished Rubio off with what became his trademark downward-looping left hook to the temple, a clean knockout at 1:19 of Round 2. No scorecards needed.

“Buenas noches, amigos! Como estas? Bien? Muchas gracias, muchas gracias. Mexican style. Muchas gracias; champion. Campeon!” said Golovkin after the win, endearing himself to the crowd. They stuck with him even as he went on to fight Mexican hero Canelo Alvarez over a trilogy of fights.

Classic Carson Carnage: Francisco Vargas vs Orlando Salido

The card featuring Vargas and Salido in the main event was the first since the death of Muhammad Ali the night before. Ring announcer Michael Buffer drew the honor of the traditional ten count sending off The Greatest before the main event, an emotional moment for the fans present.

Vargas and Salido followed with a grueling guerra for 12 unrelenting rounds, neither taking a breath or a backward step. Between the two, they both took 600 combined power punches. Both Vargas and Salido looked on the brink of being knocked out more than once in a roller coaster of a fight.

Vargas, part of the 2015 Fight of the Year against Takashi Miura, delivered for a second year in a row against Salido. Vargas began with his jab and uppercuts using his greater reach. Salido said nothing doing, and pressured Vargas on the inside, working the body and letting combinations fly.

Vargas had to toss away the game plan and go to war. As he did against Miura, Vargas suffered nasty cuts over both eyes and on the bridge of the nose. Referee Raul Caiz Sr. let the fight continue all 12 rounds. The crowd couldn’t believe the fight was a draw.

Personal note: The WBC championship belt I’m holding in my bio photo is the same WBC World Featherweight title belt held by Francisco Vargas, who spontaneously offered it to me to pose for a photo. Muchas gracias, Francisco!

Superfly: The US Debut of the Monster

The lower weight divisions have struggled to capture the imagination of American boxing audiences. Promoter Tom Loeffler and then-HBO Boxing executive vice president Peter Nelson came up with the “Superfly” series to showcase the best fighters in the super flyweight division loaded with talent.

Superfly I was the first of three action-packed cards at the StubHub Center in Carson on September 9, 2017. The card featured the highly anticipated American debut of WBO World Super Flyweight champion Naoya Inoue. After first dropping Antonio Nieves with a devastating left hook to the body in the fifth round, Nieves retired a minute into the sixth round. The fight set the stage for Inoue’s rise as boxing’s top pound-for-pound star nine years later.

It was the co-main event to the rematch between Srisikat Sor Rungvisai and Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez of Nicaragua. Rungvisai won a controversial majority decision in the first bout. The second ended abruptly with a shocking fourth-round knockout of Gonzalez.

“The triple-headliner of the inaugural Superfly event was the talk of Southern California boxing for weeks leading up to a late summer night and the anticipation of seeing Japan’s next great fight,” recalls Bahrmasel. “With a rock star aura and a packed house of boxing fans, many waving flags from Inoue’s native land, Inoue stopped Antonio Nieves in the sixth round.”

Bahrmasel points out the extraordinary card included “an outstanding all-Mexican battle between Juan Francisco Estrada and Carlos Cuadras. The undercard also featured future female superstar Seniesa Estrada and the Hawaiian Punch, Brian Viloria.”

So Many Hot Boxing Nights

Many of boxing’s biggest names got their chance to shine under the stars. I’ve been ringside in Carson to see Gervonta Davis, Ryan Garcia, Deontay Wilder, Miguel Cotto, Nonito Donaire, the pro debut of Shakur Stevenson,

Sadly, several terrific events missed the cut but are still worth a mention.

• The infamous corner retirement by Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. against Andrzej Fonfara, setting his cornerman Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. and numerous fans into a rage.
• A vicious fight on a rare rainy night between Oscar Valdez and Scott Quigg (ask Steve Kim!).
• The wild throwdown with a controversial ending between Timothy Bradley Jr. and Jessie Vargas.
• An underrated battle between Miguel Cotto and Yoshihiro Kamegai.
• HBO Boxing’s final broadcast on a freezing cold night, featuring its first women’s main event won by welterweight champion Cecilia Braekhus, and a middleweight title defense by Claressa Shields.

Gayle Falkenthal, Boxing Editor

Gayle Falkenthal is an award-winning boxing journalist with more than four dozen awards for both written and video coverage from the Boxing Writers Association of America, Society of Professional Journalists, and San Diego Press Club, where she is the past president. She is the only woman journalist who is a full voting member of the BWAA. She is the Boxing Editor for NY Fights based in San Diego, California.