More on Johnny Flores . . .

Wrapping a boxer's hands
By Rick Farris


We learn this quick, regadless of what you do in boxing.
Most of us start young, and this you are taught on day one.
We'd buy cotton hand wraps. I first got them at United Sporting Goods, on 9th & Hill St.
Johnny Flores showed me how to best wrap them for training. I'd pad the knuckles with foam when they were bruised.

My grandfather worked at Warner Brothers, and he had access to a lot of 1" white adhesive tape, so Flores Gym always had tape, etc.
My grandfather would do a lot of the maintenance at Johnny's Gym. Warner Bros. Studio supplied the tape, pads, and misc. maintenance items.
He'd patch the bladder for the speed bag, keep it full of air, bring in bungie cord from the studio to fix the double-end bag.
When you run a gym, you learn it has to be kept up if used regularly.

Johnny's gym had a ring, a couple heavy bags, speed bag, double-end bag, excercise table, scale, pictures on the wall, vintage 50's-60's amateur shows.
His 50-60's fighter, Louie "The Lion" Perez, a hard hitting middleweight from Canoga Park pictured.
Posters from Johnny's match making days for promoter Joe Louis, in Hollywood at the Moulin Rouge.
Gil Cadilli, one of many names of the era were featured on those cards.
Photos of a ten-year-old Jerry Quarry trading blows in the juniors.
A B&W photo of me with Flores, Quarry, Big Train Lincoln at the Main St. Gym was also on the wall.
Flores with 1952 Olympic Champ Ed Sanders, who was later killed in the ring.
My trainer, middleweight Manuel Diaz, slamming Eddie Land with a hook to the body in a 1959 amateur match at Valley Garden Arena.
Frank Baltazar might have fought that same night?

Johnny Flores showed me how to wrap my hands, and later, wrapped them many times for my fights.
As a pro, Johnny was able to wrap my hands with more tape, etc. It felt incredible, better than others, including Eddie Futch.
He was the best to ever wrap my hands.