Gym Rat: DMB Boxing
Story by Gerardo Martinez
Photos by Jose Leon Castillo
Located within the confines of a gated community on Albuquerque’s Westside is David Michael Baca’s boxing gym, otherwise known as DMB Boxing.
“I have a small group, I don’t like to have more fighters that I can concentrate on,” Baca said during an afternoon workout session with his team of fighters.
Currently his team consists of his son and soon-to-be pro Matthew Baca, Gabe Gabaldon and his nephew Elijiah Sandoval. The team workouts out of the senior Baca’s garage which he converted to a fully equipped boxing gym in 2006 after leaving LA Boxing. At LA Boxing, Baca trained Lee Montoya, Josh Gomez and others.
“I built the gym along with the help of my dad,” says Baca.
There is no space left in the garage for a car. The gym has a full size ring along with lockers, punching bags and boxing images of former and current fighters. And of course there’s Bob, the team’s boxing dummy who takes a healthy dose of punishment from the entire team.
It took Baca a while to collect enough equipment to convert his garage to a gym. He has now been a utility mechanic with the water authority for 18 years and is looking to retire soon. During these last few years he says he has seen his son progress as a boxer and is looking forward to seeing him show his true skills as a professional boxer. Matthew will be making his debut on the Dec.2 Fresquez Productions card headlining Holly Holm.
Although located in a gated residential area Baca does not restrict his fighters and they often leave the gym to put in their roadwork.
“We usually run four to five miles outside of neighborhood,” says Coach Baca. The team also often visits other gyms to spar with other talented Albuquerque pros and amateurs including newly crowned youth champ Fidel Maldonado Jr., Archie Ray Marquez, Josh Torres and Hector Munoz.
With Matthew turning professional soon and Gabe Gabaldon doing the same within a year, Coach Baca already has a new crop of boxers should keep an eye out for. He calls his three nephews the “Fighting Sandovals.” One of them is already training and the others will join DMB Boxing soon.
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