Weld fighter finds success in the ring by learning to follow his instinct

On the cusp of one of the biggest fights of his career, the weight of the world was on the shoulders of Robert Rodriguez.

After a disappointing finish without his dad and long-time boxing coach Jeff Rodriguez in his corner at the National Golden Gloves this past April, the 16-year-old Evans boxer couldn't even work up the nerve to call his father and tell him how had done. He knew his father would be angry he hadn't stuck to their game-plan.

On the eve of the U.S. Boxing Championships June 2-8 where Robert needed to make the quarterfinals in the Flyweight division (125 pounds) to keep alive his hopes of making the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China, Jeff told his son that all he had dreamed of accomplishing was going to be lost if he didn't shape up.

"I told him 'remember when you were little, when you were 8-years-old, and you said 'Dad, I want to go to the Olympics?' Everything you've told me since then will be a lie if you don't do it," Jeff said.

It was at the U.S. Championships Jeff's long-time friend and fellow coach Sam DiPace of New Mexico grabbed Jeff by the neck and admonished him for putting to much pressure on his son.

Suddenly, Jeff realized he was part of the problem. He needed to change, Robert didn't. He needed to help Robert go back to what had worked for him in the ring, what had gotten him this far -- doing his best. If he lost, just concentrate on how far he'd gotten.

Not only did it take the pressure of off Robert, but it proved successful in the ring. Robert showed the power Jeff said had been missing for three years. Robert won his first two matches, making it into the quarterfinals and earning him a spot in the U.S. Olympic Team Trials Aug. 20-26 in Houston.

At the Team Trials, a double-elimination tournament, the victors of the winners' bracket and the challengers' bracket will meet in the final two days of action. The winners' bracket victors will need to win one of the final round bouts to earn a berth on the U.S. Olympic Team.

Making the Olympic Team is a goal Robert has had since he first heard the chants of U-S-A, U-S-A when he won his first Junior Olympic title.

Back then, Robert would attack fighters quickly and aggressively from the start of a fight, using his power to attack the body of his opponent.

However, recently, Robert had gotten away from that strategy as the coaches with the U.S. team had tried to change his style to fit the Olympic scoring system. It may have worked for others, but it wasn't working for Robert.

"It was making me go downhill," Robert said. "They just want more fancy stuff -- more stepping around and pivoting. There's too much of that and not enough boxing."

At the Golden Gloves, his dad also made the challenge more difficult for Robert by telling him to lay back early in his first fight, taking away his usual aggressiveness.

"His loss was totally my fault," Jeff said. "I told him to start off slow on the kid. My fear was there were a lot of kids getting hurt, a lot of knockouts, a lot of broken hands. I said 'we've already got what we wanted (a berth in the U.S. Championships), so if you get knocked out or get a hand broken, your done. So let's take it easy and go slow."

The pressure out of the ring was as difficult as the pressure in it. Robert was failing out of school at Greeley West and had to transfer to Colorado High School so that the school would work with his training schedule.

If that wasn't enough, boxing promoters were coming out of the woodwork, offering him contacts to turn pro. His dad screened the calls, but the temptation was hard to resist for the teenager.

"You hear how much the money is, and your like, 'I want to take it,'" Robert said.

Still, Robert never lost sight of his ultimate goal, making it to the Olympics. Now with Robert and his dad on the same page, going back to what made him successful in the first place, Robert, , heads to the U.S. Olympic Team Trials confident he can earn a spot on the U.S. team.

The weight of the world has been lifted off his shoulders.

ROAD TO BEIJING

Robert Rodriguez of Evans has already come a long way on the path to make the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China. Below is what he's already done and what he must do to earn a spot in the Olympics.

WHAT HE'S DONE

Rodriguez qualified for the U.S. Championships by winning the Colorado State Senior Tournament in February and the Regional State Tournament in March.

By advancing to the quarterfinals in the U.S. Championships, Rodriguez qualified for the U.S. Olympic Team Trials Aug. 20-26 in Houston.

WHAT HE MUST DO

The victors of the winners' bracket and the challengers' bracket at the Olympic Team Trials will meet in the final two days of action. The winners' bracket victors will need to win one of the final round bouts to earn a berth on the U.S. Olympic Team.

If Rodriguez makes the team he must then compete in the Amateur International Boxing Association (AIBA) World Championships Oct. 17-Nov. in Chicago or in one of nine other Olympic international qualifying events in order to qualify for the 2008 Olympic Games. Only six boxers in each weight class except heavyweight and super heavyweight (then only 3) can qualify from the continent of America to the Olympics. Each of the Continent's Natiional Olympic Committee's determines which boxers go to the Olympics.

Source: USA Boxing and the AIBA.

Current USA Boxing Featherweight (125 pounds) rankings

1. Raynell Williams, Cleveland, Ohio

2. Rico Ramos, Los Angeles, Calif.

3. Hylon Williams, Houston, Texas

4. Shemuel Pagan, Brooklyn, N.Y.

|5. Duran Caferro, Helena, Mont.

6. Troy Wohosky, Medford, Ore.

7. Robert Rodriguez, Evans

8. Rosey Summerville, San Antonio, Texas