Rock Island Today

Nile Pena, the 43-year-old owner and operator at Nile Pena Boxing in Moline, has seen considerable progress with his boxers since he opened in 2010. 

Pena helped train Abraham Flores, who was recently crowned a Chicago Golden Gloves champion -- one of the most elite Golden Glove tournaments in the country -- and is seeing many of his boxers succeeding.

“I have been training at my own facility since 2010, for almost seven years,” Pena recently told Rock Island Today.

| Contributed photo

Pena explained that he currently has about 35 boxers in the gym these days -- some are amateur, some are pro and some are just there to work out.

“The Pena name is a big name in this area for boxing, and my grandfather started the Pena Boxing Club back in 1968. I was his assistant from 1999 until 2010, until I decided to open a gym on the Illinois side,” Pena said. “The whole family has been involved in boxing since 1968, from my grandfather, to my cousins and uncles — so it is a family-affair thing.”

Pena said he did some amateur boxing when he was younger, but it was not his main sport. His current day job is working at the American Honda plant in Davenport, but by 7:30 p.m., he is at the gym training boxers.

“I really didn’t get into boxing until my oldest son decided he wanted to box, and then I started training him at my grandfather’s gym in 1999,” Pena said.

At some point, Pena developed a real passion for the sport and decided to carry on in his family’s footsteps.

“I love the sport, and it has been in the family since I can remember,” Pena said. “Since the Pena name is known for boxing, I wanted to carry on that name, along with my uncles and cousins.”

Another benefit of working in the gym is helping others.

“I also wanted to provide an outlet for some of these kids to come and train,” Pena said. “Even if it is only for a few hours a day, at least I know I can help keep these kids off the streets a few hours of the day. They’re safe; they learn positive structure and self-discipline.”

Pena has a lot of success with kids coming out of his gym winning national titles, but Pena said not every success story is always boxing-related.

“Some kids were on the wrong path and decided to be better, and a few joined the military, and some became better members of society and learned some self-respect,” Pena said.

Including life success, Pena is watching many of his fighters succeed in the ring as well.

“I have personally been a part of training at least seven national titles in six years, and I have also trained Donovan Dennis, who has been on Show Box and ESPN, and Gilbert Venegas, Jr., who has been on Fox Sports, and a few other local pros,” Pena said. “Abraham Flores is one of my biggest amateur success stories, and he made it to the semi-finals at the Olympics. Flores also won three national titles and the Chicago Golden Gloves. He is also looking to go pro in October.”

As for why Nile Pena Boxing is successful, Pena is confident he knows why.

“I know exactly. We have a family atmosphere in my gym,” Pena said. “Even though boxing is an individual sport, we have a core set of guys who really care and want each other to succeed. We treat each other like we are all a part of a team.”