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Rod Ricciardi (Managing Director)
Rod brings over 30 years of entrepreneurial and marketing / sales and most of all people skills to Thunder promotions. He has been the automotive industry for over 30 years and has achieved many top honors including top vehicle volume in the United States and 3 times the most profitable dealerships in the United States.
His passion has always been to be with a team to help the children and young Adults, making a difference in their future. He has produced and promoted the “invincible martial arts” training video featuring the Grand master Ernesto Presas and John Bruce Daniels which has sold over a million copies. He has trained law enforcement agencies in stick and knife defense including agencies such as the FBI, CIA, etc. He has also donated his time to working with children and many youth groups. |
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"Merciless" Ray Mercer (Director) - Wikipedia - Celebcenter.us
"Merciless" Ray Mercer (born April 4, 1961 in Jacksonville, Florida) is an American professional boxer, mixed martial artist and former WBO World Heavyweight Champion and Olympic Gold Medalist who resides in Fayetteville, North Carolina. Mercer was the 1988 United States Amateur Champion at Heavyweight while in the US Army and compiled an Amateur record of 64-6. He won Gold in the 1988 Olympics in Seoul as a heavyweight. In 1989, Mercer fought Barry Flowers (USAF) which contributed to a K.O. win in the 7th round.
On June 13, 2009, Mercer defeated former UFC Heavyweight Champion Tim Sylvia at Adrenaline III: Bragging Rights. He won the fight via knockout in 9 seconds, becoming the first man to ever defeat Sylvia by knockout. He then called out Eric Esch after the fight. In March 2010, it was announced that Mercer had signed with the King of the Cage organization. |
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Jeff Youngman (Director)
Jeff Youngman is an entrepreneur that has built a number of successful businesses, Jeff believes strongly in second chances and employs numerous people that have been turned away by other establishments. Jeff has coached many years with various youth teams, establishing great rapport with the children and parents in the community. After nine years of holding a seat on the local athletic booster club, Jeff has a wealth of experience promoting sporting events, raising funds and handling budgetary issues. During his tenure at the booster club, Jeff and his fellow board members were able to raise enough money to help the school build some of the best facilities in their respected conference. |
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Bobby Czyz (Board Member) - Visit Website
Robert Edward "Bobby" Czyz (born February 10, 1962) is a retired American boxer. A New Jersey native of mostly Polish and Italian descent, he is both a former world light heavyweight and cruiserweight champion. Czyz was born in Orange, New Jersey. He lived in Wanaque, New Jersey and attended Lakeland Regional High School. Nicknamed "Matinee Idol", Czyz was a member of the United States amateur boxing team whose other members died in the LOT Polish Airlines plane crash in Poland in 1980. Because of an auto accident one week before the fatal trip, Czyz was not on the plane.
Czyz had a quick start to his professional boxing career in the early 1980s and he was soon in line for a shot against world middleweight champion Marvin Hagler. He had to start from scratch, however, after suffering a 10-round loss at the hands of veteran Mustafa Hamsho in November 1982.
He has since been inducted into the Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame. Czyz is a member of Mensa,the organization for people who have scored in the highest 2% of takers in an IQ test. He even wore a shirt with "MENSA" on it while walking to the ring to fight Evander Holyfield.
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Michael Moorer (Board Member)
Michael Moorer is a 3-time heavyweight world champion and 1-time light heavyweight champion. Through his career he has faced countless hall-of-famers in the ring, including George Foreman, Evander Holyfield, David Tua, Francois Botha and more. Moorer won by way of KO in 40 of his 52 wins. He is also the first universally recognized southpaw world heavyweight champion, and scored knockouts in each of his first 26 bouts, placing him in the exclusive list of boxers who have won at least 20 fights in a row by knockout, alongside such other fighters as George Foreman, Wilfredo Gomez, Carlos Zarate, John Mugabi, Aaron Pryor and Edwin Valero.
Since stepping out of the ring Moorer has been active in boxing training, as well as serving as a bodyguard for Tiger Woods. He has worked with Manny Pacquiao and Amir Khan, helping them prepare for fights, and has been featured countless times on ESPN as a guest commentator for Friday Night Fights.
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Don Steele (Board Member / Treasurer)
Steele has one of the longest active pro boxing careers spanning 11 years. Steele has won three Heavyweight Titles in the United States Boxing Association, Southeastern Heavyweight title & the Carolina Boxing Association title. Currently Don owns and operates a Security Guard company in Myrtle Beach while developing a movie based on his life. |
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Hector Comacho Jr.
Hector Camacho Jr. (born 1978) is a professional boxer. He is the son of legendary three time world champion Hector Macho Camacho.
At the age of eight, Camacho Jr. first gained some prominence, when he entered the ring with his dad and did a mock sparring with him before his father's world title defense against Edwin Rosario. That night, he wore a Puerto Rican flag attire.
After an award winning amateur boxing career, he turned professional in the middle 1990s. As a professional, he has beaten boxers like Rocky Martinez and former world champion Philip Holiday, and he had a no contest against former world champion Jesse James Leija, the Leija fight being filled with controversy because of the scoring of the fight, as the judges had initially given the fight to Camacho Jr on a technical decision in five rounds, but Leija's camp protested the result, resulting in the fight being called a no-contest.
A constant HBO Boxing star, he sports a record of 54 wins, 4 loss and 1 no contest, with 29 wins by knockout. |
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James Walter "Buddy" McGirt (Board Member)
James Buddy McGirt is a former two time world champion and world renowned boxing trainer. Inside the squared circle McGirt accumulated an impressive record of 73-6-1 (48 KO), winning both the IBF light welterweight title and WBC welterweight title.
Following his retirement from the ring in 1997, McGirt turned to the other side of the gloves and began training a handful of champion boxers, including Arturo Gatti, Tomasz Adamek, Antoinio Tarver, Matthew Macklin, James McGirt Jr., Paulie Malignaggi and more.
In 2002 McGirt won the Boxing Writers’ Association of America Trainer of the Year Award.
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Sifu John Bruce Daniels - Visit Website
John Bruce Daniels is a 7th dan Black Belt in Arnis Demano and a certified instructor in Jeet Kune Do under Sifu Dan Inosanto who was Bruce Lees number one instructor. He holds a total of 5 black belts. His work with a local hospital trauma team reinforces his commitment to educate others in self-defense techniques. This commitment is represented by the video Personal Protection and Awareness Techniques, which John directed and produced in 1990. He has been featured on the cover of "Inside Kung-Fu", and featured inside "Blackbelt", and "Full contact" magazines.
Guro John Daniels has over twenty years of experience in the martial arts. He holds the rank of 7th Dan Arnis and Arjuken Karate under Grandmaster Roberto Presas. He is also a full instructor in Daga say Daga. Guro Daniels has been certified by Sifu Dan Inosanto as an instructor of Filipino Martial Arts and a 6th year associate instructor of Lee Jun Fan Gung Fu. Guro Daniels was also the Staff Instructor for Straight Blast Gym and is currently Staff Instructor at the Dacascos Kung Fu Academy.
John Bruce Daniels is 50% Native American registered with the Sioux Tribe. |
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