“She has always supported me,” said Aguilar. “At the beginning, she told me that I should change sports because it was dangerous, but later she understood that this is what I am passionate about. Now, of course, she is very happy. She knows that I am happy with the results and she is always praying for me, which is a great blessing.”
With mom’s blessing and a perfect amateur record, Aguilar expected more smooth sailing as a pro, but then he went and lost his debut via first-round submission to Gabriel Valdez Mendoza.
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“Of course, I didn’t like losing at all, especially in my hometown of Ensenada, so I decided to move to train with professionals,” he said. “I didn’t doubt myself; I always knew my future would be bright.”
The move led him to Tijuana and Raul Arvizu’s Entram Gym, a place that produced the likes of Brandon Moreno, Marco Polo Reyes, Jose Quinonez, Silvana Gomez Juarez, just to name a few. And as he worked on his craft, he watched his teammates make it to the big show, giving him even more motivation.
