Dough dear to local man

Dane Grace

If throwing and twirling pizza dough were a martial art, Juan

Hermosillo would have a black belt.

The Mexican immigrant, who now lives in Costa Mesa, recently won

the U.S. Pizza Team Acrobatic finals in New York City by performing a

routine that involved tossing five pieces of dough, choreographed to

music. His upset victory took the honor from five-time champion Tony

Gemignani and will allow Hermosillo to represent the U.S. Pizza Team

in the world competition that takes place in Italy.

For Hermosillo, his victory brought a “great feeling.”

“I’m a big fan of soccer, and it was like I won the World Cup,”

Hermosillo said.

Hermosillo works at his family’s restaurant in Costa Mesa, La

Cocina De Isabel, and came from relative obscurity to the

dough-throwing world.

In fact, the early days of his dough-tossing career are

self-described as less than stellar.

“I was really bad at it,” Hermosillo said.

He once asked a fellow pizza maker to teach him the trick, but he

refused. Hermosillo took it upon himself to learn, and he practiced

every day while he worked at the pizza restaurant. Eventually, his

brother Pedro suggested that they make the long drive from Costa Mesa

to Ohio, so that Juan Hermosillo could try out for the U.S. Pizza

Team.

But even his family had doubts that he’d make it to the top level.

“At first off, no, [but] right now we see, every single day, how

he trains, and we changed our minds that he can do it, and he does,”

Pedro Hermosillo said.

Juan Hermosillo said part of his success is due to his innovation

in his routine. He mixes the Italian pizza traditions with his Latin

heritage and energy.

“I want to mix both -- the Italian ways and the Latin way,” he

said.

In preparation for a future contest in Italy, Juan Hermosillo said

he is practicing daily with dough he makes at his family’s restaurant

and is further tightening his routine.

And he remains confident. He said that at the national

championships, he went hoping for second place but ended up winning.

“I defeated a five-time former champion,” Juan Hermosillo said.

But for Italy, he said he’s entering the competition with the

intent of taking the gold.

“I hope to win,” he said. “I’m not going for second or third

place.”

The champion dough tosser said he’s driven by the spirit of

competition, and while the trip to Italy will be an all-expenses-paid

trip, he said there is no monetary prize for winning. He got nothing

for winning the national championship, either.

“This thing is more about having fun,” Juan Hermosillo said. “It’s

mostly about that feeling of winning.”