Tag: Gary Russell Sr.

Good, bad, worse: Gervonta Davis must now face next-level opponents

Good, bad, worse: Gervonta Davis must now face next-level opponents.

A critical look at the past week in boxing

GOOD

Are there any doubters still out there?

Gervonta Davis’ critics will point to his resume and say he still hasn’t taken down an elite fighter, at least not one his size. The fact is he has strong record, with victories over Jose Pedraza, Yuriorkis Gamboa, Leo Santa Cruz, Mario Barrios, Isaac Cruz and now Rolando Romero after his one-punch knockout Saturday night in Brookly, New York.

He stopped all but one of those fighters, Cruz.

They’ll say, “Hey, Tank was barely able to outpoint Cruz in his previous fight.” C’mon, the guy fought a young, relentless beast with one arm and still pulled out a victory. That’s what champions do.

And they’ll point out that Romero was a relatively inexperienced opponent with no experience fighting on a large stage or against anyone near Davis’ ability.

That’s true, Romero did take an enormous step up in opposition. Still, he gave a strong performance until one of the biggest punchers among active fighters landed the enormous left hand that stopped him and sent the pro-Davis crowd into a tizzy. That’s what Davis does; he knocks out good opponents.

Now he must do the same against next-level foes.

Yes, it’s time for Davis to take on the cream of the 135-pound crop no matter what that takes. The winner of the June 5 fight between unified champion George Kambosos and Devin Haney is Tank’s ideal test. And Ryan Garcia and Vasiliy Lomachenko would be viable options.

If Davis fights anyone inferior to those four potential opponents in his next fight, it will only provide fodder for critics who believe he has been protected Mayweather Promotions. In other words, it wouldn’t be a step forward for him. And that’s not beneficial to a hot young fighter who wants to continue to build on his momentum.

Davis is a special all-around fighter. He has to fight other special fighters to prove how great he truly is. And the time is now.

 

BAD

Rolando Romero looks as if he didn’t know what hit him on Saturday night.  Al Bello / Getty Images

No, it wasn’t a good night for Romero.

He was competitive against a heavy favorite for five-plus rounds, which is noteworthy. However, the unfortunate bottom line is that he was the victim of a brutal sixth-round knockout, which is bad any way you look at it.

He’s no longer unbeaten, which is never easy on a fighter. And, more important, he’ll have to put in some arduous work if he hopes to become an elite boxer and fight for a major 135-pound championship one day.

There is reason for optimism. He boxed well against his pound-for-pound opponent until his ignominious demise, as both he and his trainer pointed out after the fight.

Romero is known for his punching power but he demonstrated that he has an all-around skill set, which is how he was able to frustrate Davis for most of the short fight.

That’s remarkable given his relative lack of experience. He reportedly had a total of 49 amateur and professional fights under his belt when he stepped into the ring to face Davis. That’s a low number for a fighter taking part in a pay-per-view main event.

The fact he progressed so quickly speaks to both his God-given ability – he’s a natural – and his work ethic.

Sometimes it’s difficult to bounce back from such a devastating setback. However, if he can put the disappointment behind him and retain his confidence, Romero could still have a bright future.

 

WORSE

The new, more flat-footed version of Erislandy Lara (29-3-3, 17 KOs) has defeated Ramon Alvarez, Greg Vendetti, Thomas LaManna and Gary O’Sullivan (31-5, 21 KOs) in his last four fights, the last victory coming by an eighth-round TKO on the Davis-Romero card.

Obviously, the Cuban master can still fight at 39 years old.

However, fighting second-tier opponents is the equivalent of spinning your wheels. At his age, Lara can’t afford to waste any more time.

And the thought of Lara failing to get another shot at a world title – this time at 160 pounds – is heartbreaking. If any fighter in the twilight of his career has earned that right, it’s the former 154-pound champion.

Remember, he has ended up frustrated by five disputed decisions. All three of his losses and two of his draws have come by split or majority decisions, including a controversial split-decision setback against Canelo Alvarez that could’ve (should’ve?) lifted him to true star status.

The point here is that we don’t want to see Lara finish his career without one more shot at glory, which wouldn’t be surprising given his bad luck.

He sits below only champion Gennadiy Golovkin in the WBA rankings, which means he’s first in line to challenge Triple-G. The problem is that Golovkin is expected to fight Alvarez a third time in September, which leaves an aging Lara out of the picture for now.

Lara could challenge WBC titleholder Jermall Charlo, with whom he shares a manager. And Demetrius Andrade, the WBO beltholder, is always looking for a big-name challenger.

Let’s just hope Lara gets his shot before it’s too late.

 

RABBIT PUNCHES

Davis said at the post-fight news conference that he didn’t suffer another injury to his left hand, as it appeared he might’ve in Round 5. … Junior middleweight contender Jesus Ramos (19-0, 15 KOs) complained after his unanimous-decision victory over Luke Santamaria (13-3-1, 7 KOs) on the Davis-Romero card that he couldn’t give his best performance because Santamaria didn’t want to fight. Ramos’ job is to make him fight, which he largely failed to do. Santamaria is a slick boxer who is naturally smaller than Ramos, who is a big puncher. Of course, Santamaria’s strategy was to stick and move. And he had some success in the first half of the fight. Ramos did well to control the second half and pull away to a unanimous-decision victory. However, he was wrong to criticize Santamaria for not cooperating as much as he would’ve liked him to. Santamaria is a good boxer. He could have success when he moves back down to 147 pounds. … So long to Gary Russell Sr., the trainer and patriarch of one of the sport’s first families who died at 63 on May 23. Russell guided four sons to Golden Gloves titles and three have had successful professional careers. Gary Russell Jr. is one of the best in the game while Gary Antuanne Russell and Gary Antonio Russell are rising contenders. The eldest Russell deserves a lot of credit for his sons’ success. RIP.

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Good, bad, worse: Gervonta Davis must now face next-level opponents

Good, bad, worse: Gervonta Davis must now face next-level opponents.

A critical look at the past week in boxing

GOOD

Are there any doubters still out there?

Gervonta Davis’ critics will point to his resume and say he still hasn’t taken down an elite fighter, at least not one his size. The fact is he has strong record, with victories over Jose Pedraza, Yuriorkis Gamboa, Leo Santa Cruz, Mario Barrios, Isaac Cruz and now Rolando Romero after his one-punch knockout Saturday night in Brookly, New York.

He stopped all but one of those fighters, Cruz.

They’ll say, “Hey, Tank was barely able to outpoint Cruz in his previous fight.” C’mon, the guy fought a young, relentless beast with one arm and still pulled out a victory. That’s what champions do.

And they’ll point out that Romero was a relatively inexperienced opponent with no experience fighting on a large stage or against anyone near Davis’ ability.

That’s true, Romero did take an enormous step up in opposition. Still, he gave a strong performance until one of the biggest punchers among active fighters landed the enormous left hand that stopped him and sent the pro-Davis crowd into a tizzy. That’s what Davis does; he knocks out good opponents.

Now he must do the same against next-level foes.

Yes, it’s time for Davis to take on the cream of the 135-pound crop no matter what that takes. The winner of the June 5 fight between unified champion George Kambosos and Devin Haney is Tank’s ideal test. And Ryan Garcia and Vasiliy Lomachenko would be viable options.

If Davis fights anyone inferior to those four potential opponents in his next fight, it will only provide fodder for critics who believe he has been protected Mayweather Promotions. In other words, it wouldn’t be a step forward for him. And that’s not beneficial to a hot young fighter who wants to continue to build on his momentum.

Davis is a special all-around fighter. He has to fight other special fighters to prove how great he truly is. And the time is now.

 

BAD

Rolando Romero looks as if he didn’t know what hit him on Saturday night.  Al Bello / Getty Images

No, it wasn’t a good night for Romero.

He was competitive against a heavy favorite for five-plus rounds, which is noteworthy. However, the unfortunate bottom line is that he was the victim of a brutal sixth-round knockout, which is bad any way you look at it.

He’s no longer unbeaten, which is never easy on a fighter. And, more important, he’ll have to put in some arduous work if he hopes to become an elite boxer and fight for a major 135-pound championship one day.

There is reason for optimism. He boxed well against his pound-for-pound opponent until his ignominious demise, as both he and his trainer pointed out after the fight.

Romero is known for his punching power but he demonstrated that he has an all-around skill set, which is how he was able to frustrate Davis for most of the short fight.

That’s remarkable given his relative lack of experience. He reportedly had a total of 49 amateur and professional fights under his belt when he stepped into the ring to face Davis. That’s a low number for a fighter taking part in a pay-per-view main event.

The fact he progressed so quickly speaks to both his God-given ability – he’s a natural – and his work ethic.

Sometimes it’s difficult to bounce back from such a devastating setback. However, if he can put the disappointment behind him and retain his confidence, Romero could still have a bright future.

 

WORSE

The new, more flat-footed version of Erislandy Lara (29-3-3, 17 KOs) has defeated Ramon Alvarez, Greg Vendetti, Thomas LaManna and Gary O’Sullivan (31-5, 21 KOs) in his last four fights, the last victory coming by an eighth-round TKO on the Davis-Romero card.

Obviously, the Cuban master can still fight at 39 years old.

However, fighting second-tier opponents is the equivalent of spinning your wheels. At his age, Lara can’t afford to waste any more time.

And the thought of Lara failing to get another shot at a world title – this time at 160 pounds – is heartbreaking. If any fighter in the twilight of his career has earned that right, it’s the former 154-pound champion.

Remember, he has ended up frustrated by five disputed decisions. All three of his losses and two of his draws have come by split or majority decisions, including a controversial split-decision setback against Canelo Alvarez that could’ve (should’ve?) lifted him to true star status.

The point here is that we don’t want to see Lara finish his career without one more shot at glory, which wouldn’t be surprising given his bad luck.

He sits below only champion Gennadiy Golovkin in the WBA rankings, which means he’s first in line to challenge Triple-G. The problem is that Golovkin is expected to fight Alvarez a third time in September, which leaves an aging Lara out of the picture for now.

Lara could challenge WBC titleholder Jermall Charlo, with whom he shares a manager. And Demetrius Andrade, the WBO beltholder, is always looking for a big-name challenger.

Let’s just hope Lara gets his shot before it’s too late.

 

RABBIT PUNCHES

Davis said at the post-fight news conference that he didn’t suffer another injury to his left hand, as it appeared he might’ve in Round 5. … Junior middleweight contender Jesus Ramos (19-0, 15 KOs) complained after his unanimous-decision victory over Luke Santamaria (13-3-1, 7 KOs) on the Davis-Romero card that he couldn’t give his best performance because Santamaria didn’t want to fight. Ramos’ job is to make him fight, which he largely failed to do. Santamaria is a slick boxer who is naturally smaller than Ramos, who is a big puncher. Of course, Santamaria’s strategy was to stick and move. And he had some success in the first half of the fight. Ramos did well to control the second half and pull away to a unanimous-decision victory. However, he was wrong to criticize Santamaria for not cooperating as much as he would’ve liked him to. Santamaria is a good boxer. He could have success when he moves back down to 147 pounds. … So long to Gary Russell Sr., the trainer and patriarch of one of the sport’s first families who died at 63 on May 23. Russell guided four sons to Golden Gloves titles and three have had successful professional careers. Gary Russell Jr. is one of the best in the game while Gary Antuanne Russell and Gary Antonio Russell are rising contenders. The eldest Russell deserves a lot of credit for his sons’ success. RIP.

[lawrence-related id=30573,30570,30568,30530,30524,30518]

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Gary Russell Jr. pushes through family tragedies to make his ring return

Gary Russell Jr. has pushed through family tragedies to make it back to the ring on Jan. 22.

Gary Russell Jr. takes punches for a living but nothing could prepare him for the pain he and his family have experienced over the past 13 months.

Russell lost one of his four brothers, Gary Darreke Russell, at 26 to a heart attack in December 2020. And his 62-year-old father and trainer Gary Russell Sr. is in a pitched battle with diabetes, which resulted in the recent amputation of a foot.

The younger Russell said that his dad should be in the hospital now but has put it off until after Jan. 22, when the 33-year-old from the Washington D.C. area defends his featherweight title against Mark Magsayo in Atlantic City (Showtime).

A less resilient man might’ve postponed his return to the ring under these difficult circumstances. Not Russell. He’s been able to deal with the family crises, train as best he can and remain stoic through it all.

“Like I always say, we’re fighters at heart,” he told Boxing Junkie. “I always say you gotta keep your chin down and your hands up because life is going to throw punches at you.”

Gary Russell Jr. has remained stoic through family tragedies. Amanda Westcott / Showtime

The sudden death of Gary Darreke hit the family extremely hard, especially boxer Gary Antonio. “They were closest in age,” Gary Russell Jr. said.

And his father’s health has been an ongoing crisis in terms of both his role as family patriarch and trainer of his three boxing sons. Gary Sr. was hospitalized for portions of his eldest son’s training camp, which has made it difficult to establish any sense of normalcy.

At times Gary Jr. has trained himself for the sixth defense of his 126-pound title.

“He’s supposed to be in the hospital now but he decided he’s not going to go back to the hospital until after this match,” Gary Jr. said. “He felt he missed enough of the training camp. This is how we’ve been doing our training camp, over Zoom or Duo, you know, because he’s in the hospital.

“… He’ll watch me over the phone and if he sees something he doesn’t like, whoever’s holding the phone will reiterate what he’s saying. Stuff like that. We make it work that way.”

Can we assume then that Russell won’t be at his best when he steps into the ring at the Borgata Hotel Casino?

Well, Russell said he’s never been 100 percent physically going into a fight. For example, he’s had hand problems in the past. However, with the exception of a loss to Vasiliy Lomachenko in 2014, the veteran known for his remarkably quick hands  has dominated one opponent after another in his 13-year career.

The fight on Jan. 22, he said, will be more of the same.

“I don’t even want to put a number on that,” said Russell, who was asked to quantify his preparedness. “I’ll let everybody know at the conclusion of the fight. In spite of everything, I’m confident.

“I believe in the skill set I bring, I believe in my ability, I believe in my tenacity and I believe in myself.”

That positive outlook is one reason he has been able to cope with the family tragedies.

The gym and the ring have always been havens for him, he said. He called boxing his “woosah, my peace of mind” even when things outside boxing aren’t going well. However, it seems that his attitude is the key to his resilience.

It has allowed him to take on some of his father’s leadership duties while he has been ill. It has allowed him to be there for his own family, which is his inspiration. And it has allowed him to move on with his career.

“I try my best,” he said. “I try to find the good in a situation and use it as fuel. If you look at it any other way, it could definitely drown you, definitely take you under, to a dark place. Regardless of the situation, I have six beautiful babies who are looking at no one else but daddy.

“Who else is going to be an example of something strong, to create that foundation for them, other than their dad?”

That philosophy doesn’t mean he’s impervious to the weight on his shoulders, which is considerable. He feels it. He simply knows that he’ll survive and grow at the same time.

“Pressure,” he said, “makes diamonds.”