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Status: Super Welterweight boxer. Next match is scheduled for Virginia on March 12 against Jimmy Holmes (19-1). His record is 34-4-2 (24 KOs).
Ht: 6-0 Wt: 154
DOB: August 25, 1975 In: Washington DC
First Boxing Memory: “I think my first memory is going with my father to somebody’s house to watch Pryor-Arguello, the second fight. I was really young – four or five.”
Boxing Inspirations: ”I have to say Sugar Ray Leonard. Alexis Arguello. And Ali, of course. Mostly Ray. We’re from the same neck of the woods. I got to spend some time with him. He’s a real inspiration.”
Last Book Read: ”Six months ago I read The Count Of Monte Christo. I enjoyed it.”
Favorite Movies: ”The Godfather, of course. I like Cinderella Man, that was good. Usual Suspects.”
First Job: ”I blew up balloons for a boardwalk game, throwing darts to hit the balloons to win prizes. I blew them up and nailed ‘em to the wall. In Wildwood, NJ.”
First Car: ”Ford Probe.”
Current Car: ”Chrysler Seabring.”
Pre-Fight Feeling: ”Just think about the gameplan, strategy. Going through that in my mind, and trying to stay focused.”
Favorite Meal: ”Spaghetti and marinara.”
Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: ”Chocolate peanut butter.”
Pre-Fight Meal: ”Spaghetti, marinara.”
Greatest Career Moment: ”I think my last fight was a great moment, I pulled it out of the fire (KO 10 vs. Joe Wyatt to win NABA U.S. 154 title). The second (Fontaine) Cabell fight (2007), I got hurt in the first thirty seconds of the first round – a bad injury to my shoulder. Tore rotator cuff. I hung in there and knocked him out in the 8th round. Angelo Dundee was in my corner. I said, I can’t feel my arm. He said, F*** your arm, use the other arm. (What punch did you knock him out with?) Right hand over the top of a jab.”
Most Painful Moment: ”Probably that same moment. It really hurt me. I’ve broken each hand three times, ribs bothered me. The most painful was that rotator cuff.”
Strangest Fight: ”I’ve had some colorful opponents. They say anything, from, Your mother, to your race, to whatever. I think that’s all in the game. I never took that personal. I don’t think I’ve had a strange opponent. That’s kind of normal in boxing, to trash talk.”
Funny Boxing Memory: ”Oh man, there is so many. I just finished training. Jimmy Glenn was with me, we were in Virginia. He has a bar in Times Square (Jimmy’s Corner). I go up to visit at his bar. He has a bartender Mike. Jimmy called in the bar to check things out. He put me on the phone, here’s Mike. I said to Mike, breakin’ his balls, I always mess with him a little bit, Don’t chase the skirts. He kept saying, God bless you, I love you. I started to wonder who I was talking to, maybe it wasn’t Mike. I said to Jimmy, Who is this. Jimmy said, It was Mike Tyson [laughter].”
First Famous Boxer You Met: ”One of them was Alexis Arguello. I was at a fight, he took the time to really pay attention to me. He must have taken 5-10 minutes. People were asking him for his autograph but he took the time with me. A real gentleman. That made an impression on me.”
Embarrassing Boxing Memory: ”I’ve never been embarrassed in boxing. You have the dreams of getting to the ring and forgetting to put your trunks on under your robe. But that never happened to me.”
Favorite Boxers To Watch: ”I like Mayweather. I like Pacquiao. I like Sergio Martinez. James Toney, though I don’t know what he’s doing recently. He’s just unbelievable, skill-wise.”
Toughest Part Of Being A Boxer: ”Over the years, on the whole, just staying in there. Hanging in there, day after day. Getting your spirit up, every day, back in the gym every day. Sometimes it takes a while to see results. The tedious work. A lot of times, the guy that hangs in there longer will overcome better fighters.”
Future Boxing Ambitions: ”Champion of the world. Go as far as I can. I think I’m on the right path and close to getting a break and a shot.”
Who Would You Like To Specifically Target: ”Any of ‘em. I don’t discriminate. Whatever they put in front of me, I would do whatever it takes to get ready for them.”
People Qualities Most Admired: ”I think – I don’t know how to say it – what I hate the most is hypocrite. If you’re not a hypocrite. If a guy can be straight with his beliefs and morals and not go behind his back and let down. Someone who has all his morals straight and sticks to them.”
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