You know what they say about how time flies. Well, time flew with me when it comes to Gary Russell, Jr. I mention this because in a previous post I mentioned his name about how great a boxer he is. Unfortunately, that was the only thing about Gary I got correct.
Turns out Gary is now 17 years old and he is wowing folks nationwide in the amateur ranks. Gary is the number one rated boxer in the bantamweight (119 pounds) class in the country. Gary has won the 2005 National Golden Gloves, the 2005 US Championships and is the 2004 Junior Olympic Champion. Gary is also the youngest member of the USA's Elite Boxing team.
Gary recently won his first senior international bout as he defeated an opponent in Moscow, Russia as part of the USA Elite Boxing team. According to USABoxing.org, Gary overcame a large deficit to win his contest 21-20 over a boxer from Belarus.
Another thing I did get right. Gary Russell Jr. is definitely someone to keep an eye on.
Here's an update on the Mayor's Cup. No, Gary won't be participating, but the event itself is completely free to the public. See previous post on the boxing schedule for information.
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3 comments:
gary, it is hard to get excited about prospects from the d.c area. i grew up in the gym in palmer park and while i was not one to be considered a prospect, i have seen too many who fell off.. during my time there from 83' to the late 90's, i have seen too many fall off. i just hope that gary russell jr. does not fall by the wayside like so many from this area.
his brother was incredible as an amatuer. i watched him against chop-chop in an amatuer tourmnament and he totally dominated him, but chop-chop turned out to be a better pro.
i wish him well as i do the petersen brothers....
The only concern I have about Russell is that he gets burned out by the sport before too long. I don't think it will happen because he grew up in the sport, but I first saw him box at nine years old and he probably started before then.
Your time frame parallels mine and we could spend all day and half the night at least mentioning some of the names of those prospects. Some get to a point in their career and decide that's it; some get a loss and never recover and some get caught up by the streets.
In a couple of weeks, I'm going to be posting some historical pieces I wrote about the area when I reached my 15th year of covering boxing. Hopefully it will bring some memories from you and others as well. Thanks!
I'm a boxer out of North Carolina and i have Gary box number of times and all i can say is that he has talent....enough to where i look up to him
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