Gary Russell, Jr.
| Gary Russell, Jr. | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Russell in 2010 | |||||||||||||
| Statistics | |||||||||||||
| Nickname(s) | Mr. | ||||||||||||
| Rated at |
Featherweight Super featherweight | ||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 4 in (1.63 m) | ||||||||||||
| Reach | 61 in (155 cm) | ||||||||||||
| Nationality | American | ||||||||||||
| Born |
June 5, 1988 Washington, D.C., U.S. | ||||||||||||
| Stance | Southpaw | ||||||||||||
| Boxing record | |||||||||||||
| Total fights | 28 | ||||||||||||
| Wins | 27 | ||||||||||||
| Wins by KO | 16 | ||||||||||||
| Losses | 1 | ||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||
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Gary Russell, Jr., (born June 5, 1988) is an American professional boxer and the current WBC featherweight champion. He was voted the 2011 Prospect of the Year by The Ring magazine,[1] Sports Illustrated,[2] and ESPN.[3]
As as an amateur, Russell Jr. was compared by Sugar Ray Leonard to himself.[4]
Amateur career and Olympics
Russell was born in Washington D.C.. At age 16, he won both the U.S. Championships and the Golden Gloves in 2005. He became one of only two boxers to win both the U.S. Championships and National Golden Gloves before his 17th birthday. In October 2005, the small southpaw boxer-puncher had a record of 163-10.
In November 2005, at the world championships in Mianyang, Russell beat Bulgarian Detelin Stefanov Dalakliev, 25-21, in the first round; dec. Canadian Tyson Cave, 22-9, in the second round; dec. Jordanian Al Gharaghir Ibrahim, 34-13 before losing to German Rustamhodza Rahimov, 28-17 thus winning the bronze medal at age 17 (joining Rau'shee Warren) and was named 2005 USA BOXING Athlete of the year.
Russell repeated his national title win in 2006, at the US championships 2007 injuring his hands in the process.
At the Olympic Trials 2007, Russell sensationally lost to Roberto Marroquin in his first fight (17:18), his first defeat to a countryman in eight years, but beat him twice later and bested national champion Rios to qualify. Russell became only the fourth boxer in U.S. team history to lose in the opening round and rebound to win his weight class, the others were Evander Holyfield, Roy Jones, Jr. and Floyd Mayweather, Jr.
At the 2007 World Amateur Boxing Championships in Chicago, Russell beat Ali Hallab to qualify for the Olympics but was beaten soundly by Russia's eventual winner Sergey Vodopyanov 16-6 and didn't medal.
Russell's quest for a medal ended prematurely as he missed the Olympic weigh-in hours after losing consciousness in his Olympic Village dorm room.[5]
Professional career
Russell stopped Antonio Reyes at 0:21 of the third round of his pro debut, as he began his ascension to the top of the division.
Russell Jr made his HBO debut on Saturday night against Leonilo Miranda, the co-feature to the Jan Zaveck vs. Andre Berto main event from the Beau Rivage Casino in Biloxi, Mississippi.[4]
Russell had a stellar 2011, defeating Feider Viloria, Adolfo Landeros, Antonio Meza, and Leonilo Miranda. On July 23 Russell faced Eric Estrada on the undercard for the Amir Khan vs. Zab Judah fight at Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas. Russell put on a brilliant performance winning an easy unanimous decision.[6]
On November 26, 2011, Russell was originally scheduled to face Dat Ngyuen, who was forced to withdraw after suffering a knee injury the week before during training camp. Instead, Russell defeated Mexico's Heriberto Ruiz on November 26, 2011 at the US Bank Arena in Cincinnati, Ohio with a stunning knockout at 2:12 in the first round.
Professional boxing record
| 28 fights, 27 wins (16 knockouts), 1 loss[7] | |||||||
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Type | Rd., Time | Date | Location | Notes |
| Win | 27–1 |  Patrick Hyland |
KO | 2 (12), 1:33 | 2016-04-16 |  Mohegan Sun Casino, Connecticut |
Retained WBC Featherweight title. |
| Win | 26–1 |  Jhonny González |
TKO | 4 (12), 0:37 | 2015-03-28 | Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada |
Won WBC Featherweight title. |
| Win | 25–1 | Christopher Martin Peña |
UD | 10 | 2014-12-20 | Little Creek Casino Resort, Shelton, Washington |
|
| Loss | 24–1 |  Vasyl Lomachenko |
MD | 12 | 2014-06-21 | StubHub Center, Carson, California |
For vacant WBO Featherweight title. |
| Win | 24–0 | Miguel Tamayo |
KO | 4 (8), 1:04 | 2014-01-30 | Barclays Center, Brooklyn, New York |
|
| Win | 23–0 | Juan Ruiz |
UD | 10 | 2013-08-09 | Fantasy Springs Resort Casino, Indio, California |
|
| Win | 22–0 |  Vyacheslav Gusev |
UD | 10 | 2013-03-02 | Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada |
|
| Win | 21–0 | Roberto Castaneda |
KO | 3 (10), 1:25 | 2012-11-09 | Fantasy Springs Resort Casino, Indio, California |
|
| Win | 20–0 | Christopher Pérez |
TKO | 3 (10), 1:41 | 2012-06-30 | Fantasy Springs Resort Casino, Indio, California |
|
| Win | 19–0 | Heriberto Ruiz |
KO | 1 (10), 2:12 | 2011-11-26 | U.S. Bank Arena, Cincinnati, Ohio |
|
| Win | 18–0 | Leonilo Miranda |
UD | 8 | 2011-09-03 | Beau Rivage Resort & Casino, Biloxi, Mississippi |
|
| Win | 17–0 | Eric Estrada |
UD | 8 | 2011-07-23 | Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada |
|
| Win | 16–0 | Antonio Meza |
KO | 4 (8), 2:42 | 2011-06-17 | State Farm Arena, Hidalgo, Texas |
|
| Win | 15–0 | Adolfo Landeros |
UD | 6 | 2011-04-15 | Longshoremen's Hall, San Francisco, California |
|
| Win | 14–0 |  Feider Viloria |
TD | 7 (8), 0:50 | 2011-01-28 | Four Points by Sheraton, San Diego, California |
|
| Win | 13–0 | Guadalupe de Leon |
UD | 6 | 2010-10-28 | L.A. Live, Los Angeles, California |
|
| Win | 12–0 | Willie Villanueva |
KO | 1 (6), 2:56 | 2010-09-25 | Fitzgerald's Casino & Hotel, Tunica, Mississippi |
|
| Win | 11–0 | Mauricio Pastrana |
TKO | 1 (6), 1:46 | 2010-07-22 | L.A. Live, Los Angeles, California |
|
| Win | 10–0 | Rodrigo Aranda |
KO | 2 (6), 0:34 | 2010-06-24 | L.A. Live, Los Angeles, California |
|
| Win | 9–0 |  Carlos Diaz |
KO | 1 (6), 1:32 | 2010-04-16 | Omni New Daisy Theater, Memphis, Tennessee |
|
| Win | 8–0 | Jairo Delgado |
KO | 1 (6), 2:38 | 2010-02-19 | Wolstein Center, Cleveland, Ohio |
|
| Win | 7–0 | David Orosco Cano |
TKO | 1 (4), 2:58 | 2010-01-30 | Fitzgerald's Casino & Hotel, Tunica, Mississippi |
|
| Win | 6–0 | Rodrigo Romero |
TKO | 3 (4), 0:38 | 2009-12-18 | Grand Casino Mille Lacs, Hinckley, Minnesota |
|
| Win | 5–0 | Noe Lopez, Jr. |
UD | 4 | 2009-10-23 | Laredo Entertainment Center, Laredo, Texas |
|
| Win | 4–0 | Jason Jones |
TKO | 1 (4), 0:28 | 2009-08-07 | Buffalo Bill's Resort & Casino, Primm, Nevada |
|
| Win | 3–0 | Alvaro Muro |
UD | 4 | 2009-05-01 | Chumash Casino Resort, Santa Ynez, California |
|
| Win | 2–0 |  John Wampash |
UD | 4 | 2009-02-14 | BankAtlantic Center, Sunrise, Florida |
|
| Win | 1–0 | Antonio Reyes |
TKO | 3 (4), 0:21 | 2009-01-16 | Million Dollar Elm Casino, Tulsa, Oklahoma |
Professional debut. |
See also
References
- ↑ Doug Fischer (December 28, 2011). "Readers vote Gary Russell Jr. the Prospect of the Year for 2011". The Ring. Retrieved January 21, 2012.
- ↑ Chris Mannix (December 19, 2011). "Prospect of the Year - Gary Russell Jr. - SI.com's 2011 Boxing Awards". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved January 19, 2012.
- ↑ Dan Rafael (December 27, 2011). "2011 ESPN.com prospect of the year Gary Russell Jr.". ESPN. Retrieved January 21, 2012.
- 1 2 http://www.badlefthook.com/2011/8/30/2393347/berto-vs-zaveck-undercard-gary-russell-jr-boxing-prospect-spotlight-hbo-boxing
- ↑ "U.S. boxer Russell collapses, out of Olympics - 2008 Olympics - SI.com". CNN. August 8, 2008.
- ↑ "Russell Jr. eager to take the next step after another easy victory". RingTV.com. July 24, 2010.
- ↑ Gary Russell's Professional Boxing Record – BoxRec.com
External links
| Achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Jhonny González |
WBC Featherweight Champion March 28, 2015 – present |
Incumbent |