Trevor Sambrano believed Brandon Adams still had what it takes to be a champion.
All that was needed was the opportunity to validate that claim.
Adams won a 10-round unanimous decision over Serhii Bohachuk in supporting capacity to Terence Crawford’s historic win over Saul “Canelo” Alvarez this past Saturday at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
Adams, 26-4 (16 KOs), originally trained with Dub Huntley, who is still involved with the team, while he is on his fourth training camp with Sambrano. Adams left home, left his family, and Cannon Nation Boxing Gym in Santa Fe Springs, California, and lived in Sambrano’s house in Laguna Hills, California.
In preparation for the rematch with Bohachuk, 26-3 (24 KOs), the team watched footage of Ruben “Hurricane” Carter, Naoya Inoue, and even Alvarez.
“What I loved about the preparation for this camp was his sacrifice to get ready for this fight,” Sambrano told BoxingScene. “He moved into my house, and we prepared for that night. He is fresh as a pickle. He has four to five years in him.”
The build-up to the rematch had animosity. The teams differed on the views of Adams’ eight-round stoppage win over Bohachuk in 2021.
“I remember everyone who has ever hurt me in life,” Sambrano said. “There is no way Serhii didn’t remember this guy putting him out.”
During camp, Sambrano had alter egos for Adams to prepare for the aggressive style that they wanted to see in the ring. He wanted to see “Canon Duran,” a play on Roberto Duran, using Adams’ nickname of the Canon, and “Brandon Beterbiev,” a play on the great light heavyweight Artur Beterbiev.
The performance was a sink-or-swim moment in Adams’ career. A loss would have moved him down the rankings, but also put him as a typical high-risk, low-reward fighter who tends to get avoided.
This led to a compelling moment in the mid-rounds in which Sambrano urged his fighter on.
“I did see him easing off Serhii in the fifth or sixth round, and I didn’t want him to ease off him at all,” Sambrano said. “That is why I said, ‘Hey, Brandon, you are the B-side. Don’t ease off on him at all. They will rob you if you give them a chance, they will rob you.’”
The words had a different meaning as Adams suffered a split decision loss to Andreas Katzourakis in November, a loss that his team felt he won.
Now, Adams holds a lot of leverage. He is a free agent, and coming off one of the most notable wins of his career over the 30-year-old Ukrainian - perhaps even more satisfying than his come-from-behind knockout win over Bohachuk more than four years ago.
“Brandon is a bit of a boogeyman,” Sambrano said. “I believe Brandon, with performances like that, can be a world champion.”
Lucas Ketelle is the author of “Inside the Ropes of Boxing,” a guide for young fighters, a writer for BoxingScene and a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. Find him on X at @BigDogLukie.
