For some boxers, there’s no place like fighting at home. For Francois Scarboro Jnr, fighting in front of a familiar crowd feels like punching in and out for work.
Fresh off his first fight outside of the DMV area – a first-round stoppage of the previously unbeaten Onyx Sanchez in November in Florida – the 29-year-old junior lightweight prospect will return to his home state of Maryland this Friday when he faces Brandon Valdes in a 10-round fight at the Live! Casino & Hotel Maryland in Hanover.
The fight will be part of a ProBox TV card. (Note: BoxingScene and ProBox TV are both owned by Garry Jonas)
Scarboro, 12-0 (9 KOs), expects to sell at least 300 tickets personally by the time the bell rings, but says it’s all business when he fights in his home area.
“When I’m at home, it’s a job, it’s what I do. It’s like, ‘Bring your friends and family to Work Day’ when I’m at home,” said Scarboro, who lives about half an hour from the venue in Cheverly. “There’s no room for any laughing or anything like that. It’s a business trip, even though it's not a trip.”
That’s not to say that Scarboro doesn’t understand the stakes at hand.
The fight, which came about after the original opponent, Humberto Galindo, declined to sign the bout contract, will see Scarboro face a measuring stick of sorts. Valdes, 15-7 (7 KOs), of Barranquilla, Colombia, is a durable journeyman who has fought prospect after prospect and has been stopped just once, losing a competitive fight by sixth-round TKO against future titleholder Robeisy Ramirez in December of 2020.
Valdes has also fought another fighter on this January 30 card – Jordan White – losing a split decision to him in 2022.
“He has a lot of experience, and his back is against the wall. You’re the strongest when your back is against the wall,” Scarboro said. “Because when I come in and beat him, his stock is going to take a bigger hit than what it already took.”
“I feel like he has the same physical tools that I have. I feel as though he has speed, he has power, and he doesn't have a will to quit. He’s not going to shy away. He’s not scared. I have the same things, and I have some things that you can’t teach. So I believe that in the later rounds, maybe the earlier rounds, you’ll see what the separation is, and then everybody will be able to tell me the difference.”
Scarboro, who graduated from West Virginia’s Glenville State University after attending on a boxing scholarship, is coming off his most impressive performance yet, when a pair of overhand rights dropped the 8-0-1 Sanchez in the first round, leading to a stoppage. That fight was supposed to be a make-or-break test, but instead turned into fodder for Scarboro’s highlight reel.
Scarboro admits he didn’t expect to get rid of Sanchez that quickly, and he isn’t going to let it get to his head.
“I kind of shocked myself,” Scarboro said. “I told myself the whole camp before that I am not a knockout puncher; I’m a boxer. And then I came in and I did that. So I’m still trying to discover myself.”
“This is the sweet science, it’s not the home of the knockouts. Knockouts are good – I love them and all of that – but I never want to get fed into the hype where I’m thinking that I’m a knockout puncher and I’m gonna knock everybody out. Because now [I would be thinking] everybody’s gonna go. So when they don't go, I want to make sure that I’m ready for that.”
That also feeds into how Scarboro is approaching his first scheduled 10-rounder. Scarboro, who has gone eight rounds twice, is matched with an opponent who has gone the 10-round distance five times and knows he can get to the final bell. Scarboro says he has always trained hard for fights, but now it’s a matter of fighting intelligently to preserve his gas tank for those two extra rounds.
“I've always trained as if I was fighting a 10-round fight, so there’s nothing new,” said Scarboro.
“I’ll tell you this: It’s changing the pace. I’m a guy that I’ll get out there and I’ll throw 1,500 punches if you let me. There's nothing wrong with that, I'll still be cool. However, with the 10-rounders, it’s about slowing it down, seeing everything, and making your opponent pay for his mistakes. So that’s been a difference. However, if the opportunity presents itself, then I’ll happily throw 1,500 punches in a fight.”
With some of ProBox’s top attractions booked for action on the event, Scarboro sees this fight as an opportunity to show that he stands above the pack.
“In 2026, I see myself getting the recognition that I deserve. Honestly, if you ask me, I feel as though I'm the most talented boxer on this card coming up, and maybe I'm overlooked,” Scarboro said. “Maybe people don’t want to give me the recognition because I’m new to the sport, or maybe it’s because people have been here before me, and they felt as though I'm cutting the line to stardom, fame, the belts, whatever.”
He then likened himself to an NBA player that has built tempo and is now emerging as one of the best in the league.
“[Minnesota Timberwolves guard] Anthony Edwards, he was the number one player to come over the board. He was the most talented, but he's just now putting everything together, and everybody's starting to see him shine. So, I say it’s the same thing with me too.”
