Frank Galarza: I Want 2015 To Be My Breakthrough Year

By Francisco Salazar

That was a pretty sweet knockout, right?

Frank Galarza's second round knockout of John Thompson in January of 2014 ranked as one of the more spectacular knockouts of last year.

Thompson is trying to move on in the 2015 Boxcino tournament as a junior middleweight, fighting tonight against Stanyslav Skorokhod.

Galarza wants to move on and not just be defined or known for that devastating knockout win. Instead, he envisions himself moving up the ranks and fighting the best possible fighters out there.

He will get that opportunity tonight, when he faces Sheldon Moore in an eight round bout at the Aviator Sports Complex in Brooklyn, N.Y. The bout will headline a three-bout 'ShoBox: The New Generation' broadcast on Showtime, beginning at 10 p.m. ET/ 7 p.m. PT.

Galarza (14-0-1, 10 KOs) has fought four times since the Thompson fight, defeating modest opposition for a prospect. In his last bout on February 20, Galarza stopped veteran Raul Munoz in the first round.

The Brooklyn native will be fighting in front of plenty of family and friends as they will descend from around the borough and beyond to watch the 29-year-old attempt to impress again. He will attempt to do so against Moore, who has won 10 of his last 11 bouts.

Moore is a 28 year old who resides in Bernissart, Belgium.

"He's a tough and aggressive fighter," Galarza told Boxingscene.com over the phone earlier this week. "He's coming to fight and he has something to prove. I know I've been knocking out fighters impressively, but I just want to put on a tremendous show on Friday night."

That knockout win over Thompson is still talked about amongst boxing fans on social media. Video is replayed over and over on social media and will likely re-air on Showtime in the lead in to the fight.

Thompson was the slight favorite that night, but Galarza became known as a legit prospect following the knockout win.

While some boxing writers called Galarza's knockout win an upset over Thompson, Galarza not only expected to win the fight, but to do stop him in the later rounds.

"This is the hurt business and I know Thompson is a talented kid," said Galarza, who is promoted by Lou DiBella and managed by A.J. Galante. "I came in to execute our game-plan (against Thompson). A lot of people were surprised by the knockout, and I was too. I knew the outcome was going to take place in the later rounds as long as we stuck to the game plan. The only think I was surprised at was that it took place that early in the fight."

Galarza wants to continue building towards contender status later in 2015. It could realistically happen later this year, even though the 154-pound weight class is very deep, especially with the amount of unbeaten fighters and contenders that are chomping at the bit to face the top fighters in the division.

There is a strong likelihood he would have to fight a fellow unbeaten fighter or another top prospect to eventually receive big money fights or title shots. That is just fine to Galarza.

"I'm not afraid to fight other prospects. In fact, I would like to fight the top fighters in the division. I believe prospect should fight each other. I just want to fight the best out there. There's nothing wrong with 18-0 and 19-0 fighters facing 17-0 fighters. Let's do it."

So many fighters have recently continued that legacy of great fighters from Brooklyn. Mike Tyson, Zab Judah, and Paulie Malignaggi are just a few of the many well-known fighters that have won world titles.

While some believe Galarza could continue that tradition of great fighters from Brooklyn, he wants to carve out his own path.

"I want to do it different. I want to bring it back to a positive level. Like Mike Tyson. He had a passion and a competitiveness edge to the sport. I want that passion to remain and give it that Brooklyn feel. I want kids to look up and see fighters like me and Danny Jacobs represent Brooklyn the right way. Brooklyn may feel gritty and grimy, but it the character and toughness that's what makes us unique."

Galarza may be coming into his own. He is in his prime and there could be upside that remains where he may get even better.

While the lights may get brighter and the pressure of facing more-talented fighters get bigger and bigger, Galarza is ready to take it all in.

"I want 2015 to be my breakthrough year. People saw me in 2014 and I want 2015 to be a year where I become a contender. Let's fight the best and give boxing fans want they want."