Troy Nash Jnr tasted defeat without a loss officially being on his record.
Nash, 5-0-1 (2 KOs) started his 2025 as an unassuming prospect before defeating two previously unbeaten opponents, Alexander Kovrigin and Zholdas Zhengissov, in the WBC Grand Prix’s featherweight tournament.
Nash then fought Muhamet Qamili. The bout was ruled a draw, but Qamili advanced due to the WBC’s enhanced scoring system in case of a tie.
After the match, some online record keepers listed Nash as having a loss, something that was corrected to a draw, but it still bothered the 20-year-old from Colorado Springs, Colorado.
“It is something that I never want to come close to experiencing again,” Nash Jnr said. “The thought of losing put a different type of fire into my training, so once it was listed as a draw officially, I had a new mentality. From now on, I must kill when I hunt. I can’t let fights ever be that close again.”
Nash returns on Friday against an opponent to be determined at the Ace Mission Studios in Los Angeles.
Nash, a 15-time national champion, went unsigned when he turned professional. Trained by his father, Troy Nash Snr, the twosome felt frustrated at the lack of offers despite his amateur success. The Grand Prix allowed Nash Jnr to stand out and display his talents, though it was bittersweet.
“I felt like we were becoming the story of the tournament,” Nash Snr said. “I heard people say U.S. fighters wouldn’t take the chance and fight a bunch of unbeaten prospects, but we did.”
The perception of a loss added to the competitive juices between the father/son duo.
“It bothered us,” Nash Snr said. “We hate losing, and in boxing, a loss can change things. Anyone who knows boxing knows that.
“My son has become meaner after the draw,” Nash Snr added. “He saw a loss on his record, and he keeps saying that he never wants to feel that pain again, even though he never lost.”
