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Kevin Iole: Gamboa Is The Real Deal
Luis Barragan hears the same story from just about every manager, promoter and booking agent he ever speaks to that he heard from the handlers of Yuriorkis Gamboa.
The story rarely changes. My guy, they say, will fight anyone anywhere at any time and is simply looking for an opportunity.
The truth, though, is usually diametrically opposed to those words. They’re almost always looking for the easiest opponent at the most money.
And so, when Barragan, the director of programming at HBO Sports, was approached about Gamboa, a 2004 Olympic gold medalist from Cuba, he expected more of the same.
“Every promoter says their kid will fight anybody, but I rarely believe them,” Barragan said, chuckling.
But it’s rare that a promoter has a talent like Gamboa. The 26-year-old is 9-0 as a professional, but will headline a show, a “Boxing After Dark” card on HBO Saturday at Buffalo Bill’s Casino in Primm, Nev., when he takes on Darling Jimenez.
Barragan was shocked to hear names of experienced and highly regarded fighters like Rocky Juarez and Jorge Barrios mentioned as potential opponents for Gamboa.
And it’s likely that Gamboa will fight Juarez later this year, assuming he gets past Jimenez on Saturday.
Before his 10th professional fight, Gamboa is probably already good enough to be fighting for a super featherweight title. In less than a year, he’s likely to be regarded as one of the world’s 20 best fighters.
“I think he’s more skilled than Manny Pacquiao right now,” said Gary Shaw, who is co-promoting Saturday’s bout about a 40-minute drive down I-15 from the bright lights of the Las Vegas Strip. “It can take a while in boxing for someone to develop. He’s extremely advanced compared to the average guy with nine fights, because he’s had this unbelievable amateur background. I think he’s going to be sensational, but he has to fight the fights, too. There have been a lot of heralded Cubans who haven’t panned out, because maybe they haven’t been able to put their noses to the grindstone.
“This guy seems to be the real thing. I’d fight him with pretty much anyone right now. But he’s still developing.”
Gamboa has blazing hand speed which, in large part, is responsible for his pulverizing power. But in his haste to score knockout after knockout – after winning a decision in his pro debut, he’s reeled off eight consecutive stoppages, including four in the first round – he frequently leaves himself open.
But Gamboa, who defected while the Cuban national boxing team was in Venezuela in December 2006, insists he’s prepared to plug whatever holes exist in his game.
“It’s something I’m fundamentally aware of,” said Gamboa, who decided to leave Cuba because of disenchantment with his treatment by the government after winning the gold medal. “But my best defense is always my offense.”
It didn’t take long to convince Barragan and Kery Davis, the senior vice president of sports programming at HBO, to accept Gamboa-Jimenez as a main event despite Gamboa’s lack of experience and name recognition.
Outside of the hard-core fans, there are probably less than a handful of people in the U.S. who are aware of Gamboa.
Davis got a clip of Gamboa and was convinced, but had to get the blessing of his boss, HBO Sports president Ross Greenburg. And so Davis ventured down the hall and stuck his head into Greenburg’s office.
“I told him I just needed him to see something for 30 seconds,” Davis said.
Davis stuck the DVD in the player and then watched Greenburg watch Gamboa. He knew as soon as he saw the look on Greenburg’s face what the answer would be.
When the clip finished playing, all Greenburg could say was, “Wow.” Davis and Barragan went ahead and bought the fight.
“To me, this kid is a special and unique talent,” Davis said. “He has such an extensive amateur background, but he’s clearly made to be a pro fighter. The first word that came into my mind after seeing him was explosive. He has lightning-fast combinations with explosive power. He’s almost got this disdain for what’s incoming. I felt I was looking at a special talent. He jumps off the screen at you.”
He shares the bill on Saturday with a pair of other explosive talents, in James Kirkland and Alfredo Angulo, but expect Gamboa to be the star not only of this show but many to come.
It’s not a stretch to suggest that he’s the guy that may one day usurp Floyd Mayweather Jr.’s position as the consensus best fighter in the world.
To Gamboa, those are the kinds of things which push him forward.
“You should always want to challenge yourself and I always try to challenge myself and push myself,” he said. “The people who don’t know me now, I think they will, because I’m not going to back away from anybody. I’m here, ready to fight the best fighters alive.”
The story rarely changes. My guy, they say, will fight anyone anywhere at any time and is simply looking for an opportunity.
The truth, though, is usually diametrically opposed to those words. They’re almost always looking for the easiest opponent at the most money.
And so, when Barragan, the director of programming at HBO Sports, was approached about Gamboa, a 2004 Olympic gold medalist from Cuba, he expected more of the same.
“Every promoter says their kid will fight anybody, but I rarely believe them,” Barragan said, chuckling.
But it’s rare that a promoter has a talent like Gamboa. The 26-year-old is 9-0 as a professional, but will headline a show, a “Boxing After Dark” card on HBO Saturday at Buffalo Bill’s Casino in Primm, Nev., when he takes on Darling Jimenez.
Barragan was shocked to hear names of experienced and highly regarded fighters like Rocky Juarez and Jorge Barrios mentioned as potential opponents for Gamboa.
And it’s likely that Gamboa will fight Juarez later this year, assuming he gets past Jimenez on Saturday.
Before his 10th professional fight, Gamboa is probably already good enough to be fighting for a super featherweight title. In less than a year, he’s likely to be regarded as one of the world’s 20 best fighters.
“I think he’s more skilled than Manny Pacquiao right now,” said Gary Shaw, who is co-promoting Saturday’s bout about a 40-minute drive down I-15 from the bright lights of the Las Vegas Strip. “It can take a while in boxing for someone to develop. He’s extremely advanced compared to the average guy with nine fights, because he’s had this unbelievable amateur background. I think he’s going to be sensational, but he has to fight the fights, too. There have been a lot of heralded Cubans who haven’t panned out, because maybe they haven’t been able to put their noses to the grindstone.
“This guy seems to be the real thing. I’d fight him with pretty much anyone right now. But he’s still developing.”
Gamboa has blazing hand speed which, in large part, is responsible for his pulverizing power. But in his haste to score knockout after knockout – after winning a decision in his pro debut, he’s reeled off eight consecutive stoppages, including four in the first round – he frequently leaves himself open.
But Gamboa, who defected while the Cuban national boxing team was in Venezuela in December 2006, insists he’s prepared to plug whatever holes exist in his game.
“It’s something I’m fundamentally aware of,” said Gamboa, who decided to leave Cuba because of disenchantment with his treatment by the government after winning the gold medal. “But my best defense is always my offense.”
It didn’t take long to convince Barragan and Kery Davis, the senior vice president of sports programming at HBO, to accept Gamboa-Jimenez as a main event despite Gamboa’s lack of experience and name recognition.
Outside of the hard-core fans, there are probably less than a handful of people in the U.S. who are aware of Gamboa.
Davis got a clip of Gamboa and was convinced, but had to get the blessing of his boss, HBO Sports president Ross Greenburg. And so Davis ventured down the hall and stuck his head into Greenburg’s office.
“I told him I just needed him to see something for 30 seconds,” Davis said.
Davis stuck the DVD in the player and then watched Greenburg watch Gamboa. He knew as soon as he saw the look on Greenburg’s face what the answer would be.
When the clip finished playing, all Greenburg could say was, “Wow.” Davis and Barragan went ahead and bought the fight.
“To me, this kid is a special and unique talent,” Davis said. “He has such an extensive amateur background, but he’s clearly made to be a pro fighter. The first word that came into my mind after seeing him was explosive. He has lightning-fast combinations with explosive power. He’s almost got this disdain for what’s incoming. I felt I was looking at a special talent. He jumps off the screen at you.”
He shares the bill on Saturday with a pair of other explosive talents, in James Kirkland and Alfredo Angulo, but expect Gamboa to be the star not only of this show but many to come.
It’s not a stretch to suggest that he’s the guy that may one day usurp Floyd Mayweather Jr.’s position as the consensus best fighter in the world.
To Gamboa, those are the kinds of things which push him forward.
“You should always want to challenge yourself and I always try to challenge myself and push myself,” he said. “The people who don’t know me now, I think they will, because I’m not going to back away from anybody. I’m here, ready to fight the best fighters alive.”
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