Boxing as a full-time job

All the pro boxers I know work 2nd jobs or are full time students.
I only know one full time pro. His name is Raytona Whitfield.

 

canello, it is almost impossible to be a full time pro boxer early in a career and not work for a living to pay your bills. In most sports, sponsorship only comes with proven success, and a young pro with few fights is not a proven commodity worth risking investor capitol.

Now, if a guy is in his late teens, early 20's and still lives at home and trains daily and his parents are footing the bill for his existence, I guess it's possible to not have a paying job and train full time. That said, if I'm that parent, I'd want to see positive results or your ass is getting a job to pay your bills. Dreams are one thing, reality is another.

 

the professional boxers I know ALL work full time jobs in addition to boxing. welding, carpenter, physical trainer, etc... I don't know any pro that can only box.

One of my dawgs had a 10 round co-main event fight. He was paid $3,000. woooo

 

The closest I know to full time pros are guys who work in the gym, teaching classes, running fitness groups, etc.

 

majority of pros that i know are either on the dole or doing trades.always amazes me how most of them are though,like they missed alot of schooling because they thought they were going to be great pros

 

I think it is possible, but not an easy thing to do. Face it, the vast majority of boxers weren't born into the upper class of our society where their career and educational options are pretty much wide open. With limited education, these guys won't get white collar jobs that pay well so they take what they can and most of that is going to be in the line of hard work.

If the guy is working long, hard hours, then yes, it can take a toll on his desire to get up in the morning and do roadwork, go to work all day, then head to the gym for an evening session of more hard work. One thing is for certain--------you don't get to be an good boxer that can put in 10 rounds without a lot of hard work.

As for your statement about having a dozen or so fights, doing well and having some 12 rounders under his belt------I think that is more fantasy than reality for the average Joe with no extensive amateur or international level background. However, IF a fighter did get to that level that quick, people with money would likely take notice and some offers could roll in so that fighter could train full time and not kill himself working a full time job and trying to maintain a good training schedule.

 

canello, I don't know where to find the numbers, but I'm pretty certain most of today's fighters that are doing well did have a pretty strong amateur background and started boxing at a fairly young age.

I don't feel it is impossible for an older, less experienced guy to break into the pro fight game and do well for himself, but it think it is highly improbable and the odds are stacked against him.

Think about it from a trainer's point of view. He has a gym with a couple good pro prospects. They have decent amateur experience, know the routine of what it takes, how to work out properly, know the basics and then some. Then a guy a few years older comes into the same gym, with little to no experience and says "I want to be a pro, and I need someone to teach me everything." Chances are, the trainer will pass unless that person shows something very special that makes him take notice.

But, hey, if your dream is to try to do something in boxing, then give it your best shot and hope someone takes notice.

 

Go to Dibella entertainemt homepage and right on the front page is the story how Sergio Martinez made it. It took him a loong time to get where he is.

 

Well, with things going the way you are describing, it sounds like you know what you want and are having success getting it. Congrats on the unblemished pro record. I'm assuming you are fighting pre-lims in the 4-6 round range with an eye on going after 8-10 rounders against better competition sometime in the near future. You start doing that and have the same success you are currently having, someone just may step up and notice you as a talent worth taking a chance on in terms of sponsorship so you can train full time.

Here's some food for thought. Not knowing what you do for a living or your earning potential, have you ever thought of becoming a fireman. Most major cities that have a paid fire dept. have a work schedule of 24 on and 48 off, or something similar. My city has a 24/48 so if you go to work at 7 a.m. Monday, you get off no later than 7 a.m. Tuesday and don't report back until 7 a.m. on Thursday. That is a job that would allow you to have a good bit of training time without doing the daily grind. Even when at the fire station, you could work out to some degree with rope jumping, hitting the bags, exercising abs etc. I believe the starting salary for new recruits in my city is close to $40K a year. If that is not enough money, you could work part time on your time off to pull in needed income and maybe find a job not as physically demanding so you can train like you want. Just something to think about.