BN: Have you completely retired?
GR: It’s interesting because I do a lot of commentary on DAZN, and I really enjoy working on the matches and watching young talent emerge. It’s hard to go back to the ring without feeling that urge, especially once your body starts to recover (lol), and it makes jumping out of bed in the morning a little easier. I sometimes train with everyone at Wild Card Gym. I live in Puerto Rico half the time, so I also train with the players there. It’s a lifestyle. I talked to Bernard Hopkins and Bernard said,
“I see you in the gym. It’s a lifestyle. You can’t stop it.” It’s true, it really is a lifestyle. The moment you start throwing those shots or trying to stop those shots coming towards you, it just doesn’t feel right.
BN: You have described Bernard Hopkins as a mentor. How important was he to you?
GR: I saw my neighbor doing some boxing stuff. He talked to me about discipline and dedication from the beginning. I met Bernard when I was 18 years old and was actually his sparring partner in his fight with Joe Calzaghe. Since then, he has always protected me. He took me camping. If the camp was in Miami, I would go to Miami with him for the Kelly Pavlik fight. I worked virtually with Bernard from the Calzaghe fight until the last fight. We still keep in touch and always talk on the phone and meet at trade shows. He has had a huge influence on my life, not only in terms of boxing, but also in the way he manages and lives his life. I’m really grateful that Bernard was there.
I think one of the reasons my career has lasted so long is because I was able to learn the tools and tricks that Bernard used. Because it came in handy when people told him that at 36 he was too old. Kelly Pavlik. He mastered these basics and fundamentals and how to control the pace of a fight. Gabe Rosado is said to always have a good fight, but I know when to control the pace and when to slow down. For example, against (Jaime) Munguia, it was a fight where I gave my all from start to finish, but there were also moments where I was able to use my experience to control the pace as a veteran and show my physical strength.And what I learned from Bernard, I will continue to play the sport. Try these little tips to help you. And even the ability to take a punch is the art of taking a punch. You might get a hit flash or end up throwing a shot where it lands, but the flash doesn’t land so it has no effect.
Gabriel Rosado calls his pro career a “gift and a curse”
The post Gabriel Rosado calls his pro career a “gift and a curse” appeared first on Boxing News.
Now retired, Gabe Rosado talks to Shaun Brown about the mistakes he made along the way, the trappings of fame, and the sec…
— Boxing Streams (@boxingstreamxyz) April 6, 2024
BN: How was life after retirement?
GR: That’s good. Learn lots of new things. I am married. We caught up with her daughters. I have two children ages 7 and 14. My 14 year old son spent the summer with me, so that was good. And learning the art of commentary and studying these fighters is really fun. And give guidance to these young fighters. Sometimes I feel like Bernard Hopkins when I talk to these little kids (laughs). I will help them as Bernard helped me. I get excited when I see young talent. For example, someone I really like is Diego Pacheco. I’ve been working with him for four or five years. I’ve seen his rise. We fought together and I think he’s the future. Times are different now, so I like seeing young people who are not in the spotlight. With social media and all that, it’s easy for martial artists to be in the spotlight and gain fame. They forget to work. And one of the things about a fighter like Pacheco is that he works in the ring and gets better all the time.
BN: You made your debut in Philadelphia the day before your 20th birthday. What do you remember from this time?
GR: As I recall, I was a junior middleweight so I finished at 154 pounds and he (Phil Hicklin) finished at 166 pounds. He was a big guy. He wasn’t fat, he was a great bodybuilder. I got so excited and sold so many tickets that I thought, “Enough is enough, let’s fight” (lol). And his father remembers being so scared that his vision was blurry. I caught him (Hiklin) with an overhand right in the first round and knocked him out. The crowd went wild.
BN: How do you sum up your career?
GR: Like you, I’m looking at my career and lifestyle. And for me, life has always been a struggle. I’m from North Philadelphia. Although this area is violent and drug-infested, it also has a lot of good things. It had a Puerto Rican culture and was primarily inhabited by Puerto Ricans. They have everything, but everyone stays in North Philadelphia and no one thinks outside of North Philadelphia. And I had a dream of fighting to get out of there. Life has these challenges and you have to overcome them. That’s exactly what happened with my career. I’ve always been an outsider. When I fought James Moore on ESPN (in 2008), he was an Olympian, so I knocked him out and won the fight, or whatever happened to Beck, the bully. He blows everyone away. He scored a lot of knockouts as an amateur, but I knocked him out. It’s simply about overcoming difficulties. I think of my career as follows. Don’t listen to what people say and what they say you can do. If you believe in your dreams, be stubborn, do what you have to do, and put in the necessary effort, you can achieve anything.
BN: What do you think would have happened if you hadn’t discovered boxing?
GR: I definitely went down the wrong path. As I said earlier, my environment was violent. I learned to fight because in Philadelphia you have to fight for respect. I’ve been fighting in the streets since I was six years old. If I hadn’t discovered boxing, I probably would have gone down the wrong path. Many of my friends were killed or imprisoned. I remember one time when we got into trouble on the street and there was a big fight, everyone against everyone. It was crazy. The police got out of there and we ran from them and I ran too. I arrived at grandma’s house. She had a window that was always open, so I climbed onto the roof and snuck in through the window to escape the police (lol). At that time, I also thought it was okay to go to prison. what am i doing? Why am I walking down this street like this? I can’t do this anymore. Then I told myself I would go to the gym to box. I went to the gym and never looked back. And Jim saved me. It kept me off the streets, it kept me out of trouble, it gave me a reason to stay focused, it gave me dreams and vision.
BN: What do you consider to be the highlight of your career?
GR: There are two moments in particular that stand out to me. One was in 2012 when he beat Charles Whittaker to become number one at 154th place. I surprised everyone when I appeared on NBC Sports this year. I remember thinking, wow, I made it to number one on the leaderboard, which is a prerequisite for winning the title. When I went back a second time and picked Freddie Roach, my plan with Freddie was to go back to the big stage and have a big match and get a shot at the title. I had a goal and a vision, and that was the moment we hit the ground running and beat Jacobs – no matter what people say (Jacobs won a split decision over Rosado in 2020). And they did it in an empty arena during a pandemic. Then we knocked out Beck. Then when I fought Munguia there was a sold out crowd and it was the best fight of the year. Unfortunately I didn’t come close, but it was one of those matches that I set out to do and I really did. Here we are and the match was everything we wanted as fight fans.
BN: Looking at your own career, you’ve had the likes of Kassim Ouma, Alfredo Angulo, Jesus Soto-Carras, Sechu Powell, Gennadiy Golovkin, Jaime Munguia, Martin Murray, Willie Monroe Jr., Joshua Clottey, He played against Bek Melikuziev twice and against Jermell. Charlo and Peter fought against Quillin.
GR: Curtis Stevens, Brian Berra, David Lemieux.
BN: Glenn Tapia, Luis Arias, Jareon Love, Fernando Guerrero…it’s like a character introduction. When I counted from your record, there were 22 matches in which the opponent was strong. You must feel a lot of pride for having fought these fighters so many times.
GR: I think that’s probably what sets me apart and differentiates me from a lot of other fighters, and that’s what makes me a fan-friendly fighter. I always got into arguments about what Gabe was trying to bring to the table. Is this surprising? It was both a gift and a curse. There’s an art to moving a fighter jet. For example, when it was Canelo’s turn, they couldn’t pair Canelo and (Miguel) Cotto. Cotto would have stopped the train immediately. It’s an experience. We might not have Canelo Alvarez now because Cotto was able to end it. It continues with other fighters. When I beat Charles Whittaker and became mandatory for K-9 (Cornelius Vandraj, who held the IBF 154-pound strap). He would have won against K-9. He was about 40 years old. I was a better fighter than a K-9. But my team at the time thought it was a better option to move up in weight and fight Golovkin on HBO at Madison Square Garden. I’m a young killer fighter: “Oh, we’re fighting Madison Square Garden on HBO.” Okay, we’re fighting for the middleweight world title. You can’t talk him out of it, but I feel like the team made a mistake when they should have been wise enough to say, “He’s not a middleweight yet.” Must grow to full size and weight. Golovkin was 30 years old at the time, so he had the strength of a man and was well developed for the weight class. I was 54 years old and in great shape. Like I said, we could have won that title against K-9. I think that would have turned the tide, but when he had that fight with Golovkin, it was brave and the fans were like, “Wow!” “He got hit, and the cut stopped the fight.” I stayed at middleweight because the “54 pound guys” didn’t want to fight me anymore, but what happened was that I moved up in weight and there were no title fights, so my ranking was 1. I was stripped of my rank. In a way, I was forced to stay at 60 pounds, but then I was trying to move up a weight class. It’s all a matter of timing, but the point is this could have broken me and it could have been over for me at that point. I found out and came back and fought Peter Quillin for another world title.
BN: So that’s one of your regrets.
GR: My team should have handled things differently, but I have no regrets. At the end of the day, you have to take responsibility for your actions. That being said, I think it’s important for young fighters to understand that one of the mistakes I made was fighting Golovkin and continuing to have big fights. You get a different kind of reputation, and a bigger war chest. You are used to having nothing. Now you have some money and fame, but your ego gets in the way and you’re a little distracted. You want to have fun and spend your money instead of working hard. And it has an effect during combat. Box your way of life. Many people think they only need to train when they get into an argument. You have to stay in the gym. It’s a lifestyle. Money and fame changed my lifestyle and it distracted me. (snaps fingers) It took a while to get back on track. This is my advice to young fighters. When the money comes in, don’t get excited, just put it away, maybe invest it, stay the course, maintain the same lifestyle and focus. It’s a sport for young people. You are lucky to have been in this sport for eight to 10 years. Anything beyond that is a blessing.
BN: What does the future hold for you?
GR: I’m busy and enjoying commenting right now. It’s not the same as fighting, but it keeps me occupied and gives me a reason to get back in the gym and keep working on my craft. I can’t sit ringside and tell you what’s wrong with this fighter, and I can’t even throw a right hand anymore (lol). You also need to make sure you are on the right path. Maybe one day I’ll become a trainer and work with fighters, but for now I’m just enjoying giving commentary.
