Junior welterweight Mike Kimbel made a profitable transition from blended martial arts to skilled boxing below the steerage of former mild heavyweight titleholder Chad Dawson.
On Sept. 7 at Foxwoods Resort, Kimbel (7-0, 5 KOs) delivered a first-round knockout in opposition to Anthony Mora (4-3-1, 3 KOs). Nevertheless, that victory is just a part of his journey.
Kimbel, 27, of Waterbury, Connecticut, credit Dawson with educating him worthwhile classes, the sort one usually receives in class. “I deal with sparring and coaching as quizzes,” Kimbel stated. “When it’s time to combat, that’s once I take my take a look at.”
Kimbel’s swap to boxing got here after a irritating stint in MMA. Regardless of signing a six-fight take care of Bellator, combat alternatives dried up, leaving him at a crossroads, particularly together with his companion’s being pregnant including strain to his scenario. “I couldn’t get booked, couldn’t get fights,” Kimbel stated. “I actually didn’t know what I used to be going to do.”
That’s when his agent, Paul Guarino, advised boxing and launched him to Dawson. Two days after Kimbel made his professional boxing debut in January 2023, his son was born, marking a brand new chapter in each his profession and life.
Kimbel holds Dawson in excessive regard, not just for his boxing success but in addition for his laid-back character. “He’s chill, virtually shy,” Kimbel stated. “We’ll be within the automobile heading to sparring, and he’ll put his headphones in. I’m like, ‘Coach, we will play it on the radio,’ however he’ll say, ‘You don’t like my music.’”
Balancing his boxing profession with each fatherhood and a full-time job as a industrial roofer, Kimbel’s each day routine is intense. “I’m up at 4:45, work by 6 a.m., end round 3, and head straight to the health club,” he stated.
Regardless of the challenges, Kimbel is set to rise to the highest. He attributes his speedy success in boxing to his deep respect for the game. “A whole lot of MMA fighters assume they’ll stroll into boxing, and so they don’t perceive the science behind it,” Kimbel stated. He then recalled being mocked by a lifelong boxer throughout a weigh-in, who dismissed him as “simply one other MMA man.”
“He informed me, ‘That is boxing, not MMA,’” Kimbel stated with amusing. Within the second spherical, Kimbel delivered a knockout, proving his doubters improper. As he approaches his third yr as a professional in January, Kimbel is set to maintain proving he belongs within the boxing ring.”
