Gary Russell Jr

Gary Russell Jr. is a professional boxer who was born on June 5, 1988, in Washington, D.C. He knew from a young age that he wanted to have a career in boxing, and that passion paid off handsomely as a teenager. After training throughout most of his childhood, Russell Jr. became one of the best amateur boxers in the country by winning the United States Championships and National Golden Gloves tournaments in 2005 at the age of 16. The dominance in the United States earned him a trip to the 2005 Amateur Boxing World Championships in Mianyang, China. Russell Jr. lost only one fight during the prestigious tournament, but he was still only able to take the bronze medal in the bantamweight division.

Russell Jr. once again proved that he was the best amateur boxer in his weight class by winning the 2006 U.S Championships. This earned him a trip to the 2007 World Amateur Boxing Championships in Chicago, but he ultimately lost in the second round. While Gary was able to qualify for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, he never got to compete after missing the final weight-in.

The disappointment in Beijing caused Gary Russell Jr. to focus on turning pro. He made his professional boxing debut in a match against Anthony Reyes on January 16, 2009. Russell Jr. won the fight by technical knockout in the third round. After seven straight wins to start the professional career, he fought in his first six-round match against Jairo Delgado on February 19, 2010. He won the fight with a technical knockout in the first round.

Gary Russell Jr. appeared in his first fight scheduled for eight rounds on January 28, 2011. He secured a unanimous technical decision victory over Feider Viloria in the seventh round. The fight was stopped early after Viloria sustained a massive cut from an accidental headbutt. Russell Jr. started his professional career with 18 straight wins before he got to appear in his first 10-round fight. That match occurred on November 26, 2011, against Heriberto Ruiz. While the fight was scheduled to go 10 rounds, Ruiz was knocked out two minutes into the first round.

After starting his professional career with 24 straight wins, Gary Russell Jr. finally got his first world title shot on June 21, 2014. The fight was against Ukraine's Vasyl Lomachenko for the vacant WBO featherweight title. The Ukrainian was only fighting his third professional match after a record-setting amateur career. Lomachenko dominated most of the fight before winning by a majority decision.

Russell Jr. did not let the first loss hinder his impressive career. He followed up the loss with a unanimous decision victory over Christopher Martin Pena. This win earned him a shot at Jhonny Gonzalez's WBC featherweight title on March 28, 2015. Gonzalez was defeated by technical knockout in the fourth round. Gary successfully defended his new WBC featherweight title for the first time against Ireland's Patrick Hyland at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Montville, Connecticut, on April 16, 2016. Hyland was knocked out in the second round.

What is Gary Russell Jr's Record?

Gary Russell Jr's record currently stands at 31 wins, 1 loss and 0 draws. Of those 31 wins he has stopped 18 of his opponents, so his current knock-out ratio is 58%. In his only defeat, he lost on the scorecards. He's boxed a total of 160 rounds, meaning his professional fights last 5 rounds on average.

What was Russell Jr's last fight?

Gary Russell Jr's last fight took place against Tugstsogt Nyambayar's on 8th Feb 2020, in Pennsylvania, United States. He won by unanimous decision after 12 rounds. That fight was 1 year and 7 months ago.

How active is Gary Russell Jr?

Russell Jr's last 5 fights have come over a period of 5 years, 5 months and 3 days, meaning he has been fighting on average every 1 year and 1 month. In those fights, he fought a total of 38 rounds, meaning that they have lasted 7.6 rounds on average.

What belts does Gary Russell Jr hold?

He won WBC World Featherweight belt against Jhonny Gonzalez, beating him by technical knockout in the 4th round on 28th March 2015. He has held this belt for a total of 1219 days (3 years and 4 months) and has defended the belt 5 times. His next mandatory for his WBC belt is due against Rey Vargas. His last mandatory challenger for this belt was Joseph ‘Jo Jo’ Diaz, who he defeated by unanimous decision after 12 rounds, on 19th May 2018. This was 3 years and 4 months ago.

Where is Gary Russell Jr From?

Russell Jr was born in the United States.

How Old Is Gary Russell Jr?

The featherweight is currently 33 years old. He was born on 5th June 1988, so he will turn 34 in 8 months and 17 days.

How long has Russell Jr been fighting?

Gary Russell Jr made his professional debut in January 2009, so he has been a pro for 12 years and 8 months.

How tall is Gary Russell Jr?

Russell Jr is 5' 5" (5 Foot and 5 inches) which is 164cm (1 meter and 64 centimeters).

What is Russell Jr's Reach?

His reach is 64.2 inches (64.2") which is 163 cm (1 meter and 63 centimeters).

What stance does Gary Russell Jr use?

Russell Jr fights from a southpaw stance, which means he favours his left hand as his power hand when fighting.

What are some potential opponents for Gary Russell Jr?

Some potential future fights for Russell Jr include Leo Santa Cruz, Lee Selby, Devin Haney, Oscar Valdez and Shakur Stevenson.

What will be Gary Russell Jr's Next Fight?

Gary Russell Jr's doesn't currently have a fight scheduled.

Some potential future fights for Russell Jr include Leo Santa Cruz, Lee Selby, Devin Haney, Oscar Valdez and Shakur Stevenson.

How can I stream Gary Russell Jr's Fights?

In the UK you can usually stream Russell Jr's fights on BoxNation via BT Sports App and BoxNation.

In the US you can usually stream Gary Russell Jr's fights via Showtime App and ShowTime via Hulu.

What are some recent Gary Russell Jr results?

Russell Jr has won 5 of his most recent fights, stopping 4 of them, going the distance once.

In his last fight, he won against Kiko Martinez on 18th May 2019 by technical knockout in the 5th round in their WBC World Featherweight championship fight at Barclays Center, New York, United States.

Previous to that, he had won against Joseph ‘Jo Jo’ Diaz on 19th May 2018 by unanimous decision in their WBC World Featherweight championship fight at MGM National Harbor, Oxon Hill, Maryland.

Going into that contest, he had beat Oscar Escandon on 20th May 2017 by technical knockout in the 7th round in their WBC World Featherweight championship fight at MGM National Harbor, Oxon Hill.

Before that, he had defeated Patrick Hyland on 16th April 2016 by technical knockout in the 2nd round in their WBC World Featherweight championship fight at Foxwoods Resort, Mashantucket.

He had won against Jhonny Gonzalez on 28th March 2015 by technical knockout in the 4th round in their WBC World Featherweight championship fight at Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas.