Gerome Quigley Jr. [13-0-0]
Gerome Quigley Jr. made a good impression on a new audience on Eurosport towards the end of last year with his emphatic stoppage of Germany's Vito Vendetta inside a round. It was a great way to end a busy year comprising of 6 fights and he has already hit the ground running this year with two stoppage victories, including a USA Virginia State title defense.
With his formidable punching power and burgeoning boxing skillset, it's hard not to envisage a big year ahead for this up-and-coming welterweight.
In January, Gerome took the time to discuss his pro career progress to date with BoxingQnA.
How did you get into boxing?
I got introduced to boxing 13 years ago by an old friend of mine who one day picked me up from trade school. This friend was trying to get me into boxing for 2 years prior to that until on this particular day, he came to get me from school, and instead of taking going right to go home, he went left to another direction all together. So after about 25 minutes of driving, I asked where we were going and he said he had to pick up something and that it wasn't going to take long. Shortly after that, we were at the boxing gym (Round 1 Fitness Center) where he had been training for 2 years already and told me he had to meet his trainer for sparring. Now my first thought was I've gotta see this shit, so we went inside to watch him get worked over in the worst way (laughs). At the same time, I caught notice of a little kid who was probably about 7 or 8 years old working the speed bag. Curiosity set in and next thing you know I was over their learning how to hit the speed bag myself and ever since then I've been stuck.
What was your amateur background like?
So after a switch in trainers, and a year and a half of solid training, I first stepped in the ring with a guy named James Pope, who was ranked number 5 in the USA. I lost in a controversal decision but then went on a winning streak that lasted 2 and a half years. I ended my amateur career with a record of 68-5, winning two Maryland State Golden Gloves titles and two U.S. Open regional titles, all while placing second twice in the Ringside World Championships and losing in the semi-finals of the 2008 Olympic trials to Brad Soloman on points, who ranked 2 in the nation. After that tournament, I got away from the sport for six years for two reasons. 1, I was completely burnt out from all the training and weight loss before tournaments and all the fights leading up to it, and 2, the birth of my first child. When Alexis was born, my mindset instantly changed into daddy mode, so I took time away from the sport all together to get my household in order and I wanted to make sure things were straight with her before I turned my focus back to boxing being as though it takes a lot of time and energy in preparation for fights. I felt like my daughter needed all my time and energy to develop the relationship that we have today.
What was it that made you want to get back into the sport and turn professional after 6 years away?
So after 6 years off and finding my way back to the gym, with a little push from my friend who got me started 6 years earlier, I decided to give it a try again because a lot of the fighters I came up with, I saw them on TV fighting for world titles now. These where the same dudes I used to either spar or fought with and won becoming world champions. So I told myself and my trainer that I'll give it one last run and win him a world title, something I know thats very important to him. All he wanted to be was a world champion when he was a young fighter but wasn't able to, so I figure we try to win one through me.
Who is your team, your manager and what is your promotional status?
My team is GQ promotions, a promotional company started by my manager Jeff Gatling and I after my first year of boxing because we both shared the same vision in me as a fighter. Not to mention over the six years i took off i managed to learn a lot about the business aspect of boxing and decided to take the Sugar Ray Leonard approach to my career.
You recently had 2 fights in Germany. How did that come about and might we see you fighting in Europe again?
This is the million dollar question everybody at home asked when they found out I fought in Germany (laughs). That actually came about when one day a fighter and promoter named Sotirios Georgikeas walked into my wife's sister's restaurant for lunch one day and she overheard his conversation about trying to put on a boxing show in the next couple of weeks. So when it was his turn to order, she asked him was he a boxer. He said yes but for now he was trying to promote a show and was basically scouting talent, so Helen, my wife's sister, told him all about me and that I was on my way from the U.S. for the birth of my son, Izaiah. Once I landed, she immediately told me about Soti and that she gave him my name and stuff, so I reached out to him on Facebook. Now this is where fate and a lot of luck came into play, because apparently the fight he was trying to put on was for September 20th, but my son was suppose to be born around the 14th. For some strange reason Izaiah came on the 5th. So two days after the birth, Soti and I met for a few hours and I was impressed and surprised at all the research he had done on me prior to our meeting. He gave me a briefing of the fight he was putting together and asked me if I would be interested. An hour later, I called my manager and told him to bring my gear, that it was showtime again. That fight put me to 10-0 and got me into position to meet Vito Vendetta (11-1 at the time) for the IBA International Boxing Association Intercontinental championship.
Did it surprise you when Vito Vendetta came out throwing bombs with the intent of trying to get you out of there early? Also, were you happy with your performance considering how you not only recovered quickly from the attacks, but were then able to impose yourself, back him up and stop him?
I was so surprised that he came out like he did in that first round, especially with all the bombs he was throwing. I mean I get it, I kinda understand why he did it if he felt like that was the only chance he had, but knowing that we're going 10 rounds, I really thought he was gonna pace himself and at least try to think his way through knowing that he's standing in front of a guy with a 90% knockout ratio. So I was definitely surprised, not to mention I was stunned by that overhand right he landed with that I really didn't see coming. I was also dazed by the 3 shots behind the head he hit me with that the ref didn't seem to care about. The only thing I was happy about in that fight was the fact that I knocked him out, because I was kinda pissed off from not only the hits behind the head, but also how he threw me down like we were in an MMA match. After that, I knew it was over for him and so did my corner, because by that point I was pissed.
Against Vendetta, you were able to overcome early aggression from the opening bell. Meanwhile, earlier in the year against Normal Allen, when trying to force a stoppage you were caught with a clean counter and knocked down before coming back to win. How important and beneficial has it been to have these types of fights where you have to overcome some adversity and be pushed to go through some gears in order to get the W?
To me it's very important for a fighter to challenge himself and go through these types of fights and deal with these types of challenges now rather than later. For me, I feel like it was very beneficial because it showed a weakness in my game that I'm now practicing to make into a strength. Also, subconsciously, in the back of my mind I know that if I'm ever hurt or knocked down again, that I have the knowledge, heart and experience to weather the storm and change the game. I feel like I'm most dangerous when I'm hurt, too. To me it's a great chance to knock someone out because they they expose themselves when trying to take me out, giving me the opportunity to get them with my shots.
Another thing seen from you in 2015 was a rematch with Dontre King, who previously took you the distance. Was stopping him something that you wanted in order to prove a point? Also, do you feel that your performance showed how far you've come since when you boxed him in 2014?
Yes, a rematch with Dontre King was important for me because when I first fought him I was a undertrained, unconditioned and 2-0 as a pro compared to his 23 pro fights. I wanted to not only show the world how much different things would've been had I been better prepared, but I also wanted to see for myself just how far I had come. 7 fights since our first encounter, the proof was in the pudding when I stopped him inside two rounds.
At 32 years of age you'd be considered by some as "old" for an up-and-coming fighter, but at the same time, you don't really have mileage on the clock. With that in mind, what are your goals and are you happy with your progress, especially having crammed in 6 fights this year?
I am very happy with our progress thus far being as though we've won two titles in just the past year alone and like you mentioned, we've crammed in six fights, two of them being on European territory which is huge for a fighter at this stage of my career. I mean think about it, how many 11-0 fighters in the U.S. can say that they've already had some fights on European soil, one of them being for an international title that was seen live on Eurosport by over 60 countries? That type of exposure is huge for a fighter because it gave me a chance to be seen a lot sooner rather than later to the boxing fans around the world, not just in the U.S. alone. I didn't have to wait for a HBO or Showtime spot that fighters in the U.S. wait their entire careers for in many cases. I went on Eurosport, the number 1 sporting network in the world and got exposure to the rest of the world. It was like a dream come true for me and I'm hoping to make some more appearances in Europe and on Eurosport.
When you're getting rid of everybody, sometimes critics draw attention to the lack of rounds. This was a question mark which followed Deontay Wilder right up until he won the world heavyweight championship and went 12 rounds in the process. Do you feel confident that you'll be fine boxing at longer distances when you need to? Do you believe there is a difference between gym rounds and ring rounds?
Theirs a huge difference between gym rounds and actual ring rounds and believe it or not, Dan, I find that the gym rounds of sparring are a lot harder than the ring rounds in a actual fight and I'm going to explain to you why. In gym rounds, you gotta remember us fighters are protected with 18 ounces of gear for protection with16oz gloves and at least 2oz headgear. That being said, you rarely see someone get stopped in sparring unless they run out of gas and or get hit with a good body shot. In the ring we're fighting with 8-10oz gloves, o the right punch from the right fighter that lands just about anywhere can cause maximum damage, ending the fight a lot sooner than it would in a rough sparring match. Now, most of the time because of my strength when I'm sparring with my sparring partners and stable mates, I use 18-20oz gloves to protect us all from damage, but that's resulting in me having to work a little harder to keep them off of me (laughs), but let's not forget they're professional fighters as well, so I gotta be a little more aware than the average. Now saying all that, what most people really don't know, nor can believe until they see it for themselves is that I'm a completely better boxer than I am a puncher. In fact I learned to box first long before I learned how to sit on my punches, because I always wanted to fight like a few of my favorites that I grew up watching, like Pernell Whitaker, Sugar Ray Leonard, Floyd Mayweather, Mildred Taylor. It wasn't until I first seen one of my favorite punchers of all time, Julian Jackson, is when I decided to add another element to my game and that's extreme punching power. So to answer your question, yes, I'm very confident I can go the distance boxing if I really have to but first they gotta go through hell and high water to get me there because I'm coming at them!
It's obvious that you have the gift of very good punching power. Was this something that was apparent during the amateurs, but you just didn't need to develop back then, or was it something that became clear more recently before turning pro when you started sitting down on your punches more?
Even back in the amateurs I knew I had solid power because a lot of the dudes I hit would have these weird reactions to 'em. They would fall and roll all over the place looking all crazy. But back then, power was good to have for the crowd's pleasure, but in a actual amateur fights it really didn't count nothing considering the fact that a knockdown was counted on the score cards for just as much as a good jab, think about it. I once was in a fight where just about every time I hit the guy he either went down, or thought about going down as you can see it in his face, but once he got back up, he would hit me with 3-4 jabs or pitty pad shots and be winning 4-1. Suddenly, I'm fighting from behind against a guy who is 1 up on the score cards and 2 scared to get hit again so needless to say, he ran around the ring for the rest of the fight. It was at that moment when I said I need to learn the point system and how to be a pure boxer, so my trainer and I spent a whole year working on just that until I learned to become the boxer you all will see one day in the near future when I am pushed to do so.
How much confidence does it give you knowing that if you tag an opponent with a clean shot that you know for a fact it hurt them, or just having that heavy hand to offset an opponent, just like against Vendetta, who suddenly wasn't showing much aggression anymore after he felt your power?
It's a great asset to have because it keeps my opponents honest. It makes them proceed with caution knowing that in a instance it can all be over if they jump in wrecklessly trying to take me out and get hit with that shot that they don't see. Usually when I fighter knows his opponent lacks punching power, they get over confident and feels as though they can take more chances because the risk will be worth the reward, not in my case.
Any goals for 2016? Maybe some regional titles, cramming in a certain amount of fights?
In 2016 we hope to continue our campaign, but step it up a notch and get as close to 20-0 as possible in hopes of getting ourselves world ranked. Along the way, we do hope to capture a few more regional titles, whether that be in the U.S. or in Europe, in hopes that these fights and titles help broaden our fan base as we all know boxing is a business. That being said, we are trying to make ourselves as nationally and internationally known as much as possible so that we can have more or a leg to stand on if and when the big promoters contact us.
How would you assess the super welterweight division?
I honestly don't pay to much attention to it because I really don't see myself campaigning in the division much longer. I'm a natural welterweight who was given an opportunity to fight for a title on live television on another continent at super welter, so I pursued that in hopes of getting the exposure that I was looking for. Now that we accomplished that, I plan on focusing more on my craft and boxing career both inside the ring and out, giving me more focus to get down to junior welterweight which is where we plan on making a world title push at. If we can get back down to 140lbs (61 KGs), there is no doubt in my mind we can become world champions at some point and I'm willing to put in the work needed.
Who is Gerome Quigley Jr. outside of boxing?
Outside the ring, I am what many people would consider to be a role model to our youth considering where I come from. I am 100% a family man. I have three beautiful daughters (one which I adopted but I will never tell her that) and a handsome five month old son that I have to set the example for by raising him into being a great man, one that provides for and protects his family. My job for them is to give them everything I didn't have growing up in hopes that they won't make the same mistakes that I made when I grew up, because they're not gonna have to take the same risks I had to take. At the same time, I try to do what I do in leading by example in showing all my family, friends, fans and supporters that you can accomplish anything as long as you stay consistent (things don't happen over night) and dedicate your time and energy into whatever it is you wanna do and wanna be.
Any final words that you wish to add?
As I always say, I live to inspire and I hope that I'm inspiring someone as we speak to get up, get out and do better, and that he/she to can be doing the kind of things that they see me doing.