Before they were champions, every boxer started out somewhere, training in an extremely hot gym, preparing. Training amongst amateurs and professionals, they sharpen their craft. Some start as amateurs and never make it to the pros. Some make it to the pros and never make it to contender status. Others go and win world titles, and there are others that make it far past than world titles, and become superstars.
For Junior ‘Sugar’ Younan, his goal is simple, “The ultimate goal is to headline the Barclays Center. It’s something beautiful that Golden Boy is doing but you know I’m a get to where I got to get to with my promoter,” Younan told ThaBoxingVoice.com
The Brooklyn native has aligned himself with New York promoter Lou Dibella who is infamous for his Broadway Boxing Shows. Dibella has a special edition of Broadway Boxing this Saturday at the Aviator Center that is headlined with an all New York war between Dmitry Salita and Gabriel “Tito” Bracero.
However to the young boxer making his debut, it’s his show to steal.
“I’m a put on a hell of a show. Like I said at the presser, no offense to the other fighters on the card, I know most of ya’ll I love ya’ll but I’m stealing the show. It’s a great thing being from New York and growing up on Broadway boxing. It’s going to be a nice platform for me to build on. It’s going to be crazy November 9.”
Younan who amassed an amateur record of 90-5 was the #1-rated super middleweight amateur in the country. As an amateur, his accomplishments are plentiful. He was a nine-time Junior Olympic champion, nine-time Junior Metro champion, eight-time NY State Silver Gloves champion, five-time Regional Silver Gloves champion, four-time National Silver Gloves champion, three-time Ringside World champion, three-time National PAL champion and a two-time National Junior Golden Gloves champion.
You would think that boxing was something that he was born into. Till this day, Younan still doesn’t have a concise answer as to why he chose the sweet science.
“I don’t even know why boxing, I ask myself that every day. Its hard work and I love it. It’s just people I grew up with made my love the sport even more you know. I grew up around all fighters. Curtis Stevens, Anthony Irons, Jaidon Carrington. I grew up with the chin-checkers you know; Saadam Ali, Marcus Brown and I loved it,” explained Younan.
You could say it runs in his veins. His father and trainer Sherif Younan, Sr was a boxer himself and that’s who Junior models himself after.
“I model myself after what my father tells me, whatever my father told me since I was 4 years old, that’s what I model myself after. I don’t know how to describe it, I think I’m a great fighter and come November 9th I think you and everyone else should come out and witness it,” stated Younan. As far is his nickname ‘Sugar’, well it came from his father also. “I had it since I was 4 years old. When I started boxing it stuck, it’s a royal name in boxing, my father gave it to me and it stuck.”
November 9th is just the beginning for a hot young prospect coming out of New York, which is becoming a hot bed for the sport of boxing. The future goal is to become world champion, but his short term goal is to be active and impressive.
“For next year, I’m tasking these dudes out, as many as I could squeeze in. My minimum is 6 but I’m going for 9 fights.”
