Opening Bell: Jerry Odom & Kevin Rivers Jr. Turn Pro
by Gautham Nagesh
Greetings, fight fans. Posting has been sparse lately while I took a much-needed vacation, but the the stalwart Dr. Octagon has been keeping things running practically on his own in recent weeks. Things will hopefully be ramping up again starting now, as we have a number of exciting fights coming up in the next few months.
The young man you see above is Washington, D.C. amateur boxer Jerry Odom, who won the National Golden Gloves title this year at 178 lbs. and was named the tournament’s best boxer. Odom will turn professional on October 27th on the undercard of Jimmy Lange vs. Tony Jeter at George Mason University’s Patriot Center in Fairfax, Va. Among a crowded field of DMV amateur boxing stars, Odom’s professional prospects are second to none. As a national amateur champion at a higher weight class, he could easily become the area’s top professional draw if he fulfills his massive promise.[[MORE]]
Odom will face fellow debutante Malik Shelton in a four-round super middleweight bout that will no doubt be over within a round or two. His road to this point has been much longer. Theresa Vargas had a tremendous piece on his path in The Washington Post a couple years ago, documenting Odom’s road from the Paradise projects to amateur boxing stardom. Odom eventually found his way to the NoXcuse gym in Capitol Heights, Md., where trainer Bernard Roach has a stable of impressive young prospects including D'Mitrius Ballard and Kevin Rivers Jr. But Odom is the largest, one of the youngest, and should be well-positioned to quickly become a fan favorite.
That’s because Odom appears to be the first legitimate young prospect in position to take advantage of the Jimmy Lange Franchise, which is easily the area’s best thing going when it comes to live boxing. While the recent shows at the Convention Center have made some headway, Lange’s ability to regularly draw thousands to the Patriot Center for what amounts to cards full of club fighters remains the area’s most impressive achievement in boxing promotion. Now those same loyal fans will have a chance to follow Odom, whose talent should outshine his peers on the Northern Virginia circuit. We’re guessing he’ll be an immediate hit.
Kevin Rivers Jr. Turns Pro on September 29th: Speaking of NoXcuse, another one of the gym’s top young fighters Kevin Rivers Jr. will be turning professional on September 29th as part of the aforementioned Keystone Boxing card at the Washington Convention Center. Rivers is listed the event poster along with headliner Dusty Harrison, Harold Parker, and heavyweight prospect Danny Kelly. Stiff Jab David “Day Day” Grayton also posted on Facebook that he will be appearing on the card as well, making it the second professional appearance for both Day Day and Kelly. Rest assured that we will be ringside to bring you all the action.