Jaidon Codrington, Curtis Stevens and Gary Stark Jr. have been training together for the past eight years and are becoming quite confident their names will become household ones in the boxing world within the coming year.
On Jan. 28 they’ll all have a chance to inch closer to making the prediction reality when they participate in Lou DiBella’s Broadway Boxing card in the Grand Ballroom of the Manhattan Center.
“We’ve been together for a long time and are ready to see our dreams start to come true,” Stark said at yesterday’s press conference at Gallagher’s Steakhouse. “We all have been working hard and it’s almost time for it to pay off.”
It’s not as if people haven’t started to take notice, especially in this area. After all, the fighters represent three boroughs.
Codrington, a super middleweight who fights out of Queens, has laid out all six of his opponents and is co-headlining the event which pits him against Delaware’s Glen Rayburn, a known big puncher who frequently attempts early-round knockouts. Despite that, Codrington isn’t concerned.
“I know what to expect. I’ll counter-punch him and capitalize on his mistakes,” he said. “I’ve watched a lot of film on him, so I’ll be ready.”
It certainly doesn’t seem that New Haven’s Luis Rivera (8-8, 2 KOs) is going to give Stark any problems. The Staten Island product, who has looked extremely sharp in his last two bantamweight bouts and posts a 10-0 record with 5 KOs, is also brimming with confidence.
Stevens, who hails from Brooklyn, has knocked out all opponents en route to a 4-0 mark. His opponent as of yesterday was not known. But that didn’t stop the light heavyweight from sharing his opinion of the trio.
“We all share a common goal. To go out and win,” Stevens said. “That’s it.”