Hall of Fame trainer Emanuel Steward wants to make one thing clear about why he’s working with NFL player-turned-boxer Tommy Zbikowski.
“He’s really a boxer that happens to play football,” Steward said this week. “He’s not a football player trying to learn how to box. He makes money playing football. But this is his passion.”
That’s the primary reason Steward will be in Zbikowski’s corner tonight when the Ravens defensive back from Notre Dame enters his third professional fight as a heavyweight. Zbikowski (2-0) will be on the undercard at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, where Yuriorkis Gamboa of Cuba (19-0, 15 KOs) defends his WBA featherweight championship against Jorge Solis of Mexico (40-2-2, 29 KOs) in the main event. HBO’s “Boxing After Dark” will televise.
With the NFL having locked out its players in a dispute over a new collective bargaining agreement, Zbikowski has resumed a boxing career that began as a teenage amateur in Chicago. A former Gold Gloves finalist, he improved to 2-0 as a pro with a first-round knockout on March 13 in Las Vegas.
Zbikowski spent the week of that fight training in the same gym where Steward was preparing Miguel Cotto for his eventual win over Ricardo Mayorga.
“When I was working with him, I was shocked that he actually fights like a fighter,” Steward said. “He caught on very quick. He has good balance and good footwork. He’s well coordinated and he’s fluid and has good rhythm.”
Zbikowski, who just completed his third season with the Ravens, said working with Steward shows how seriously he’s taking his boxing career.
“He brings a lot of experience and knowledge to some of the things I can do,” Zbikowski said. “He’s going to lift my level of performance.”
Steward and Zbikowski understand boxing will be on the backburner again once the NFL lockout ends and the restricted free agent signs a new contract. Zbikowski has boxed since he was a youth in Chicago, having more than 80 amateur fights, but football pays the bills.
“Boxing has had to take a back seat to my football career because [the NFL] is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” Zbikowski said. “You have to take the opportunity when it comes to you. But boxing is not a hobby. When you fight professionally, you have to take it seriously.”
He has yet to be tested in the ring, but Zbikowski will resume his training at the KRONK gym in Detroit, where Steward plans to match him with established fighters as Chad Dawson and Andy Lee.
“He’ll get a chance to see what his talent level is,” Steward said. “He’s finding out he can hold up with the smaller level of competition, but I want to see his potential against a higher level.”
Speaking of higher level, Gamboa is one of the best young boxers on the planet and on his way to being a superstar.
“Fight after fight I need to maintain my performances, keep winning and keep my undefeated record,” he said. “Keep collecting belts as I have been and I will get to that status.”
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Jon Jones had quite an eventful day last Saturday. Three hours before defeating Shogun Rua to capture the UFC light heavyweight title at the Prudential Center in Newark, Jones chased and subdued a would-be thief in Patterson, N.J. Jones and his training team were looking for a peaceful place to meditate when they were approached by a couple, who said their GPS system had just been stolen.
“I ended up catching the guy and taking him to the floor and my training staff subdued him until the police came,” Jones said. “It was pretty awesome. The Patterson police were pretty grateful that we were there and the woman was very thankful. Even though it was just a GPS, it meant a lot to her.”
Jones said what followed was “the best meditation session of my career. After helping that woman I had a great feeling of energy and confidence. I felt as if I deserved the victory.”
Jones, who lives in Ithaca, N.Y., won a third round TKO landing 75 strikes to just nine for Rua.
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Broadway Boxing returns on Tuesday night at BB King Blues Club on Times Square. Jose Pedraza of Puerto Rico fights in the main event. Tickets are on sale through DiBella Entertainment (212-947-2577) and start at $55.
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Boxing promoter Joe DeGuardia of Star Boxing is in Rome, where his portrait is part of an exhibition by renowned photographer Howard Schatz. The exhibition, The Italian-Americans in Boxing, is being held at the Museum of Contemporary Art.