In less than 3 short years as a pro, Yuriorkis Gamboa has ascended to the top echelon of the featherweight division. The most advanced, and perhaps the best of the recent “Cuban invasion,” Gamboa is an offensive whirlwind with sizzling speed and power, and enough deficiencies to make most of his bouts very entertaining.

Amateur Career

Gamboa was a phenomenal amateur with deep credentials. After zooming to the top of his class in an ultra-competitive Cuban Amateur system, Gamboa proceeded to win 4 national championships, as well as gold medals in the Pan Am Games and the World Amateur Boxing Championships. His crowning achievement was winning Olympic gold at the 2004 Olympics in Athens.

Defection

Cuba doesn’t allow their citizens to participate in professional sports, forcing many world-class athletes to toil in poverty. Gamboa even had to sell his gold medal to pay for his daughter’s birthday party, while other boxing gold medalists around the world were signing seven-figure contracts. While training in Venezuela, Gamboa and two teammates snuck out of their training quarters and fled to Colombia, and later surfaced in Germany.

Gamboa is now based in Miami.

Meteoric Rise To Prominence

Already a longtime prominent amateur on the demanding Cuban circuit, Gamboa didn’t need 5-6 years of seasoning before jumping up to the world-class level. Turning pro at 26 with a decision win in Germany, Gamboa has since won 14 of 15 bouts by knockout. Among his highlights were first round knockouts over Johnnie Edwards and Al Seeger, the latter a frightening annihilation.

WBA Featherweight Champion (Well, Sort Of)

Even though Chris John is the longtime WBA Featherweight Champion, the organization saw fit to sanction Gamboa’s bout against Jose Rojas as being for the WBA “interim title.” Gamboa stopped Rojas in ten rounds. Gamboa was later upgraded to “regular” champion, as John was given the tag “super champion.” In his last fight, he stopped unexceptional Whyber Garcia in four rounds on the Lopez-Mtagwa undercard in November.

Progress Report

Gamboa has impressed with his offensive prowess, appearing on ESPN multiple times, as well as a high-profile spot on HBO. He has stirred up much interest, and rightfully so. He makes for exciting fights, has a pristine pedigree, and has shown enormous potential in the pro ranks.

There have been signs of trouble, however. Gamboa has been dropped several times. His whirlwind style overwhelms foes, but also leaves him open for counter attacks. While he has overcome those knockdowns and gone on to win, things like defensive deficiencies don’t tend to get better as the quality of opposition improves. To his credit, however, Gamboa has taken a more measured approach in his last two fights and seemed a more polished fighter in doing so.

Looking Ahead

Gamboa next faces Juan Manuel Lopez-tormentor Rogers Mtagwa on the Luevano-Lopez HBO card. If both Gamboa and Lopez are successful, a huge fight between the two could materialize in the middle of 2010.

Written by: Scott Levinson