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Photo By Michelle Griffin<\/p>\n\t\tPhoto By Michelle Griffin<\/p>\n
It\u2019s more challenging today in pro boxing to build a promising prospect into a legitimate title contender due to a myriad of reasons, especially in the United States, starting with the lack of television exposure, increasing expenses, and fewer major promoters.<\/p>\n
Even a stud like Kansas middleweight Marco \u201cEl Tiburon\u201d Romero, despite winning 23 national titles as an amateur and sporting a 10-0 record as a pro with 9 knockouts \u2013 all before his 20th birthday on November 21st \u2014 remains a promotional free agent.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not surprised by what Marco has done in the past 1-\u00bd years as a pro, but I\u2019m a little disappointed,\u201d Romero\u2019s head trainer\/manager John Brown said. \u201cMarco has tremendous skills, and he hasn\u2019t turned 20 yet. If this were 5 years ago, Marco would probably have a contract with a major promoter and fight on ESPN, but there is no exposure on TV in the U.S. right now.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe beauty of having a young fighter like Marco is we don\u2019t have to hurry, so we will take advantage of this lull until things get better. Marco will continue working hard and steadily improving. We need to get this racehorse ready for when the starting gate opens, hopefully, in a few months.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe way the landscape is now is difficult. No promoters do shows, at least in this part of the country, which is why we had to fight all over the country. We\u2019re sitting tight and have made physical and financial efforts to make it happen. We don\u2019t know if what Dana White and the Saudis are doing will work. We\u2019ll see where Top Rank, Golden Boy, Queensbury and others will do in the United States. I\u2019ll probably do a couple of shows in Kansas City and we always have Portland (Maine) next November to fight because of my good friend, Bobby Russo (promoter).\u201d<\/p>\n
Romero made his pro debut on June 24, 2024, and his most recent fight was at home in Olathe (KS) this past September 5th. He is undefeated and hasn\u2019t lost a single round in the 19 he\u2019s fought this far.<\/p>\n
Romero doesn\u2019t regret turning pro instead of remaining an amateur in order to pursue a spot on the 2028 U.S. Olympic Boxing Team. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt feels amazing to already be 10-0 in less than 1 \u00bd years and still only 19,\u201d Romero commented. \u201cCoach John (Brown), Al (Valenti, advisor), my father (assistant trainer Salvador Romero), me, and Sergio (Flores, assistant trainer) talked. We all knew we were going on a long stretch of fights. I\u2019m grateful to be in the position I am, but this is only the beginning.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne thing about me is that I don\u2019t have regrets. Once we saw I wasn\u2019t eligible for the last (2024) Olympics (he was underage at 17) and I wasn\u2019t willing to wait another 4 years, we decided to go pro. I\u2019ve adjusted very well with the changes from being an amateur to professional. I was ready for no headgear and smaller gloves. I\u2019m loving it and have no regrets about turning pro when I did.\u201d<\/p>\n
Romero\u2019s advisor, Valenti, added: \u201cFor the first time since black-and-white television there is no boxing on any television outlet in America. No more Showtime, HBO or ESPN. That\u2019s the elephant in the room. It\u2019s a challenge and moving forward, how can you build a market without television exposure? For now, we need perseverance, patience and wait to see what happens. But we may be waiting for a bus that may never come.\u201d<\/p>\n
Romero\u2019s next fight is December 13th in Topeka, Kansas, against an opponent to be determined for an 8-round bout on the \u201cRumble in Title Town \u2013 A Night of Champions in the Capital City\u201d card. <\/p>\n
2026 promises to be a critical year for Marco Romero, highlighted by him securing his boxing future by signing with a world-class promoter.<\/p>\n
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