Following Team USA’s eight-medal performance at the 2026 PanAmerican Championships in Puebla, Mexico, two American gold medalists have been invited to represent the Pan American Continental Team at the inaugural 2026 Papp Cup. This Confederation Boxing Duel will take place on Saturday, Nov. 14, in Budapest, Hungary.
The inaugural event will feature a head-to-head matchup between a European Continental Team and a Pan American Continental Team, with each team consisting of 10 athletes, five men and five women. Representing Team USA at the 2026 Papp Cup will be Gilbert Kabamba (90+ kilograms) and Jajaira Gonzalez (60 kilograms), both of whom captured gold medals at the 2026 PanAmerican Championships last month in Puebla, Mexico.
Kabamba, who is a native of Boston, Massachusetts, enters the competition after an impressive 2026 campaign. He enters the Papp Cup after claiming gold at both the PanAmerican Championships and Copa America, with a perfect 10-0 record this year. In Mexico, he went 3-0, earning unanimous decision victories in all three bouts. Kabamba will face Azerbaijan’s Mahammad Abdullayev, a 2026 World Boxing Cup Brazil gold medalist.
Gonzalez, a 2024 Paris Olympian from Glendora, California, also went 3-0 in Mexico to capture gold at the Pan American Championships, adding another international title to her resume. She will face Türkiye’s Gizem Ozer in Budapest, aiming for her fourth win of the year.
The 2026 Papp Cup will take place Saturday, Nov. 14, in Budapest, Hungary, with action set to begin around 1 p.m. ET. USA Boxing fans can support Jajaira Gonzalez and Gilbert Kabamba by tuning in to the competition HERE.