What do Jake LaMotta, Iran Barkley, and Davey Moore have in common besides being boxing world champions? They\u2019re all from the Bronx, of course. There is a brand new boxing gym on Walton Ave. in the Boogie Down that stresses confidence, hard work, discipline, and no pros.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd that was by design,\u201d says Jay Bulger, the executive director and brainchild of the three-month-old Bronx Legends Boxing Academy. It\u2019s more than just boxing. It\u2019s a lifestyle for young people. For instance, if you\u2019re over 15 minutes late, you don\u2019t get to train. You have to do your homework because the 400 pugilists range in age from 12 to 21.<\/p>\n
\u201cOut of 400 kids, all of them are novices. I wanted to start with everyone on the same page so there\u2019s no confusion,\u201d notes Bulger, an Emmy-nominated writer and director. There are 12 trainers working with the boxers dedicated to teaching the craft the correct way.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can challenge them to have some type of structure in their life,\u201d states Peter \u201cKid Chocolate\u201d Quillin, the former WBO middleweight champ and former Bronx resident. \u201cIt\u2019s free, but you should be putting out the effort.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s the hardest thing to get in these kids\u2019 heads, working with that discipline and suffering.\u201d And you read right. The program is free. One young charge who welcomes the Academy\u2019s discipline is Steven Cruz, a 15-year-old sophomore from Taft High School, not too far from the gym.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy mom gave me the idea of coming to it. I thought it\u2019d be cool to try it out,\u201d says Cruz, who\u2019s in the Medical Science school at Taft and has been in the Academy for two months. \u201cThe first day I came out, I loved it and automatically connected with the people here. I\u2019m learning a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n
He is also weighing his options in two fields. \u201cI was either thinking of taking my boxing career to another level or studying computer science,\u201d he admits. So how does a free\u00a0inner city boxing program work? You need help and partners.<\/p>\n
The Academy has partnered with the Cops \u2018n\u2019 Kids Program, but is not run by the NYPD. Bulger has put a substantial financial amount out of his own pocket, but it also helps to have donors on the same page like Giorgos Tsetis CEO and co-founder of Nutrafol, the number one hair care formula for women; Mark Cuban, former owner of the NBA\u2019S Dallas Mavericks; Ed Clay, co-founder of CPI Stem Cells; and even the UFC\u2019s CEO Dana White who\u2019s scheduled to stop by in early November.<\/p>\n
Most have donated money and UFC equipment is throughout the gym. Another one of the coaches is Bronxite Leon Washington Jr. His father was the trainer of the aforementioned Davey Moore, the former WBA junior middleweight champ.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s 4:15 [p.m.] and after they do their homework, that\u2019s idle time,\u201d notes Washington. \u201cIdle time is the devil\u2019s time. So now they\u2019ve got something to do with that time.\u201d It moves him to see the kids thriving because Washington has seen the other side.<\/p>\n
\u201cI worked in the juvenile prison [system] for 25 years,\u201d he explains. Besides the body, the Academy strengthens minds with upcoming SHSAT and SAT tutoring, mandatory strength and conditioning classes on Monday, with added classes in Qigong and Tai Chi martial arts, yoga, and meditation.<\/p>\n
The Academy, open six days a week, is a 13,500 square foot former basketball gym complete with two rings, multiple heavy bags, speed bags, double-end bags, weights, treadmills, and a classroom for those a tad tardy. It is both clean and spiffy. Bulger also knows the gym is good for the young ladies in the Academy.<\/p>\n
\u201cSome days it\u2019s probably 30 to 40 percent girls and they are really my base,\u201d points out Bulger, 44, born in Washington, D.C., who resides in the Bronx and is a Fordham University grad. \u201cThey\u2019re my ideal candidates for this program. \u2026 Most of them are here to get in good shape and learn how to defend themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bulger\u2019s mile-a-minute cadence comes from his self-announced \u201ccrazy ADD,\u201d but his passion is honest. \u201cThere\u2019s one thing that the Bronx has like nowhere else, is toughness, right?\u201d he queries. \u201cPeople here are so resilient and special and one-of-a-kind.\u201d<\/p>\n
Anyone wishing to register or donate to the Bronx Legends Boxing Academy can call 516-945-0167 or go to bronxlegendsboxing.com.<\/p>\n
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