Family Business: The Russell brothers are taking over boxing

The Russell brothers, led by WBC featherweight champion Gary Jr., are on the verge of taking over boxing and creating a unique family legacy.

Boxing’s unmatched and often volatile history is littered with fighting families, from father-son tandems to patriarchs birthing a brood of pugilist progeny. Names like Mayweather, Spinks, Marquez, Garcia, Eubank and a myriad of others populate the pages of the sport’s record books — often for their in-ring accomplishments, but on other occasions for squandered potential, family feuding or tragedy. Over the next decade, the Russell family could surpass them all.

Indeed, boxing as a family business can be unpredictable and unforgiving. It’s a sport where the proverbial script more often tilts towards heartbreak than triumph, but don’t tell that to Gary Russell Jr., Gary Antonio Russell and Gary Antuanne Russell, three elite talents at different phases of their careers, all of whom are helping forge a pugilistic dynasty.

On May 20 at the MGM National Harbor in Maryland (6:00 p.m. ET, Showtime), Gary Russell Jr. (27-1, 16 KOs) will defend his WBC featherweight title for the third time in front of an expected raucous crowd. But what’s unique about this card is that two of Gary Jr.’s brothers, undefeated bantamweight prospect Antonio (7-0, 5 KOs) and 2016 U.S. Olympian Antuanne, will appear on the undercard.

“Everyone has the same tools – the jab, a body shot, an uppercut, etc. Everyone is using the exact same tools,” Gary Russell Jr. told FanSided over the phone when asked about his family’s unique success in boxing. “What makes the difference? Why do some excel more than others? I feel as though boxing is intellect manifested on a physical form. I feel as though the more intellectual fighter, the more intelligent fighter, nine times out of ten comes out on top.”

The Russell family is undoubtedly a cerebral bunch, and each boxing brother was guided to strike a balance between the sweet science and intellectual pursuits by family patriarch Gary Sr. In speaking with Gary Jr., Antonio and Antuanne, each exudes confidence and rigor that define their collective approach to their careers.

When asked about his current mindset heading into his title defense against Oscar Escandon, which will be his first fight in a year, Gary Russell Jr. answered concisely and with eloquence: “One word: thorough. My definition of that word is complete in every way.”

Russell Jr. believes the grossest misconception outsiders have about his sporadic activity over the past few years is that it leads to ring rust, stating that actual fights are the “easy part” because he trains alongside elite competition. But given that he has only competed twice since 2015, which some view as potentially squandering part of what could be a special prime, Gary Jr. feels the impetus to be more active and compete two-to-three times per year, especially now that nagging hand injuries have healed. His primary goal? Featherweight unification.

“I understand the business aspect of that,” Gary Jr. said when asked about delivering the fights fans crave. “A lot of fans that want these fights to happen I feel don’t understand the business concept of everything. We’re not just dukes going out here and throwing punches. There’s definitely stuff going on behind the scenes that they’re not aware of. And when it comes to the business aspect, you have managers and promoters that invest a lot of money, a lot of time and a lot of energy in their fighters to get them to the point to become world champions.”

It’s a sobering yet pragmatic outlook that Gary Jr., as the oldest sibling paving the path his younger brothers are following, can pass along to the other members of his fighting family. Having ascended to the elite level as a world champion, Gary Jr. understands he can help Antonio and Antuanne scale similar heights — with fewer external stumbling blocks.

Gary Antonio Russell, an undefeated bantamweight prospect, is certainly benefiting from his older brother’s experiences as a professional. A three-time National PAL champion and 2013 Golden Gloves winner, Gary Antonio narrowly missed qualifying for the 2012 Olympic team. A bluechip talent and the middle boxing brother, Gary Antonio finds himself in the transitional phase of moving from prospect to contender.

But given how methodically the Russell family approaches their craft — a holistic view where everyone operates under the framework Gary Sr. has developed, practiced and perfected — don’t expect Gary Antonio to become impatient or complacent.

Although Gary Antonio admits that the one shock when transitioning from the unpaid ranks to prizefighting was the impact of smaller gloves, he’s adjusted admirably and has flashed genuine explosiveness through his first seven fights. Moreover, the mentorship from his father and Gary Jr. has laid bare the realities of his chosen career path.

“In the amateurs, it’s a sport,” Gary Antonio said. “When you’re a pro, it’s a business. Not only is it a business, it’s a dangerous business. Every fighter that goes into a fight lays their physical health completely on the line.”

Given the stakes, both in terms of boxing’s physical dangers and the pressure that comes with carrying the Russell name, Gary Antonio has found a unbreakable foundation in his father. Although boxing is littered with acrimonious father-son relationships (that sometimes turn into outright rivalries), Gary Antonio has unflinching confidence in how Gary Sr. has plotted his career path, stating that the love and respect inherent in their relationship, which leads to total trust, is something that nearly every other fighter has to seek out in a trainer. For the Russell brothers, that bond was forged at birth, allowing Gary Antonio to focus on a more primal approach to furthering his in-ring success.

“To be honest, just staying hungry. Stay hungry,” Gary Antonio emphasized when asked about what it will take to make the leap from prospect to contender. “There’s always going to be somebody out there who’s going to try and train harder than you. You need discipline, which I see a lot of fighters do not have. My dad trains us to be well rounded. No matter what style comes against us, we shall always have an answer for it. There’s never one thing that we’re just focused on.”

For youngest boxing brother Gary Antuanne Russell, the chance to make his professional debut on a card featuring two of his older siblings is nothing short of historic, as well as a fitting entry into the paid ranks for a fighter riding the momentum of a scintillating run at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, where he was ousted one win shy of a guaranteed bronze medal via controversial decision.

When asked about his Olympic experience, Gary Antuanne spoke eloquently about the socioeconomic disparity in Brazil, the work of volunteers and what the media glossed over in their coverage. There was obviously a certain magnitude that came with representing his country on the biggest international stage, but just like his brothers, Gary Antuanne was able to compartmentalize the experience. “The guy across the ring was going to try and knock my head off,” he said, noting that the fights themselves unfolded like any other.

Gary Jr., of course, qualified for the 2008 Olympics but wasn’t able to participate after passing out in an attempt to make weight. Although Gary Antuanne was the second Russell to box at the Olympics, he found himself charting new territory.

“When I get in the ring, my family also gets into the ring with me,” Gary Antuanne said, adding that everyone in attendance and watching at home knew he had won his quarter-final bout. “I personally felt so bad. I was destroyed because I felt like I let more than just myself down.”

Gary Antuanne was adamant that for the Russell family, boxing may be what they do, but it doesn’t define who they are. Gary Sr. always insisted that his sons be well-rounded, which is reflected in Gary Antuanne being named his high school graduating class’ valedictorian.

“Honestly, we all have the same goals,” Gary Antuanne said. “The advice that they give me is to get there. Point blank. We got to get there. We know how to get there. We know the concepts of the sport. We know the ins and outs of the sport.”

Indeed they do, and while the Russell family is about more than boxing, prizefighting is where they intend to etch their names in the proverbial record books, which can then be used as a springboard for other initiatives. But along the way, each brother has developed a profound understanding of the part they’ve been destined to play. They all spoke of order, and adhering to their father’s plan, sounding eerily similar in the expression of values — honor, integrity and respect — that to many seem antiquated but to the Russell brothers hold concrete meaning.

“We believe in a dynasty,” Gary Jr. said. “My definition of a dynasty is information getting passed down from generation to generation. It should ultimately get better each time. I pride my younger brothers – being in a society that’s so driven by the negative stereotypes that’s going on in television, that’s going on in radio, media, etc. – on maintaining a level of humility within themselves.”

Gary Antonio added that boxing, which came naturally to him and his aggressive siblings, instills discipline and develops willpower. “So coming up in this environment and looking back on it, the whole entire journey I was just being moulded into the man I am today,” he said.

In many respects, it’s impossible to relate to the Russell brothers. Their discipline and belief in dynasty, which at an uncritical glance borders on obsessive, seems impossible to sustain. Their trust in their father seems almost too pure. And their combination of natural talent and dogged, perpetual studying of the sweet science seem unreal.

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And yet, leave it up to Gary Russell Jr. to distill the meaning of their upcoming fights in both sentimental and pragmatic terms. He glowingly spoke of the support he receives at home from people in his community — whether through message or shouts of encouragement while he does his roadwork. He talked about everyone from former classmates to the mailman being able to attend Saturday’s fight in Maryland as a way to give back to the support system that bred him and his brothers. But despite what sounds like a reunion and public celebration, don’t expect Gary Jr., Gary Antonio and Gary Antuanne to lose focus, even for a second.

“It’s bittersweet,” Gary Jr. said when looking ahead to May 20. “The reason why is because you never want to magnify the event; when you magnify the event, you take away from where the focus really should be. And the focus is to go out there and execute the game plan.”