Adam Kownacki, from bullied immigrant to heavyweight title threat

Adam Kownacki came to the U.S. from Poland as a child. Through culture gaps and bullying, he persevered to become one of the toughest boxers around.

Adam Kownacki (19-0, 15 KOs) headlines a Saturday, Aug. 3 PBC show on FOX against skilled veteran Chris Arreola (38-5-1, 33 KOs). PBC hopes that it will be Kownacki’s defining performance to gain momentum towards a heavyweight title shot. Kownacki has come a long way since he first came to the U.S. as a child.

Kownacki was only seven years old when he and his family moved to the Greenpoint borough of Brooklyn from Poland. His rise through the professional ranks of the heavyweight division is the classic embodiment of the American dream. However, achieving that dream is never easy.

As a child in a new country, Kownacki found himself an easy target for bullies. He was young, unknown, didn’t speak English and overweight. Greenpoint is a predominantly Polish neighborhood, but Kownacki didn’t feel welcome at first.

“The language, not speaking English at first was the most tough,” recalled Kownacki. “Also, I came from a rather small countryside of Poland to a U.S. city that’s the biggest in the world. It was definitely hard, but luckily we moved into a Polish neighborhood which made the transition a lot easier.

“I was the new kid on the block. Kids are usually very tough. I was a little bit chubby, so they always made fun of me. I was bullied as a little kid.

As a kid being picked on by his peers, there was only one option—fight.

“You fought back and dealt with it whatever the day was.”

Fortunately for Kownacki, he possessed a natural disposition for fighting. He enjoyed it and was good at it. His ability to use his fists provided acceptance.

“I always liked to fight. I had my older cousins, and we used to throw punches and stuff, so I always liked to fight,” said Kownacki.

Before he ever entered a boxing gym, Kownacki knew early on that he was a talented pugilist.

“We got boxing gloves for the house, and one day we sparred in the house, and my dad brought his friend over,” Kownacki reminisced. “We put on the gloves, and I was maybe 14 years old, and I hit him with a right hand, and he went to the closet. Since then I was like, okay, I’ll be alright.”

Assured of his fighting ability, Kownacki sought out a place to hone his skills. The problem with Greenpoint was that there wasn’t a boxing gym in sight. He had to make do with Karate, but he didn’t feel a natural connection to that combat system.

“There was no boxing gym in Greenpoint, so I went to a karate school. Karate wasn’t my cup of tea,” said Kownacki.

He trained in karate for about a year until boxing crossed his path by chance.

“Later on my way to a movie theater, we saw a boxing gym,” said Kownacki. “So I started going there. I just continued doing it for a long time. Now, here I am.”

It didn’t take long for Knownacki to make a name for himself as an amateur boxer. After training for less than a year, he found early success in tournaments. Then, he won the New York Golden Gloves heavyweight title at the age of 16.

As a teenager in the sport, Kownacki idolized Polish boxing star Andrew Golota. He’s still very fond of Golota and has connected with him on several occasions. Despite his admiration of Golota, Kownacki sees his style resembling that of Puerto Rican boxing great Miguel Cotto.

“I like Miguel Cotto, brawlers that come forward, throwing a lot of shots and try to get a knockout,” revealed Kownacki.

He hopes to look like Cotto at his best when he fights Arreola on Aug. 3. He’s the main draw fighting in his adopted hometown of Brooklyn at the Barclays Center on a FOX national broadcast. Success for Kownacki isn’t winning. He needs to win and look good doing it.

“Making a statement,” declared Kownacki. “It’s going to be a tough fight on the PBC platform on FOX, which is going to be worldwide. Looking great and showing this kid is the truth. Taking care of business will make a huge statement.”

It’s no secret that Kownacki wants a heavyweight title shot. His focus is on WBC champion Deontay Wilder. Both are PBC fighters, and it would be a relatively easy bout to sign. Kownacki is also prone to comparing his boxing résumé to Wilder’s. Including Arreola, the two have three opponents in common.

Kownacki outperformed Wilder’s wins against Artur Szpilka and Gerald Washington. He’s hungry to continue that trend against Arreola.

When asked if people should pay more attention to his achievements against common Wilder opponents, Kownacki answered, “Most definitely. He [Wilder] looks bad because he won’t fight me since he’ll be like, ‘Oh snap, he’s fighting the same guys, and he’s doing this to them?'”

Wilder stopped Arreola in round 8 in 2016. Kownacki’s hoping to best Wilder for the third time which spells trouble for Arreola.

Kownacki’s chance to impress the world comes against Arreola on Saturday, Aug. 3 on FOX at 8 p.m. ET. The card can also be viewed on FOX NOW and FOX Sports apps or at FOXSports.com. A dominant win could give Kownacki momentum towards a title shot and a chance to further his American dream.