Boxing: Wappingers Falls' Miguel Matias wins NY Metro superheavyweight title
Boxing was simply a method of exercise for Miguel Matias, who admittedly “became overweight” after college when he no longer was involved in sports.
The former baseball standout by then had moved to Dutchess County and heard about the Floyd Patterson Boxing Club in nearby Highland. He was convinced to give it a try, figuring the high-energy activity would help him shed some pounds.
“That was all I intended to do,” the Cold Spring native said, “but then I got beaten up a few times in sparring sessions. Being a competitor, that made me want to get better.”
Matias dedicated himself to training and got so much better, he eventually launched an amateur boxing career. And he continues to get so much better, he won a New York Metro championship earlier this month.
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The 25-year-old defeated Joshua Popper by unanimous decision to win the tournament superheavyweight title at Sweatbox Brooklyn.
“It’s been a great feeling,” Matias said of his experience since the Nov. 5 victory. “It was a big fight with months of preparation, and my coaches and I put in a lot of work, and it was really satisfying to see that pay off.”
Popper is a former professional football player so the training, Matias said, included seeking sparring partners who were comparable to his 230 pounds and notably athletic.
Matias was effusive in praising his coaches, including Derrick Ohlhoff, who initially converted him from a first baseman to a southpaw boxer.
His superheavyweight bout was relatively high profile and billed as the venue's main event, in large part because of Popper’s successful run this year and his rumored relationship with pop icon Madonna. Matias said there was a noticeable buzz and a palpable energy leading up to the match.
“I wasn’t confident that I would get the decision because we were in Brooklyn,” he said of fighting Popper, who is based in New York City and more established. “It felt like we were fighting, for lack of a better phrase, in enemy territory. So, when I was announced the winner, I was jumping up and down.”
The Metro Championships is for experienced adult boxers, hopeful of qualifying for national Golden Gloves tournaments and beyond. Matias improved to 12-1 and his hope, of course, is this victory will be a springboard.
“I try not to put too much pressure on myself by thinking that far ahead,” he said of his professional aspirations, “but if I keep having success, it's possible.”
Much like those early sparring losses spurred him, so too does that blemish on his career record. He lost last year in the semifinals of the Ring Masters Championships, a tournament in which Popper is a defending champion.
Matias plans to get in at least two “tune-up fights” before next spring when he competes again in the Ring Masters. There, he said, he might face Popper again.
“We do have a lot of talented fighters in the Hudson Valley and some really good coaches,” Matias said. “I’d love to bring more attention to boxing in the area. To win a title representing this area, especially as a superheavyweight, means a lot to me.”
Stephen Haynes: shaynes@poughkeepsiejournal.com; 845-437-4826; Twitter: @StephenHaynes4
This article originally appeared on Poughkeepsie Journal: Boxing: Miguel Matias wins New York Metro superheavyweight title
