Chapter 8: Career Planning

In the office, Coach West Corian was surprised to learn that Link was only twenty years old after reviewing his newly filled information card.

"Doesn't it seem like it?" Link asked with a smile, sucking on an orange-flavored lollipop.

"Haha, not in terms of personality. Young boxers tend to be more flamboyant and expressive in the ring, but you were calm and composed throughout. I thought you were older." Coach West praised.

Link chuckled inwardly. He wasn't being composed; he just didn't think defeating a few ordinary people was anything to brag about.

If he were to defeat the current WBA-WBC-IBF-WBO champions and achieve his dream from his past life, he would also roar with excitement.

"West, I have two prison records. Will that affect my amateur competitions?"

Link pointed to the criminal record on the data sheet, which showed two entries: his predecessor had been sentenced to three months in prison and 200 hours of community service for theft and fighting.

These were the crimes committed by his predecessor, but now he had to bear the consequences.

West glanced at it, a bit surprised. He had thought Link was a good kid, but it turned out he had a criminal record. He could only lament that one shouldn't judge a book by its cover.

"It won't affect amateur competitions. However, if you achieve good results in boxing in the future, these records will be exposed by the media and add some negative publicity to you."

"Negative publicity is fine. Black and red are still red."

Link didn't care about what would happen after he became famous. He continued, "West, I plan to participate in amateur competitions for half a year and then enter the professional boxing world next year. What do you think?"

"Only half a year of amateur competitions?"

West was taken aback and said, "Link, isn't that too rushed? Although amateur competitions aren't as difficult as professional boxing, there are still some tough opponents. Competing in amateur matches is also a form of training for you. Look at Holyfield, he fought 160 amateur matches, honed his skills, and that's why he performed so well after turning pro."

"West, I understand what you mean, but I have confidence in my own abilities."

Seeing that West was about to continue persuading him, Link raised his hand to interrupt him. "West, I have a proposal. Let's set a six-month deadline. Within this period, I'll participate in as many amateur matches as possible. If I lose, I'll postpone my entry into the professional boxing world. Otherwise, we'll follow my plan and enter the professional arena after six months."

West Corian thought for a moment. This arrangement was acceptable.

If Link could win consecutively within six months, it would prove that his strength was sufficient for professional competition, and staying in the amateur circuit would be a waste.

However, he didn't believe Link could remain undefeated for half a year. Once Link entered the professional boxing world, he would realize how many skilled fighters there were.

"Okay, I'll arrange for you to participate in amateur matches as soon as possible. During this time, you should focus on training."

Link nodded.

Boxing is divided into amateur and professional competitions.

Amateur competitions include the Olympic Games, continental games, world championships, and Golden Gloves tournaments.

Professional competitions are mainly organized and supervised by international professional boxing organizations.

Currently, the four most prestigious boxing organizations are the World Boxing Association (WBA), the World Boxing Council (WBC), the International Boxing Federation (IBF), and the World Boxing Organization (WBO).

There are also many smaller professional boxing organizations like the IBO, WBF, IBA, and NBA.

Each professional boxing organization has its own independent rules, regulations, and competition formats.

Amateur competitions are supervised and managed by the organizers of the sporting events, while professional competitions are overseen by professional boxing organizations.

Another significant difference between the two is the degree of commercialization.

Amateur competitions are not highly commercialized, and boxers compete mainly for honor.

On the other hand, professional boxing is highly commercialized. From pre-match promotion and publicity to ticket sales, pay-per-view fees, and post-match hype, the entire process involves commercial operations.

The competition between boxers is primarily for prize money, with honor taking a backseat. As Floyd Mayweather once said to his old rival Oscar De La Hoya, "You want to fight me? Fine! But if you don't have $100 million, then please don't call and bother me."

Boxing promotion companies take this money-oriented approach to the extreme. If you don't have the money, don't even think about fighting their boxers. This approach is one of the reasons for the decline of young talent in the American boxing scene in recent years.

Link wanted to enter the professional boxing world early, taking advantage of the fact that the North American boxing scene hadn't completely declined yet, to earn more money. With money, it would be easier to challenge other champions.

---

"Mario, are you alright?"

On the boxing ring, Link put on his gloves again and started practicing. When he suggested sparring, Mario volunteered to be his partner.

Link reminded him that his punches were quite heavy and suggested he wear a headgear for protection to avoid injuries. Mario declined, saying he could handle it and wanted Link to attack with full force.

But after only a short while, Mario was knocked around.

"I'm fine, I can do it."

Mario shook his head and struggled to get up from the ground, his knees buckling, almost falling again.

"Mario, put on the protective gear. If you don't want to, let Reggie train with Link."

Coach West shouted.

Mario snorted coldly and reluctantly put on a high-elasticity foam headgear and body protector to protect his head and body. With the protective gear on, Mario's already stout body looked even more robust.

"Haha, Link, come and hit me. Now I can definitely take your punches."

Mario tapped the headgear with his fist and laughed.

Link smiled slightly, raised his fists, and continued to attack Mario.

With the protection of the foam headgear, Mario's ability to withstand blows significantly increased, and he wouldn't be easily knocked down anymore.

Bam! Bam! Bam!

Link swung his fists freely, throwing jabs, hooks, uppercuts, and combinations, one after another, at Mario. It was exhilarating.

After practicing for over an hour, Link's muscular back was drenched in sweat, and Mario lay flat on the ground, gasping for air.

"Link, are you a beast? Why are you so strong?"

Mario said weakly.

During their previous fight, he thought Link's strength was just that. But after sparring with Link for over an hour, he realized how terrifying Link was. His punches were like hammers, fast and fierce. Even with protective gear, he was constantly forced to retreat.

This guy was a beast.

"I'm just naturally strong."

"You rest first, I'm going to practice on the heavy bag."

Link handed Mario a bottle of water and stepped off the ring.

The other boxers, seeing Mario getting knocked around even with protective gear, couldn't help but look at Link with admiration.

Mario weighed 208 pounds and was a heavyweight boxer, while Link weighed 168 pounds, falling into the super middleweight and light heavyweight categories. The fact that he could defeat Mario across weight classes showed his immense strength.

Coach West was delighted to see Link defeat Mario.

The power Link displayed was greater than he had imagined, his speed was faster, and his combination punches were incredibly skilled, like a veteran boxer with years of experience. His mentality and boxing awareness were also extremely mature.

West felt like he had struck gold, a massive gold mine.

"West, you've seen my fighting style. Do you have any suggestions for improvement?"

Link wiped the sweat from his neck and chest with a towel.

West pondered for a moment, "Link, your combinations are excellent, but there are a few minor issues. I wonder if you've noticed them."

"What issues, West? Feel free to tell me."

"During your matches, you have small movements like knee lifts, elbow strikes, and foot stomps. Have you practiced mixed martial arts before?"

West asked.

Link nodded.

These weren't habitual movements from practicing mixed martial arts but bad habits developed from fighting in underground matches for too long.

Underground matches focused more on visual impact and had looser regulations. As long as there were no major fouls, minor infractions were ignored.

This leniency led to boxers constantly using small, dirty tactics. Link had fought in underground matches for nearly ten years and had developed some bad habits.

However, he was trying his best to restrain himself.

"West, I used to fight on the streets a lot and didn't pay much attention to the rules. I'll be more careful in the future."

"Good, continue practicing."

Link felt he still had some energy left, so he continued practicing on the human-shaped punching bag.

The human-shaped bag was harder than a real person, and hitting it with only hand wraps was tough on the hands. However, the rubber bag was durable and wouldn't break easily, making it enjoyable to practice on.

As Link practiced, West and the boxing apprentices stood in the distance, watching him. Seeing him unleash a flurry of punches on the bag, making it sway continuously, they couldn't help but marvel.

They had heard that Tyson used to knock out sparring partners and shatter punching bags during his training. Link seemed similar. Could Link become a boxer as powerful as Tyson?

Mario watched with twitching eyes. It was too brutal. If Link had fought like that in the ring earlier, he would have been knocked down long ago.

"Everyone, stop watching and go train."

West waved his hand, shooing away the boxers and apprentices.

"He's not that big. How can he be so strong?"

Mario said enviously.

"That's talent. You can't envy that."

West was also envious. If he had had Link's talent back then, he wouldn't have boxed for ten years without winning a single championship belt.

"Mario, you've seen Link's strength. Both his power and speed are top-notch even in professional boxing. If you can train with him for three years, winning an intercontinental championship title wouldn't be difficult."

West said.

Mario scratched the flesh on his face, "West, have you considered another possibility? If I train with him for three years, I might get beaten to death."

"That's possible. So whether or not to be his sparring partner, the choice is yours."

West patted Mario's shoulder and went to arrange matches for Link.

Mario stared at Link's back, clenching his fists tightly, annoyed that he was too weak to withstand Link's attacks, forcing him to use the rubber dummy. This was a sparring partner's failure.

"Link, I'll continue to be your sparring partner tomorrow."

Mario shouted with all his might.

"I heard you. No need to shout so loud!"

Merry Christmas! Please collect!

(End of Chapter)