Terrell Gausha is scheduled to take on the heavy-handed Elijah Garcia next Saturday on March 22. The pair meet at middleweight on the undercard of Sebastian Fundora vs. Chordale Booker. However, despite a rich career, which includes a few world title fights, he is a relative unknown.
Only the hardcore fanbase is familiar with Gausha. The same, frankly, is true of his opponent Garcia as well. So, who exactly is Gausha? Is he a former world champion? Was he, at one point, a high-potential prospect in the sport of boxing, and if so, did he fulfill any expectations?
These are the questions surrounding one of the dark horses next weekend.
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Who is Terrell Gausha?
Terrell Gausha was born on Sep. 9, 1987 in Cleveland, Ohio, United States. The 37-year-old first started boxing at the tender age of 10, first learning under the guidance of Bob Davis at the Glenville Recreation Center. However, he later trained under Renard Safo.
Four years after graduating from high school, Gausha captured one of his first major honors as an amateur boxer when he won the USA National Title in 2009. Thereafter, he competed in various championships and tournaments, including the 2012 Olympics.
Despite defeating decorated amateur boxer Andranik Hakobyan with a crushing knockout, he ultimately failed to medal at the Olympics, losing to Vijender Singh in controversial fashion before transitioning to professional boxing. He is also married, with two children: a son and daughter.
Examining Terrell Gausha's professional boxing career
In a career that first began in 2012, Terrell Gausha managed to author a 24-4-1 record, consisting of just 12 stoppages. He spent his first 20 fights undefeated, before challenging Erislandy Lara for the WBA (Super) and IBO super welterweight titles to no success. He was handed a unanimous decision loss.
That begin a rough patch that saw Gausha go from 20-0 to a 4-3-1 run in his next 8 fights. His most recent bout was another unanimous decision loss, this time to Carlos Adames for WBC middleweight gold. Now, though, he will look to rebound from the loss by facing Elijah Garcia, who is 16-1 with 13 stoppages.
It isn't a bout he's expected to win, but boxing is nothing if not a sport of upsets