After hitting 16,000 yards in the NFL, Frank Gore is entering the next phase of his professional career and stepping into the boxing ring. On Saturday, Gore had his first professional boxing match on his 39th birthday against Yaya Olorunsola in Biloxi, Miss., for Gamebred Boxing. Gore got the call angry, knocking out Olorunsola in the fourth round.
It’s great to see Gore redeem himself in the ring after loss of exhibition for former NBA All-Star guard Deron Williams. Williams made the split decision over Gore, then quickly withdrew from combat afterward. Gore expressed interest in a rematch with Williams after the game, but he likely won’t get that chance.
Some parts of the fight against Williams are embarrassing, so it would be good for Gore to show what he did against Olorunsola in his first official professional match. At one point in round two with Williams, Gore was knocked out (like being jostled) over the wire and honestly looked overwhelmed at the haystack thrown by Deron.
So I’m sure Gore and his team made it easier for him to come off the field this time and based on the results, their mission accomplished. How far can Gore go on this new career path, let’s see how he started this journey at almost 40 years old? This is the age at which we often see boxers start to decline whether they decide it’s time or dad time to spend with them.
Because of Gore’s size (5 feet-9, 210 board), he will fight fighters who will surpass him in most cases. Williams is about six inches above Gore, and Olorunsola seems for a height advantage of at least a few inches. So Gore will need to get used to infiltrating much higher boxers like Mike Tyson did early in his career. Now, I’m not comparing Gore to Iron Mike in the ring in any way. But he will be at some of the same disadvantage as Tyson did in the ring due to his stature.
Like most soon-to-be-ranked fighters, Gore will likely have a few more green fighters than he does, scurrying around to set his record. Playing 16 years in the NFL will certainly play in Gore’s favor. Not only from a physical standpoint but also in name recognition. While he’s not the best back runner in the league, Gore is considered a Top five back at the same time. Boxing promoters will use any angle they can to sell fights and if Gore continues to win we could see him work his way up to one of 700 boxing championships. all around the world.
