Light heavyweight Benny Sinakin declared, "I will bounce back," in the wake of his first professional loss. On April 3, Sinakin dropped a majority decision to underdog Afunwa King at the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
The Jewish Bulldog wrote an Instagram post in which he acknowledged relationship and employment troubles in the run-up to the fight with King. In addition, Sinakin revealed his car had been "ransacked." The thieves "even stole the cover to my engine."
Most relevant to his performance in the ring, Sinakin noted that he was forced to cut a significant amount of weight in a compact period of time. At the start of the year, Benny weighed 218 pounds. "I trained like a dog and drained myself to make weight," Sinakan said. He lost about 44 pounds to make the light heavyweight limit on April 2. He admitted, "I'm my own worst enemy to put myself [through] that cut." Incidentally, King was a half a pound over the division's limit at the weigh-in.
King deserves credit, too. He now sports a decent record of 3-1, but his opponents were 10-0 when he faced them. Currently, his opponents are a combined 18-0, subtracting their fights against the Nigerian native. King's lone loss was in a competitive fight against an Olympian. The pandemic has forced prospects to face high-risk, low-reward opponents such as Afunwa King. As a result, a loss on one's record likely won't be the scar it had been pre-pandemic.
Plenty of fighters have suffered early setbacks and gone on to greatness in boxing. Jamel Herring, who fought a career-defining fight on the same day as Bulldog Benny's defeat, suffered two surprising losses mid-career and appeared to solidify himself as a gatekeeper before transforming into a champion. Fellow Philly fighter Tevin Farmer was 7-4-1 journeyman before turning his career around and earning a world championship.
Of the loss, Sinakin said, it's "just another obstacle in the way." At 6-1 with 3 KOs, Benny proclaimed, "I'm here to stay."
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