The game plan, fashioned by Mike Stellate of Main Street Gym in the Bronx, was the right one against a much taller opponent. David planned to take his time and find his way inside using double and triple jabs, and then rip to the body. He intended to control the tempo.
Malul had watched Hannah's pro debut a couple times and knew he was a tall, long guy with good power. "His speed caught me off guard," David admitted. "Practice can only get so close to the actual fight."
He was adamant that he didn't underestimate Hannah, his warm-up was normal, and nerves weren't a factor. Instead, David acknowledged there were errors in his technique in just his eleventh fight, amateurs included. He "over-extended" his punches dropping his hands too low, and believes he was over-zealous. "I made mistakes; I will fix those mistakes," he declared.
"I learned what a high guard is. I thought my guard was tight enough. It wasn't." Those mistakes resulted in a quick trip to the canvas. David felt it was a flash knockdown and didn't change course. His failure to adjust resulted in a second knockdown. "He caught me," he said.
At first, David took stock of the situation. "I'm not hurt, not shaken up, there was no pain, my head wasn't spinning." He figured he could no longer win on the cards after suffering two knockdowns and decided to take the fight into his own hands. He told himself, "Even though we get knocked down, we're not defined by how we fall, but by how we get up and overcome."
David said he finally implemented the game plan. He got inside and attacked the body. After receiving Malul's body shots, Hannah reacted to a feint downstairs and became susceptible to a monstrous overhand right up top, which improbably changed the fight. "I was not there to put on a show, it just happened," David said.
"I got greedy trying to get a third knockdown," Hannah told The JBB, "and he caught me."
The crowd erupted as David willed himself back into the fight. "There's something burning inside me, in my hands and my heart. My vision is stronger than my doubt. I have the heart of a lion," he explained. David had mentally prepared for the noise of his fans. "I know my people and my people are loud. I prepared to block them out as much as I could, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't hear them."
Malul then described the profound transformation he experienced. "I pulled out a different version of myself. I had to stop him." Faith in G-d was a driving force in his comeback.
As much as he tried to box, at the end of the day it's a fight. "It's the most brutal sport in the world," said David, and his overhand right that stopped Hannah two minutes and thirty-eight seconds into fight provided ample evidence.
"It was a great fight," Hannah said afterwards. "My respect to David."
"I learned what a high guard is. I thought my guard was tight enough. It wasn't." Those mistakes resulted in a quick trip to the canvas. David felt it was a flash knockdown and didn't change course. His failure to adjust resulted in a second knockdown. "He caught me," he said.
At first, David took stock of the situation. "I'm not hurt, not shaken up, there was no pain, my head wasn't spinning." He figured he could no longer win on the cards after suffering two knockdowns and decided to take the fight into his own hands. He told himself, "Even though we get knocked down, we're not defined by how we fall, but by how we get up and overcome."
David said he finally implemented the game plan. He got inside and attacked the body. After receiving Malul's body shots, Hannah reacted to a feint downstairs and became susceptible to a monstrous overhand right up top, which improbably changed the fight. "I was not there to put on a show, it just happened," David said.
"I got greedy trying to get a third knockdown," Hannah told The JBB, "and he caught me."
The crowd erupted as David willed himself back into the fight. "There's something burning inside me, in my hands and my heart. My vision is stronger than my doubt. I have the heart of a lion," he explained. David had mentally prepared for the noise of his fans. "I know my people and my people are loud. I prepared to block them out as much as I could, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't hear them."
Malul then described the profound transformation he experienced. "I pulled out a different version of myself. I had to stop him." Faith in G-d was a driving force in his comeback.
As much as he tried to box, at the end of the day it's a fight. "It's the most brutal sport in the world," said David, and his overhand right that stopped Hannah two minutes and thirty-eight seconds into fight provided ample evidence.
"It was a great fight," Hannah said afterwards. "My respect to David."
David showed the same respect for Hannah. "He's super-fast, has significant height and reach, and great power. Getting off the canvas is a decision you have to make and he got up." The two have quickly become teammates as Hannah has moved over to the Main Street Gym.
David, who was back in the gym on Monday, is determined to improve. "Everything's gotta get better," he said. "I won't recognize myself in a few years."
He has mixed feelings about Saturday night's debut. He's proud he got to discover the dog inside of him, but he acknowledged his performance was far from perfect.
"It's how it was written and what a beautiful story."
David, who was back in the gym on Monday, is determined to improve. "Everything's gotta get better," he said. "I won't recognize myself in a few years."
He has mixed feelings about Saturday night's debut. He's proud he got to discover the dog inside of him, but he acknowledged his performance was far from perfect.
"It's how it was written and what a beautiful story."
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