Amateur KO King Gareth Dowling to Turn Pro
The vest is off but the pro gloves haven’t quite been laced up by exciting Dublin puncher Gareth Dowling.
The popular Inner City operator has been very visibly training in Liverpool alongside close friend and former clubmate Pierce O’Leary at the famous Rothunda Gym in recent weeks.
The pictures of him at work in a gym, that is also the training home of Kildare’s Gary Cully and Belfast’s Caoimhin Agyarko prompted some to query whether he has turned over or not.
It seems the answer lies somewhere in between as the 22-year-old tells Irish-boxing.com.
“No I haven’t turned over as of yet but I am in the middle of sorting my pro license,” he says.
“You need a manager before you get your license and a couple of other bits like brain scans and that. So it’s a slow process,” he adds revealing he has started the process of turning professional before stressing he will choose his team wisely.
“I am in no rush whatsoever with whatever I am doing. I’d rather make the right choices slowly than the wrong ones fast.”
The latest punching product off the Dublin Docklands production line makes the pro move just as he emerged as an amateur to look out for.
Dowling grabbed headlines when won the National U22 honours in devastating fashion last year, dropping or stopping an opponent in each of his fights en route to the Irish crown.
It propelled ‘The Jacker’ toward international recognition and saw him travel with Team Ireland. As a result, it was thought he would pursue a senior amateur career, but with the Olympic slots tied up in and around his weight, he felt there was no tangible target to pursue.
“There was nothing left for me in the amateurs,” he adds.
“The national team have nothing for non-Olympic weights in 2024 and even for the Olympic weight of 63.5, that I could make, the Olympian would be sent on those trips.
“So amateur for me feels like a dead end. I’m looking to take steps that help me grow and can bring me the places that I want to go.”
No amateur path doesn’t mean Dowling hasn’t a road map laid out. He has big plans and plans to make serious moves once he finds his pro feet.
“The plan for this year is to settle into the professional style of boxing, even though I can hit already. I have aspirations to become a monster in the sport, so power alone isn’t enough.
“I will make my debut when I am ready, not when I get my license,” he continues before revealing that the settling-in process may not be as long as first expected.
“I’ll work on getting rid of some amateur habits and then catch around 3 to 4 devastating wins by the end of 2024.”
It’s confident from a kid with no major backing as of yet, although that confidence means he has no concerns about gaining support.
“I’ll be picking up major sponsorship deals along the way. When people hear me speak, learn my values as a man, see how much I care for and respect others, and how much I teach younger people the value of a purpose in life and not choosing an easy road – which is an option for everyone when you come from where I’m from – then people will want to apart of my journey. They’ll want to back me til I make it.”
Dowling has started his pro transition in Liverpool at a gym he used to cry leaving as a teen.
“Training in Liverpool has been an absolute dream. I’m training with the best people, unbelievable coaches and have been surrounded by an unbelievable amount of knowledge, knowledge not only of the sport but of life.
“When I used to come home from the Rotunda and Liverpool as a kid after sparring with the club I’d get into my Da’s car sobbing saying ‘I don’t want to be in Dublin’. I was 13 or 14 at the time,” he adds before revealing it had such an impact on him, that he would never return from any trip on a Sunday again.
“Because of coming home on those Sundays, I won’t come home from any holiday on a Sunday since. Ask anyone who has ever went away with me I’ve never come home on a Sunday. If I went on a weekend away I’d come home on a Monday or Tuesday!”
