A CHILDHOOD DREAM

Justin Viloria was surrounded by boxing for as long as he can remember.

His father and trainer, Dominic Viloria, had some boxing experience but had his greatest success in Muay Thai. Uncle Brian was one of the best little men of his generation. And his brother, Brandon, was the next-generation star of the family until he had to quit boxing because of asthma.

Justin wrestled and fooled around with team sports in his Whittier neighborhood, in southeast L.A. However, the ring was his destiny.

“Once my dad started showing me how to box when I was 6, I started loving it, I started putting more time and effort into it,” said Viloria. “… It was always something he wanted to show me and my brother. And we liked it. We told him, ‘We want to box, Dad.’ He was like, ‘All right, cool.

“Boxing pretty much raised me. It has taught me a lot of things. That’s how my dad taught me and raised me. I dreamed of being a world champion since I was 8. I’ve been on the same track since then.”

Success didn’t come immediately. Brandon thrived, rolling over one opponent after another, but younger bro Justin struggled in the beginning. However, his pro style – patience, emphasis on power – ultimately paid off.

Justin became one of the top amateurs in the U.S. by the time he turned 13 and would go on to win back-to-back national championships in 2021 and 2022.

“I probably lost 9, 10 fights in a row to start my amateur career,” he said. “I never got dominated, I always put up a good fight. I was just edged on the scorecards because they were punching more than I was.

“… My dad taught me to box as a pro since I was a little kid. Having that style and fighting three, one-minute rounds, it’s hard to keep up the pace, point, point, point. As the rounds got longer I started winning more. I became almost unbeatable.

“I’m thankful my dad taught me that. In the long run, it was a good investment.”

Viloria decided to make a run at the 2024 Olympics after winning his national titles but changed his plans as a result of what he believed was a political selection process.

That’s why he decided to turn pro at 18. And he hasn’t looked back.

A FRIGHTENING EXPERIENCE

Viloria couldn’t have made a bigger splash in his pro debut: He knocked out Sirdarious Smith (0-1 going into the fight) with a body shot only 1 minute, 12 seconds into their scheduled four-rounder on the Sebastian Fundora-Brian Mendoza card on April 8, 2023 at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California.

“I think it was a good experience having my first fight on that kind of stage, getting that first knockout,” he said. “It was surrealistic, even in camp leading up to it was surreal for me. It was something we talked about so much since I was a kid. Hearing the walk out music, hearing people cheering.

“I heard that before but it’s nothing compared to finally being a pro, finally starting my career. It’s something I wished for for so long.”

He hasn’t faced an opponent who can be considered a pushover since. Opponent No. 2 Pedro Pinillo stepped into the ring with a 5-1 (5 KOs) record on May 13, 2023. Still, Viloria won the first three rounds and then ended the fight in the fourth, the first of what could be many knockouts in his career.

“It was definitely a step up from the first fight,” he said. “I pushed for a six-rounder. I wanted to get that made against an opponent who was game, someone … who wasn’t going to be easy to stop. I knew it would be a tough fight.

“I established myself, being dominating, and ended up with a stoppage.”

Opponent No. 3 was then-unbeaten Pedro Penunuri Borgaro (6-0, 3 KOs), a fellow young fighter with big plans. However, it turned out to be a repeat of fight No. 2: Viloria won the first three rounds and then ended matters in Round 4 on July 29, 2023.

“He wanted to get to the top just like me,” Viloria said. “Having those type of opponents is super necessary for my development. You see a lot of people who came up in boxing, they tap the other guy and he falls over. It’s just for the paycheck. That’s not how I want to develop at all.”

Fight No. 4, on Sept. 30, 2023, was surreal for a different, more frightening reason.

Viloria was in his hotel, about to leave for T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas for his fight against Angel Barrera (4-2, 0 KOs going into the fight) on the Canelo Alvarez-Jermell Charlo card, when his father delivered disturbing news: He was having significant chest pains.

The elder Viloria decided to go the arena, wrap his son’s hands and then, as he put it, “sit this one out.” That’s all the younger Viloria knew when he stepped into the ring, with his brother and uncle acting as his cornermen.

Viloria pushed though the emotional distress to win a one-sided decision in the six-round bout but he didn’t fight to his capabilities.

The young fighter would learn after the fact that his dad has gone to a local hospital, where doctors determined that he had had a heart attack. He has since recovered and is back in the gym with Justin.

“I thought he was still in the building, I thought he was with my mom or something,” Justin said. “I didn’t think it was that serious. It was a tough fight against a durable opponent. I got a unanimous decision with my brother and Brian in the corner. After the fight I called my mom. She told me, ‘You gotta go visit your dad in the hospital. He had a heart attack.’ I was like, ‘whoa.’

“It was definitely a weird experience, not having the man who got me to that point in my career in my corner, especially knowing something could be wrong with him. I wasn’t as focused as I should’ve been. … I’m just glad everything is OK now. We’re back on track, ready for the next one.”