Dominic Valle is learning fast and aims to learn more on Friday night.
The junior lightweight prospect is set to face Miguel Torres, 15-2 (9 KOs) – a 27-year-old from Mexico – at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland, Florida, on ProBox TV.
Valle, 11-0 (7 KOs), has boxed just once this year, but he had been due to fight in August, only for opponent Iron Alvarez to come in overweight.
“I want to send the biggest apology to all my friends, family and fans. I give my life to this sport, and when unexpected things happen, it destroys me,” Valle wrote on social media at the time. “I’ve worked my ass off while taking care of a son, a wife and a home. I never have a reason as to why I can’t do what I love, and that is boxing. My fight is canceled due to my opponent coming in almost two weight classes over the scheduled weight.”
Patience is one of the 25-year-old Valle’s qualities. It was evident in his most recent wins, when he went the eight-round distance against Kevin Piedrahita and Brandon Valdes, respectively.
“I just learned that taking my time is the most important thing in boxing,” Valle said. “If you rush things, you can run into a shot pretty easily, so taking your time, utilizing the skills you’ve acquired over your time in boxing. With a young prospect, you can tell what they’re most eager to do: run in, trying to get the big knockout. At the end of the day, there’s a skill difference for a reason, and you need to prove that.”
Valle said he never broke stride as the Alvarez fight fell through. He works on his craft year-round.
“The good thing is that I’m pretty much in the gym all the time, so that’s where I live,” he said. “That’s where I love to be. Getting out of shape is never an option, so when it’s time to get back into camp, we get right back into it. We tune in a few things to get ready for the new opponent, but not much changed.
“We maybe change sparring partners and things like that, but other than that, because I’m such a workhorse, it doesn’t distract me, it doesn’t throw me off. It just makes me excited for the next one.”
Valle also brushed off the challenge that his more experienced opponent presents.
“My mentality is the same,” he said, ahead of their scheduled eight-rounder. “It’s not me getting in the ring with them, it’s them getting in the ring with me. That’s what they need to be worried about. This is what I do. I love boxing. I train 24/7. I spar, I’m in the ring, I’m watching, and I know when they get in the ring with me, it’s a different feeling to when they get in there with normal people. Some people are flashy, some people have a good tank, some people have good skill sets or power. I have a mix of everything. I don’t really see me having a downfall.”
The path that Valle has traveled thus far has only strengthened him for the journey ahead. A regular ProBox flyer, he has been afforded few easy fights – and his skills have grown with that experience.
“You can’t grow with them, guys you’re gonna wipe the floor with, and when you get a real challenge, you don’t know what to do,” he said.
“ProBox TV, they’re always giving us the toughest fights, and that’s something I take pride in. I know a lot of fighters who have made the rise to stardom not taking the most difficult fights. I’ve been in with some of the toughest, most rugged guys in boxing, so it shows what I can do in the ring as a professional.”
Tris Dixon covered his first amateur boxing fight in 1996. The former editor of Boxing News, he has written for a number of international publications and newspapers, including GQ and Men’s Health, and is a board member for the Ringside Charitable Trust and the Ring of Brotherhood. He has been a broadcaster for TNT Sports and hosts the popular “Boxing Life Stories” podcast. Dixon is a British Boxing Hall of Famer, an International Boxing Hall of Fame elector, a BWAA award winner, and is the author of five boxing books, including “Damage: The Untold Story of Brain Trauma in Boxing” (shortlisted for the William Hill Sportsbook of the Year), “Warrior: A Champion’s Search for His Identity” (shortlisted for the Sunday Times International Sportsbook of the Year) and “The Road to Nowhere: A Journey Through Boxing’s Wastelands.” You can reach him @trisdixon on X and Instagram.
