Rising star: Why Oakland’s Amari Jones believes he is the Bay Area’s next great boxer
PITTSBURG — Tattooed across Amari Jones’ right forearm are the words “Humble Beast,” the mantra the Oakland boxer lives by every day.
But when the 6-foot, 160-pound fighter steps into the ring, the “humble” part goes away.
“In the ring, I just gotta be a beast,” Jones said. “I just keep it cool and let my work speak for itself.”
From the East Bay streets to the ring, Jones has had to fight all his life.
But his tough upbringing has gotten him to where he is today as one of boxing’s most exciting young fighters.
Jones, who is 12-0 with 11 knockouts, is set to fight in Oakland on Aug. 31 against veteran boxer Daniel Echeverria (21-12). Nothing has excited Jones more than to show out in front of his hometown crowd.
“I got a big support system here in the Bay Area,” Jones said. “We do a lot for the community here. All my family is from Oakland and I have a huge fan base here. I’m very appreciative of that. Not a lot of people got support in their own hometown, and I get support from everywhere here in the Bay.”
Jones, 22, was always around boxing, but never took it seriously as a kid. Instead, his focus was on the gridiron, playing wide receiver and defensive back at Clayton Valley High School. He shuffled between family members’ houses in East Contra Costa County in order to attend the Concord school.
But when he wasn’t in the gym or on the football field, he was still fending for himself on the East Bay streets. Being around family members and friends who often got into trouble, it wasn’t uncommon for Jones to get into a street fight even at a young age.
Jones said getting into street fights ultimately shaped how he boxes in the ring today.
“Growing up and fighting kids on the streets, you win some and you lose some,” Jones said. “Honestly, that’s where I feel like that dog in me came from. In the streets, I don’t want to take any losses. So I’m going to beat you up because I don’t have to come back and have to fight again. I just want to stay undefeated, so that dog has to come out every time.”
After playing football for just one season at Clayton Valley, a family member pushed him to dedicate his time in the boxing gym to help him deal with anger issues.
Jones thrived as he shifted his focus to boxing.
As an amateur, he quickly rose up the ranks. Before turning 18, Jones won two amateur national championships and was the No. 1 amateur middleweight.
Around the same time Jones was getting noticed as a premier young amateur, he developed a relationship with current boxing superstar Devin Haney and his father, Bill Haney.
The Haneys, who are originally from Oakland and now reside in Las Vegas, took Jones under their wing. Jones traveled around the country with the Haneys and sparred with some of the best up-and-coming fighters from around the country.
“Watching Devin spar when I was younger only helped me improve my game,” Jones said. “Some guys don’t get to see that type of stuff especially at a young age, so I’m grateful to be able to say I saw that.”
Since turning pro, Jones has been featured on the undercard of many of Devin’s fights. The two boxers still have a close connection to this day, and Jones often has Bill in his corner as a coach.
“Me and Dev have a close relationship outside of boxing,” Jones said. “Over the years our bond became stronger.”
Inside the ring, Jones’ style has made it hard for opponents to match up with him.
He started his career fighting out of an orthodox stance, but has recently fought as a southpaw. Now fighting as a switch hitter, opposing fighters have to be more aware as he has equal power in both hands.
While he often has a height and reach advantage over his opponents, he doesn’t stray away from action. In his last fight against Armel Mbumba-Yassa in April, Jones stalked the top prospect and peppered him with right hands to the head before finishing him via TKO in the sixth round.
“When you have somebody like Amari who has that god-given ability, but also wants to put in the effort to get where he wants to get to, I think it’s amazing,” said Jones’ manager and close friend Wali Herawi.
Whether he’s fighting in the U.S, Australia or Mexico, Jones never forgets where he came from.
Though he travels all over the country to train, Jones considers the Lion’s Den Boxing Gym in Pittsburg as his fighting home. He is a mentor to up-and-comers who are also trying to climb the boxing ranks.
“I get in the gym every day and I have a lot of people who look up to me,” Jones said. “The guys here definitely bring life to me and make me go harder. I have to make sure I stay on my game. I can’t let them see me mess up.”
Kyle Lacanlale, a member of Lion’s Den and a pro boxer from San Ramon, said having Jones around the gym has made him a better boxer.
“To see Amari and everything he’s doing, that’s just motivation for me to keep pushing,” Lacanlale said.
Teammate and undefeated Pittsburg-based boxer Gabriel Garcia added, “Amari has sparred world champions before. He’s well seasoned, and for him to pass that seasoning down to the Lion’s Den kids is amazing.”
The pride for his hometown is why his next bout in Oakland means so much to him.
The Bay Area is known to be one of the more underrated hotbeds for boxing talent in the U.S. as fighters like Andre Ward, Robert Guerrero, Nonito Donaire and Haney call the Bay their home. But fight cards are rarely ever made in the Bay Area despite the crop of local talent.
Haney and Jones both brought boxing back to the region when they fought at Chase Center in December. Jones and Herawi are hoping next month’s event can lead to more promotions putting on shows in the Bay Area.
The Aug. 31 fight card at the Marriott Broadway hotel is going to be cross-promoted between Lion’s Den Boxing Promotions, Devin Haney Promotions and UpperCut Promotions, and will feature some of the best young talent the Bay Area has to offer. Boxers such as Lacanlale, Garcia, Concord’s Braulio Ceja and San Francisco’s Stevie Johnson are set to be on the undercard.
“We’re trying to bring boxing back to the Bay Area,” Herawi said. “Not to say it’s dead, but we’re trying to keep it alive. I think this is the first of many shows that Lions Den Boxing Promotions is going to have and it doesn’t end here.”
Jones’ ultimate goal is to become a world champion. How soon he can get there is still unknown, but his exciting style of fighting could catapult him to the top quickly.
When asked if there’s a dream fight or any opponent he would like to face in the ring in the near future, Jones was both confident and humble in his answer
“Any of these guys, any one of them,” he said. “I’ll take any one of them.”