ORLANDO, Fla.— What goes on inside the mind of a boxer?
For Robert Burwell it’s pure focus.
“The best way I would describe it is a buzz. You’re buzzing. You’re buzzing, buzzing buzzing then the moment you get into that ring, you step through the ropes, they ring the bell you’re in the zone,” said Robert Burwell, a professional boxer from Orlando.
It’s an adrenaline rush unlike any other.
“Once you’re up there in the ring and you have the crowd there, there’s nothing like it,” said Burwell.
It’s nothing new for the 30-year-old boxer.
“I literally grew up boxing my dad was my coach he was a kick boxer. Since I was five years old, even less than that, I was throwing punches and I just kind of grew up into it,” said Burwell.
Growing up his life revolved around the sport.
“At eight years old I had my first amateur fight with USA boxing. I had almost 100 amateur fights from there to 18,” said Burwell.
After a short break, Burwell ramped up his training again and turned pro in 2012.
Reflecting on his past and shifting his purpose.
“You got to do it for yourself. I want to be great and you got to want to be great to be great and you cant really do it for anyone else. There’s so many things that go into it. It’s more than the training, it’s more than the fight itself. There’s a diet, there’s a recovery, there’s the things you don’t do while you’re in camp,” said Burwell.
With that mindset he won the NBA Middleweight Title last year. He wanted to build off of that momentum this year then he took the most unexpected punch of his career.
“You don’t know what you got until it’s gone,” said Burwell.
The covid-19 pandemic shut everything down forcing his training to come to a hold
“Everyone hit the breaks. You didn’t know how long it was going to last. It just kind of burns in you. A little break is nice then after about a month you start getting that itch again,” said Burwell.
After months of training in his mom’s garage quarantine was finally over and he was given the green light.
“Having a fight to look forward to and the focus there is nothing like it. It was really awesome to hear once we heard the date November 14th,” said Burwell.
Giving Burwell that much more reason to never give up, a lesson his dad has taught him from the beginning.
“I don’t have any quit in me and everyone who knows me knows that. That would probably the biggest thing that I have from him is just the heart and determination to keep going no matter what,” said Burwell.