Quincy Rivera hit the heavy bags with his dad, as the next generation of boxers got their start at New Haven’s newest gym.
Eleven-year-old Quincy (pictured) and his stepfather, former world title challenger Elvin Ayala, were both breaking a sweat last week in a converted garage at 134 Grand Ave. They were training under coach Luis Rosa at the Boxing in Faith Gym in the heart of Fair Haven.
Rosa, a 34-year-old former pro fighter, and his wife, Marilyn, opened the gym three weeks ago right next to the Fair Haven K‑8 School. They say they’re not officially open: As of last week, they still had to put a sign up on the building and set up the boxing ring.
But word has gotten out, and new boxers have been showing up every day. Some know Rosa for his day-to-day work with kids as a coach at the Hamden Boxing program. Others know him as the young trainer who transformed Elvin Ayala from a city kid who practiced his punches on a tree into a long-undefeated pro.
At half past four one recent afternoon, Rosa’s new gym brimmed with boxers, amateur and pro. The front room rang out with the deafening sounds of fists hitting speed bags, heavy breathing, and shoes squeaking on a newly varnished floor. In the next room, jump ropes whizzed through the air. (Click on the play arrow to watch.)
Outside, four teens on bicycles rolled up to the gym. They were out for a ride after school and decided to stop by. They asked Rosa when they could come back and box.
That’s just what the Rosa was hoping for when he and his wife decided to build the gym.
“I wanted to bring something to these kids to keep them off the street,” he said, “to give them something to do.”
The Rosas moved to the New Haven area from Puerto Rico in 1991. For the last decade, they’ve been dreaming about building their own gym. They decided to build one where they felt it was needed most, in Fair Haven, in the heart of the city’s Latino community. One day they peered behind an old Victorian home on Grand Avenue and saw a run-down, four-car garage.
“There’s our gym!” said Marilyn Rosa.
The house looked like the perfect spot for Marilyn Rosa’s realty company. They bought the lot. Three years ago, at a time when youth violence was rocking the city, the Rosas pitched their proposal to the city zoning board. They won approval, then set to work building their dream. The garage has now been transformed, equipped with a shower, two bathrooms, bright blue walls, and a second-story addition that will house the boxing ring.
The new gym is not for profit. With the help of a few adult trainers, the Rosas plan to serve kids aged 10 to 18, five to six hours a day, six days a week. They’re applying for grant money so that they can meet their goal of letting all kids under 17 box for free. Some adults, including Ayala, train there, too.
Reborn
The opening will mark a milestone in Luis Rosa’s journey, from the student of an influential trainer at New Haven’s star-producing gym in the Hill, to a coach with a legacy of his own.
Rosa (pictured) started boxing in Puerto Rico and went pro at age 18. He said his career was “reborn” seven years later, at Ring One Boxing on Congress Avenue, under trainer Brian Clark. Clark’s gym produced the undefeated Chad Dawson, who just this weekend defended his light heavyweight championship titles. The gym continues to be an institution in the Hill neighborhood.
Clark helped Rosa “turn my life around.” Rosa had gotten distracted, caught up with the wrong crowd. He ended up convicted of a gun possession charge. As part of his sentence, he was ordered to do community service hours.
It was during those hours that he found his new calling. Clark got him started coaching kids in the ring. At first, Rosa didn’t see himself in that role. But something clicked. He connected with the kids. When he saw them get “distracted,” too, he helped steer them back on the right track. He left Ring One to coach in Hamden and became a full-time trainer.
Now, after coaching in Hamden for six years, Rosa has built his own track record of shaping young boxers’ lives. His son, Luis “KO King” Rosa, Jr., is a two-time Golden Gloves champ. And Rosa has become a father figure to a range of young fighters.
Elvis Figueroa (pictured), a proud dad who also helps out at the gym, said through five years of coaching, Rosa transformed his son from an overweight novice to a confident, fit fighter. The difference is incredible, he said, pulling out old photos of his chubby child. He said Rosa has become family: “my son is his son.”
“I got mad respect for him,” said Figueroa of the coach. “He’s got a big heart for these little kids.”
The newest wave of boxers at Rosa’s gym includes 12-year-old Gizela Negron, who had never had never been to a boxing gym before last week. Gizela heard about the gym from a next-door neighbor. She was quickly learning the rhythm of the gym, where a workouts run in three-minute intervals, punctuated by a short break, to replicate the timing of a bout. She swung a jump rope next to Quincy Rivera.
Quincy said he just started boxing two months ago and is hooked.
“It’s very competitive,” he said.
He pointed out his dad, Elvin Ayala, across the gym, pummeling a heavy bag. Asked if he’d like to go pro, too, he said yes. Then he got back to jumping rope.
To help launch the gym, Boxing in Faith Gym is hosting a star-studded fundraising dinner at Noche Mia, 299 Grand Ave., on May 22 at 7 p.m. For more info, call Luis Rosa at 824‑3624.