Lisander Fabian likes to listen to Drake’s “God’s Plan” before a fight.
“When I listen to it, it’s peace to me,” the young boxer said.
Then, barely glancing away from the action in the ring at Lancaster City Boxing Academy, where he trains, he elaborated. The song, he said, “gets me relaxed (so I’m) not being nervous before the fight.”
This weekend could be even more nerve-wracking than normal for the 12-year-old Fabian — he and several other boxers from Lancaster are in Independence, Missouri, Thursday through Saturday to compete in the 2024 National Silver Gloves tournament.
The Silver Gloves is an advancing tournament for kids ages 8-16, and is sanctioned by USA Boxing.
Fabian (12-3) fought, and won, at the 2024 Pennsylvania State Tournament — stopping his opponent in the second round — then walked over at regionals.
He is one of 711 youth amateur boxers who are registered for this year’s nationals, according to Sandy Campbell, treasurer for the National Silver Gloves. The goal: bring home a championship.
But it’s his performance at last year’s nationals that Fabian needs to knock out. In 2023 he stepped into the ring undefeated, but went down in the semifinals.
He doesn’t plan to let it happen again.
“I’m better,” he said. “I’m gonna win.”
In addition to maintaining his 110-pound weight — no pancakes, and pasta without sauce, which he says he prefers — he’s been conditioning, hard.
Then again, the entire team from Lancaster City Boxing in Missouri for the weekend — from 9-year-old Major Seth (12-3), who’s ranked No. 1 in the boys 50-pound Pee-Wee division, to 8-year-old London Enaire, who’s slated to make his debut — all mentioned tough conditioning drills.
Also on their minds: maintaining weight, the excitement of making it to nationals and music.
Mila Torres (5-0) has been training with her father, coach Will Torres, at Lancaster City for about four years. She’s currently No. 1 in the girls 60-pound Pee-Wee division.
“It’s fun,” she said. “I love the punching bag. I love sparring.”
She trains, and she says she “eats healthy — no chips because of boxing. I love boxing way more than I like chips.”
And she’s not nervous about this year’s event. Instead, she said, “I’m excited, really excited.” Because this year she isn’t going to walkover, “it’s all fights!”
As a female boxer, she said, “you don’t get that much fights. It’s easy to box, it’s just hard to get fights.”
Maybe that’s why Taylor Swift, whose music is known to empower young women, especially as they overcome obstacles, has become Torres’ go-to. “Bejeweled” is one of her favorites, she said, while “Love Story” could be her walkout song.
Christopher “Baby Goat” Lugo, who goes by C.J., is also on his way to nationals. Lugo (26-11) fights at 65 pounds and trains in Red Lion with his father, coach Christopher Lugo.
The 11-year-old lost at regionals last year. Currently ranked No. 9 in his division, he too has been conditioning, running three to five miles a day.
He’s also working angles, because he said it will “kinda give (me an) advantage because when (my opponent) is on the ropes — can’t really go nowhere.”
The sounds of Lil Tjay’s “One Take” and Lil Baby’s “Freestyle” motivate Lugo, he said.
Also, Lugo doesn’t like pasta. Really.
Making his debut, Enaire (who prefers pasta alfredo) first started training with his dad, Jeremy Enaire, at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Now the two commute from Harrisburg to train at Lancaster City Boxing.
In addition to prepping for his first fight, London Enaire just celebrated his eighth birthday with a Harry Potter cake because he likes Harry Potter’s “style,” he said.
But, Enaire said, Potter couldn’t box. “He doesn’t have much skill, he can only fly. ... He can’t do a jab, a one-two.”
Enaire can do both, he demonstrated.
And he said he feels “good” about fighting his first bout at a national tournament.
Rounding out the contingent of Lancaster boxers heading to the championships this weekend are Amir Bernadin (6-3), 10, who fights at 90 pounds, and Carlos Ramos (5-2), 11, who fights at 60 pounds and recently started training with coach Christopher Lugo.
