American heavyweight prospect Jared “Big Baby” Anderson will close out 2021 on December 11 in his Madison Square Garden debut. The scheduled 10-round bout against Oleksandr Teslenko will serve as the co-feature to Vasiliy Lomachenko’s lightweight match-up with Richard Commey. The 22-year-old Anderson heads to the east coast for the first time since his third professional fight in Verona, N.Y., in January of 2020.
The highly touted heavyweight prospect will be stepping in to the ring for the fourth time this year following three straight stoppage wins. Most recently, Anderson scored a second round TKO victory over the formerly undefeated Vladimir Tereshkin on the undercard of Fury-Wilder III on October 9.
Anderson is preparing for his upcoming match with a heavy heart following his friend Dominique “Neko” Davis’ death in mid-November. His friend’s loss has weighed heavily on Anderson’s mind since his passing, but he is channeling his grief in to motivation and wants to help keep Davis’ name alive in his own unique way.
Anderson and his team are currently completing his preparatory training camp in Las Vegas before flying to New York on Sunday. While he has yet to hear the final bell in any of his 10 professional bouts, Anderson and his coaches Darrie Riley and Kay Koroma remain focused on improving with each and every fight. Many in the boxing world, including Heavyweight World Champion Tyson Fury and his team are touting Anderson as the next big heavyweight star but Anderson hasn’t allowed the hype to diminish his work ethic and focus on his craft. He said that he is currently working on picking his shots, not rushing in and limiting the shots he takes.
The December 11 card featuring Anderson’s bout with Teslenko will be showcased on ESPN and ESPN Deportes with the broadcast beginning at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT following the 2021 Heisman award ceremony.
JARED “BIG BABY” ANDERSON
HOMETOWN: Toledo, Ohio RESIDES IN: Houston, Texas BIRTHDATE: November 16, 1999 WEIGHT CLASS: Heavyweight STANCE: Orthodox
HEIGHT: 6-4
RECORD: 10-0 (10 KOs)
COACHES: Darrie Riley and Kay
Koroma
FOUR-TIME USA BOXING NATIONAL CHAMPION
A troublesome child turned potential future heavyweight champion, Jared Anderson is one of the brightest heavyweight prospects in the sport of boxing. Like so many in the sport, Anderson found the sweet science as a youngster due to his behavioral issues. His mother, Deborah, was introduced to Toledo boxing coach Darrie Riley by a friend and after some early challenges, her rambunctious son fell in love with the sport.
He enjoyed a highly successful amateur career, winning multiple USA Boxing national titles at every age level and becoming a National Golden Gloves champion. Anderson represented the United States at multiple international competitions and relocated to the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs as a member of the national team.
Anderson made the decision to enter the professional ranks in 2019 and quickly caught the attention of the professional boxing world with his skill and talent both through his work in the ring and as a sparring partner for World Champion Tyson Fury ahead of Fury’s second fight with Deontay Wilder. Although he only had three professional bouts under his belt, Anderson provided Fury with valuable work leading in to Fury’s knockout victory over Wilder in February of 2020.
Anderson is trained by his original coach Darrie Riley and his former USA Boxing national coach Kay Koroma. A member of a talented stable of athletes based out of Houston, he often trains alongside fellow elite prospects and former world champions.
He was only three bouts in to his pro career when the world shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While most boxers struggled to get fights during that time, Anderson remained extremely active in the Top Rank bubble. He fought on the opening card in the closed venue at the MGM Grand and went on to score to five victories, all by knockout in the bubble.
Anderson credits his team for keeping his busy and says that he stayed in the gym and stayed ready for every opportunity that presented itself. He and his team were extremely creative in finding locales for his daily training sessions while many gyms and fitness centers closed due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Known for his bright smile, childlike temperament and outgoing personality in combination with his 6-4 heavyweight frame, people began calling Anderson “Big Baby” as a child and says that it stuck with him. While many in the boxing world encouraged him to change his nickname due to another heavyweight fighter sharing the same ring moniker, Anderson feels strongly about sticking with it.
His personality and creative nature is often on full display in Anderson’s fight attire and ring walk. He loves to come up with new and fun uniform themes and always keeps the fans entertained with his unique ideas.
A product of a large family, Anderson credits his family and his roots in Toledo, Ohio as his biggest motivation and says he thinks of them when he needs an extra push during training or a fight. He recently relocated to Houston from Toledo and plans to bring his mother there with him as well.
Anderson defeated the formerly unbeaten Vladimir Tereshkin of Russia on October 9 on the undercard of Fury-Wilder III.