Dustin Fleischer boxing his way to the top

BY GEORGE ALBANO Staff Writer

BY GEORGE ALBANO
Staff Writer

CHRIS KELLY staff Monmouth Beach’s Dustin Fleischer, 15, does some pad work with his father and trainer, Phil, at the Long Branch Boxing Club gym on Saturday.CHRIS KELLY staff Monmouth Beach’s Dustin Fleischer, 15, does some pad work with his father and trainer, Phil, at the Long Branch Boxing Club gym on Saturday. At first glance, Dustin Fleischer’s impressive boxing career would lead some to say he’s getting better with age.

But then you have to quickly remind yourself that this standout amateur from Monmouth Beach is still only 15 years old. Fifteen years old!

The truth is, Fleischer, a sophomore at Shore Regional High School, is indeed getting better with age. In fact, he’s already accomplished more in the ring at his young age than some amateurs do in their entire careers.

Fleischer first took up the sport as a 9-year-old, and by the time he was 10 he won his first junior tournament, capturing the Northern Region championship in the 70-pound weight class.

And his stock in the ring has continued to rise ever since, eventually earning a spot on the USA Junior Boxing Team.

As good as he’s been, though, Fleischer’s promising career recently took a major step forward when he finished runner-up in the 125-pound division at the 2005 National Silver Glove Championships in Missouri. With it came the No. 2 ranking in the country in his weight class, a big jump from his previous best ranking of No. 8.

The road to Missouri began in New Jersey in late December when Fleischer, nicknamed “Razor Sharp,” captured the state championship. He then advanced to the regional championships in Oneonta, N.Y., in January and won that, besting a field that included state champions from New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Maine.

Fleischer and his father/trainer, Phil Fleischer, then drove out to Independence, Mo., just outside of Kansas City, two weeks ago for the nationals, which brought together the eight regional champions from all over the country.

Keep in mind Fleischer had been down this road before. Last year, fighting at 112 pounds, he also won the state and regional tournaments, but lost in the first round of the national tourney to finish eighth. This time, however, he knew what to expect and promised himself he’d be ready.

“I definitely felt more comfortable this time,” Fleischer said. “I also think I matured physically as well being more mentally matured. I was more prepared.”

It showed in the ring, too, as Fleischer scored a three-round decision over Oscar Soto of Minnesota in his first-round match. Then, the next day in the semifinals, Fleischer faced local favorite DeMarco McGrady of St. Louis, and he knocked him down in the first round with a vicious left hook right before the bell.

McGrady survived the count and the next two rounds, but Fleischer pounded out a one-sided decision.

“Winning those two matches was an improvement from last year,” Fleischer laughed.

He nearly made it three wins. The victory advanced Fleischer to the national finals the following day where he met Michael Herrara of Phoenix. The two went toe-to-toe, trading punches in three action-packed rounds before Herrara was awarded a close decision.

“Some people there said it was the best fight of the night,” Phil Fleischer, a former fighter himself, said. “They called it one of the closest and best fights in the final.”

Even Fleischer, showing a maturity beyond his years, took the loss in stride.

“The guy I fought in the final was more of a brawler, and I was more of a boxer,” he explained. “But even though I lost, I look at it as another learning experience. I’ve got to hold my head up and look forward to another opponent.”

That next opponent should be coming up next month when the national boxing team from Ireland comes here to face the USA Junior Boxing Team.

“They have a kid over there who’s won 40 straight fights,” the elder Fleischer pointed out.

“He fights at 132 pounds, and Dustin is going to move up in weight just for this fight. He’s willing to challenge a fighter a weight class above his.”

“This kid is supposed to be pretty good,” Dustin added. “But I know, with all the training I do and all the hard work I’ve put in and sacrifices I’ve made, I know I can beat him. He may have some weight on me, but everyone says I hit heavier than my weight.”

Part of Fleischer’s vigorous training regiment includes waking up at 5:30 every morning and putting in a hard two-mile run on the quiet roads of Monmouth Beach before he heads to school. Then, after school, he trains five or six days a week, usually taking only Sunday off.

Fleischer’s training program, however, underwent a drastic change recently.

He had been training at the Long Branch PAL boxing club under the tutelage of trainer John Durkin. But when Durkin moved back to England to train fighters there, the gym in Long Branch closed. They hope to re-open sometime soon — as soon as they find someone to run it — but as of now, it has temporarily ceased operation.

That, of course, left Fleischer in a bind.

“It was hard,” admitted Fleischer, who used to travel over an hour to train in Newark when he lived in Tewksbury, where he grew up. When his family moved to Monmouth Beach, the Long Branch PAL boxing club was only 10 minutes up the road.

“That was the first gym I really liked and I was attached to,” he added. “I had a lot of friends at that gym.”

Without a regular gym to train at, Fleischer trained in his makeshift gym at home under the watchful eye of his father. Phil Fleischer, 46, was a former middleweight boxer known as “Difficult Phil” back when he fought as an amateur and pro in the late 1970s.

Naturally, he was his son’s trainer when he first started out, but as Dustin got older, and better, the older Fleischer thought it was best if he took a step back and let someone else train him. That’s where Durkin came in.

But when Durkin left, Fleischer resumed training his son at home.

“I also traveled to different gyms for sparring sessions,” Dustin noted.

His dad eventually hooked up with Ron Carter, an old boxing friend who trains amateurs and pros at The Brick PAL in Bricktown.

“Right now, Ron is kind of assisting me,” Phil Fleischer said. “But eventually I want Ron to take over. I want to be his second.”

“I’m happy with Ron training me and I know he will eventually be more of my head trainer,” Dustin said. “But I’m glad my father is there, too. I always like having him close by.”

The Fleischer Family’s passion for boxing has even rubbed off on Dustin’s 11-year-old sister, Meaghan, who enjoyed watching her older brother so much she

asked her father to start taking her to the gym.

“She likes it, too,” Dustin said. “My father and I train her a little when we’re at the gym. She’s going to be the next Laila Ali.”

She certainly has a good role model to follow right in her house. And even though The Brick PAL is a good 40 minutes away, Dustin doesn’t seem to mind.

“Before I started training at Long Branch, I used to travel an hour and a half to train,” he said. “So this is not bad.”

Meanwhile, he continues to hone his skills as he chases his ultimate dream: Making the 2008 U.S. Olympic Boxing Team and going to the Summer Games in China.

With that in mind, the more experience Dustin gets against international competition, the better his chances. Last year, Fleischer traveled with the USA team to England and, despite being the youngest of 11 boxers on the team, he was one of only four Americans to win that night, scoring a unanimous decision in the opening bout at 112 pounds.

Next month’s match against Ireland will only further help him.

“At the last Olympics [2004], the American boxers didn’t do too well,” Phil Fleischer said. “A lot of people felt our boxers didn’t have a lot of international experience. So, for Dustin to fight over in England and against Ireland next month is a feather on his résumé.

“And, Dustin has said that since Ireland is coming here to fight, he’s willing to go to Ireland in August and box him in his country.”

Of course, trying to make the Olympic team doesn’t come without sacrifices. And for Dustin Fleischer, there’s been many. Besides the training and traveling, he’s had to give up taking part in certain school activities, including other sports. Growing up, Dustin played baseball and wrestled, as well as studying karate. Once he took up boxing, however, there wasn’t time for much else.

“He’s made some pretty big sacrifices,” his father said. “He wrestled quite a few years and loved it, and he loved karate too. He would be proud to represent his school, but he knows if he’s going to make it to the Olympics, he had to sacrifice playing team sports.”

“It’s hard,” Dustin agreed. “I really want to represent my school, but to get where I want to be I have to make sacrifices. I know I definitely have to train hard, and I’ll do everything I have to do to get there. In this sport, you have to get a step up.”

But Dustin recently found out that sometimes even he has to take a step back from the sport he loves so much. Last week, he lost his grandfather, Frank Spaulding, who was also one of his biggest fans.

“A couple of weeks before he passed away, I had sent him a tape of one of my fights,” Dustin, who attended the funeral in Long Island, said. “He even called to tell me how impressed he was. We were always talking boxing. He would always tell me to throw my jab more. I know he’s going to be on my mind the next time I get in the ring. Just thinking of him will give me even more motivation.”

Sounds like Dustin Fleischer’s stock in the ring is about to go up again.