As a trainer and manager, Bobby Rooney has a lot on his mind heading into fight night. One thing he doesn’t worry about is whether his star pupil Robert Terry do his road work.
That’s because the undefeated junior middleweight finds himself on the streets of Bayonne, NJ, doing his six-mile runs in the afternoon, shortly after waking up from his overnight shifts as a loss prevention specialist. First responders who work in the area often let Rooney know that they see the fighter running up and down Kennedy Blvd., without any need for an assignment.
Terry (12-0-1, 4 KOs) hardly needs any additional motivation to put in the work as he approaches the biggest fight of his career to date this Friday, August 30, as he faces Andreas Katzourakis (13-0 , 10 KOs) at the Overtime Elite Arena in Atlanta, Ga.
The ten-round bout will be a semi-final in the OTX 154-pound tournament, earning the winner a $100,000 bonus, plus a promotional contract with the Overtime Boxing platform, bringing significant visibility on DAZN and social media . The winner will also become the mandatory challenger for the WBC silver title, a vacant belt that will be contested in Paris on November 22 when Bakary Samake and Wade Ryan meet in a 12-round bout.
“Definitely more motivation for sure,” said Terry, 31, of Jersey City, NJ, whose fight will be shown live on the DAZN platform, with the card starting at 7:30 p.m. ET.
“I just have to stay consistent and continue to do what I’ve been doing. Once I get going, that’s going to be it for me. It’s extra motivation, but I just have to stay focused.”
Terry showed he was more than just a local area prospect in his last fight, easily outpointing the rough and tough Estevan Villalobos in his last fight in May in the opening round of the tournament. The fight was his first ten round fight, showing that the versatile boxer-puncher could maintain his conditioning over the course of a longer fight.
He will need to be in top form against Katzourakis, a 26-year-old native of Greece who now makes his home in Los Angeles. Katzourakis also stepped up to the plate in his first round match in May, defeating Kudratillo Abdukakhorov by majority decision. Both fighters were injured in the fight, but it was Katzourakis who was able to finish the fight stronger and earn him the victory.
Terry sparred with super middleweight contender Sergiy Derevyanchenko several times in Brooklyn to prepare for this fight.
“I think he is good, it will be a good challenge. He’s coming up, I think he’ll be aggressive,” said Terry, a 70-fight amateur veteran who was a 2017 National Golden Gloves finalist.
“He’s a tough fighter, he’s a man who comes forward. He will want to keep the fight close. He’s kind of a pressure fighter, I would say, loads with big shots, throws a hard jab,” added Rooney, who himself was a pro fighter between 2003 and 2011.
“One of Robert’s best things is his counter-punching ability and his reflexes, which allows him to make a lot of guys miss and stop them.”
As if Terry needed any more motivation, he might have one of his biggest supporters in the house to cheer him on. Lester Green, better known as Beetlejuice of The Howard Stern Show fame, lives in Atlanta and is also managed by Rooney. Depending on Green’s schedule, Beetlejuice might be there to cheer him on.
The winner of the Terry-Katzourakis fight will then face the winner of Friday’s other semi-final between Brandon Adams (24-3, 16 KOs) and Francisco Veron (14-0-1, 10 KOs) in the final.
The OTX platform brought much more attention to Terry’s career. Now he is just a few wins away from reaching a whole new level of visibility in the sport.
“I appreciate all the support and things like that. I’m not really into social media that much, but I appreciate the people who support me, so that’s huge for me,” Terry said.
“(This tournament will) definitely lead me to a world title.”
