(Updated 4/25/2014) Amateur boxer Malik Titus has big dreams and an even bigger heart, both inside and outside of the ring.
The 16-year-old Baltimore native towers over his competitors at 6-feet, 4-inches and 201 pounds heavy. He dances around the ring, using his combination of speed and height to his advantage. As a three-time State Golden Glove champion, State Silver Glove regional finalist and 2013 Junior Olympics medalist, Titus (17-4) is one of the most promising young boxers in the Baltimore area.
“Malik started out successful from the beginning,” said his trainer, Coach Mack Allison III of Upton Boxing Center. “It’s not a lot of heavyweights in Baltimore City that can fight really well. Right now, he’s the best thing coming out of Baltimore and Washington D.C. and Philly.”
Titus has a family history of boxing, as his father and grandfather were both involved in the sport. He was introduced to boxing at the young age of three, and has been in love with the sport ever since. However, while boxing has always been a major part of Titus’ life, his dreams extend to outside of the ring.
Titus, a junior at Forest Park High School, starts classes at 8:30 a.m., and trains five nights a week until 8:30 p.m. He plays defensive end for the football team in the fall. He visits colleges, such as Salisbury University, Frostburg State and Bowie State, and applies the lessons he’s mastered in boxing to his studies.
“I’ve learned discipline. If I know I have homework or a project, I’ll do it the best I can and I’ll actually do it at that time. In boxing, you only get one shot,” Titus told the AFRO. “I know that boxing isn’t going to be forever, but I still want to be involved with the sport. When I go to college, I want to get a degree in sports management and become a boxing promoter. I’d like to own a sports franchise.”
Titus is wise beyond his years, and although he has a firm grasp of his future, he also understands how instrumental his past was in shaping his success.
“I wasn’t the type to hang around the wrong crowd. I always try to stay around positivity. But there’s so much negativity in the city, so people don’t like that. People would always try to pick on me. I used to get suspended for fighting, but when I started boxing, I humbled myself,” said Titus.
“When I started boxing, that was the first time I got out of Baltimore. That’s why I want to give back to the community and shed light to other kids. You don’t have to be from the suburbs for positive things to happen to you.”
“Some people become a bully, but not Malik. I’m proud of him,” said his father, Kenneth Titus. “As long as that gym door is open and the bus is running, this is where he’s at.”
Titus will fight on April 26 in the Washington D.C. Regional Finals at 8 P.M in the ABC Wellness & Fitness Center in Waldorf MD., and then May 12-17 for the 2014 Golden Gloves Tournament of Champions in Las Vegas.
