2018 was a remarkable year for Ghanaian star Isaac Dogboe. The super-bantamweight fought four times, won the WBO world title, defended it in style on ESPN only to be upset himself by Emanuel Navarrete at the Madison Square Garden Theater in December.
He will however be back.
“I could have done better. But all in all, what happened has already happened. The most important thing is looking over it and just working towards a different goal. Working towards rebuilding myself and getting back into that groove. I’ve already spoken to Bob [Arum, his promoter], we expressed to him the challenges I faced during training camp in terms of injuries and challenges with weight loss. So right now they are going to add a nutritionist to the team. Just keep working,” he told Boxing News.
“During the fight at times I’m able to manoeuvre myself and I’d go in and then it’s not getting the punches across, there was no flow. I wasn’t as quick as I hope to be. He was the sharper guy and he deserved it. I’m sure he trained well and he prepared real hard for it. I had some struggles that I had to go through, it’s all part of the learning process. The important thing is coming back stronger.”
He will make changes, like moving his training camp to California and bringing in a nutritionist.
“They tell me that even the greatest of all times, they had to fall at some point and come back stronger. I believe that God has his own plans. I’m looking forward to getting back into the ring and the great things are going to happen,” he reflected.
He wants to rematch the Mexican as soon as possible. “The next thing will be a rematch against Navarette. God willing,” he said. “We’re looking forward to getting it back.”
If he does he can then get back on the track he enjoyed for most of the last year. “We’ll see how I feel at the weight,” he said and if he wins “still chase after the unification and hopefully move up”.