“It’s not where you train, it’s what you do in the gym that matters.”
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They’re the sage words of Kempsey boxing trainer George Ptolemy following the success of his charge Renold Quinlan, who knocked out Daniel Geale on Friday to claim the IBO super middleweight world title.
Geale, a three-time world champion, was the heavy favourite going into the fight, before a left hook from Quinlan ended the fight in the second round.
George said he always expected Quinlan could win despite his underdog status.
Renold took control from the start, Geale never got into it
- Renold Quinlan's trainer George Ptolemy
“Renold took control from the start, Geale never got into it,” George said.
Quinlan shirked fancy city gyms in preparation for his fight with Geale, instead opting to train out of George’s humble home shed on Kempsey’s Cameron Street in the months leading up to the bout.
According to George, Quinlan could hold the distinction of being the first world champion to be trained in the country.
“All the rest usually go to Newcastle or Sydney,” he said. “Once they start to make it big everyone starts to say ‘get to the city’, but that’s a fallacy.”
It’s the second time that Quinlan has trained under George.
“I had him as a junior and won an Australian title with him,” George explained.
Quinlan’s the latest in a strong stable of fighters that have been trained out of George’s yard, with Quinlan’s world title going alongside 16 national titles won by nine Macleay Valley fighters.
George started training boxers at the age of 27, and now, age 72, has more than 50 years of experience to draw on.
He’s confident that the world title win is just the beginning for 27-year-old Quinlan, who he calls “a real good young fella”.
“He could be anything,” he said.
“He’s strong and he’s got a really good left jab, it’s going to win him a lot of fights.”
George isn’t prone to grandiose statements but said that the upset win was something Quinlan could be proud of.
“He went pretty good,” he said.
“It’s a pretty big achievement for him.”
For now, the pair will look to enjoy the immediate aftermath of the fight before planning Quinlan’s next move.
“We’re going to have a week to settle down and work things out. We’re not going to rush into anything,” George said.
