Taishan Dong

Taishan Dong
Statistics
Real name Jianjun Dong
Nickname(s) The Great Wall
Rated at Heavyweight
Height 7 ft (2.1 m)[1]
Reach 84 in (213 cm) (2.1 m)
Nationality Chinese
Born May 18, 1988
Lanzhou, Gansu, China
Stance Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights 3
Wins 3
Wins by KO 2
Losses 0
Draws 0

Jianjun Dong (Chinese: 董建军; born 18 May 1988), known by his ring name Taishan Dong, is a Chinese heavyweight professional boxer.

Amateur career

Dong initially started out in basketball and kickboxing, taking the ring name Taishan after the mountain of the same name.[2] In February 2013, he floored Bob Sapp in a kickboxing fight held in Tokyo.[3] Dong met with boxing promotor Liu Gang who persuaded him to take up professional boxing.[4]

Professional career

After arriving in America at the start of 2014 with ambitions to become a professional boxer, Dong met with attorney George Gallegos. Gallegos, who would later become his manager, introduced him to boxing trainer John Bray.[5] Dong did not understand English at the time and Bray was unable to speak Chinese but the pair bonded over their shared interest in boxing.[2] In July, Dong fought his professional debut against Alex Rozman (2-6-0), which Dong won in a second round technical knockout.[6] His next fight came in November, knocking out Tommy Washington Jr. (3-6-0) in just over two and a half first round minutes.[4] In February 2015, Dong defeated Rory McCrary (3-2-0) in an unanimous decision over four rounds.[7] Judges scored the fight 40-34, 40-34 and 39-35 in Dong's favor.[8]

Dong's height has seen him being promoted as the "Yao Ming of boxing".[6][9] He is currently signed to Golden Boy Promotions and trains with Buddy McGirt.[10] Dong was offered a contract with Top Rank, who wanted to focus on expanding his reputation in Asia, but chose to sign with Golden Boy because they offered to develop him first in America.[11]

Professional boxing record

3 Wins (2 knockouts, 1 decision), 0 Losses, 0 Draws[1]
Res. Record Opponent Type Rd., Time Date Location Notes
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 3–0 Roy McCrary UD4 2015-02-27 Fantasy Springs Casino, Indio, California
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 2–0 Tommy Washington Jr. KO1 (4), 2:35 2014-11-13 Fantasy Springs Casino, Indio, California
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 1–0 United States Alex Rozman TKO2 (4), 1:58 2014-07-18 Longshoremen's Hall, San Francisco, California Professional debut.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Taishan Dong". Boxrec. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Rott, Nathan (26 August 2014). "China's 'Great Wall' Takes A Hit At U.S. Heavyweight Boxing". NPR. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
  3. ↑ Martin, Brian (16 July 2014). "Taishan Dong, a 6-11 Chinese heavyweight, could be boxing’s next big thing". Los Angeles Daily News. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Yue, Chuan (19 November 2014). "2米13中国巨人KO美国壮汉 获封"拳坛姚明"" (in Chinese). China News Service. Retrieved 2 March 2015.
  5. ↑ O'Sulivan, Mike (17 July 2014). "Chinese Heavyweight Boxers Make US Debut". Voice of America. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Lian, Zi (21 July 2014). "The 'Yao Ming' of boxing debuts with KO". China Daily. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
  7. ↑ Furlan, Marcelo (23 February 2015). "Taishan Dong: Perks of being the Great Wall of China". Fox Sports. Retrieved 2 March 2015.
  8. ↑ Zucker, Joseph (27 February 2015). "Taishan Dong vs. Roy McCrary: Winner, Scorecard and Reaction". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 28 February 2015.
  9. ↑ Matuszak, Sascha (3 September 2014). "The Yao Ming of Boxing". VICE. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
  10. ↑ Campbell, Brian (17 February 2015). "The sky is the limit for Taishan". ESPN. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
  11. ↑ Ginn, Leighton (13 November 2014). "At 6-foot-11, boxer Taishan Dong has people looking up". The Desert Sun. Retrieved 2 March 2015.