Boxing fans meet at Madison Square Garden this Saturday 10th Decemberevening in which the French Frédéric Julan (11 wins, 1 defeat) will face the Irish Joe Ward (7-1) in the light heavyweight category. “It’s the most important match of my career. The opportunity to enter the top 50 in the world if I win and become a contender for a belt ” says the 34-year-old Frenchman.
Double amateur champion in New York
Originally from Pontault-Combault in Seine-et-Marne, Frédéric Julan started boxing late at the age of 16. “I started fighting sports earlier to be able to defend myself in my neighborhood. I used to do taekwondo but my parents couldn’t afford it. So I started boxing”remember the Francilien who leaves to train in the nearby town of Émerainville, in the club of Malek Ikhenache. “I had my first fight in 2007, as well as continuing my studies in electronics. »
It was during a boxing camp in New York in 2010, with the French-Cameroonian trainer Simon Bakindéthat Frédéric Julan gains confidence and envisions a professional boxing career on the other side of the Atlantic. “I knew I would struggle in France, unlike the United States where the boxing world is more open,” says the thirty-year-old. “I needed the money, so I started a solar panel company in France which did very well for two years. Then I gave up to move to New York in 2012”.
His pick pays off as Frédéric Julan wins the Golden gloves in New York in 2012 and 2015, the largest amateur competition in the country, before turning pro in 2016. “It’s quite historic, since I’m the first Frenchman to have won it and one of the only ones to have done it twice in a row. »
Covid and match cancellations
In 12 professional matches, Frédéric Julan has amassed 11 wins including 10 by KO In full ascent in 2020, the French boxer has been slowed down by the Covid-19 epidemic. “I couldn’t fight for nearly two years, and was unlucky afterwards, as many of my opponents had to give up last minute, sometimes even on the day of the fight,” explains what hasn’t boxed since December 2021.
Frédéric Julan, known under the pseudonym of “The French Revolution”, will finally return to the ring on Saturday, during an exceptional event organized in the legendary hall of Madison Square Garden in New York (tickets for sale here). “There will be several fights throughout the evening. Mine will take place in 6 shifts”, comments the Frenchman who finally has the chance to enter the top 50 of the best boxers in the world if he wins.
He won’t have it easy against Irishman Joe Ward, 29, Olympic athlete and former amateur world champion. ” I know him well having been his sparring partner in training. He’s a boxer, which is fast. I’m not going to have to let him find the rhythm of him.” summarizes Frédéric Julan, who explains that he is in the shape of his life. “I ended up doing very few fights in my career and I take great care of myself. I have set myself the goal of winning a world title by 2026”.
