About 10 years ago, brothers Anthony and Andre Dirrell told their grandfather they didn't want to box anymore. Leon Lawson, who felt the ring was his grandchildren's salvation from the streets of Flint, Mich., had other plans in mind.
"You're going to box, so get that in your heads right now," Lawson told them.
It stands as the one fight Anthony and Andre are happy to have lost. The Dirrells kept boxing with Lawson as their trainer and the promising 168-pounders continue to ascend through the boxing ranks.
Last night, in their return to Michaels Eighth Avenue in Glen Burnie -- where each made their professional debut in January -- both Anthony and Andre Dirrell knocked out their opponents during a Ballroom Boxing card.
Twenty-year-old Anthony knocked down Larry Brothers (5-14-2) of Lanham early in the first round before Brothers's corner threw in the towel at 1 minute 14 seconds of the second round. Andre, 21, knocked out Philadelphia's Jake Rodriguez with a devastating left hand at 1:12 of the second. Each improved his record to 3-0 with three knockouts.
It marked another step in an ambitious plan for the brothers, who are slated to fight twice on ESPN in April. They hope to get anywhere between 10 and 12 fights behind them over the next year or so before challenging for a belt.
"We're going to be world champions," Anthony Dirrell said. "We're going to keep fighting, keep our head in the boxing game and we'll be there."
Like heavyweight brothers Wladimir and Vitali Klitschko, the Dirrells have the potential to be a four-handed marketing machine. Given their striking resemblance in both appearance and style, they have often been mistaken for twins. Raised to fight even-handed, they are a rarity in boxing circles, as their seamless transition between southpaw and orthodox styles has left a row of staggered opponents in their wake.
"You don't see a lot of brothers on the same card, and people love to see that," said Andre Dirrell, who won a bronze medal at the Athens Olympics. "When we fight, we want people to start talking and saying, 'Did you see those brothers? Those brothers were cold.' "
Also on last night's card: Washington 147-pounder Reggie Holly (5-0) won a unanimous decision over Terrance Watson (0-3); Temple Hills 175-pounder Jarrell Mason Jackson (1-1) scored a unanimous decision over Washington's Carlos Jones (3-6).
In the night's featured bout, Capitol Heights 168-pounder Henry "Sugar Poo" Buchanan improved to 9-0 with a TKO of Haiti's Julio Jean (5-5-1) at 1:55 of the 6th round.
-- Andrew Levine
