Pawel Wolak Will Work Construction Until The Title Shot Comes

Written by Michael Woods

Thursday, 05 May 2011 20:43

Wolak_Moore_100605_001a Wolak is a volume guy, with an above average chin. He's a rough diamond in the Top Rank stable. (Chris Farina)

The mere fact that boxing entails you keep the other guy from knocking your head off your neck makes it the hardest sport to master. But there are other things that separate boxing from lesser athletic endeavors. Take for instance the fact that in boxing, eight times out of ten, even a highly regarded professional with title-shot capability needs to work a 9 to 5 job, to make ends meet, until the proverbial ship comes in.

New Jersey's Pawel Wolak has worked a construction job full-time for the last two years. At the end of the day, when guys like him are looking forward to kicking their boots off, and cracking a cold one while kicking back in the easy chair, the 29-year-old Wolak pauses only to strip put of his overalls, and put on his workout gear. After a day spent doing brickwork, doing scaffolds, real heavy duty construction work, Wolak switches gear into pugilist mode. And if he does sigh, and if he is sometimes tempted to blow off his "second job," he only has to think about his wife, and his two year old son, and he snaps back into focus. Because junior middleweight Wolak wants a title crack, at a Cornelius Bundrage, or a Miguel Cotto, but he needs to pay the bills for shelter and sustenance until that bigtime opportunity arrives.

"I want to build on my popularity, I want to be seen, I want fans," he told me in a phoner during some free time which was made available because it was raining, and the gang at Adams European Construction had the day off.

Wolak won some new fans with a solid showing against Yuri Foreman on March 12; his constant pressure forced Foreman's corner to advise their fight to stay on his stool after six rounds. He wants to add to his fan club with another scrap, possibly against 25-5 Delvin Rodriguez, day and site TBD, with July 15 looking like a likely date. "I think that's a good fight," he said. "I don't want to take step back. On paper, I should win. He's had a few losses, and me coming off a win. I've been winning lately." Indeed; Wolak has won eight in a row since he lost to Ishe Smith (UD10) in August 2008. If those two were to meet today, to be frank, I'd like Wolak, because it feels like he's made a leap, put things together. He agrees.

The fighter said he picked up boxing late, after wrestling in high school. He started training at 19, and after a solid apprenticeship, he feels in his bones that his time is now. He told me that he's been catching everyone he's sparred with for awhile now. He's more so mastered walking people down, closing the distance, using his stamina to solid effect. "That's just the way I fight," he said. "I could try and be more refined, but that's my temperment. I'm just going to fight every second of every round. I'm 29 now. I've become a man. I know how to train now. I've always been tough, now it's coming together. Mentally and physically I'm good."--

Comment on this article

the Roast says:

I dont wear a hat, because I have excellent hair, but if I did I would take it off to Wolak. Big respect for working a real job and then training for world class boxing. That aint easy. He must sleep like a dead man. Chavez Jr should be forced to work a day like Wolak. I'll be rooting for ya Pawel.

Radam G says:

You just confused me, the Roast. If you have excellent hair, you don't suppose to wear a hat, or some jive like that? Seventy percent of us Pinoys are hat-wearing muthacovers of our bushes. I guess we do it because it is a cultural statement of cool and grace. But then again, the sun burns like a muthaoven in the Pilipinas. I know that you are around about the "Windy City" way? Maybe it is a Chicago thing. The wind keep the noggin cool and will blow that brime off your head like a muthastorm. But we Pinoys are like cowboys in those old Western movie. Those suckas would be fighting, falling and dying, and those brimes never came off. In our islands, we be having some mad typhoons, but our brimes stay on our bushes.

I guess that the one thing that Uncle Roger May have not sh**talked about yet, is that we Pinoys don't only make "bullets bounce off" our arses, our aura stop the wind from blowing off our brimes. Man, you got to get you some of dat "A-side Meth." Hehehehehehe! Dat is some real superman jive. Whenever I fine it, I'll sell you a bit. Holla!

the Roast says:

Whoa! Switchup! I get to school Radam! I'm gonna school ya but I wont try ta fool ya! OK, it goes like this, if you have excellent hair you DO NOT cover it up with a hat. The hair needs to inhale the air,the hair needs the sun to grow. Think of grass growing. If you put a plate or garbage can lid or something like that on your lawn, what happens? The grass turns yellow and dies. When you see a bald guy wearing a hat, you have to wonder, which came first, the baldness or the hat? The chicken or the egg? No offence to the bald dudes out there, some guys can pull off the bald look. The Roast cannot. Will not. You guys should have seen 80's Roast rock the mullet. Good times.

Radam G says:

The Roast, please don't school me, just fool me. Hair and skin are more dead than door nails. It is the live folics under the skins that causes hair to grow. Baldness comes because of aged and/or damaged and/or fading hair folics. And as far as grass growing, its growth is from under the ground not. Turn a trash can upside down, and wild grass will grow under it all the way to the top. Hair and grass don't need to breathe, or need a lot of sun. Nutritions and circulation are what they need. You oughta holla at some turban-wearing Shikhs' hair. The hard-core ones wear that turban 24/7/365, and they have life-long-grown bushes up to five and six meters on their noggins.

WTF! This pugilistic universe never fails to surprise me. Hehehehe! Talking about sweet science, I guess we get on all types of subjects. What will it be next? Why some people get wrinkles? Now it takes a lot of sun to grow wrinkles on your arse. I know some nudists in Cali who are wrinkled like a mutha. Holla!

the Roast says:

Agian we must disagree RG. MY hair is alive and electrifying! I have no knowledge of turban wearing but bald guys wear hats. Its science. Grass does not grow under trash cans. Everyone go outside and experiment. Kill that grass!

sealflow says:

Couple years back Pawel was getting some good momentum with working up a solid fanbase , especially Polish Fans. That got kinda got taken away when a Cruiserweight started headlining in Newark's Prucenter and the fans jumped ship. Pawel I think you have some good opourtunities comming after the Sept big fight in Poland. There will be alot of Polish fans looking for a new Fanwagon. Pawel needs to focus on that fanbase. promoting and working on his Polish speeking skills. Get out infront of Polonia . During his fights, he needs to have the Promoting company mention his Birthplace. That is a very powerfull thing among Polish People . Pawel also needs to start Talking with Polish media in Poland. Poland does not have 2 TV channels anymore. after brushing up on his Language , he needs to get on all these Polish Talk shows in Poland, Yes Poland has talk shows , and they would all love to have him on . Poland this Sept will have there 1st PPV Boxing event ever. Who know where this will go , but it might be big, and what better if Wolak would be the 2nd PPV boxing event IN POLAND.
SealFlow,
Rockaway, NJ

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