🔉 Listen to Audio Excerpt:
Today on Wicked Business Boston, I’m sitting down with Rico DePaolis to get the real story behind his unconventional journey as a professional boxer. In 2021, at the age of 30 years old, when most fighters are eyeing retirement, he was just lacing up his gloves for the first time. This Watertown native traded the basketball court for the boxing ring, bringing his competitive spirit from college hoops to the world of professional boxing. Now, he’s in the super middleweight division, proving it’s never too late to chase a dream. Since 2021, he’s built a record of 4 wins (3 by knockout) and 3 losses.
Rico’s here to give me the truth about life as a late-blooming fighter in one of the toughest sports on the planet.
“So, I got three kids, so they get me up nice and early. I try to wake up before them and do a little bit of a workout or some sort of stretching routine before them. And then I spend my day on my full-time job. I do have a little bit of freedom within my full-time job to train during the day.”
Yeah, it’s a really good question. So, I was a college basketball player, as you mentioned, and following my college basketball career, I had a tough time exercising and working out. It was something I couldn’t do on my own. I fell into boxing by happenstance, stars aligned with my current coaches. I was an amateur for a number of years, really just worked out and stayed busy. And then because of Covid, there were no amateur fights, so the only fight that I could take, and I wanted to stay busy because I knew I wanted to have a family was such a professional. So, as you mentioned, I turned pro at 30 years old, pretty unconventional, tried to stay as busy as possible. And then I’ve had three kids in the last three and a half years. So, I’ve had bouts where I’ve fought three times in three months, and then I’ve taken a year off. But yeah, that’s kind of my story. Definitely unconventional. I definitely would say I wish I had found boxing a lot sooner in life.
So, as a 30-year-old, can you describe a typical training day for you? How do you balance? You also work full time, so how do you balance work conditioning and recovery?
Yeah, it’s challenging, right? So, I got three kids, so they get me up nice and early. I try to wake up before them and do a little bit of a workout or some sort of stretching routine before them. And then I spend my day on my full-time job. I do have a little bit of freedom within my full-time job to train during the day. So, I’ll do a couple miles on the treadmill, but the bulk of my training happens at night, post dinner with the family where I do a lot of my bag work, my sparring, my partner work, and that’s at Nolan Brothers boxing in Waltham, Mass. And that’s in a fight camp that’s six, seven days a week, twice a day, pretty consistently working.
What time is that usually?
My night classes, typically 6:00 to 7:15 or 7:15 to 8:15. So yeah, it occupies the majority of the nighttime and bedtime and bath time with me and the kids.
Wow. What’s the most grueling workout you’ve ever done? How did it shape your mindset with boxing?
Yeah, this is a good question and it’s somewhat of an easy one. It was my first ever boxing class. So, I came into a gym, and I was 10% body fat, ex-college athlete, invincible, or at least I thought I was. Twelve minutes into the class, I was huddled over the barrel throwing up, and I knew at that moment that I was going to get challenged by this sport. And then from that point forward, I recognized that you can’t just walk in. This is a humbling sport. It doesn’t matter what age, color, gender, you get your butt whooped by pretty much anybody. And that’s where I truly fell in love with the grueling nature of the grind and the commitment.
Do you remember the first time you took a really hard punch and how did that feel?
So, I broke my nose at my first ever smoker, a smoker is a basically glorified spar. You meet up with other gyms. I was the last fight of the night. I was all excited. Again, an ex-college athlete, and this little kid, half my size, same weight, pushed my nose into the back of my head, and I remember showing up to the gym the next day and telling my coaches, I love this. This is the best thing ever. But yeah, it happens pretty frequently, unfortunately.
Did you…This is a random question, but did you grow up fighting? Was that in your DNA?
Yeah, interestingly enough, quite the opposite. Terrified to fight, terrified of confrontation. I was often on the victim side of bullying, so there’s a little bit of that I think that pushes me consistently. But yeah, it was never one to, I mean, you have your kid’s playground scraps over a baseball game or something, basketball game, but never one to seek it out. Wasn’t consistently in fights or in trouble.
Is that typical for boxers? Do you know, talk to other boxers and did they grow up fighting? Is that sort of the norm?
Yeah, I think that’s the beauty of boxing because it comes from different places. I mean, the most decorated fighter in our gym is a PhD. She’s a brilliant, brilliant person, and she’s savage when she puts her headgear and her gloves on. And then there’s some folks that had to fight their way through life growing up that didn’t come from a whole lot. So, the range in a boxing gym is exceptional.
How do you mentally prepare for fights going into a big one, especially when entering the ring against a more experienced opponent?
Yeah, you’d be lying if you said you don’t get nervous and get butterflies and I do, and I’d do right now for a fight in two weeks. My biggest mental preparation is the support of my wife, to be honest. She challenges me and pushes me. Then the day of a fight, a piece of advice that I give to everybody that I always take is don’t let the first time you see the venue be on your way to the ring because it can be overwhelming. So, I just like to sit in the atmosphere. I’m like the seventh fight of the night for this card. Just sit in the atmosphere and don’t let it bother me when all of a sudden everybody’s chanting my name or my opponent’s name. But I think my experience as a college basketball player, a college basketball coach for a little bit got me used to some of the bigger, brighter lights.
As someone who started boxing later in life, do you think about long-term risks of brain injuries like CTE and how do you mitigate those risks?
Yeah, a hundred percent. Again, you’d be lying if you don’t think of that. People die in the ring consistently too consistently. I don’t have a lot of time left, and I’ve done a pretty good job of not taking enough, too much of a beating. The best way to mitigate it is to not do it, but there’s inherent risk with everything you and I were talking about, the side effects of triathlons and things like that. So yeah, I know it’s there and I won’t stick around long enough hopefully for it to affect me. And that’s sometimes a challenge.
Regarding your training, what’s the most important lesson you think you’ve learned from listening to your body, especially as you get older or after an injury?
Yeah, it is that just listening to my body and knowing that just because I missed my night session on a Wednesday doesn’t mean I’m going to lose my fight if I need to be in the cold bath, the cold tub or do some stretching or just relax. That’s really, really important. I’ll say this, when I was fighting consistently, I felt worse than right now where I haven’t fought in a year because I feel like my body’s a little refreshed given that time off, and that’s really, really important.
As a boxer, what does your daily diet look like during fight camp versus the off season and what are, what are the guilty pleasures once the fight’s over?
Yeah, I am unfortunately one of the folks that is a feast or famine type fighter. So, when I am training, it’s a famine. I don’t eat a ton. I walk around at like 195. I fight anywhere between 160 and 175, so I’m at least 20 pounds lighter than my walk around weight, which means I miss a lot of meals. I eat a lot of light meals, and I count my calories pretty consistently when I’m training. Now, on the opposite side of that, when I’m not training, I come from an Italian home, we eat a lot, calories aren’t really a thing, and I have a huge, sweet tooth. So, my post-fight is usually something very sweet, like a family-sized bag of peanut M&M’s or a piece of cake is like.
What is your typical diet? I mean, are you eating a lot of salads? What is it?
Yeah, it’s a good question. A lot of protein, no dairy, very limited carbs, especially white carbs, unlimited vegetables, unlimited fruit, even though fruits are high in sugar. And then as you get close to fight week, you pull some of the salt out of your diet, salt retains water. If you’re too watery, then you’re going to be heavier, so you want to drain that stuff out when you’re getting it to weight.
Weight management is critical in boxing. How do you ensure you stay within your super middle weight class without compromising strength or stamina? Kind of follows up to diet.
Yeah, that’s a good question. And I know I’m very self-aware and I know I’m not the strongest guy. I’m not a super puncher, so I don’t have a lot of innate strength to begin with. How do I stay on weight? I weigh myself six times a day, I have to. And towards the end, I could tell you what my weight is to the decimal right now, and it’s really just monitoring things and making sure that my calories are on point for the day.
Who are some of… Switching gears? Who are some of your boxing idols and what specific qualities or moments in their careers inspire you?
Yeah, this is strange because I’m not a super boxing fan. I don’t know every guy that’s ever fought in all their matchups. I’m going to give you somewhat of a Cornyish “ish” answer here. My two boxing idols are my two coaches, and I’ll tell you why. Matt Nolan of Nolan Brothers Boxing and Mark Nolan, twin brothers. Matt and I fight identically. We’re long, we’re savvy. We throw long strong punches. Mark is a savage and he’ll tell you himself that he wasn’t blessed with a physique, but he outworks everybody. And I’ve kind of combined those two philosophies. I fight more like Matt, but I think I have the tenacity and the willpower that Mark had to just be more fit than my opponent at all times and just outlast people. And if you’re going to beat me, you have to beat me. You have to earn it. It’s not going to be a walk in the park. And I’ve been with those guys ever since. They’ve been the only guys ever cornered me. So yeah, I look up some tremendously.
Starting at 30 is unconventional. What challenges have you faced competing against fighters who’ve been training since childhood?
Yeah, it’s a young man’s sport, right? I moved, I sparred with a guy the other day who’s 25 years old and has 30 pro fights. He’s going to be a world champion one day. It is a different breed. I spent some time as an athlete, and I spent some time as a college basketball coach. I have a brain for coaching, and I guess more solving problems, problem solving. So, I spend a lot of time in the ring trying to solve a problem rather than trying to be more athletic, stronger, better puncher, cuz I’m not those things in a lot of moments. So really just solving problems and kind of playing chess in there.
What’s one misconception people have about professional boxing that you wish they understood better?
Yeah, I think the misconception at the level that I’m at is that we make money and it’s a grind. I have to sell the tickets to make my money. I have to sell t-shirts to make my money. It’s not a glorious thing when you get up to the high high levels it is. But the biggest misconception holistically about boxing and combat sports is that it’s violent and it is. But it is humbling, and it is built with the foundation of respect. You’ve never seen two guys not hug each other, two women not hug each other after a fight after sparring. That’s the best part about the sport, and it’s a huge misconception is that you’re going to learn how to fight and you’re going to go sucker punch a bunch people in the street. It’s not the case. You become better off for it.
You mentioned you have three children. Do they watch you fight and is this a sport that you’d like them to do as well?
Yeah, my kids are obsessed with what they call beam beams, which is boxing. They love it. They do watch me. My wife’s rule is that all of our children will watch us in person, watch me fight in person one day. So, if we have another kid, I guess I got to extend my career. Will they fight one day? They will all know how to defend themselves. And in good way to do that is through the sport that I know. Whether they compete or not is their choice just like any other sport. But they will know how to defend themselves and they will grow up in a boxing community because of the things I mentioned before. It’s ethnically diverse. It’s socioeconomically diverse, and not everybody looks like each other. And you can be the toughest kid on planet earth and get your ass whooped by a little kid or by an older woman or whatever. And that’s really humbling, and it keeps you honest, which I really want for them.
You mentioned you grew up playing basketball. How do you think your background from another sport influenced your approach with boxing, whether it’s footwork, discipline, strategy, etcetera?
Yeah, I think the best thing you learn about in sports is you can do everything right and still lose, right? And you see that happen all the time where everybody makes big plays and the other guy or the other team or the other player or whatever is just better. And it’s a good thing to know that you can do everything right and still lose. So, your commitment has to be top notch. And then from a physical perspective, yeah, footwork, stamina and attention to detail, things like that carry over pretty quickly.
Boxing requires immense focus, I would imagine. How do you unwind or mentally recharge outside of training and fighting?
Yeah, I do have a challenging time inside of a fight camp, preparing for a fight to stay to unwind that I stay kind of tunnel vision and my wife, and my children take the hit as a result of that. But after and when I am really focused on it, I like to spend time with them. I like to wrestle around on the couch and read books with them and just be not a boxer for a little bit. So, I try to pour as much of my attention back into them that I missed.
When your competitive career ends, do you envision yourself staying involved in boxing as say a coach or a mentor?
Yeah, I think I take a little bit of that role in the gym already. I’ve been with them since the gym opens, since inception with the Nolan Brothers, and I anticipate being with them going forward. I think naturally if my kids get into it, I’ll take a coaching role on just by happenstance being right there. But I will never coach my kids. They should be coached by somebody else and take instruction from another adult. But yeah, I love to coach. I probably like it more than I like to fight. I’ve worked a few corners for some of our guys in the past. It’s been really exciting.
And so again, where is it that you train?
Yeah, Nolan Brothers Boxing and Fitness in Waltham, Massachusetts.
And about how many weeks do you think you’re there? Roughly.
How many weeks are out?
Sorry, Sorry. How many hours per week?
Yeah, so I’m there probably five a week, 5, 6, 6 a week, depending on the week. Yeah, four to six days a week and probably once two hours a day.
You mentioned you have a big flight coming up. Can you talk a little bit about that?
Yeah, so I’m fighting a gentleman from California. His name is Alejandro Fugon. He has the same amount of wins as me, more experienced than I do. He can crack, he hits really hard. We have one common opponent, he’s knocked him out and I lost to him, so I lost the common opponent. So, it should be a really exciting fight on an incredible fight card with a lot of good local talent right at The Royale in Boston. Formerly the Roxy. Tickets are still available, the whole thing. But my fight with him I know will be two guys standing in the middle and battling and I’m really excited about that. That’s what I want.
When’s that?
February 8th, 5:00 PM
Gotcha. Finally, anyone you’d like to give a shout out to that helped you get to this point?
Yeah, so first and foremost, obviously my family, my wife, Marissa, my three sons, Giovanni, Leone, and Santino, they sacrificed a tremendous amount for me to be able to do anything. My parents who are super supportive, although my mom doesn’t really like to watch it, neither does my dad. My coaches, Matt and Mark Nolan and I have a slew of sponsors that have been really supportive throughout: Diner at 11 North Beacon in Watertown. Pace Builders in Needham. Fitzgerald Staging, Winter Property Group, “Not Finna,” Brian Daly shout out. He set this whole thing up as well. Corey Hood Electric, the list goes on and on. My print guy is awesome. But yeah, there’s a lot of people that go into allowing one person to get their hand raised and stand in the middle of the ring and you’d be lying if you thought it was just that person in the ring. So, it takes a lot of people.
Well, awesome. Thanks so much for coming in. I appreciate it. And I hate to say good luck because I personally don’t believe in luck. It’s all about what you make of, you know, you’re confident enough that you don’t need luck. But I’ll say it anyway, good luck. Good luck with the flight coming up, and thanks so much for coming in. I really appreciate it.
You for having me. I appreciate you as well.
To follow Rico on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ricodepaolis_boxing/
To purchase tickets for Rico’s fight on February 8th at the Super Saturday event being held at The Royale Boston click HERE.
