There are over half a million Polish immigrants living in New Jersey, most of them residing somewhere in the northern half of the state.
When Tomasz “Goral” Adamek (41-1, 27 KO), North Jersey’s adopted son, prizefights at Newark’s Prudential Center, thousands of them flock to Mulberry St. to cheer on their fellow Pole, each fight attracting more fans than the last.
In February, Adamek’s last fight at “The Rock”, 10,017 fans were present — virtually all of them there to see “Goral”. Adamek’s North Jersey fans are some of the loudest fistic fans on the continent. They come to Newark decked out in red and white with “POLSKA” scarves draped across their shoulders. They bring the red and white flag of Poland, waving the White Eagle high in the air. They sing Adamek’s entrance song, “Pamietaj” by Funky Polak, and they chant in their native language throughout his bouts.
But perhaps more impressive than the frenzied fans that flock to the Prudential Center every time their horse is in the race is Adamek’s one-two punch of his management team — Main Events (Adamek’s promoter) and Ziggy Rozalski (Adamek’s manager).
After a stint with Don King that guided Adamek to a WBC light heavyweight title, but left him without a true home-base, Rozalski and Kathy Duva, CEO of Main Events, struck a deal that resulted in Adamek fighting under the Main Events banner.
In an attempt to appeal to the millions of Poles in the Windy City — a market that was exploited by fellow Pole Andrew Golota some fifteen years earlier — Adamek was first brought to Chicago to see if it would become his home away from home. However, after just one fight with Main Events in Illinois’ largest city, Main Events decided it best to bring their most prized fighter home. Not to “Goral’s” home of Gilowice, Poland, but to Main Events’ home in North Jersey. Main Events, based in Totowa, New Jersey — only twenty minutes or so from downtown Newark — is surrounded by vibrant Polish communities, where handmade pierogis are consumed by the ton and Zywiec flows freely from the taps.
To quote the now much-despised Lebron James, after fighting most of his career in Europe and after a brief stint of fighting in Chicago, Main Events, Rozalksi, and Adamek decided “to take Adamek’s talents to North Jersey.”
And so it is in Newark, New Jersey that Adamek claims home-ring advantage against his opposition.
Main Events and Rozalski’s more-than-impressive management of Adamek does not end at their ability to turn out over 10,000 Polish fans at “The Rock”, however. Their navigation of Adamek through his foray into the heavyweight division has been just as stellar.
After cleaning out the Cruiserweight division, claiming the IBF Cruiserweight title, as well as the Ring Magazine belt, Adamek turned his attention the heavyweight division in late 2009.
Adamek has stated his goal is a simple one: become heavyweight champion of the world. His first three fights at his new division have all served as mini tests for Adamek and so far he has passed with flying colors.
In October, “Goral” first dipped his toes into the heavyweight waters by taking on veteran boxer and fellow Polish hero, Andrew Golota.
In a fight that had more Poles tune in to watch than when Pope John Paul II returned back to his homeland, Adamek made quick work of his aged counterpart. Through five rounds, Adamek twice made Golota one with the canvas — once in the bout’s opening round and again in round 5. The fight was stopped shortly after Golota climbed back to his feet only to be greeted by more vicious blows courtesy of “Goral”.
From there, Main Events brought Adamek back to his adopted home in Newark and put him to the test against former U.S. Olympian, Jason Estrada (16-3, 4 KO). While Main Events and Rozalski knew the feather-fisted Estrada wouldn’t be a threat to knock out Adamek, this fight served as a test to see if Adamek can deal with a quick-fisted heavyweight. Although Estrada is a big man with a big frame, he possess uncharacteristically fast hands for a man his size.
Adamek was able to carry his new weight well and avoid most of what Estrada threw at him, ultimately defeating the Rhode Island native by Unanimous Decision.
After the Estrada fight, Adamek and his team agreed to fly out to Ontario, California to take on Chris “The Nightmare” Arreola (28-2, 25 KO) in Arreola’s backyard in a bout that was televised on HBO’s “Boxing After Dark.”
The fight, which took place on April 26, was a test of chin for Adamek, as Arreola is known not for his boxing skill, but his punching power.
Going into the Arreola fight, many experts questioned whether or not Adamek had the discipline to not stay in the pocket and bang punch for punch with Arreola — a risk that would likely not pay off. Conversely, the same experts that questioned Adamek’s discipline in the ring, questioned Arreola’s discipline outside of the ring with regards to his weight.
Arreola once again came into the fight out of shape, while Adamek, fighting at his heaviest weight, was able to carry it well — proving to be elusive for his Mexican-American counterpart.
When the final bell rang after thirty-six hard-fought minutes in “The Ring of Fire,” Adamek earned a Majority Decision victory. For the first time in his career — the fan-friendly Adamek put on a clinic in defense and rolling. And with that, along with fiery combinations that left Arreola’s face looking like “Shrek,” Adamek had passed his third test.
Now, “Goral”, along with his loyal fans, await their next opponent, “Big” Michael Grant, in a bout that will take place on August 21 at the fore-mentioned Prudential Center. This will be Adamek’s “tallest” order yet, as Grant stands at 6’7”, a clear set up to see if Adamek can find ways to defeat a much taller opponent.
Grant, who hasn’t lost since 2003, but has only fought since 2008 — is a shell of a Klitschko. He has the height, but not the skill nor the hardware that either Ukrainian possesses. Regardless, this will not be an easy fourth test for Adamek, as he continues to fight purposeful bouts all in an attempt to claim a world heavyweight title.
With a win over Grant, Adamek will have passed one more test and cleared one more hurdle on his quest to become a world heavyweight champion.
Main Events and Rozalski should both be applauded for the way they have handled Adamek since coming to the Totowa-based promotions company in 2008. Together they have built one of the best fan bases in all of North America and they have pitted their fighter against meaningful opponents time and time again — all well-calculated maneuvers in an attempt give Adamek the best shot at winning a title..
If, or as many believe — when, Adamek does fight for a heavyweight title, Main Events and Rozalski have made sure that “Goral” will be fully equipped and prepared to bring heavyweight hardware to New Jersey. For that, they should be applauded.
