When Justin Viloria was 19 years old, he had his sixth professional boxing match in Las Vegas. That day, he went up against Angel Contreras, a pro fighter from Mexico with 25 matches under his belt. Viloria’s supporters were shocked he was taking on this bout. Despite it being a huge challenge, he was not scared. He’d been preparing for this for years and went the distance. Five rounds later, Viloria beat Contreras after three body shot knockdowns.
Viloria, now promoted by Zuffa Boxing, went from a “nobody” to a boxing sensation at 18. He won his first national title at seventeen as an amateur. The following victory against Sidarious Smith in a match that lasted 1 minute, and 12 seconds was a significant shift. Since the skilled first-round knockout with a body shot, he’s become a member of Team USA and remains undefeated with a record of 12-0. He was recently featured in the Ring Magazine during the Canelo fight week in Vegas this year, having won against Joshuafat Ortiz. He is currently in training camp to prepare for his next unannounced match. His path to success all started at a boxing gym in Whittier, California.
Viloria describes his call to the ring as a pro-boxer as something inevitable. With his father being a professional fighter, he was born into the world of combat sports. Since the age of 5, he has been training in both boxing and wrestling. “Since I was a kid pretty much, I was like this is going to be my job, my profession,” he says. “Whenever someone asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I’d be like, ‘Oh, I want to be a world champion, a pro-boxer.’ It’s something I kind of grew up believing in.”
Viloria owes much of his confidence and encouragement to his parents. Raised in Southern California, his father started boxing at 12 and ended his professional career at 38. Aside from running a business building pools for over 20 years, he has invested and sacrificed not only time, but financial, social, and emotional aspects of his life to both training and guiding Justin. As for Viloria’s mother, she has been a constant support in his father’s work. His brother has stepped back from boxing due to his lung health and has now stepped in to help train him. His family plays a pivotal role in keeping him accountable, motivated, and pushing forward. “I think it’s really hard to do this by yourself. So, it’s really important having the right team around you.” He acknowledges.
His father has trained him in a pro style since he was a little kid, and he has sparred with world champions since he was sixteen. These advantages put him ahead of other amateur opponents. “I do really enjoy this, and I think that itself kind of just puts me in a position to where I get to have more effort through my training, my fighting; that there’s a real love for boxing and willing to become great in this sport.”
Viloria’s determination and motivation to push hard also stems from his Christian faith. “Boxing gave me a purpose, but God gave me a love for boxing for His purpose.” He explains that even in his moments of exhaustion, his faith gives him strength to train, run, and spar when it’s the last thing he wants to do. His confidence comes from his victory in Christ. He acknowledges God for every accomplishment and win, as a product of His work done through him. “I don’t think anyone could do this alone but knowing that the same power that rose Christ is the same power that lives within me. There’s a purpose greater than my own. It’s become super, super evident that this is a platform that God’s given me to really just exalt him. I have my own personal goals with box boxing as well, but that main reason was really just to glorify God.”
Boxing offers the skilled southpaw provision throughout his future for himself and his family. “Also outside of the ring, just being able to build a foundation where I can take care of my family and just being smart with everything I gain from boxing, so I’m able to take care of those around me.” It has taught him life lessons regarding discipline and internal confidence. “I think boxing takes plenty of dexterity and focus,” he states, “without it there is no way to get better or grow.”
Turki Al-Sheikh, the chairman of the General Entertainment Authority of the Saudi government, who recently purchased the Ring Magazine from Oscar De La Hoya mentioned Justin Viloria in a tweet highlighting “young, hungry fighters” that he wanted to load the undercard with and believed deserve the chance to perform under the bright lights.
Justin admits that the road to becoming a world champion consists of a repetitive and mundane routine as preparation. It’s not everyone’s ideal lifestyle to wake up to be punched. He wakes up, goes to the gym, trains, eats right, sleeps, twice a day for two sessions. This occurs Monday through Saturday for a total of 12 training sessions a week, with Sunday being a day of rest and recovering. There is constant physical and mental wear and tear due to the strict routine. Weeks long training camps for one fight requires sacrifices. “I understand that that’s something I have to do for pretty much however long my career lasts. And it’s just having the discipline to stay within that kind of routine.” He admits. It can be mentally draining to repeat the same day, having to give up a social life or important events with loved ones. He faces the struggle of not being able to be everywhere that he is wanted. Getting in shape requires meeting weight goals and taking care of his body to be in peak shape, but the lifestyle isn’t sustainable.
“I feel the most relaxed when training camp is done.” Viloria isn’t familiar with fear before stepping into the ring but rather becomes eager. “There’s nothing more I could do in this moment to prepare me for the fight. So right now, it’s just the time to have fun, you know, and to do what I love to do, and that’s to box, to fight.”
There are many satisfying parts to it all, but nothing compares to the sacrifices paying off with the one big rewarding moment of a knockout and win. Viloria’s favorite part is the end of the fight. The night becomes a blur, and he retreats to his hotel room to relax and watch the match. It’s the one moment he can rest knowing his hard work was worth the victory. “There’s a lot of pressure going into or going through your whole training camp,” he says. “And when finally, you kind of finish the fight in a way that is really impressive, that weight kind of just gets lifted off.” He aspires to obtain as many championship belts either in the same super featherweight division or leveling up in others. 4x world champion and uncle, Brian Viloria, remains one of Justin’s main inspirational boxers. “He was someone in my family who was doing what I dreamt about doing so it made my dream so much more achievable and realistic.”
Although Viloria is young and in the early stages of his career, he acknowledges that he would eventually have to put the gloves down in order to stay healthy and avoid irreversible damage. “My uncle always told me to retire from boxing before it retires you,” he states after suggesting that he would not fight over 35 years of age.
He has the skills, strength, discipline, and support system needed to endure the long fight. His love for the sport is exemplified in and outside the ring. He states, “I don’t want to be a could have been, I want to accomplish all the things that people would give respect for in the world of boxing.”
Taken from the Winter 2025 print issue of Inside Fullerton. Read it here.
