Jungle Boy Sets His Standards High
By Mike LeToureau

 

Zach "Jungle Boy" Walters may not yet be a household name among fight fans, but both he and trainer
Chuck "Sharky" Horton plan to change that. Zach is quickly establishing himself as one of the top
professional prospects in the state, with a pro record of 8-1 with 7 KO's. MinnesotaBoxing.com
checked in with Jungle Boy and Sharky at Horton's Gym in Duluth to see him train and find
out about his future plans.

Zach was scheduled to take on undefeated prospect Shaun George (9-0-1) out of Brooklyn, NY on July 24 at Harrah's Casino in Laughlin, NV for the vacant NABC Intercontinental Light Heavyweight title. George is trained by the legendary Lou Duva. The fight has been postponed, and Walters and Horton are currently waiting to hear word on the new date. "It's a 10 round title for prospects," said Horton. "Lou has a good fighter in Shaun George and I have a good fighter in Zach Walters. We want to see who the best fighter is. Win, lose, or draw, we all want to see a good fight. I just think that our boy is going to come out on top."

In the meantime, Zach will continue to prepare in hopes of the fight date being set soon. "Myself and Zach are going to sit down and pick out a camp," said Horton. "Either we are going to go workout at Freddie Roach's gym, or we are going to go out to do the circuit of L.A. gyms. We're going to spar and fight with the best of them. We should be able to see where Zach stands. We have already worked out in the Pacific Northwest."

As far as things go here in the Midwest, and Minnesota specifically, Horton has some fights he's interested in for Walters and stablemate Darby Smart. "A fight that we are interested in, if they want to take the fight, is Marty Lindquist. We really want him, and we would meet him at a catch weight. I think that's unfinished business here that we want to do. I also would like my featherweight, Darby Smart, to fight Allen Litzau at a catch weight of 123 lbs. There's been a lot of talk. Let's get it on." Horton said he is willing to work with John Hoffman and Bob Van Syckle to promote such a card, and felt that fighters such as Kenny Kost and Jose Leo Moreno would be good additions to the card.

 

 

It appears that at the young age of 23, Walters is ready and willing to take on good competition and
progress his skills. He and Horton were disappointed that they couldn't get a better opponent for his
fight this past May in Hinckley, where he made quick work of an overmatched Wayne Bogard in the
first round. I also learned that Zach had signed a contract to fight undefeated CES fighter Joe Spina (12-0) at the Foxwoods Casino in Conneticut this summer. Spina, you may recall, fought a televised
bout on the undercard of the Manfredo Jr./Bonsante ESPN2 main event this past May. However, an ankle injury prevented Zach from following through on this fight, which would have been a great challenge for him. "We would still like to do that fight in the future," said Walters.

The future looks bright for Zach, and its apparent that he and Sharky are ready for challenging fights sooner rather than later. Zach is willing to travel throughout the US and overseas if necessary in
order to advance his career. "We'd like to advance Zach as quickly as possible. We would like to get Zach a shot at Joe Calzaghe down the road here before he retires," according to Horton. "If we can get him 10 more fights here in a short amount of time, it would be a great opportunity for him."

Minnesota's boxing scene has been buzzing as of late, with good crowds and fighters fighting tele-vised bouts. Look for Zach "Jungle Boy" Walters to quickly make a name for himself among fight fans in Minnesota, and hopefully around the world. I get the feeling that we will be seeing and hearing a lot from him in the upcoming years.

**A special thanks to Zach and Sharky for taking time out of their busy schedule to keep us up to date on everything. Best of luck in the future to both of you.