Published on October 5th, 2022 | by Darren Paltrowitz
0UFC Fighter Justin Gaethje On Rebuilding Denver’s Topeira Boxing Club With Modelo, Music, Training, Career Goals & More
Earlier this year, Joaquin Romero — the owner of Topeira Boxing Club — died tragically in a hit-and-run accident, leaving the gym to his father Oscar. Modelo and UFC recently announced that they were helping Oscar honor his son by providing the gym with new boxing rings, punching bags, windows, security doors, electrical outlets, additional mirrors, coat of paint, lockers and storage shelves. UFC star Justin Gaethje, a long-time Denver local, was on-site for this inspiring gym revitalization project.
Topeira Boxing Club revitalization aside, Justin Gaethje is a former UFC Lightweight Champion, and is currently ranked #3 within UFC’s Lightweight division. Prior to finding success within UFC, Gaethje was a two-time Arizona state champion as an amateur wrestler on the high school level and an NCAA Division I All-American within the same sport. He turned pro within the MMA world in 2011, quickly winning gold within the World Series Of Fighting organization. The man known as “The Highlight” was last seen in a UFC octagon in May as part of UFC 274 with a return to fighting expected very soon.
On September 27, 2022, I had the pleasure of speaking with Justin Gaethje via Zoom, as embedded below. Beyond his work with Modelo and the Topeira Boxing Club, Gaethje opened up about music, hobbies outside MMA, career goals, positivity and why he calls Denver home. More on Gaethje and his various endeavors — including this Modelo-sponsored project — can be found here, here and here.
Today, I interviewed friends of Joaquin Romero, the 35-year-old boxing coach who was killed in a hit-and-run Sunday. They spoke about his legacy as a community leader, an inspirational coach and an amazing friend. I'm so grateful to them for sharing https://t.co/XADHpQwMyj
— Tayler Shaw (@taylerleighs) February 10, 2022