Jocumsen wins boxing match in Australia

Packed inside the suitcase of Carl Jocumsen for his annual trip home to Australia were two items with special meaning. Those were a pair of boxing gloves and his jersey worn during the 2016 Bassmaster Elite Series season.

Final destination for the jersey and gloves, as planned, was a boxing ring in his hometown of Toowoomba, Queensland. That was where Jocumsen fulfilled a dream of boxing in an amateur boxing match. He checked off that bucket list event while raising awareness and money for good causes near to his heart.

Editor’s note: See photos from the boxing match.

“I was really down after my poor season on the Elite Series tour,” he recalled, of his sophomore year. “I had lost my motivation to exercise, stay fit and focused.”

That was a complete about face for a professional bass fisherman known to plan his day around diet, exercise and keeping in top mental and physical shape. That would be the same Australian whose personal slogan is Fear My Heart.

A boxer and bass fishermen make an unlikely pair for helping each other achieve their career dreams. Yet that describes the special bond between Jocumsen and his cousin, Kris George.

A couple months ago Jocumsen learned his cousin would fight for the welterweight title of the Commonwealth Boxing Council, a sanctioning body for the sport in Australia and Europe. The match would be in Jocumsen’s hometown, and George encouraged his cousin to enter a match reserved for celebrities.

“They are different sports, but there are a lot of things that cross over,” said George. “Mental strength and the things that go through your mind in the ring or on the lake is the same thing.”

“About the time we both were about to break out in our careers we really rallied behind each other,” added Jocumsen.

That began five years ago when he moved to America. When Jocumsen struggled on the lake, George thrived in the ring. And when the opposite happened it was Jocumsen who rallied behind his cousin.

Jocumsen, always up for a challenge, accepted the invitation. Part of his fitness regime included boxing for fitness, so he took it to the next level.

The B.A.S.S. pro living in Dallas went to work, sparring heavily and training throughout the day using the same Onnit body weight exercise plans used by Mixed Martial Arts fighters. He even followed the exact training and diet regime of his cousin.

“It was the greatest challenge I’ve ever taken on in my life,” said Jocumsen. “The diet, exercise, discipline, studying the sport and becoming totally immersed in it all took every bit of courage that I had in me.”

Jocumsen regained his focus and the positive mental attitude that carried him to the top of his game in a bass boat. The results were impressive. Jocumsen’s beep test, a multi-stage fitness test used to score athletic stamina at the professional level, matched up with his cousin.

A few weeks ago, Jocumsen and girlfriend Kayla Palaniuk flew to Australia, along with the gloves and jersey.

Jocumsen autographed the jersey and placed it inside a custom frame. He added a special photo taken with a special friend, Michael Cano, 9, of Cabot, Ark. The young man is suffering from brain cancer and went fishing with Jocumsen during the summer. View a photo gallery of the trip here.

The title plate at the bottom of the framed jersey reads: “Love for Mikey.”

“I was disappointed in the response we got from all the hard work of raising awareness about Mikey and the donations,” said Jocumsen, of the publicity after the trip. “So I wanted to do something more for my special friend.”

“He’s just a great kid and it broke my heart to see him suffer, so I dedicated myself to doing whatever I could to helping him,” he added.

Jocumsen took a big step in that direction on Nov. 25, when he stepped into the boxing ring at Rumours International in his hometown. A crowd of 1,000 watched as professional rugby league player Ben Sullivan entered the arena.

What was billed as the corporate card for the evening turned into a Rocky-like matchup between a very fit and athletic footballer and a pro angler.

Jocumsen conquered in a bass boat what no other Aussie had ever before done. He wasn’t so sure about matching up with his opponent.

“Sullivan was much bigger than I thought, very athletic,” he recalled. “I mean he’s a tough rugby player, and there I was alone with him in a boxing ring with a thousand people watching.”

Jocumsen waged a tough fight and won. Moments after the referee raised the champ’s gloved hand to signal the win another poignant moment unfolded.

The framed jersey was brought into the ring and Jocumsen told the story of Mikey. The crowd went silent and then erupted into cheers. An auctioneer appeared and the bidding began.

After the final bid the jersey fetched $6,000. That included $2,300 bid within the first hour of an online auction held prior to the fight.

“The crazy thing was everyone who put in the money was Australian,” he sad. “To me that’s really awesome how generous Australians were to help a sick American child.”

The other cause benefitted by the jersey was Jocumsen’s quest to bring a neurosurgeon to his hometown. That personal initiative began after the son of one of his friends died from head injuries sustained in a boxing match. The level of care needed to treat such an injury is only available in Brisbane, a 90-minute drive away.

“On the other side of your fears are the greatest rewards life can give,” said Jocumsen. “Stepping through those ropes on Friday night was the most daunting task of my life.”

“But I knew the rewards for Mikey and myself were just on the other side,” he said. “Meeting him was the most life-changing day for me ever.”

Now, there is a close second for Jocumsen after what happened that day in a boxing ring in his hometown.