Prize Fighter
A night in the life of Gábor Vető
A night in the life of Gábor Vető
Gábor Vető emmigrated to Switzerland at the age of 21 three years ago, leaving his hometown of Várpalota in western Hungary, seeking a better life. He works the nightshift at a vegetable and fruit warehouse, sorting produce. Before leaving home, he was an amateur boxer in his hometown, turning pro with the help of Zürich based manager Oliver Dütschler.The event, hosted in Chur, the capitol of the kanton Graubünden was to decide the fate of the Global Boxing Union international title, the two contenders being veteran boxer Justin Juuko of Uganda and Gábor Vető.
The municipality of Chur, shortly before nightfall
Oliver Dütschler watches as Gábor gets prepared for the fight
Gábor doesn't make much money from fighting, his fee barely covers travel and gear costs.
Ergün Mersin, a heavy-weight fighter friend of Gábor helps with bandaging
Csaba, the older brother of Gábor, who also left Hungary and now works the same shift at the same warehouse as his brother, watches him warming up prior to the clash
Meanwhile out on the corridors of the Hotel Marsöl, the evenings venue, Justin Juuko is warming up. His dressing room was too small to move around in
Franco Pasanante, the organizer of the event strips Gábor of his tee moments before the fight.
The fight was scheduled for twelve rounds, but only lasted two. Justin Juuko was counted out after he was unable to regain his stance after a left hook from Gábor at the very beginning of round two.
Being one of the handful of boxers to have trained with the legendary Freddie Roach, the trainer of Manny Paquiao, he was amazed at how fast and technical Gábor was, commenting that "the boy could definitely make it in the USA"
Gábor is proud of his championship, but his victory is bittersweet, he feels that the organizers and promoters are getting off better from organizing fights than the fighters themselves.
