The Morning Episode 18 of The Morning Lift brought in a guy whose name shows up on nearly every boxing flyer in Stark County — Markees Watkins, owner and head coach of United Boxing Club in Canton, Ohio. If you've been anywhere near a local fight card, a youth boxing class, or a community event in this region, you've probably already seen his work, even if you didn't know his name.
This Markees Watkins boxing coach interview goes deep — from his childhood watching Mike Tyson undercards on an old wood-floor-model TV, to the mentor who shaped his entire coaching voice, to the gym he built from a basement setup into a program training pro fighters like Ryzemian Ford and Ben Meese. He also opens up about faith, loss, and the exact moment he realized coaching was harder than fighting ever was.
If you're trying to figure out how to become a boxing coach, how to structure youth training the right way, or how to turn a passion project into a real community business, this recap pulls the most useful and most human moments from the conversation.
From Massillon Football Fields to Mike Tyson Undercards
Markees Watkins was born in Massillon and split time between his dad's side in Canton and his mom's side in Massillon — meaning he grew up literally inside the Canton-Massillon rivalry. He played football at Massillon alongside names like Justin Zwick, Sean Crable, and Andy Allman on a team ranked 20th in the nation, even though he describes himself as undersized next to teammates he jokingly calls "mutants." Strength and speed, not size, were always his edge.
But boxing grabbed him earlier than football ever did. At family fight parties built around Mike Tyson pay-per-views, the kids got kicked out once the main event started — except Markees. He'd sit cross-legged in front of the TV for the undercard bouts nobody else cared about, watching fighters like Julian Jackson and Christy Martin before most adults even sat down. That early obsession with the "boring" undercard fights is the same instinct that now makes him obsess over fundamentals with his own fighters — the stuff nobody claps for until it wins you a fight.
Finding Lorenzo Scott: The Mentor Who Shaped a Coach
Ask Markees who built his coaching voice, and one name comes up instantly: Lorenzo Scott. Their first meeting came out of chaos — Markees showed up to his own fight in Pennsylvania only to be told, four hours before the bell, that his trainer wasn't coming and someone else would be in his corner that night. That replacement was Lorenzo. Markees lost the fight (he was two fights into his career against an opponent with seventeen), but something about Lorenzo's coaching stuck.
Lorenzo's style was brutally precise. "If he tells you to go to the left a quarter inch and you go an eighth of an inch, he's not happy," Markees explained. No praise, no hype — just correction, because Lorenzo believed your opponent will find your flaws, so you'd better fix them first. Markees loved it. He loved it so much that when his original coach asked if Lorenzo was "just like him," Markees told him flatly: no, he's better.
That honesty cost him the relationship, and soon after, he lost contact with Lorenzo entirely — no number, no address, pre-smartphone era. The reunion came almost by accident: during a 3 a.m. phone call with the woman who'd become his wife, she mentioned her godfather, "Lorenzo King." Markees connected the dots instantly — King was Lorenzo Scott's wife's maiden name — and drove to the address that same night to wait for him. Today, you can hear "Ren" in both Markees's cues and his voice when he's working the mitts with his own fighters.
Coaching Before Fighting — The Golden Gloves Gamble
Most coaches fight first and coach later. Markees did it backwards. Before he ever met Lorenzo or fought competitively, he was already teaching his brother and cousins out of pure obsession with the sport. The turning point came when a frustrated student snapped at him mid-lesson: "You can't tell me what to do, you've never fought before."
Markees looked up the Golden Gloves schedule, saw it was two weeks out, and signed up on the spot — in 2007. That impulsive decision became the foundation of everything he does now: he doesn't ask his fighters to do anything he hasn't proven he's willing to do himself.
What It Takes to Train Boxers at United Boxing Club
If you're wondering how to train amateur boxers the right way, Markees has a clear system. Kids start training at age 6, but he won't schedule a fight until age 8 — the earliest sanctioned age. Starting too early, he explained, burns kids out before they're even eligible to compete: "You start them at 4 and they don't like it. By the time they're actually able to fight, they're already done with it." Right now, around 40 kids train regularly at the gym, including his own 12-year-old son, who's already had two fights.
Discipline at United Boxing Club isn't built through motivational posters — it's built through honesty and consequences. "Nobody really likes getting slapped," Markees said, describing his training videos where fighters who don't duck on command get popped. It sounds harsh, but it mirrors the sport itself: in boxing, consequences are immediate and physical. His bigger standard, though, is character over record: "I don't care if you're 0-10. If you are a better person afterward, then I did my job."
The Fighters and Stories That Define the Gym
Two stories from this episode capture why Markees coaches the way he does. The first is Aiden, a student with a rare genetic condition that causes his joints to pop out of place without warning — Markees learned to pop his elbow back in mid-session. Aiden lost his first two fights but came back transformed, telling his coach mid-fight that he was about to "take him out this round." He did, by TKO.
The second story is heavier. John "Coach Z" Zerhut started as a neighborhood troublemaker who blocked the gym's parking lot and threatened Markees with a crew of seven or eight guys. Weeks later, curiosity pulled him through the front door. He became one of the gym's most trusted youth coaches before dying in a motorcycle accident in front of the gym. His family returned a memorial sparring set Markees had given them, saying, "The person that wore this isn't the person we knew. That's the man that you raised." It's one of the clearest examples of what coaching can actually change in someone's life.
Key Takeaways
- Start young, fight smart: Begin training at 6, but don't schedule a fight before age 8 — rushing it leads to early burnout.
- Character beats record: An undefeated fighter who's a bad person is a coaching failure; a losing record paired with growth is a win.
- Mentorship compounds: Lorenzo Scott's coaching style still echoes in Markees's voice, cues, and corrections decades later.
- Coaching is harder than fighting: As a fighter you're responsible for yourself; as a coach, you're responsible for every student's growth and safety.
- Discipline requires honesty and consequences: Accountability — not hype — is what keeps fighters locked in long-term.
- Boxing and fighting aren't the same skill: Boxing is footwork, setups, and technique; fighting is heart and aggression. The best competitors blend both.
- Purpose can come from faith, not ego: Markees opened United Boxing Club not because he felt most qualified, but because he felt called to do it.
Want the full emotional weight of these stories — including the Pritchard Colon conversation on the real dangers of the sport, and the Terence Crawford body-language breakdown? Hit play on the full episode and subscribe to The Morning Lift so you don't miss the next one.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Markees Watkins?
Markees Watkins is a boxing coach and the owner of United Boxing Club in Canton, Ohio. He trains amateur and professional fighters, including pro boxers Ryzemian Ford and Ben Meese, and hosts community boxing events like The Brawl and Fist of Freedom.
How did Markees Watkins get into boxing coaching?
Markees actually coached before he ever competed. He began teaching his brother and cousins informally, then signed up for the Golden Gloves in 2007 after a frustrated student challenged his credibility, telling him he'd never fought before.
What age should kids start boxing training?
According to Markees, kids can start training around age 6 but shouldn't have their first sanctioned fight until age 8. Starting too early with full sparring and competition expectations often burns kids out before they're even eligible to compete.
What's the difference between boxing and fighting, according to Watkins?
Boxing relies on technical setups — footwork, angles, and timing designed to create openings. Fighting is more about heart and forward pressure. Markees explains that trained boxers can out-fight a street fighter, but a real boxer will always out-box a pure fighter.
Where is United Boxing Club located?
United Boxing Club is based in Canton, Ohio. Markees opened the gym at the end of 2018 and made it official in 2020, after years of training fighters out of his basement and partnering at other local gyms.
When is the next event Markees Watkins is hosting?
Markees announced "The Brawl 5" is scheduled for March 6th at the Canton Civic Center, with tickets available directly through the box office. He's also planning a third professional boxing event in Alliance, Ohio, later in the fall.
Final Thoughts
Markees Watkins didn't set out to become the face of boxing in Canton — he says plainly that he followed where he felt called to go, and the results speak for themselves: a gym full of disciplined fighters, a roster of pros, community events that pack venues, and a track record of changing lives far beyond the ring. Whether it's a kid with a rare disability finding his fire, or a neighborhood troublemaker becoming a trusted youth coach, the throughline is the same — Markees cares more about who his fighters become than what their record says.
If you're building anything — a gym, a program, a brand — this episode is proof that consistency, honesty, and genuinely caring about people will outlast any viral clip.
Go listen to the full conversation now, and subscribe to The Morning Lift so you never miss an episode.
Listen to the Episode
Catch the full conversation with Markees Watkins on The Morning Lift Podcast, available now at the official episode link.