Iron Boxing a home for Sheer Sports

The key to anything having success is it’s foundation and for Sheer Sports their athletes are at the center of it. When the Santa Monica based management team decided to open Iron Boxing it was to serve as not only a place for their fighters to train but also a gym open to the public. The upstairs facility is a state of the art gym that features weight training and strength and conditioning. The boxing element takes place downstairs where a ring, bags and room to work drills is now available.

The man assigned the day to day responsibility of training the fighters and gym members is none other than Courage Tshabalala. The former heavyweight contender currently trains Sheer Sports fighters such as Edwin Sandoval and Ronald Ellis. On the day we visited the gym Coach Courage as he’s referred to was returning from taking one of his fighters to spar.

“It’s good thing to have a place of your own to work as a fighter. This is our second week and we’re working things out but as long as we have the equipment and a place to work, we’re good,” said Tshabalala.

One thing the management company does is relocate their fighters to the Santa Monica area so they are within proximity to the gym and in a safe location to focus on work.

“Santa Monica is central to all the other gyms. All my kids stay in the area so they can feel safe when they run. I want to take my kids out of the environment they come from so there are less distractions and they can focus on just training,” said Tshabalala.

The location of the gym is key to being able to commute to other gyms in the Southern California area for sparring. Among the gyms are the world famous Wild Card Gym in Hollywood and the Rock in Carson.

“We spend time at Wild Card, Freddie(Roach) is one of the best in the world and very accommodating. You have all the weights there and can find good sparring. Coach Manny Robles at the Rock also gives us good sparring so we can get our guys ready,” said Tshabalala.

Allowing their fighters to get the benefit of sparring top prospects and veterans from other gyms serves as valuable experience to becoming a better boxer but also gives the Sheer Sports talent a chance to see how other gyms are run.

“I don’t want them to get used to one thing. I want them to experience how other trainers run their gyms and how other fighters are treated so they can appreciate the way they are treated here. Sheer Sports goes out of it’s way to show the fighters that they are appreciated here,” said Tshabalala.

As a former fighter, he can relate to the challenges his young prospects face having dealt with those situations himself. Being downstairs to where the fighters work with their conditioning coaches, he can have open dialogue and see what is going on with his fighters to determine if the fighter needs more work or rest.

“When I was a fighter all we had to do was train. Arturo Gatti, Al Cole, David Tua, all of us were with Duva and all we did was train. This is what Sheer Sports is doing, making the fighter’s life easier so they can focus on fighting and training,” said Tshabalala.

For more information on Iron Gym and Iron Boxing visit ironla.com or contact them at

1919 Broadway St, Santa Monica, CA 90404 (310) 264-9800.