In a relatively short period of time, Massachusetts-based attorney Larry Army went from questioning whether he was out of boxing, to signing one of the hottest prospects in the sport.
When his management relationship with Edwin Rodriguez ended after this past July’s championship final of the Monaco Million Dollar Super 4 Tournament, Army really thought he might be all done with boxing. “To be able to put Edwin Rodriguez into a position to become a millionaire and the thought that the Monaco fight would be my last in the sport was tough,” Army admitted.
However, before he left Monaco, the 42-year-old Army had already laid the foundation to continue his managerial work, and today his Elite Management is formally announcing the signing of unbeaten Ukrainian lightweight prospect Ivan “Junito” Redkach (14-0, 12 KOs) to an exclusive, long-term managerial contract.
Army also successfully convinced Peter Manfredo, Jr. to come out of retirement after losing to Sakio Biko and reinvented him as a middleweight. Army guided Manfredo to eight quality wins, ultimately leading to Manfredo’s world title shot against Julio Chavez, Jr.
Because Army was the architect of an incredibly well-designed campaign for Rodriguez, other high-profile, world-class boxers have recently contacted him about representing them.
“When I had the opportunity to speak to Ivan and see what type of athlete he is,” Army explained, “I knew there was the potential to do even bigger and better things. I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to work with him. He has everything real boxing fans want to see in a fighter; an entertaining style featuring pure knockout power. There’s no doubt in my mind that he’s on his way to becoming world champion.”
“Ivan regularly trains and spars in California with some of the top fighters from 135 pounds to 147 like (Miguel) Vasquez, (Michael) Katsidis, and (Daniel) Ponce De Leon. Standing 5′ 10″, he can fight effectively in any division from lightweight to welterweight. Unlike some other fighters, Ivan trains like a machine; he has dedicated his life to boxing and the pursuit to become the best boxer in the world. As a sample of his daily routine, Ivan runs 10 miles every morning, goes to the gym to work 12 rounds on the pads, and then finishes things off with a rigorous swim.”
Redkach, a southpaw now living in Los Angeles, is promoted by DiBella Entertainment and trained by Mario Morales, who has worked with world champions Brian Viloria and the late Edwin Valero. Rated No. 15 in the world by the World Boxing Council (WBC), the 27-year-old Redkach has knocked out 12 of his 14 professional opponents. The dangerous southpaw had a 260-40 amateur record and he was a 2008 Ukraine Olympic Team alternate.’
“I saw what Mr. Army did with Edwin Rodriguez and wanted him managing my career,” Redkach said. “He made Rodriguez a millionaire, built him to 24-0, and now he’s on the verge of a world title shot. I’m excited. One man’s loss is another man’s gain, I guess. I’m confident that Mr. Army will get me a shot at my dream of winning a world championship.”
“Ivan is the first of many significant signings Elite Management plans to make during the next six months,” Army concluded. “Elite Management guides the careers of blue-chip fighters to put them in position to be wealthy champions. We just don’t take a fighter’s money, we earn it.”
