Dat Nguyen (born October 10, 1982) is a Vietnamese-born American boxer and

bare-knuckle boxer Bare-knuckle boxing (or simply bare-knuckle) is a combat sport which involves two individuals throwing punches at each other for a predetermined amount of time without any boxing gloves or other form of padding on their hands. It is a regulated ...

. He recently competed in the

Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) is an American bare-knuckle boxing promotion based in Philadelphia. BKFC is the first promotion to hold an official state-sanctioned and commissioned bare-knuckle boxing event in the United States since 1 ...

and was the BKFC Bantamweight Champion.

Early life

When Dat was eight years old, his mother decided to leave Vietnam to give her family a better life. She brought Dat and his five siblings to Hawaii where he grew up on the island of

Maui The island of Maui (; Hawaiian: ) is the second-largest of the islands of the state of Hawaii at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2) and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is the largest of Maui County's four islands, which ...

. In eighth grade, Dat won his first Junior Olympic Championship and went on to win the Men's State Championship and

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

Golden Gloves The Golden Gloves is the name given to annual competitions for amateur boxing in the United States, where they are awarded a belt and a ring. And the title of nations champion is awarded. The Golden Gloves is a term used to refer to the Nation ...

. In 2001, Dat graduated with Honors and was awarded a full Scholarship to

Northern Michigan University Northern Michigan University (Northern Michigan, Northern or NMU) is a public university in Marquette, Michigan. It was established in 1899 by the Michigan Legislature as Northern State Normal School. In 1963, the state designated Northern a uni ...

, site of one of the three United States Olympic Training Centers. He spent three years studying Computer Information Systems while representing the USOEC in National and International competitions as an Olympic Hopeful.

Boxing career

During his time at the

U.S. Olympic Training Center The United States Olympic & Paralympic Training Centers (OPTCs) are two campuses created by the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) as training facilities for its Olympic and Paralympic athletes. They are located in Colorado Spri ...

, Dat was the first

Vietnamese-American Vietnamese Americans ( vi, Người Mỹ gốc Việt, lit=Viet-origin American people) are Americans of Vietnamese ancestry. They make up about half of all overseas Vietnamese and are the fourth-largest Asian American ethnic group after Chinese ...

to win a silver medal at the

National Golden Gloves The Golden Gloves is the name given to annual competitions for amateur boxing in the United States, where they are awarded a belt and a ring. And the title of nations champion is awarded. The Golden Gloves is a term used to refer to the Nationa ...

and a bronze medal at the 2003 U.S. Championships that earned him spot at the U.S Men's Challenge to qualify for the first Olympic spot. In the U.S Challenge, Dat fought

Mickey Bey Mickey Bey Jr. (born June 27, 1983) is an American professional boxer and former IBF lightweight champion. Professional career Bey vs. Rodriguez On February 2, 2013, Bey defeated Robert Rodríguez by third-round knockout, but tested positive ...

(the eventual 2004 Olympian) but lost to him on a tie breaker. Following his departure from the U.S Olympic Education Training Center, Dat decided to turn professional and made his debut on May 1, 2004 in

Atlantic City, New Jersey Atlantic City, often known by its initials A.C., is a coastal resort city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. The city is known for its casinos, boardwalk, and beaches. In 2020, the city had a population of 38,497.

. Dat won his first professional fight by knocking out Ernest Scott in the first round.

Bare-knuckle boxing

In 2019, Nguyen signed with the

. On October 19, 2019, he made his bare-knuckle debut against Travis Thompson at BKFC 8: Silva vs. Gonzaga. Nguyen won by unanimous decision. On February 15, 2020, Nguyen defeated Abdiel Velasquez by first-round knockout at BKFC 10: Lombard vs Mundell. Dat Nguyen was scheduled to face

Johnny Bedford John Charles "Johnny" Bedford (born January 6, 1983) is an American retired mixed martial artist and bare knuckle boxer. A professional since 2003, he has fought in the UFC, Bellator, the Legacy Fighting Alliance, and was a competitor on Spike ...

for the BKFC Lightweight Championship at BKFC 16: KnuckleMania on February 5, 2021. After a hard-fought five-round war, Nguyen came out on top by judges decision to become the new BKFC Lightweight Champion. He subsequently called out Jonny Beltran for his next bout. On June 10, 2021, BKFC president Dave Feldman revealed that the organization and Nguyen were unable to come to terms regarding a new contract, leading to the title being stripped and making Nguyen a free agent.

Fighting style

Nguyen is a boxer puncher with hand speed and power, who likes to beat up the body. He is promoted by King's Promotions, the leading promoter for

Premier Boxing Champions ''Premier Boxing Champions'' (PBC) is an ongoing series of televised boxing events connected to manager Al Haymon. PBC was initially promoted as an effort to return boxing to mainstream broadcast and cable television, as opposed to premium channe ...

(PBC). "Dat brings a ton of charisma coupled with great skill into the ring and I am happy to showcase his talents," said DiBella. "Boxing is not my mother's first choice for me" said Nguyen. "But she encourages me to give 100% to anything I do. This is the thing I choose to do, "said Nguyen Nguyen is trained by known teacher and former legendary fighter James "Buddy" McGirt in

Vero Beach, Florida Vero Beach is a city in and the seat of Indian River County, Florida, United States. Vero Beach is the second most populous city in Indian River County. Abundant in beaches and wildlife, Vero Beach is located on Florida's Treasure Coast. It is thi ...

where Nguyen now lives. "He will be a champion" said McGirt.

Championships and accomplishments

(BKFC) ** BKFC Bantamweight Championship (one time)

Professional boxing record

Bare knuckle record

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Delray Beach, Florida Delray Beach is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The population of Delray Beach as of April 1, 2020 was 66,846 according to the 2020 United States census, 2020 United States Census. Located 52 miles ...

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Luis Palomino Luis Vicente Palomino (born October 9, 1980) is a Peruvian-American mixed martial artist and bare-knuckle fighter who is the current Lightweight and Welterweight champion for Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship, making him the first “double ch ...

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Miami, Florida Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

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Lakeland, Florida Lakeland is the most populous city in Polk County, Florida, part of the Tampa Bay Area, located along Interstate 4 east of Tampa. According to the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau release, the city had a population of 112,641. Lakeland is a principal c ...

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Fort Lauderdale, Florida Fort Lauderdale () is a coastal city located in the U.S. state of Florida, north of Miami along the Atlantic Ocean. It is the county seat of and largest city in Broward County with a population of 182,760 at the 2020 census, making it the tenth ...

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Tampa, Florida Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...

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References

http://www.premierboxingchampions.com/news/unbeaten-130-pound-prospect-flores-heading-home-battle-nguyen-february-21#.WIuF_ia1bkY.facebook http://www.premierboxingchampions.com/fight-night-february-21-2017 http://www.abramsboxing.com/undefeated-prospect-miguel-flores-faces-top-contender-dat-nguyen-main-event-premier-boxing-champions-toe-toe-tuesdays-fs1-boxeo-de-campeones-fox-deportes-tuesday-february-21-silve/

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Nguyen, Dat 1982 births Living people People from Đồng Nai Province American sportspeople of Vietnamese descent Sportspeople of Vietnamese descent Featherweight boxers Lightweight boxers American bare-knuckle boxers American male boxers World boxing champions Vietnamese emigrants to the United States Boxers from Hawaii