Gilbert ready for title fight

It's become increasingly obvious that Reno boxer Joey Gilbert isn't a big believer in baby steps.

The 29-year-old Gilbert, a three-time National Collegiate Boxing Association (NCBA) national champion for the University of Nevada, first went from fighting four-round bouts to competing on the NBC reality show "The Contender."

Now, just over three months removed from fighting in his first six-rounder (a unanimous decision over James North at Caesars Tahoe Nov. 5), Gilbert will fight a 12-round rematch with former Contender Jimmy Lange for the vacant North American Boxing Organization middleweight championship at the George Mason Patriot Center, in Fairfax, Va., on Saturday.

Gilbert, who is also an attorney, publicist, consultant, spokesman for actor Sylvester Stallone's InStone nutritional products and a male model for Tommy Hilfiger and Everlast, will take a record of 10-1, with 7 knockouts, into his fight with the 30-year-old Lange, 26-2-1 (18), of Great Falls, Va.

Dan Birmingham, who also trains IBF super middleweight titlist Jeff Lacy and former world junior middleweight champion and current No. 1 middleweight contender Winky Wright, has been putting Gilbert through the paces since the former Nevada Golden Gloves light middleweight champion returned from a celebrity tour in Afghanistan in early January.

"I can tell you that he works as hard as anybody I've ever trained," said Birmingham, who operates out of the St. Petersburg Boxing Club in St. Petersburg, Fla. "We're working hard on defense and the philosophy of this fight."

It's the kind of philosophy that would make Sun Tzu proud.

"It's no secret that Jimmy Lange has a great jab and is quick," Birmingham said. "Joey's got to get inside and make a war out of it. But it's got to be an intelligent war. Joey 's doing great. He's strong, focused."

Does that mean Gilbert is a better boxer than the one who slugged it out for all six rounds with North?

"No doubt about it," Birmingham said. "He's getting my defensive tactics in his head. He's keeping his hands up, blocking and parrying, blocking and countering, blocking and throwing body shots and uppercuts."

But Birmingham cautioned that it's still the same Gilbert who never was in a ring war he didn't like.

"That's in his nature - especially after he's been hit a few times," he said.

Gilbert said he trained (on his conditioning) with United States Army Rangers and Special Forces in the forward operating base Qalat (just outside of Kandahar in Afghanistan) for the 12 days he was there following Christmas. But he was worried initially he wouldn't be in condition for Birmingham's camp.

"I know a lot of fighters have the tendency to say they're in the best shape of their lives..." Gilbert said, leaving the sentence unfinished. "I'd never sparred 10 or 12 rounds before. I calculated I sparred 14 rounds. They are four-minute rounds, sometimes five (instead of the customary three), with 30 seconds of rest (instead of a minute). No joke."

Funny what extreme training does to fighter's mindset.

"As much as I look forward to bringing home the NABO belt - which I will absolutely do - I look forward to getting back into camp and learning some more," Gilbert said. "I work with the best - Winky, Jeff, Dan and Chad (Dawson, an undefeated super middleweight prospect). This is amazing."

Gilbert, who weighed 163 pounds as of Monday, said he's confident and looks forward to stepping back into the ring with Lange.

"Lange's been on the Web sites, saying 'I met a great athlete who got lucky (in the first fight on Sept. 7, 2004, and which was first broadcast in 2005),'" Gilbert said. "He's running his mouth. I never said anything."

The 5-foot-11 Gilbert will be giving up about 2 inches to Lange, who is one of the rare athletes that is actually taller than his listed height (of 6-foot). Gilbert said he won the first fight with Lange a lot more convincingly than what NBC's admittedly edited final version showed.

Three ringside judges scored the bout in favor of Gilbert 49-46 and 48-47 (twice).

Gilbert fought Lange toe-to-toe and at times was reduced to hopping on one leg after suffering a torn hamstring earlier in the show.

Asked about Birmingham's "war" plan, Gilbert sounded happy.

"Yeah. Coach wants me to do that," Gilbert said. "He said, 'This guy's not going to outhustle you, he's not going to hurt you. You've been in with the best. Who better?'"

Gilbert said he was a bit nervous on The Contender and let Lange's record and superior experience get into his head.

"I was borderline sheepish," Gilbert said. "I wasn't confident . Now I'm 100-percent better, 100-percent sharper, 180-degrees different mentally. I know I'm going to kick his ass. Whatever he wants to do, bring it. I'd fight tomorrow, anytime. I just want to get in there."

Gilbert said the bout will be televised by CSI Sports and shown on tape delay a few times in March.

"This fight is about, number one, bringing the belt back to Reno," Gilbert said. "Then maybe a fight or two after that - put it on the line against someone worthy of it. I'm thinking it might make for a Jesse Brinkley fight. Who knows."

Brinkley, of Yerington, was also a Contender and had a falling out with Gilbert over his Web site, jessebrinkley.com, which Brinkley alleged Gilbert and his law partner Mark Schopper, of Reno, mishandled and thus deprived him of several thousand dollars.

Gilbert and Schopper publicly denied the allegations.

"We can settle the 'Web sit controversy,'" Gilbert said. "I want to keep the belt in Nevada. Let some Nevada boys fight for it. Even though he bad-mouthed me, I'd do it for him. I like to help other people out."

Defeating Lange would also help Gilbert's own cause. The winner will reportedly be ranked in the top 10 of the WBO and on the short list for a world championship fight in the future, providing he stays in the winning column.

"When, not if, I bring the belt home, we'll talk about my next fight," Gilbert said.

In addition to not being big on baby steps, Gilbert's apparently not big on baby talk.