Trenton boxer Michael Hilton trains for hometown birthday fight
TRENTON >> Native Trenton resident Mike “Michael Beast” Hilton hopes to give himself a sweet birthday present Oct. 1 when he enters the boxing ring next Saturday against Brandon Robinson at the Sun National Bank Center.
The cruiserweight Hilton, who boasts a 3-0 professional boxing record, said it “would be nice” if he can earn a fourth consecutive victory by way of knockout when he turns 30 next weekend.
“Confidence is the key, and the thing is to not be overconfident or arrogant,” said Hilton, an up-and-coming pro boxer and reigning 2015 National Golden Gloves Champion who was named 2015 New Jersey Amateur Boxer of the Year. “Me at the top of my game, I can beat anybody,” he said while wearing a black Tshirt emblazoned with the Superman logo.
Hilton was Trenton’s version of Rocky Balboa on Saturday as he led a “Run with The Champ” event where he and more than a dozen supporters took a 1.7 mile run from the Battle Monument to the Ike Williams Boxing Academy at 800 S. Broad St.
“It feels good to have my city behind me and come
city behind me and come out and stay true to their word,” Hilton said Saturday morning as he was preparing to warm up at the Battle Monument. “It’s a good feeling.”
Hilton graduated from Trenton Central High School in 2005, but he was
going on the wrong track in 2007 when he got caught up in the street life that led to him getting arrested on drug and weapons possession charges. Hilton realized he needed to turn things around and straightened himself out by turning to God, reading a variety of literature and discovering his passion for boxing.
“I started being around more positive people, good things started happening,” he said. “I’ve been through a lot. I’m stronger (because of that). I have the fortitude to push through anything.”
Although Hilton is known for his powerful jabs, he said boxing is not simply about physicality. Yes, you need the physical training to compete in the ring, he said, “But spiritually and mentally if you are weak, you will lose.”
Divine Allah and Solomon Dinkins of the Ike
Williams Boxing Academy family were training with Hilton on Saturday in the lead-up to the Oct. 1 bout here in Hilton’s hometown.
“Michael is an excessively hard puncher,” Dinkins said. “It’s something about the underdog mindset that takes things to another level. One of my sayings is, ‘Trenton makes champions.’ I’m not just talking about fighters, I’m talking about mindsets.”
Divine Allah said he hopes Hilton’s story will inspire Trenton youth, saying, “If he is not inspiring you, who is going to inspire you?”
Hilton, a father of three girls, said he will have many friends and family cheering him on next Saturday at the arena.
“He came a long way,” Hilton’s Uncle Lucky said about the 195-pound cruiserweight boxer. “He got out of the streets and straightened himself out. It’s only right that he gets rewarded for it.”
The Hilton v. Robinson bout is one of several matches that will take place next Saturday, Oct. 1, at the Sun National Bank Center. Tickets start at $25 and are on sale now via SunNationalBankCenter.com, by phone at 1-800-298-4200 or in person at the Sun National Bank Center box office.