Tyquan Jackson has been preparing for the Ring Masters Amateur Boxing Tournament at the renowned Gleason's Gym in DUMBO for weeks.

Under the guidance of trainer Heather Hardy, the East Harlem native, a Lightweight fighter at 132 pounds, is gearing up for the finals set to take place in April at Madison Square Garden.

What You Need To Know

  • “Ring Masters: Road to the Garden” is an amateur boxing tournament for fighters in the New York City area

  • The tournament is organized by USA Boxing Metropolitan and was formerly known as the Golden Gloves

  • The Ring Masters Finals are held at Madison Square Garden in April

  • A total of 450 amateur boxers are competing in the tournament

"Especially being from New York City, it's definitely something on my bucket list I have to achieve," Jackson said.

Formerly known as the New York Golden Gloves Tournament, Ring Masters, organized by USA Boxing Metropolitan, boasts a storied history spanning nearly a century. Hardy, affectionately dubbed "The Heat," is a former gloves champion and is pointing Jackson in that same direction.

"It was a lifelong dream of mine to box in the garden, so hitting that first step and seeing the possibilities ahead, what boxing presented to me, it's life changing, and I love to watch that from my students," Hardy said.

Ariel Lopez, also a former gloves champion, previously leveraged his title and turned it into a successful professional career, currently holding the WBC Continental Super Bantamweight Championship with a record of 20 wins, one loss and one draw. Reflecting on his gloves triumph at Barclays Center, Lopez emphasized the significance of the tournament in shaping his professional journey.

"We are going for the world title this year, stay tuned guys, stay tuned," Lopez said.

Longtime Gleason's owner Bruce Silverglade says the tournament has been a starting point for many a pro boxing career, but participants have also included many other everyday New Yorkers who went on to success in a number of careers.

"It's really a great tournament, it develops a lot of good fighters, and I'm looking forward to it," Silverglade said.

For Jackson, boxing serves as a beacon of discipline and purpose, steering him away from potential trouble.

"If I didn't find boxing, I don't know where I would have been right now, I don't want to lie. To this day it keeps me out of a lot of trouble," Jackson said.

As Jackson hones his skills, his sights are firmly set on making an impact in the ring, aspiring to disrupt his opponents' paths to victory.