Jared Anderson opens up on recent arrest
Highly-touted heavyweight prospect Jared Anderson (16-0, 15KO) has spoke for the first time since his arrest and said ‘it’s not going to be my last mistake.’
WBC #5 heavyweight Anderson has knocked out 15 of his 16 opponents and was last out in August with a fifth-round knockout of Andriy Rudenko, having also beaten George Arias and former world champion Charles Martin in 2023.
Last November, Anderson faced legal trouble in Ohio when he was charged with handling firearms in a vehicle while knowingly intoxicated and driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
In December, he entered a plea of no contest to a revised charge of mishandling firearms in a motor vehicle, resulting in the dismissal of the OVI charge.
Speaking to ESPN, the man who has previously said boxing is just a job to him was openly honest about the incident.
“Very much an impulse decision. I’m looked upon by many, whether I like it or not, which I really don’t, but I have to be a better role model.
“It’s a lesson learned, so just take away from it and keep pushing forward. I’m human. I’m 24. Everybody makes mistakes. It’s not gonna be my last mistake. I hope it’s my last mistake that involves me being arrested.
“I feel like a lot of people have painted pictures of me to be something I’m really not. I wouldn’t say I regret it, you know, lesson learned. I try to live my life with no regrets. Nothing we can really do about it at the moment other than face it head on, take it on the chin.”
The 24-year-old ‘Big Baby’ is next out on April 13 against Belgian Ryad Merhy, a former WBA World cruiserweight champion, and has vowed to show that the arrest has not derailed his mission.
“It’s not really gonna derail my career. It is just an eye-opener to make me push harder. When you see my performance April 13, just know that you won’t have anything to worry about.
“I’m always training, even when people wanted to try and tear me down and say that I wasn’t focused. Even when I did have that incident, I was still training. I was in the gym the next day after I got released.”
Anderson will be hoping to get back to winning ways next month and truly put this incident behind him.