Photo: Leah Hennel / COC – Last August in Paris, Wyatt Sanford became the first Canadian boxer in nearly 30 years to climb onto an Olympic podium. The last was David “The Dream” Defiagbon, who won silver at the Atlanta Games in 1996.
It’s official: Canadian boxer Wyatt Sanford is turning professional with Eye of the Tiger Management (EOTTM). The Paris 2024 Olympic bronze medalist will stay close to home in Canada. Naturally, Punching Grace, a Canadian media outlet, couldn’t pass up the opportunity to speak with the pride of Kennetcook, Nova Scotia.
Clearly, nothing makes more sense than a Canadian signing with the country’s top promotional company. But as Camille Estephan, EOTTM president, explained in a press release, Sanford isn’t just a local talent—he’s a two-time Olympian and medalist who garnered global interest from promoters. Sanford’s decision, therefore, went beyond hometown pride and logical choices.
It was a matter of trust.
“Eye of the Tiger has been on my radar for a few years. Boxing is a tough business. For me, what tipped the scales was how EOTTM value its boxers. Trust, respect… because if you’re entering this business, you need to be with people who will look for your best interests,” Sanford explained.
Photo: Leah Hennel / COC
Same Winning Team
Staying in Montreal, where he’s been training for years at the National Center, will allow Sanford to keep the same corner man: Vincent Auclair is back!
Of course, as the head coach of Boxing Canada, Auclair is a busy man. That’s why Sanford’s training camps will have a two-phase structure. Phase one will take place in Nova Scotia, with Brad Ross, head coach and director of high performance for Boxing Nova Scotia.
Ross is a trusted figure—Sanford has known him since he was 10 years old!
Still, Sanford made it clear that Auclair would steer the Bluenose (it’s the Nova Scotia’ ship on the Canadian dime). That’s why phase two of his training camp will take place in Montreal.
Photo: Leah Hennel / COC
“Sooner than later”
In Montreal, Wyatt Sanford won’t be rebuilding. To borrow a hockey analogy, like fellow Nova Scotian Sidney Crosby and his Penguins over the past two decades, Sanford is in “win-now” mode.
“I believe I have what it takes, and the team behind me, to win big fights sooner than later,” said the athlete, who turned 26 this past May.
Without skipping steps, Auclair also believes his protégé has what it takes.
“Wyatt has always been a physical boxer, even in Olympic-style boxing. In three-round fights, his best rounds were almost always the second and third, so we can already imagine what he’ll be capable of in the pros,” said Auclair, the former owner of Pound 4 Pound Boxing Club. He also praised Sanford’s cardio and punching power.
When asked about his debut weight class, Sanford replied, “The decision hasn’t been made yet, and I don’t have a strong preference, but it’ll be either 135 lbs or 140 lbs.”
The date of his professional debut is also yet to be determined.
At Every Level
Sanford’s Olympic bronze medal in Paris—and his participation in the Tokyo Games—are significant achievements.
But there’s more:
- Gold medal at the 2023 Pan American Games
- Silver medal at the 2023 Continental Championships
- Bronze medal at the 2022 Commonwealth Games
- Round of 16 at the 2019 World Championships
Here in Canada, he has won four junior national championships and numerous senior titles. “I’m not sure exactly how many; Boxing Canada hasn’t always been super clear. But I’ve been number one in the country since 2017,” he noted.
Few things make as much sense as this deal with EOTTM. For Wyatt Sanford, Camille Estephan, Vincent Auclair, and an entire nation, it marks the beginning of an amateur boxing champion’s journey to becoming “maîtres chez nous” in the professional ranks—a fitting nod to Hydro-Québec’s slogan.
For Sanford and Estephan, but also a whole country, that deal make making a ton of sense.
It was a unanimous decision. A true one.
Photo: Leah Hennel / COC
Borrowing a Notebook
Réjean Tremblay is now a columnist for Punching Grace! Conveniently, I learned some additional interesting details about Sanford that didn’t quite fit into the main story. So I borrowed Tremblay’s notebook for a moment:
- If I were writing for 7 Jours magazine, I’d start by noting that Sanford is married to swimmer and two-time Olympian Pamela Ware. It’s a small world—she even used to be partnered with David Lemieux’s wife, Jennifer Abel.
- It’s seems like everybody knows everybody in the Canadian amateur boxing scene. With a quick look on Boxrec, in the EOTTM roster, you’ll see that Sanford has already fought Arthur Biyarslaonv and Christopher Guerrero…
- If my friend Réjean Tremblay hadn’t let me borrow his notebook, I could have borrowed one from Sanford’s mother, Angela Sanford, owner of The High Tides, a local newspaper in Nova Scotia. Always on updated, as a journalist should be, she even reached out to Marc Ramsay to confirm the exact time of the announcement!
- Wyatt started boxing at age 10, and from that moment, he “just knew” it was for him. So far, it’s hard to argue with that…
