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Formerly Homeless Boxer Wins 2nd Straight Golden Gloves Title

 Antoine Cobb won the Chicago Golden Gloves finals.
Antoine Cobb won the Chicago Golden Gloves finals.
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Antoine Cobb

ENGLEWOOD — Antoine Cobb has been fighting most of his life, but it's finally paying off.

The 21-year-old won the state title for the Chicago Golden Gloves over the weekend. He competed against boxers of all ages in the 152-pound weight class and won his finals bout by a unanimous decision.

Last month he won his preliminary bout by a unanimous decision. This is his second straight trip to the finals. He won the state title in the novice division for 147-pound fighters last year.

"I felt great," he said about the most recent win. "Everything I have been working for all paid off in the end."

Even before Saturday, Cobb continued speaking about the competition as if he had already won.

The Englewood native has been through a lot.

His family's home was foreclosed on during his junior year at Simeon high school. They lived in a homeless shelter for three months before moving in with his grandmother.

Life has improved a lot, he said. The family is living on their own now.

When he's not training at Body Shot Boxing Club, 600 W. Cermak Road, with his coach, Montell Griffin — a former professional boxer and WBC light-heavyweight title holder — he's working a part-time job at a retail store.

The next step is to prepare for the nationals, which will be held in Louisiana in May.