Jamel Herring Celebrates The Marine Corps Birthday & Talks Future Opponents

One of the most celebrated days for the Marine Corps has arrived, and this is the time when Marines from the past and present post pictures of either the Marine Corps Ball or their favorite moment in the military. Marine Veteran and former super featherweight champion Jamel ‘Semper Fi’ Herring (24-4, 12 KOs), like any Marine, has joined the day’s festivities. Herring is coming off a huge first-round knockout victory over Nicholas Molina (13-1, 5 KOs) in NYC this past Tuesday and donated half his purse to various military organizations.

Not only is today heavily celebrated, but also tomorrow, as it’s Veteran’s Day, a salute to all who have served or are currently serving. Herring is temporarily putting boxing on hold for today to catch up with some of his fellow Marines whom he served with. It’s a tradition shared amongst all Marines where text messages and social media posts from around the world happen at an overwhelming rate.

Although Herring would love to attend a Marine Corps Birthday Ball each year, his career in boxing has not allowed it, as schedule conflicts have become more frequent than none. Last year, he celebrated the Marine Corps Birthday amongst kids within the ROTC program. Still, this year, he will be able to really let loose as he joins current active-duty Marines in celebrating the Marine Corps Birthday at Camp Lejeune, NC, next week. An excited Herring told FightsATW, “I’m going to the Ball! Nothing beats a Marine Corps Ball. This year, I was asked by my old unit to be a guest at their Ball, so I will be there next week. I’m looking forward to it.”

After Herring finishes celebrating the Marine Corps Birthday & Veteran’s Day, it’ll be back to the gym and focusing on what’s to come in 2024. Could it be a European tour with Joe Cordina, Josh Warrington, or Leigh Wood, or would a potential rematch with Lamont Roach Jr. make more sense if he becomes the WBA champ by beating Hector Luis Garcia later this month? Herring has options, but if none of those fights see the light of day, he’s perfectly fine with staying active and stepping into the ring three times next year. “There’s a business side to this where promoters say, ‘yea, let’s do this,’ but if I can’t get a fight with Cordina, I have no issues with a step-up fight from Molina just to stay busy and knock some more rust off.”

Herring has finished the year strong, and although many thought he would permanently retire after losing to Jamaine Ortiz, he showed that there is still some gas in the tank to make another world title run. Can Herring do enough to lure more prominent names in the division for a fight next year? Can a potential WBC ranking get him a fight with the champion, O’Shaquie Foster? These are all great questions to have answered as the calendar turns the page and introduces the new year.

Abraham Gonzalez

Abraham Gonzalez is the founder of FightsATW. His journalistic work has been published and used across several platforms to include online, network TV and promotional companies. He is an American Public University alumnus and a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA). Abraham was the Managing Editor for NYFights, Big Fight Weekend, contributed to FanSidedMMA and ProBoxTV.

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