This could be a sad story about an aging boxer who lost his last fight, had his return to the ring delayed by COVID, and is in danger of being chewed up and spit out by a brutal sport that does not offer attractive retirement plans.
Because this is about Jamal James, this is a story about an optimist who transitions as easily between the dark arts of pugilism and the brightness of the life he's built as he does between left jabs and right hooks.
James helped resurrect boxing in Minneapolis, turning the Armory into a site for national fights and broadcasts. He is tentatively scheduled for his first fight in more than a year in February at the Armory, and he hopes to use that fight to reinvigorate his career at the age of 34.
