By Thomas Gerbasi

As a young man who was on the verge of making the 2008 and 2012 United States Olympic boxing team, Jordan Shimmell knows all about high-pressure situations and fighting in front of big crowds. Yet after falling short of Olympic glory, he had the make the trek up the professional ladder 99 percent of fighters make.

That meant fights in spots like the Motor City Casino, the Dance Land Ballroom and the Grand Plaza Hotel in Toledo. The MGM Grand it wasn’t, and when you’ve been fighting since the age of eight, it could make you wonder why you even do this. But Shimmell never got distracted from his goal of a world championship and those big fights every boxer dreams of.

“I was just being hopeful for something bigger later,” said Shimmell, a 19-0 cruiserweight who gets that something bigger on Saturday, when he makes his national television debut on NBCSN against fellow unbeaten Isiah Thomas. For him, this fight is the culmination of all those years in the gym and in amateur rings around the country. As for keeping things fresh, it all comes down to perspective.

“Training in the gym and going to other gyms and sparring with different guys, it’s all in preparation for the bigger fights,” said the Hudsonville, Michigan product, who has done rounds in the gym with heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko. “And with each win, each fight gets a little bit bigger and a little more important and now I’m on the national stage, where I get to shine a little more and hopefully build my name a little more than I have already. Each win is getting me one step closer.”

Against Thomas, the 26-year-old faces an old foe who defeated him as an amateur, but considering that the Detroit native beat Shimmell when the two were 14 years old, it’s nothing but an interesting trivia note. Both are far removed from that bout, though Shimmell admits that with “Both of us being from Michigan, we want to be the top guy from the State.”

More importantly though, both want to take their career to the next level, and a win on Saturday at The Palms in Las Vegas does that. Their 10-round clash is for the vacant USBA cruiserweight title, which ultimately results in an IBF ranking for the winner. Then there’s no turning back. As for the pressure of fighting on national TV with a world ranking on the line, Shimmell is playing it cool.

How?

“Basically by making sure I’m prepared and I’m ready for the fight with my conditioning and my mental game,” he said. “I’m going into it knowing that I’m in shape and ready. I have no injuries, no problems, no excuses. I feel like going into the fight is going to be another day in the office and I should come out on top.”

So it doesn’t feel different than any other fight?

“I can’t say it feels any different,” he said. “There’s more excitement for it, being my first TV fight and trying to get to 20-0, but I trained for this one just as I trained for every other one – hard and making sure that I’m ready.”

There’s no nonsense to Shimmell in or out of the ring. He shows up to do his job, wins, and moves on to the next one. It’s an admirable trait, as is the one that had him sticking around the amateur ranks in 2008, despite the likelihood of beginning a lucrative pro career a lot earlier than he ultimately did. He didn’t make the squad in 2012, but the decorated amateur proved by his desire to wear the red, white and blue in the Olympic Games that money isn’t his driving force, but making a mark on the sport is, and he believes he’s heading in the right direction.

“I feel like I’m on track, so I want to continue building my name and building my career to be at the top spot one day,” he said. “I’m patiently waiting, but I’ll get there and hopefully have the world title. I’d love to have that and have my name remembered. That’s the overall goal of mine and I’m looking forward to it in the near future.”

It’s going to be an interesting one, considering that Shimmell will be one of the rare American names in a cruiserweight division that has become quite the international proving ground. But despite a few early fights at heavyweight, he’s sticking around where he’s at, and he expects to make his title run at cruiserweight.

“I walk around at 200,” he said. (In my early pro career) I wanted to be busy and get a jump start on it all, and that was easier at heavyweight. But my natural weight class is here. I feel strong and ready here, so that’s where I’m going to stay and I’m ready for whatever the rest of my team and my advisor puts in front of me. I’ve just got to prepare myself for the one guy that’s in front of me. That’s what I’ve been doing so far and it’s what I’ll continue to do. Wherever I fight, whoever I fight, I’ll make sure I’m prepared and ready for what they have.”

It all starts Saturday.

“I know as long as I perform well Saturday night, there will be bigger fights in the future, and I look forward to that.”