George Acosta recently caught up with Lukie of ITRBoxing.com, ahead of his upcoming bout this Friday, in Ontario, California, against Marlon “So Icey” Sims, on February 10th, at the DoubleTree Hotel.

The bout was originally set for June of 2022, but fell through, now nearly seven months later to the date, the two will do battle.

Acosta, who lost to undefeated Thompson Boxing prospect Ruben Torres, has seen his fortunes reserve since the crossroads bout, as Acosta has worked his way down to the 130 lbs division and is currently riding a six-fight winning streak including a win on the road over Gadwin Sosa.

“Sometimes you can have a really great fighter, but if they are put in a situation they are not prepared for yet, that can really change the career of a fighter,” said Acosta philosophically, as he also has been going back to school as well to expand his horizons on life, and reflected upon his own career. “I had that loss pretty early [in my career], it was my seventh or eighth fight…I think really evaluating and really checking myself and the help of my coach. We sat down and [said] ‘what are the improvements? What are the mistakes? What do we have to correct’?

In short, Acosta showed the resolve few fighters ever show instead of blaming fate, an injury, or misfortune, he looked in the mirror and asked the tough questions. Acosta sat with himself, and began to look at ways to get better.

One of the decisions was to move from 135 lbs down to 130 lbs, despite a big frame, to this date Acosta only has one knockout loss on his record. The move has made him a more imposing fighter who can switch between styles more comfortably.

I personally saw an improvement in Acosta when he fought Isaac Avelar in July of 2022, as he took a few good shots that for a fighter coming off a 14-month layoff could create doubt. Yet, Acosta was unphased and gathered his compsure and won the fight. To Avelar’s credit, he would upset his next opponent hefacd, meaning Acosta defeated a fighter who came to win.

“That fight was, I guess, my comeback fight, because I had over a year of inactivity,” said Acosta about facing Isaac Avelar. “You saw the fight. That guy is tough, he is legit and he has fought some world-class fighter. I envisioned myself coming out being a boxer, but I didn’t expect him to be as aggressive, so that was my mistake. At the end, I had to match his intensity.”

Yet, 2022 was saw more heartbreak for Acosta then triumph despite being one of the surging prospects under the Thompson Boxing stable. Acosta had three fights get canceled in 2022, and six since 2020, one of which being an alleged bout against 130 lbs contender Andres Cortes.

Sims might just be the toughest test Acosta has faced since the Ruben Torres fight, and makes for one of the best bouts of the weekend.

As we look at the stable of fighters with Thompson Boxing, Acosta is one of the more promising fighters who could take the leap to the next level very soon.