Normally, when Errol Spence Jr. has downtime in camp, you can find him blasting away on the latest hotshot video game. And that still holds true as he prepares to take on Alejandro Barrera on Saturday at The Bomb Factory in Dallas (NBC, 3 p.m. ET/noon PT).
Errol Spence Jr. delivers a shot during his win over Phil Lo Greco in Las Vegas in June. (Lucas Noonan/Premier Boxing Champions)
But there’s a bit less time for Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 during this camp, because Spence is also taking care of his brand-new, first-edition, mint-condition baby. Ivy Spence was born in early October, the first child for the fast-rising 147-pound contender.
Errol Spence learned early on that gaming with one arm and feeding his newborn with the other wasn’t a particularly practical approach after spilling her dinner on her head.
“It’s a little bit of a change,” he says. “The baby wakes up when she wants to, cries when she wants to, don’t sleep. It’s kind of different now, because I have to go by her hours sometimes. I’m loving it, though. I’m just enjoying the whole process of her being a baby.”
The challenges of being a father aside, Spence remains plenty focused on the challenges still ahead of him in the ring. He contends he doesn't feel any additional sense of pressure or urgency since Ivy's birth. In fact, he’s looking forward to more kids down the line, even as he sets his sights on winning a world title in not just one division, but two.
“I want to be a multidivision world champion—unify the titles at 147, become the undisputed world champion at 147 and 154,” Spence says. "Nothing has changed. I love my daughter, but [my career goals] haven’t changed.”
For full coverage of Spence vs Barrera, make sure to check out our fight page.
