Gordon creates own path to follow grandfather’s fighting footsteps

“I see Madison Square Garden almost every day of my life,” said UFC lightweight Jared Gordon. It’s part of the ritual that takes him from his home in Queens to Manhattan, where he puts in the work at the Renzo Gracie Academy and Church Street Boxing to prepare for his Sunday bout with Diego Ferreira.

That fight will take place in Austin, but one day the 29-year-old hopes he will be gracing “The Mecca,” a place that holds a little extra meaning to him since his grandfather, Sal Ferello, fought there.

Long before mixed martial arts announced its worldwide arrival, boxing was the be-all end-all in combat sports, and Ferello was a quality featherweight in the late-40s, compiling a 38-3-1 record that probably would have earned him a few titles these days. Back then, though, with just eight weight classes and one champion, Ferello had to be content with battling it out throughout the New York area, from Jerome Stadium and St. Nicholas Arena to even the Garden, where he fought three times, including on the undercard of the October 1950 bout between Rocky Graziano and Tony Janiro.