Most readers know Jonathan Anthony Burkett through his memoir, Neglected But Undefeated, or through the Friends 2 Lovers series. But on his shelf sits a different kind of book, one set in the gym and under the lights of the boxing ring: Fighting To Become Champions.
Goodreads lists the novel as published in 2015. His official website sums it up in one line: boxing friends become bitter rivals, and their feud ends up in the ring. It is listed there under “Novel and Nonfiction,” and it is available through the Upstormed shop.
A Story That Starts With Friendship
What makes the premise powerful is where it begins. These are not strangers or sworn enemies from the first page. They are friends who share the same sport and, it seems, the same dream.
Anyone who has played on a team, tried out for a lead role or applied for the same job as a close friend knows how quickly that can get complicated. Competition can sharpen us. It can also slowly turn admiration into envy, and envy into something harder.
Fighting To Become Champions takes that tension and puts it in the most honest arena there is: a boxing ring, where two people face each other with nowhere to hide.
Where It Fits in His Work
Jonathan’s books share a common thread. His official Books page describes his writing as being about what people do when life knocks them down. His memoir tells his own story: a happy early childhood with his grandparents in Jamaica, a painful return to his mother in the United States at six, homelessness at fourteen, and brain surgery on January 30, 2006. Through it all, he has said, faith carried him. As he wrote in that memoir, “Faith is why I’m here today and faith is why I made it through.”
The Friends 2 Lovers novels explore loyalty and love under pressure. Fighting To Become Champions brings the same questions into the world of sport: What do we do with our anger? Can a friendship survive a rivalry? What does it really mean to win?
If you are new to his books, our earlier guide, Where to Start Reading Jonathan Anthony Burkett, walks through each title.
Lessons for Families and Young Competitors
You do not have to love boxing to recognize this story. Parents watch it play out at swim meets, spelling bees and Friday night games. Here are a few conversations the novel’s premise can open at home:
- Compete hard, but keep your heart soft. Wanting to win is not wrong. Letting the win matter more than the person across from you is where trouble starts.
- Deal with the small grudges early. Bitter rivalries rarely begin with one big betrayal. They grow from little slights that never get talked through.
- Your opponent is still a person. Teach children to shake hands, to say “good game” and mean it, and to cheer for a friend even on a day they lose.
- Champions are built outside the ring too. Character, discipline and forgiveness last far longer than any title belt.
Scripture never tells us to stop running the race. It tells us to run it well:
“Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.”
— 1 Corinthians 9:24 (KJV)
Paul goes on to point to a prize that does not fade. The best competitors learn that the greatest victory is becoming the kind of person God made them to be, and bringing others along with them.
Why This Book Matters
Jonathan’s best-known words are a reminder that every person carries more than we can see: “You know my name, not my story. You’ve heard what I’ve done, but not what I’ve been through.” That is true of the rival across the ring, too. Behind every opponent is a story of struggle, hope and hard work.
A novel about two friends who turn against each other may sound like a story about fighting. At its heart, it is a story about the choices we make when pride, pain and ambition collide, and those are choices every family faces.
You can find Fighting To Become Champions on the Upstormed shop, see his full catalog on his Amazon author page, and follow his books on Goodreads.
Have you ever had a friendship tested by competition, and how did you find your way back? Share your story in the comments.
Learn more about Jonathan at www.jonathanburkett.com. Follow him on Instagram and Facebook.
Sources: Jonathan Anthony Burkett, official website, “Books” page (checked Nov 12, 2026); Goodreads, Jonathan Anthony Burkett author page and quotes; Upstormed shop, “Fighting To Become Champions”; Neglected But Undefeated (published facts); KJV 1 Corinthians 9:24.
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