Down a dirt road in Pasco County the sound of a speed bag pours out of Dade City’s Boxing Club.

Rat. Tat. Tat. Tat. Tat.

Pasco High School rising sophomore Manny Tarango (9-4) is on his second workout of the day following a three or four mile run that morning.

“I have a lot more heart and a will that not a lot of people can break,” said the 145-pound amateur boxer.

In the small gym, Tarango trains without air conditioning year-round.

“I was 180 (pounds) when I first started boxing and I quickly moved down to 140,” said Tarango.

After just one year of training and with one year of fight experience, Tarango hit the national scene in early June. He placed third in the USA Junior Olympic National Championship in Charleston, West Virginia. He won his first-ever national fight.

“It’s pretty big,” said Salvador Jaurequi, Manny’s coach and the head trainer at Dade City’s Boxing Club. “I mean there’s many guys that wish they would be at that level.”

“I am happy I just got there, but to take home bronze in general, that’s something I won’t forget for a long time,” said Tarango.

When Manny is feeling good in a fight he breaks out his favorite combination.

Jab. Right Cross. Left Hook. Right Cross.

“He’s got a lot of heart and he shows no pain,” said Jaurequi. “I mean the sweat and everything, he loves it.”

Manny has the brains and the brawn. He is enrolled Pasco’s honors program, the Cambridge program, with a 4.2 GPA. He is studying to be an electrical engineer, but idolizing boxers like Sugar Ray Leonard, he also dreams of turning pro.

“One day I hope to actually end up winning a world title and that’s probably my biggest dream above all,” said Tarango.

“Even if I don’t hold it long, or I am not the biggest Pay -Per-View star of all time, just to say I won a world title and I’m that kid that came from a very very small town and was able to take that, that would mean the world to me."

Manny is training for his next major national fight in August in Missouri, the Ringside World Championships.  To help with his travel expenses, click here.