Cain Sandoval says going away for training camp brought him to a new level last fight

Cain Sandoval left his hometown for training camp for the first time last fight, and now reflects on how he felt the best he has ever felt going into the ring.

Sandoval knocked out Mark Bernaldez last Friday in the fourth round of a scheduled 10-round bout from the Chumash Casino in Santa Ynez, California. 

Sandoval, 22, grew up in Sacramento, California. He became a decorated amateur there. For this camp he moved to Los Angeles and trained with Freddie Roach at Wild Card Boxing. Sandoval credits the move with how he felt. 

“This is probably the best I ever felt in a fight,” Sandoval told BoxingScene. “I was motivated and I felt sharp in the ring.”

The knockout performance marked Sandoval’s first fight of the year. Last year, Sandoval, 15-0 (13 KOs), fought three times, with his last four fights being scheduled for ten rounds. Sandoval now sits at the cusp of making the leap from being a prospect to a contender or, at the very least, becoming a well-known prospect.

“It felt good, we [Sandoval and Roach] clicked,” he said. “At the end of the third round, Freddie was like ‘you look pretty fucking good, man’ and I was like ‘thank you’. Then I literally knocked the guy out.”

Bernaldez, 25-7 (18 KOs), is an awkward 30-year-old veteran from the Philippines. Roach, Sandoval’s new coach, trained the most famous Filipino fighter ever – Manny Pacquiao. Sandoval grew up watching Pacquiao fight, and though he didn’t realize it in the moment, he reflected upon having a legend and Boxing Hall of Famer with him in the corner.

“After the fact it hit me,” Sandoval said of being trained by Roach. 

Sandoval is already targeting a fairly quick return, with just one goal in mind.

“Just keep winning,” Sandoval said. “I should be back in early summer.”

Lucas Ketelle is the author of “Inside the Ropes of Boxing,” a guide for young fighters, a writer for BoxingScene and a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. Find him on X at @LukieBoxing.