Troy Nash Jr. is a standout amateur currently transitioning to the pros, but his greatest achievement thus far might be changing his family’s fortunes.

Nash, who made his debut in March with a unanimous decision win over Erion Johnson, will make his second pro fight against undefeated Roman Reyes in a featherweight bout at the Red Owl Boxing Arena in Houston on Friday, broadcast on DAZN.

Nash Jr. hails from Colorado Springs, Colorado, where his father relocated to around the time young Troy was born. Troy Sr., who had found trouble in Los Angeles, saw it follow him when he moved east.

Though Nash Sr. wouldn’t get into the specifics, he said that at one point he faced 10 years of incarceration. But the father was determined to do what he could to make a better life for the son.

“I didn’t want my actions to reflect on my son – he changed my life and my brother’s life,” Nash Sr. said about becoming a father. “It was time for a change, and my son was the reason we needed.”

Nash Jr. (1-0) is a 15-time amateur national champion, but that number doesn’t show all he had to overcome to achieve it.

“Me and his mom not being around due to various things – for me it was incarceration – most people don’t make it in his situation,” Nash Sr. said. “And if they do, they are not doing positive things. I am proud of my son because he is a good kid who changed the path of our whole family. His positive mindset rewrote the past, present and future of my family. His achievements made us want to do better. I can safely say that.”

With an amateur record of 140-16, Nash Jr. was widely viewed as one of the better prospects in the country. His pro debut saw him go four rounds against Johnson, who missed weight by a little over three pounds. Nash Jr.’s team believes that was one of the reasons why their fighter didn’t get a stoppage.

Nash Sr. is already pushing his son, and has brought in sparring partners for camp. The Nashes are treating each of Troy Jr.’s bouts like a big fight. And for a fighter in his second pro contest, a DAZN-streamed bout is a big fight.

“I want to keep my son motivated. I don’t want him to be bored and go through the motions, so we are stepping up his competition,” Nash Sr. said. “We are fighting a dangerous, undefeated fighter – or at least that is what his record says – and we are treating him as such.”

Lucas Ketelle is a proud member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and author of “Inside The Ropes of Boxing” (available on Amazon). Contact him on X @LukieBoxing.