Coming For the Knockout
From left: Jonny Mansour and Juju Ballo
Jonny Mansour and Juju Ballo take over Detroit’s Fox Theatre
By Sarah Kittle
Even if you haven’t read our previous article on Jonny “Magic” Mansour (“Fighting for Heritage,” October 2025), his name should sound familiar. Mansour, who turned 26 on July 22, is a 5’10” lightweight boxer out of San Diego with a 7-0 record, including two knockouts.
The two-time Golden Glove champion is the number one ranked lightweight amateur boxer in the United States; early on, he dedicated his career to his late mother whom he promised he would one day be a world champion.
Mansour recently visited the Chaldean Community Foundation in West Bloomfield with his cousin, Julius “Juju” Ballo, a 5’7” super featherweight fighter with a 3-0 professional record.
Juju Ballo, 23, made his professional debut just last year at the famed Madison Square Garden, winning the bout by unanimous decision; however, he views his gold medal victory at the 2021 Junior Pan Am Games as the biggest accomplishment of his amateur career.
Although he was born and raised in San Diego, Ballo’s parents, like Mansour’s, were born in Iraq. His father, Yasir “Jack” Ballo, introduced him to the “sweet science” of boxing at age 2.
He’s never stopped learning and training and his nearly 1.3 million followers on TikTok and Instagram are grateful.
Both fighters will bring their talents to the Fox Theatre on Saturday, August 29, to the excitement of the Chaldean and Middle Eastern communities in metro Detroit.
Mansour, whose boxing heroes are Prince Naseem Hamed and Amir Khan, received a FaceTime call from the latter after his third professional bout. Mansour’s style has been compared to both. “Prince Naseem also fought in Detroit,” the young boxer noted.
Asked where he would choose to fight if he could compete anywhere in the world, Mansour answered without hesitation: “Iraq.” During two visits to the country in 2025, he was actively recruited to represent his ancestral homeland at the 2028 Olympics.
That’s Mansour’s dream, and not just because they promised him a gold statue of himself in Baghdad should he win one of the coveted Olympic medals.
His non-boxing career of choice? “Working at the Chaldean American Chamber of Commerce,” he said without irony. He must have been quite impressed with his visit to the new center, which boasts a timeline of the Chamber, Foundation, and this publication, the Chaldean News.
Mansour just may have a career in the chamber industry after he retires—the California Chapter of the CACC recently launched in his hometown.
The Other Hometown
The pugilist cousins recently visited Shenandoah Country Club for a “media workout,” where a boxing ring was set up on the golf course and some sparring took place, to the delight of the spectators at the club and the many followers online.
“The love I feel from the community here is amazing,” Mansour shared with us after the event, which included fireworks and drew a large crowd. “The only place we gather in large numbers in California is church.”
He said he thinks the Chaldean community in Michigan is probably ten times larger than the west coast contingent. “They (Chaldeans) are everywhere (in Michigan),” he said, “I mean—not just stores but restaurants, hotels, clubs, and other businesses.”
He wants them all at the Fox Theatre on August 29. “We want 5,000 people—not just for the fight, but for the afterparty.
“This event is more than just a night of fights,” said Mansour. “It’s an opportunity to celebrate our roots, unite the community, and showcase world-class boxing in a city that means so much to us.”
Ballo feels the same. “Fighting in Detroit is more than just another bout for me. This is an opportunity to represent my family, my Iraqi and Chaldean roots, and to give back to a community that’s supported us from day one of this journey,” he said. “I’m looking forward to putting on a performance everyone will remember.”
The two cousins will headline separate bouts at the event, which will be the fourth professional boxing event to be hosted at the iconic venue.
The event is promoted by Salita Promotions in association with G2G promotions and Wynn Records. Tickets for the August 29 bout are on sale at 313presents.com and Ticketmaster. Watch Live: watch.wynnrecordsnetwork.com at 8 p.m. ET.