Born in Paterson, New Jersey, he and his family moved to Salinas, Puerto Rico, where he was raised until he turned 18. Penaranda picked up boxing at the age of 13, learning from his neighbor, former heavyweight boxer Victor Bisbal, who trained him at the Cholo Espada Boxing Club. Penaranda, whose stepfather was a Pentecostal pastor, was raised in a strict, conservative household where the idea of punching people for sport was considered a bad example for the community. He trained in secret until the day his mother caught him in the boxing gym and proceeded to spank him with the jump rope. After talking it over with Bisbal, she remembered her own childhood rebellion and gave her reluctant blessing.
Justin Penaranda, hidden and then humbled, now wants his hard work known
