FIGHTERS OF THE 20th CENTURY

  

TRUFANBOXING remembers

July 1940
 
 
JOEY GIAMBRA ; Was He A Champion Without A Title ?


For a decade ( 1952-1962 ) Joey Giambra was a mainstay among the middleweight elite. Still he never received a shot at the middleweight title. In fact he received his only title shot at the tail end of his career battling for the newly created junior middleweight division. He was not successful. Nevertheless in his prime he was as good as any middleweight contender in the world.

Joey turned pro in 1949 and went undefeated in his first seventeen fights. His first loss was to tough veteran Johnny Ceserio in 1951. He then reeled off ten straight victories before losing a 1952 decision to the great Joey Giardello. Giambra would come right back to beat Giardello in a rematch.

Giambra then won nine straight before losing to the clever Bobby Dykes. Joey had five more wins before dropping a verdict to Carl " Bobo " Olson. Giambra then went unbeaten in his next ten bouts including two wins over the rugged Rocky Castellani and a victory over Philadelphia's tough Gil Turner. Joey then lost a points call against rough Rory Calhoun.

Giambra would not be denied and he would rally to win seventeen straight including revenge victories over Calhoun and Giardello in their rubber match. Throw in a win over Ralph " Tiger " Jones. In 1961 he was outpointed by Yama Bahama. In 1962 he dropped one to Farid Salim. Joey would bounce back again to score a kayo over the dangerous Florentino Fernandez. That led to a bout with Denny Moyer for the newly introduced junior middleweight division title. The cagey Moyer won the judge's votes and the title.

In 1963 Joey reached the end of the line losing decisions to Luis Rodriguez and Joe DiNucci. In all he had 77 fights and he walked away a winner 65 times. He scored 31 knockouts and remarkably considering the competition he faced, Giambra was never stopped. He was truly an " uncrowned champion ".
 
                                                                 Jim Amato

 

 

 

 

THE TERRIFIC BOXER IN  . .

HOWARD DAVIS JR.

In many of my past articles I have touched on boxers who came so close to winning a world title but just fell short. Talented fighters who I have no doubt in today's four title per weight division format would have garnered a piece of the pie. The extremely gifted Howard Davis Jr. would be a champ today. That to me is a no brainer.

Howard was born in 1956 and he is among the most decorated amateur boxers of all time. On his way to the 1976 Olympics he defeated the likes of Thomas Hearns and Aaron Pryor. He won the 1976 Olympic Gold Medal and was voted the most outstanding boxer of the Olympics. He beat out Sugar Ray Leonard for that distinction. Quite an honor.

After posting a 125-5 amateur record, Howard turned pro in 1977 with a six round decision over veteran Jose Resto. By the end of the year he had stopped Tury "The Fury" Pineda. Tury had twice unsucessfully challenged for the WBC lightweight title against Guts Suzuki. I now knew Howard Davis was for real. In 1978 Howard won tough verdicts over Jose Fernandez, Larry Stanton and Norman Goins. These men were no "pad your record" stiffs. They were capable professionals. In 1979 Davis stopped Jose Hernandez in a rematch and then outscored the gutsy Maurice "Termite" Watkins.

In 1980 Howard won a twelve rounder over slick Vilomar Fernandez and that set up his first title shot. On June 7th Davis met WBC lightweight titleholder Jim Watt in Watt's native Scotland. The vastly under rated Watt won a fair fifteen round decision decision to retain his title. Howard would quickly bounce back and win a ten rounder over rugged Johnny Lira. In 1981 Davis stopped Larry Stanton in a return go. In 1982 he outpointed Julio Valdez and Claude Noel. In 1983 he out speeded hard hitting Tony Baltazar and George Feeney. Howard then stopped Greg Coverson in eight.

It was now time for title shot #2. On June 23rd, 1984 Davis would meet the dangerous Puerto Rican Edwin "Chapo" Rosario. The flashy Davis gave Rosario fits but the hard hitting Rosario was relentless. A late round rally saved Rosario's title by a close decision. In 1986 Howard was upset by Joe Manley. In 1987 Davis would lose to Hector "Macho" Camacho. Howard regrouped and won three straight. That led to a shot at James "Buddy" McGirt's IBF junior welterweight title. In a stunner McGirt took out Howard in round one. That would pretty much end Howard's tenure as a world class contender. Davis made an ill advised comeback in the 1990's but it all ended in 1996 when he was blasted out in two rounds by Dana Rosenblatt.

In all Davis had 43 professional bouts. His final ledger was 36-6-1 with 14 KO's. He was only stopped on two occasions. In all Howard met seven world champions and five others who challenged for the title. He may have been the best amateur boxer the United States ever produced. You can make a case as saying, "he was good as Gold".

I had the pleasure and honor of meeting Howard at a banquet a few years back. He was very fan friendly and signed many autographs. It was nice talking to him. He was a class act. That is how Howard Davis Jr. should be remembered. That is how I'll remember him.

                                                                                           Jim Amato

VIDEO: WHAT HOWARD DAVIS IS DOING TODAY

 

 

 

 

 

 

THERE WAS ONCE A CONTENDER NAMED . . .

Manuel Ramos - Mexican Heavyweight

By Jim Amato
When you think of Mexican fighters it is usually a tough little hombre like a Ruben Olivares, Vincente Saldivar or Julio Cesar Chavez. More often then not the better battles from Mexico scaled under 160lbs. In an exception to the rule during the mid 60’s to the early 70’s this country produced a pretty fair heavyweight. He fought two world champions and nine others that vied for the heavyweight crown. His name was Manuel Ramos. Although he lost almost as many as he won, the names on his resume are quite impressive.

When Ramos made his way from Mexico to the West Coast he quickly began meeting the best opposition available. In 1964 he lost a decision to Henry Clark and drew with Jory Orbillo. In 1965 he lost a rematch to Orbillo and drew with George Johnson. He finished the year losing by knockout to Lars Norling.

In 1966 Manuel began a win streak that would carry him to a world title shot. He knocked out Norling in a rematch and then stopped Archie Ray in eight. Next Manuel would outpoint faded ex-contender Eddie Machen. In 1967 Ramos halted James J. Woody in two and then on October 14th in Mexico City he faced ex-WBA Heavyweight champion Ernie Terrell. Manuel scored an upset ten round decision. Two victories in 1968 brought Manuel’s streak to fifteen strait and set up a title fight with “Smokin” Joe Frazier. The bout took place June 24th at Madison Square Garden. Joe held the New York State Heavyweight crown when he entered the ring and two rounds later he left with his crown intact. Joe overwhelmed Ramos in what would be Manuel’s only shot. Three months later Manuel was taken apart by George Chuvalo on five rounds.

Ramos began to rebuild his career in 1969 by beating Tony Doyle but Jack O’Halloran stopped him in his next bout. Manuel had seven bouts in 1970 and won only one of them. He lost to Chuck Wepner, Joe Bugner, Jimmy Richards and Joe “King” Roman. He drew with Ron Stander and was stopped in one round by Oscar “Ringo” Bonevena. Manuel had seven more bouts in 1971 and again won only one losing to Jurgen Blin, Jack Bodell, Elmo Henderson, Terry Daniels, Stander and Ron Lyle.

In 1973 Ramos was halted in four by Johnny Hudgins. Then in 1973 he lost to Luis Pires and Armando Zanini. In his last chance at the big time he faced Olympian Duane Bobick but was halted in seven rounds thus finishing him as a formidable heavyweight.

JA

 

 

CLASSIC 70's JIMMY YOUNG THE BEST BOXER OF THE DECADE

The 1970's, the Golden Era of modern heavyweights. The era of Ali and Frazier. Of Foreman, Norton and later Holmes. Of bangers like Ron Lyle, Jerry Quarry and Earnie Shavers. A smooth boxing, counter punching master like Jimmy Young was overshadowed by Ali, Frazier and Foreman. Then later by the Norton and Larry Holmes. He was so close and yet so far. He had two shots at the championship and came out on the short end of two controversial decisions. Then just like that he went from contender to trial horse to also ran.

   In his prime as I would like to remember him, Jimmy Young was one heck of a fighter. Jimmy twice outscored the feared Ron Lyle. He was stopped by Earnie Shavers ( no shame there ), but he also drew with Shavers. Everyone knows that his claim to fame was gutting out a painfully terrible seventh round and then coming back to outlast and out punch an exhausted George Foreman in a major upset. Big George would not fight again for ten years !

   Before Jimmy beat Foreman he had met an aging Muhammad Ali for the world's title. It was obvious the training was not a top priority for Muhammad. He must have taken Jimmy very lightly. The fight turned out to be a real stinker that went to the scorecards after fifteen rounds. Ali got the verdict and retained his crown. Many felt Jimmy did enough to win. I disagree with that. It was a close but utterly boring tussle. Young had his moments but his ducking through the ropes to avoid punishment did not endear him to the fans or the judges.

Young, right, against Muhammad Ali (1976)

   When Jimmy rebounded from the Ali setback and defeated Foreman, it led to a match with #1 contender Ken Norton. Ali had lost his title to Olympian Leon Spinks. The W.B.C. wanted Leon to defend against the deserving Norton. Leon opted for a lucrative return against Ali. The W.B.C. then stripped Leon and matched Norton with Young. Although I thought Jimmy lost to Ali or should I say he didn't do enough to take the title. I thought he earned the nod against Norton in a hard fought, competitive battle. Kenny won the decision and the recognition of the W.B.C as titleholder. Jimmy then lost two decisions to Ossie Ocasio that began his fade into boxing oblivion.

   Jimmy was not an exciting fighter but he was well schooled. He was a real master of his craft. He had a stinging jab. He was a slick defensive boxer who was very good at making his opponent miss and then counter punching. He had a very good right hand counter that had some pop to it. He was also a decent body puncher who was not afraid to mix it up on the inside. He was not overly great at one thing but was very adept at doing a lot of things.

   He reminded me a lot of the great light heavyweight champion Harold Johnson. An outstanding fighter who is often overlooked because of his conservative style. I guess the best way to describe Harold and Jimmy is that they were consummate professionals.

Jim Amato

 

RUBEN CASTILLO ; He Should Have Been A Champion
 
 
I          In the 1970's and 80's, there were basically two title belts to be won. The WBA or the WBC versions. The IBF and WBO would come later. Ruben Castillo who was born in 1957 in Lubbock, Texas. He would not benefit from the four organization system we have today. That is a shame ! Ruben joins Alvaro "Yaqui" Lopez, "Bad" Bennie Briscoe, Armando Muniz and so many others who would have claimed a piece of a title. Men who if they were fighting today would be champions.

                       Ruben Castillo turned pro in 1975 and in his maiden year won 13 in a row. He followed with eight more victories in 1976. In 1977 the undefeated Castillo entered the ill fated US Boxing Tournament. He proved he was no joke by defeating the talented Kenny Weldon and then he solidified his position by out pointing New York's Walter Seeley. The US Tourney went belly up but Ruben had shown he was a prospect to be taken seriously.

                       Ruben won six more in 1978 and added 12 more in 1979. On January 20,1980 the 46-0 Castillo challenged the legendary Alexis Arguello for the WBC Super Featherweight title. Razor close on the cards after ten rounds the, "Explosive Thin Man" stopped Ruben in round eleven. Nevertheless Ruben had made a statement. He was a viable contender.

                       In April of 1980 Castillo met the gifted Salvador Sanchez for the WBC featherweight title. The great but tragic Sanchez had to hustle to out score Ruben over the real distance of fifteen rounds. In 1983 Castillo would later challenge the iron fisted Juan LaPorte for the WBC featherweight crown. Juan won the title after the sad death of Salvador Sanchez. LaPorte is a fighter who is worth consideration for the Boxing Hall Of Fame. Juan won a convincing decision over Castillo.

                      Ruben forged on and in 1985 he met the great Julio Cesar Chavez for the WBC 130 pound title. A prime Chavez stopped Ruben in six. Castillo would lose four of his next five through 1989 and retire. He returned in 1995 and went 6-1 before being stopped by the slashing fists of Rudy Zavela.

                     In all Castillo went to the post 81 times. His final ledger was 69-10-2. He won 37 by knockout. He was only stopped by Arguello and Chavez. No shame there. Ruben Castillo was one hell of a fighter !

                                                                                                      Jim Amato

 

 

CRUISERWEIGHTS, HEAVYWEIGHTS AND . . .

JIMMY ELLIS

By Jim Amato

    It's too bad that the cruiserweight division was not around in the 60's and 70's. Many fine boxers scaled under 190 pounds and gave creditable performances against bigger men. Doug Jones is an example as he came close to upsetting Cassius Clay in 1963. Doug had lost in 1962 to Harold Johnson for the light heavyweight title. In 1965, he lost to Ernie Terrell for WBA Heavyweight crown. Back then there was no middle ground. If you weighed over 175 pounds, you fought heavyweights, period.

    Bob Foster, who was one of the greatest light heavyweights of all time, had trouble moving up to heavyweight. Jones, Terrell, and Zora Foley soundly beat him in heavyweight bouts. After winning the light heavyweight crown in 1968, he failed in attempts to beat Joe Frazier and Muhammad Ali. How would he have fared at 190 pounds?

    I'm sure if you took all the top boxers who weighed between 175 pounds and 190 pounds since 1960; most experts would rate Holyfield number one. How would a 190-pound Holyfield have coped with Floyd Patterson's hand speed? How about Bob Foster's reach and devastating punch? Could he have beaten Jimmy Elllis? Before you laugh, take a look at Jimmy's record. He started as a middleweight in 1961 and through 1964 he lost five bouts to Holly Mims, Henry Hank, Rubin Carter, Don Fuller and George Benton. All top middleweight contenders. By the time he blasted out Johnny Persol in one round in 1967, he had grown into a heavyweight. He swept the WBA elimination tournament by beating Leotis Martin, Oscar Bonevena and Jerry Quarry. Jimmy twice had the iron jawed Bonevena on the canvas, something Joe Frazier could not do in 25 rounds of fighting. Against Frazier, Ellis weighed in over 200 pounds. He looked flabby and after a few rounds became sluggish. The following year Jimmy met his long time friend Muhammad Ali. Jimmy was in great shape at 189 pounds. His muscles were tight and he looked fit. Unfortunately, Ali was too big. He wore Jimmy down and stopped him in round twelve. I believe the Jimmy Ellis of the Ali fight could have given any 190 pounder since 1960 a run for their money, including Evander Holyfield. Ellis was a slick boxer with sharp reflexes. He had a good left hand and a sneaky right. He also had loads of courage. How many fighters could have gotten to their feet before the count of ten after catching Joe Frazier's full swing left hook flush on the jaw? Jimmy is one of the most overlooked heavyweight champions of the last four decades. This may be due in part because he boxed in the Ali-Frazier era. I've often wondered what the outcome may have been had Bob Foster challenged Ellis for the WBA title. Now that might be a dream match to run through a computer

JA

 

 

 

 

REMEMBERING THE TITANS OF THE BOXING RING

OSCAR " SHOTGUN " ALBARADO


He was a hard banger and a crowd pleaser who battled some of the best welterweights of his era. Eventually he would move up to 154 pounds and win a world title in that division. He thrilled crowds in his home state of Texas and would also become a popular draw on the West Coast. His name was Oscar Albarado and they called him " Shotgun ".

Born in 1948, Oscar turned professional in 1966 and reeled off 25 straight victories. He suffered his first loss via a decision to the highly touted Hedgemon Lewis in 1969. He came back in 1970 with two wins over Youngstown, Ohio veteran L.C.Morgan. Oscar would then drop verdicts to rated contenders Adolph Pruitt and " Have Mercy Mr. Percy " Pugh.

Albarado bounced back with five straight wins including a decision over rugged Raul Soriano. He was then upset over ten rounds by Manuel Fierro. In May of 1971 Oscar met then undefeated Armando Muniz and the two battled to a draw in an action packed bout. Oscar would then lose a decision to top contender Ernie " Red " Lopez. Albarado would win seven in a row but in 1973 he was surprised in one round by Dino Del Cid. Oscar came right back to stop Del Cid in the second round of a rematch.

In June of 1974 Oscar traveled to Tokyo, Japan take on world junior middleweight king Koichi Wajima. In a tough battle Albarado rallied to halt Wajima at 1:57 of the fifteenth round to capture the crown. Oscar would return to Japan to defend against Wajima's countryman Ryu Sorimachi. Albarado retained his title with a seventh round stoppage. It was back to Tokyo again to face Wajima in a rematch. This time Wajima paced himself and fought a smart fight in regaining his title by decision. There would be no rubber match.

It would be over five years before Oscar boxed again and it was obvious he was no longer the same fighter. He did find himself matched with some pretty good fighters though. In 1981 he was kayoed by Bobby Czyz and Bernard " Superbad " Mays. In 1982 he was taken out by Louis Arcaries and John Collins. Finally he was stopped in two rounds by Ayub Kalule in his last fight.

Albarado ended his 72 fight career with a record of 58-13-1. He scored 43 knockouts. He was stopped seven times but six of those stoppages came after his five year layoff. In his prime he was a game and durable fighter with a lethal punch.

 
                                                                          Jim Amato

 

A SHORT BIO OF . . .

"IRISH" FRANKIE CRAWFORD

 He was a world class featherweight in the late 1960's and early 70's. He twice fought for a piece of the world title. He was from my hometown of Cleveland. His name was Frankie Crawford.

Frankie grew up in the East 65th, St.Clair area of Cleveland. Tough area then. Tough area now. Crawford grew up learning to defend himself. He learned well. He won the 1965 Cleveland Golden Gloves. He was told for a small boxer to make money, he needed to go to California. Frankie heeded that advice. He turned pro in LA in 1965. He became an immediate crowd pleaser and draw for West Coast promoters.

On October 5, 1967 Frankie met the once beaten "Golden Boy", the teenage whiz kid Mando Ramos. Mando walked out with his second career loss. Four months later the prodigy Ramos avenged the decision. Nevertheless Crawford had earned a ton of respect. Frankie's career took a major hit in 1968 when he was stopped in eight by the talented Dwight Hawkins. Frankie would bounce back.

On July 5th 1970 Frankie would get a shot at the WBA Featherweight title against Shozo Saijo in Japan. Crawford lost a close majority decision. He would meet Saijo again eight months later but this time Saijo won a conclusive decision. Later that year Crawford lost decisions to former world champ Vincente Saldivar and top lightweight contender Ruben Navarro. Frankie had now entered the downside if his fine career.

He would be taken out in one round by the hard punching Ben Villaflor. He dropped a decision to Hugo Barraza and then was halted in two by Ray Lunny III. The slide contiued in to 1973 as Frankie dropped verdicts to Bobby Chacon and Eder Jofre. It all ended in 1976 when Crawford lost in seven rounds to Jose Luis Ramirez.

In all "Irish" Frankie Crawford had 61 pro fights. His record was 38-18-5. It is a very deceiving record based on the quality of his opposition. Crawford was a true and deserving contender. His record speaks for itself.

                                                                                    Jim Amato

 

 

EDDIE MACHEN ; He Met The Best
 

He was one of the best heavyweights of his era and possibly one of the
 best heavyweights to have never claimed the title. He fought the best of
 the late 1950's and 60's with a high degree of success.

      Eddie Machen was born on July 15, 1932 in Redding, California and he
 entered the punch for pay ranks in 1955. Eddie won all eleven of his bouts
 during his maiden year including a knockout over highly regarded Howard
 King.

      In 1956 Eddie added eight more victories and established himself as a
 force to be reckoned with in the heavyweight division. He twice defeated
 Julio Mederos and also won two bouts against the dangerous Nino Valdes.
 Eddie closed 1956 with a points victory over tough Johnny Summerlin.

      Machen opened 1957 with a pair of wins over the clever former light
 heavyweight champion Joey Maxim of Cleveland. He also defeated Bob Baker and closed the year with a kayo over Tommy " Hurricane " Jackson. Eddie  was now a leading contender for Floyd Patterson's heavyweight title.

Eddie Machen/BoxRec

      It was in 1958 that the fortunes of Eddie Machen's career began to
 take a turn. He opened the year by battling to a draw with the slick Zora
Folley. Then came the bout that shocked the boxing world. Eddie traveled
 to Sweden to meet Ingemar Johansson. the fight would last only 2:16 but it
 would thrust Ingo into a title fight against Patterson and leave Eddie on
 a long waiting list. Ingo would upset Floyd to win the crown and then
 Patterson would roar back to regain it. That would set up a rubber match
 that Floyd would win. From the time Eddie lost to Ingo and the conclusion
 of the Patterson-Johansson trilogy, two and a half years had passed.

      After the loss to Ingo, Eddie won seven straight and then was matched
 again with Zora Folley. This time Zora got the verdict. Machen rebounded
 with three more wins including Alex Miteff and Alonzo Johnson among his
 victims.

      On September 7, 1960 Eddie stepped into the ring to face the feared
 Sonny Liston. To many Liston was the " Uncrowned Heavyweight Champion "
 and a bout with Patterson was being called for by the fans and press
 alike. Only Eddie stood in Sonny's way.  The bout took place in Seattle and
 Eddie gave the brutish Liston all he could handle. In the end Sonny took a
 unanimous decision despite losing three points for low blows.
 Nevertheless, Eddie's game showing won him the admiration of boxing fans.
 Despite the win over the highly ranked Machen, Sonny would have to wait
 two more years to get Patterson into the ring with him.

      Eddie would come back to win three in a row but then he was upset
 over ten rounds by the cagey Harold Johnson. Machen would regroup and put   together a streak of ten wins and one draw. The draw was with the
 murderous punching Cleveland Williams. Among the boxers Eddie beat during  this streak were Mike DeJohn, Brian London, Doug Jones and Bert
 Whitehurst. This finally led Eddie to the ghost that had long eluded him,
 Floyd Patterson.

      By now it was 1964 and Eddie returned to Sweden, the place of his
 disasterous loss to Johansson to face Floyd. This was one of of
 Patterson's best career performances as won a hard fought decision over
 Machen. Still Eddie had done well enough to qualify for a title fight.

      On March 5, 1965 Eddie met tall, lanky Ernie Terrell for the " vacant
 " World Boxing Association title. Cassius Clay, a.k.a., Muhammad Ali had
 been stripped of his title by the WBA. The Terrell-Machen battle was not a
 good pairing of styles and after a rather boring fifteen rounds, Terrell
 was awarded the championship. Eddie would close 1965 by drawing with Elmer   Rush.

      Machen would open 1966 with back to back decision losses to Karl
 Mildenberger and Manuel Ramos. He would the outfight the tough Joey
 Orbillo. Next Eddie would show flashes of his former greatness and pull
 off a major upset with a points win over top prospect Jerry Quarry.

      Two fights after the upset of Quarry, Eddie would meet another
 streaking prospect, 1964 Olympic champion, Joe Frazier. This time Lady
 Luck looked the other way for Eddie and he was halted by " Smokin' Joe "
 in the tenth round.

      Machen was now relegated to the role of a trail horse. In 1967 he
 dropped a decision to up and coming Henry Clark. In his last professional
 fight, Eddie was stopped in three by hard hitting Boone Kirkman.

      In all Eddie had 64 pro fights. He won 50 of them. He took out 29
 opponents. He fought champions Liston, Patterson, Johansson, Terrell,
 Frazier, Maxim and Harold Johnson. He also did battle with top contenders
 like Zora Folley, Cleveland Williams, Alex Mitiff, Mike DeJohn, Willie
 Besmanoff, Doug Jones, Tommy Jackson, Nino Valdes, Karl Mildenberger,
 Jerry Quarry, Bob Baker, Bert Whitehurst, Howard King, Henry Clark, Julio
 Mederos, Joey Orbillo, Brian London, Wayne Bethea and Boone Kirkman. That  is very impressive !

      Eddie Machen was only forty years old when he left this world. It was
 only five years after his last fight but he left a legacy that will live
 forever.

      Jim Amato

 

 

 

ENGLAND' S RUGGED JIMMY BATTEN

 

As rough and tumble Ricky Hatton of England gets set to enter into the ring with Manny Pacquiao this weekend. I am reminded of another tough battler from across the pond. He may not have reached the heights of Hatton but he was good enough to hold the British light middleweight title for a couple of years in the late 1970's. He also traveled ten rounds with the great Roberto Duran. His name was Jimmy Batten.

Batten was born in 1955 and turned professional in 1974. He worked his way up the British rankings and in 1977 after Maurice "Mo" Hope vacated the British light middleweight title, Batten was matched with Albert Hillman. Batten stopped Hillman in round seven to win the vacant title. He would defend that title twice with kayo victories over Larry Paul and Tony Poole.

In 1978 he would be matched with France's Gilbert Cohen for the vacant European light middleweight crown. This time Batten would fall short as Cohen stopped him in the third round. Finally in 1979 Batten lost his British title to Pat Thomas. Nevertheless he remained active and competitive. In 1982 he came to Atlantic City and was surprisingly stopped by hard hitting but erratic Mario Maldonado in the first round.

Later in 1982 Batten was matched with the legendary Roberto Duran. At this point though the legend of the great Duran had been tarnished. He was only a few years removed from the "No Mas" loss to Sugar Ray Leonard. He attempted redemption against Wilfred Benitez but "Wilfred The Wizard" outboxed him. Then to add insult to injury, Roberto was outscored by an unheralded Brit by the name of Kirkland Laing. The loss to Laing was claimed the 1982 Upset Of The Year by Ring Magazine. The Duran - Batten bout took place in Miami Beach as the "walk out" bout after the first Aaron Pryor - Alexis Arguello classic. If Roberto was expecting an easy night, he was wrong. Although Duran won a decision by a comfortable margin, Batten showed pluck as he fought him tooth and nail. If anyone thought that Batten had gone ten rounds with a "washed up" Duran, they were wrong. In his next fight Duran would halt Pipino Cuevas. Then he would savage and upset Davey Moore to become a champion again. Roberto followed that by giving Marvelous Marvin Hagler fifteen rounds of hell.

Batten remained as one of England's best 154 pounders. In 1983 he was matched with Prince Rodney for his old British light middleweight crown that had been vacated by the classy and talented Herol Graham. Batten failed to regain his title as Rodney stopped him in the sixth round. That was Jimmy Batten's last bout. He left the ring with a more then respectable 40-9 record.

                                                                                                 Jim Amato

 

 

BIG EARNIE ; THAT MAN COULD SWING !

 Possibly the best heavyweight to ever come out of the state of Ohio was Earnie "The Acorn" Shavers. Born on August 31, 1945 in Alabama, his real name is Earnie Dee Shaver. He attended school in Warren, Ohio and made a name for himself as a football player. Earnie was just a great all around athlete and when the boxing bug bit him, he took to it like a duck to water.

What Earnie accomplished in boxing is phenomenal but the world championship eluded him. Nevertheless in both of his failed attempts at the crown, he left an indelible mark in the memory of those who witnessed the bouts. Earnie became a professional boxer in 1969. He won his first two fights by KO and dropped a six rounder to Stan Johnson. Two fights later he stopped J.D.McCauley, the uncle of future champion James "Buster" Douglas. In 1970 Shavers suffered his second loss. He was halted by future title challenger Ron Stander. Earnie would then run off a 32 fight win streak in which he kayoed 31 opponents. Only former WBA light heavyweight titleholder Vincente Rondon went the ten round route with him.

     

The streak led Earnie to his first shot at the big time. In June of 1973 Shavers met former WBA heavyweight champion Jimmy Ellis at Madison Square Garden. Jimmy was still a serious contender and he was hoping a win over the red hot Shavers would put him back into the title picture. The fight started at a fast pace and Jimmy appeared to have stunned Shavers. Ellis went after Earnie. Then out of nowhere Shavers unleashed an uppercut with KO written all over it. Down went Ellis in a semi-conscious condition. He was counted out. It was over and Earnie was an instant contender. Jimmy's astute manager Angelo Dundee said his guy got caught by a sucker punch. Whatever it was, Shavers was in the Top Ten.

In December Shavers returned to Garden to face the highly ranked and enormously popular "Irish" Jerry Quarry. The winner could be in line to fight heavyweight champion George Foreman. This time the tables were turned on Earnie. Quarry hurt him early and did not let him off the hook. Finally the referee intervened to save Shavers. In less then two rounds Earnie's career had peaked and then collapsed. A 1974 loss to solid journeyman Bob Stallings made it appear that Shavers was just a flash in the pan. Later in 1974 Shavers drew with clever Jimmy Young. A fighter he had stopped in 1972. Little did we know at that time how good Jimmy Young would become.

In 1975 Shavers met the dangerous Ron Lyle. This was one of the best heavyweight fights I've ever seen. Earnie had Lyle down early in the fight. Lyle arose right before the bell. He then proceeded to out punch Earnie in a classic slug fest. Finally Lyle pounded Shavers to the canvas like a man hammering a nail into a floor. It was over in round six. Surely Shavers was through...BUT...Earnie embarked on a comeback that brought him back to the forefront of the heavyweight division. He beat the respected Henry Clark twice. The second time by a convincing KO. He came from behind to halt the feared Roy "Tiger" Williams. He then halted Howard "Kayo" Smith in two. This led Earnie to a title shot against "The Greatest", Muhammad Ali. It was 1977 at the Garden and by God, Ali and Shavers put on a show. Several times during the bout Earnie's bombs rocked Ali to his very foundation. Still Ali was still Ali and sucked it up to out score Shavers. In defeat though, Earnie gained a legion of loyal fans.

In 1978 Shavers met upstart Larry Holmes. In this bout Holmes served notice that he was a future star. He out boxed and shut out Shavers over ten rounds. Later Holmes would win the WBC version of the heavyweight title in an action packed fifteen rounder against Ken Norton. In 1979 Earnie met Norton in a title eliminator. Shavers eliminated Ken in one round. Holmes - Shavers II took place later in 1979. The blueprint was the same as Larry out slicked Earnie. In round seven though, lightening struck. Shavers hit Holmes with a punch that dropped him like he had been shot. I'll never know how Larry got up after being hit like that. He did though and ended up stopping a tired and bleeding Shavers in the eleventh.

From this point on Earnie's career began to decline. He lost to Bernardo Mercado and Tex Cobb in 1980 but both felt the effects of Earnie's thunderous blows. In 1981 Shavers rebounded with a KO win over Jeff Sims. In 1982 Shavers took out the normally durable Joe Bugner in two rounds. That was Earnie's swan song. He would drop verdicts to James "Quick" Tillis and Walter Santemore. To the credit of Tillis, he gamely arose to fight on after Earnie nearly decapitated him. A 1983 DQ loss to the under rated George Chaplin sent Earnie into retirement.

Shavers returned four years later and then again retired. Eight years later he made and ill fated comeback. After being stopped in two rounds by Brian Yates, Earnie hung them up for good. In 89 bouts Shavers posted a sterling 74-14-1 record against the great heavyweights of the 1970's and 80's. He scored 68 KO's. He had a 76.4% KO percentage. His credentials earned him the distinction as the "puncher of the century" ! Warranted ? Ask Ali, Norton, Holmes, etc...When he caught an opponent clean they did the shimmy and shake. Watch his bouts with Norton, Howard Smith and the Henry Clark rematch. Oh the man could swing !

Jim Amato
 

 

Greg Richardson: The Pride Of Youngstown

By Jim Amato: He was grace and artistry in the ring. He was one of the best pure boxers of his era. He won one world title and failed twice to win titles in two other weight classes. He had class and was a gentleman. He proudly represented the great fight city of Youngstown, Ohio. His name was Greg Richardson and they called him "The Flea."

Born in 1958, Greg launched his pro career in 1982 winning by a first round kayo. In his next bout Greg was halted in the opening stanza by Harry Lee. Hardly the start of a legend.

Greg would not suffer another knockout defeat until 1987 when he challenged Australian superstar Jeff Fenech. At that point Greg had amassed a 22-2 record with wins over top notch competition like Baby Kid Chocolate, Diego Rosario, Harold Petty, Alfonso Lopez, James Manning, Oscar Muniz, Robert Shannon and Darryl Thigpen. Fenech proved to be too strong for Greg and he retained his WBC Super Bantamweight title by a fifth round stoppage.

In his next fight Greg would drop a decision to the very talented Texan, Jesse Benavides. In 1989 he would outscore former bantamweight champion Gaby Canizales. In 1990 Greg scored big wins over Ellyas Pical and Edwin Rangel.

On February 25th, 1991 Greg challenged Raul Perez in Inglewood, California for the WBC bantamweight title. In an upset Greg won on the cards 115-113 ( twice ) and 116-112, to capture a unanimous decision and the title.

In his first defense Greg out slicked the tough Victor Rabanales but in his next defense he was overpowered by Joichiro Tatsuyoshi in ten thus losing the crown. Greg came right back in 1992 to challenge Sung Kil Moon for the WBC Super Flyweight title. Greg lost a majority decision.

In 1993 Greg drew with Miguel Espinoza. In 1994 he pitched a shutout against former title challenger Armando Castro. In 1995 he beat the always tough Edel Geronimo. Then he lost a twelve round verdict in Romania to Petrica Janos Paraschiv. The end came for Greg in 1996 when he was stopped in six rounds by Juan Carlos Rameriz.

Greg's final record stands at 31-8-1. He won five by knockout and in turn he failed to go the distance four times.

I had the great pleasure of seeing Greg fight live, at ringside on July 22, 1994 in Youngstown against Armando Castro. An interesting side note to this night is that Greg's original opponent was to be a young, undefeated Mexican hotshot named Marcos Antonio Barrera. For whatever reasons Barrera pulled out and eventually Castro became Greg's foe. Castro was no slouch, in fact he had twice unsuccessfully challenged for world titles. He was the last man to fight the great Khaosai Galaxy.

On this night with the famed Victor Valle working his corner, Greg completely dominated the befuddled Castro. This was a boxer in the twilight of his career that in my opinion won every round. It was a masterpiece. I'll always wonder how a young Barrera would have fared that night against Greg? Even more interesting is the fact that in Castro's next fight he would would challenge Alfred Kotey for the WBO bantamweight title. Why Castro instead of Richardson? After losing to Kotey, Castro would be stopped by Naseem Hamed and Erik Morales.

I have had the great pleasure of meeting Greg. In our brief conversations I found him to be a humble and somewhat shy individual. He is very fan friendly, always willing to sign an autograph. He has made the city of Youngstown proud . . .

JA

BIG BUSTER MATHIS ; Has History Been Unkind To Him ?

     At one time Buster Mathis Sr. of Grand Rapids, Michigan was the best
 amateur heavyweight in the world. This was in 1964 after he had twice
 defeated another promising amateur named Joe Frazier. He was on his way to
 the 1964 Olympics Games in Tokyo but an injury sidelined him. Frazier took
 his place as an alternate. Joe won the Gold Medal and the rest is history.
      Where does Buster Mathis stand in the annals of heavyweight history ?

 Did he ever get the respect that he may have deserved ? He was a good
 enough prospect to have Cus D'Amato guide his professional career. He was
 a a very big man for his era and was surprisingly fast and agile for a big
 man.

      At the beginning of his pro career the 300 pound Mathis shedded
 weight and subdued opponents. In his fourth fight he would outpoint a
 rugged customer named Bob Stallings. In his sixth fight he would halt
 Chuck Wepner.

      Buster was built up like most prospects at that time were. His record
 is spotted with journeymen like Charlie Polite, Mike Bruce, Everett
 Copeland, Sonny Moore...After 23 straight victories he was matched with
 old foe Joe Frazier for the New York State recognition of the heavyweight
 title that had been taken from Muhammad Ali.

      This time Joe would have more rounds to work over and wear down Big
 Buster. Finally in the eleventh round Buster went down and Joe had a piece
 of the heavyweight pie.

      After the loss to Frazier, Mathis put together a nice five bout win
 streak. He beat Mel Turnbow, James J. Beattie, Amos " Big Train " Lincoln,
 Dick Wipperman and James J. Woody. That was pretty respectable opposition
 at that time. This led to another shot at the big time. A match with the
 brawling Canadian contender George Chuvalo.



      The bout with Chuvalo would be the highlight of Buster's fine career.
 If anyone ever doubts that Buster was a world class heavyweight, get a
 hold of the film of this fight. Mathis was the master of Chuvalo
 throughout the twelve round contest.

      The win over Chuvalo put Buster right back in the thick of the
 heavyweight picture .By this time the once 300 pound Mathis was tipping the
 scales around 235. Six weeks after the Chuvalo triumph, Buster would take
on the erratic but always entertaining Jerry Quarry. On the night they
 fought Quarry was nothing short of brilliant. It was a boxing clinic and
 Buster was soundly defeated. At this point Buster took some time off after
 a high profile loss.

      It would be well over two years before Buster would re-enter the ring
 and his opponent would be none other then the comebacking Muhammad Ali.
 Buster had ballooned to over 250 pounds and although game to the core he
 was totally outclassed by Ali and lost a twelve round decision. This would
 finish Buster as a serious contender.


 Mathis, below, with Floyd Patterson www.anteprizering.com


      Buster would defeat the undefeated Claude McBride but in his next
 bout he was savaged by another unbeaten prospect named Ron Lyle. That
 would be the end of Buster's career.

      Big Buster only lost four of thirty four fights. He lost to Frazier,
 Quarry, Ali and Lyle. Does that make him all bad ? The Buster Mathis that
 defeated George Chuvalo was one of the best heavyweights of the late
 1960's.

      Jim Amato

 

 

 

BRIAN LONDON

 The British produced some quality heavyweights during the 1950's and 60's. Of course " Ol' " Enry ' Cooper comes to mind. There was rugged Joe Erskine and Wales gave us Dick Richardson. Later Billy " The Golden Boy " Walker would emerge. One of the best was Brian London who would twice fight for world title honors.

Brian was born in 1934 and turned professional in 1955. He won his first twelve bouts, eleven by knockout before being stopped in one round by Henry Cooper in 1956. Brian bounced back to win eight of his next nine before dropping a decision to the clever Willie Pastrano in 1958. Three months later London would halt Joe Erskine in eight rounds to win the British and Commonwealth heavyweight titles. He would then stop Pastrano on cuts in a rematch.

Brian was now a serious contender for a world title shot. In 1959 he lost his titles by decision to Henry Cooper. Nevertheless he was awarded a shot at Floyd Patterson's heavyweight title.After a valiant effort, Floyd stopped London in eleven rounds. Brian would then be stopped in seven by the dangerous Nino valdes.

In 1960 London would halt former Olympic Gold Medalist Pete Rademacher. Later in the year Dick Richardson he stop Brian in his attempt to win the European title. In 1961 the highly rated Eddie Machen kayoed London in ten. In 1962 he dropped a decision to Santo Amonti.

In 1963 Brian would lose a twelve round decision to former world champion Ingemar Johansson. It would be Ingo's last fight. In 1964 he again lost a fifteen rounder to Henry Cooper with the European, British and Commonwealth titles on the line. He then lost to up and coming Johnny Prescott but amazingly rebounded to defeat Chip Johnson, Billy Walker and Roger Rischer.

In 1966 he dropped a decision to a very talented Thad Spencer. Later in the year Brian received his second shot at immortality when he met Muhammad Ali for the world's title. In one of a young Ali's best performances, he battered Brian in three rounds.

Brian continued on. He lost a tough decision to the highly touted Jerry Quarry. He then defeated Zora Folley. In 1968 he suffered damaging kayo losses to Roberto Davilla and Jack Bodell. Although he drew with Henry Clark in 1969 he later lost to Jimmy " The King " Fletcher and was taken out in two in a return bout with Quarry.

In 1970 Brian was taken out in five by rising star Joe Bugner and that ended his career. London engaged in 58 professional contests. He won 37 of  them, 26 by knockout. He fought four world champions. Ali, Patterson, Johansson and Pastrano. He met six boxers that vied for world title honors in Henry Cooper, Pete Rademacher, Eddie Machen, Jerry Quarry, Zora Folley and Joe Bugner. He also met other top notch guys like Nino Valdes, Thad Spencer and Henry Clark just to name a few.

Brian London had a very respectable career career and he did England proud.

 

                                                             Jim Amato

 

 

 

THE CAREER OF RANDY " CANDY " NEUMANN

An overlooked heavyweight in the talent rich 1970's was New Jersey's Randy Neumann. Born on July 21, 1948 Randy joined the punch for pay ranks in 1969. He reeled off eleven straight wins but in 1971 he was stopped in two by Jimmy Harris. Randy came right back to decision Harris in a return bout.

Randy continued his move up the ladder with two decisions over rugged Argentine Raul Gorosito and a verdict over Brian O'Melia. On December 9, 1971 Randy captured the New Jersey State heavyweight title by outscoring Chuck Wepner. In 1972 Randy followed the Wepner win with a points victory over Jimmy Young at Madison Square Garden. A month later he lost the New Jersey title back to Wepner.

In 1973 Randy received an opportunity to meet long time top contender Jerry Quarry who was beginning a comeback. Quarry proved to be too much, halting Randy after seven rounds. Neumann attempted to regain the New Jersey title in 1974 but lost in seven to Wepner.

Despite a disqualification loss in the Bahamas to Wendell Joseph, 1975 saw Randy score his biggest career victory as he out boxed Boone Kirkman over ten rounds. The win gave Randy another date at the Garden this time against unbeaten prospect Duane Bobick. The hard hitting Bobick floored Randy three times in the fourth round for an automatic TKO.

Randy had his last fight in 1977 when he taken out in five rounds by Ibar Arrington. In all Neumann had 38 bouts, winning 31 of them. He scored 11 knockouts. Of his seven losses, he was stopped five times. Randy was a smart and smooth boxer but he lacked the big punch. He also had a tendency to cut. He was a game battler though and he always came to fight. Today he is one of the most respected referees in the business.

 

                                                  Jim Amato
YOUNGSTOWN PRIDE : TONY JANIRO
 
This article was a long time coming. Over the years through my friends in the Youngstown area I have learned a lot about the rich boxing history in that region. I was familiar with Ray "Boom Boom" Mancini but I knew little about his dad Lenny Mancini who passed on the "Boom Boom" moniker to his son. I knew about hard hitting Harry Arroyo and the murderous body punching of Jeff Lampkin. I was even able to witness live the tremendous boxing talent of Greg Richardson.

Through my friends I became aware of very special fighters of yesteryear like Tommy Bell, Red D'Amato and Sonny Horne. So many, many more that I could mention. One fighter I heard quite a bit about was a smooth boxing contender who as they say, "put asses in the seats". He fought in an era when a multitude of rugged contenders roamed the ratings. He met the best of them and had quite a career. His name was Tony Janiro.

Janiro turned professional in 1943 at the tender age of 16. He won his first 23 bouts until meeting defeat against tough Al Guido. Tony then went on a 16 fight win streak including a rematch victory over Guido. In 1945 he lost two out of three verdicts to popular Canadian Johnny Greco. Still Janiro was winning more the he lost as he climbed in the ratings. In 1947 he scored a big decision win over Tony Pellone. Janiro then notched one of his best wins when he halted the great Beau Jack in four.

A few months later Jake LaMotta proved too strong for Tony and won the decision. The year 1948 was a rough one as Tony lost to Laverne Roach and a return with Beau Jack. He also drew with Lou Valles. In 1949 he lost to Henry Hall and then he was defeated by one of the best middleweights in the world, Rocky Castellani. The resiliant Janiro bounced back with a win over clever Charley Fusari. Tony then drew with the "Rock" himself, Rocky Graziano. Tony lost a return to Graziano and later lost to the marvelous Kid Gavilan.

Tony continued to meet top shelf opposition in 1951. He lost to Fritzie Pruden but defeated Fusari again. He then lost to the always troublesome Laurent Dauthuille. Then came a controversial KO loss in the tenth round of his third meeting with Graziano. Tony was then stopped in a return match with Gavilan. Tony's career ended in 1952 with a knockout loss to Charles Humez.

Tony Janiro won 80 of 97 fights. He met four world champions and three others who challenged for a crown. That's not to mention the several top contenders he tangled with.Tony Janiro surely added to the great pride and lore of boxing in Youngstown and it's surrounding area.

                                                                                           Jim Amato

 

 

THE CASE FOR . . .

BILLY "DYNAMITE" DOUGLAS

 He will always be remembered as " Buster's Dad" but Billy Douglas was quite a fighter in his own right. Billy was born in 1940 and turned pro in 1967 just three days before his 27th birthday. There was no fanfare for this native of Columbus, Ohio. He started at the bottom and fought his way into the rankings. In 1969 he took out the talented Luis Vinales in one round. He would then be stopped himself by Pedro Miranda.

Douglas began to make some serious noise in 1970. He stopped former Olympian Wilbert McClure. He then outscored tough Willie Warren, drew with Don Fullmer and won a decision over Tom "The Bomb" Bethea. Billy suffered a couple of setbacks in 1971 dropping ten round dukes to the slick Bunny Sterling and the always capable Jose Gonzalez. Douglas got right back on track in 1972 with kayos over Billy Lloyd, Carlos Marks, Al Quinney and Marion Conner. Billy's nickname wasn't "Dynamite" for no reason.

Douglas continued his surge into 1973 stopping the respected Nate Collins. Billy was then matched with Philadelphia's Bennie Briscoe for the NABF middleweight title. At the time Briscoe was one of the best middleweights in the world and "Bad" Bennie halted Bill in round eight. Later that year Douglas lost a decision in South Africa to Elijah Makathini. In 1974 Douglas lost to another top notch Philly fighter being on the short end of a points verdict to Willie "The Worm" Monroe. Then in a crazy promotional stunt Douglas was matched with Danny Brewer in a fight that was advertised as being for the world's junior light heavyweight title. The weight limit was 167. Brewer exited in round two

Douglas now began to campaign as a light heavyweight. In 1976 he won a disputed, razor close decision over Pedro Soto. He then lost a rematch to Bethea. Bill was halted by Lonnie Bennett but then he knocked out Angel Oquendo. Douglas was awarded the chance of a lifetime when he got a non title fight with WBA light heavyweight king Victor Galindez. Bill went the distance but the rugged champion won on points. In 1977 Douglas met Matthew Saad Muhammad ( Matt Franklin ) in Philadelphia for the NABF light heavyweight title. In a true "Philly War", Saad got off the canvas to stop Bill in round six. Douglas then returned to Philadelphia but was defeated inside the distance by Marvin Johnson. Bill was quite popular in Philly. The Johnson fight was his tenth appearance there.

In 1979 Douglas lost a decision to rising prospect Pablo Ramos. In 1980 Bill was finished as a legitimate contender when he lost to Jerry "The Bull" Martin. Bill had one more kayo victory and then packed it in. In 58 professional bouts against some of the toughest fighters in the world Douglas posted a fine 41-16-1 record. He scored 31 knockouts. He met three world champions and five others who challenged for the title. Bill Douglas should be remembered for much more then just being Buster's dad.

Jim Amato

 

 

SEATTLE MIDDLEWEIGHT FRASER SCOTT

 Fraser Scott was a tough middleweight out of Seattle, Washington. He turned pro in 1968 and in slightly over a years time ran up a record of 17-0-1. His biggest victory was a two round, cut eye stoppage of former junior middleweight champion Denny Moyer. In 1969 Scott was awarded a title shot against middleweight king Nino Benvenuti. Nino was a prohibitive favorite to beat the American upstart. Scott surprised many by giving Benvenuti quite a tussle. The fight ended in round seven when the Italian referee disqualified Scott for butting. It was a highly controversial stoppage and Nino salvaged his title.

Scott would then go 6-6 for the remainder of his career. He again halted the hard luck Moyer on cuts. Fraser would then lose to the clever Hall Of Fame inductee Luis Rodriguez. There were two losses to Frenchman Nessim Max Cohen and another to up and coming South African Pierre Fourie. Scott was then matched with Benvenuti's conqueror Carlos Monzon. It was a non title affair and the great Monzon halted Scott in three.

Scott closed his career with a decision over rugged Mike Pusateri. His overall record was 23-7-1. Scott proceeded to write a fine book about his career titled "Weigh In". He also had a long running column in a major boxing publication.

Jim Amato

 

 

 

CANADA'S DONATO PADUANO
 

In the late 1960's and throughout the 1970's there was a smooth Italian born boxer who fought out of Canada. He was tough and fearless. He had great moves and a fine jab. The only thing he lacked was punching power and that probably kept him from reaching the top of his sport.

Donato Paduano turned professional in 1968. He moved up the ranks quickly beating useful opponents like Dorman Crawford, Juan Ramos, Colin Fraser, Pablo Lopez and Pat Murphy. He appeared at Madison Square Garden's Felt Forum and the Garden itself where he became quite popular. A year after turning pro he outpointed Joey Durelle to win the Canadian welterweight title. He beat Durelle in a rematch. Then at the Garden he created quite a stir when he won a decision over Marcel Cerdan Jr. Young Marcel came in with a glossy 47-1-1 record but was just outboxed by the talented Paduano. Cerdan Jr. proved to be no fluke. After the loss to Paduano he beat Dario Hidalgo, drew with former junior welterweight champion Sandro Lopopolo and lost decisions to top contenders Clyde Gray and Robert Gallois.

The win over Cerdan Jr. led to a non title fight with the newly crowned world lightweight champion Ken Buchanan of Scotland. The flashy Scot had upset Ismael Laguna to win the title and now the Garden wanted to showcase him. Paduano proved to be a worthy foe and in a great fight for boxing purists, Buchanan outslicked Donato over ten rounds. In 1971 Paduano lost his Canadian title to rugged Clyde Gray. Then he was upset over ten rounds by Danny McAloon. He fought a draw with Fernand Marcotte and then defeated Marcotte in a 1972 rematch. Donato then won a verdict over the aging former welterweight great Luis Rodriguez, He then split a pair of decisions with Reynold Cantin.

In 1973 Paduano failed to regain the Canadian welterweight title losing to reigning champion Ray Chavez Guerrero. Later in the year he was the stopped in eleven rounds by Australian Charkey Ramon for the Commonwealth, British Empire junior middleweight titles. Donato then reeled off six straight victories including a knockout of highly touted Jean Claude LeClair. In 1974 Paduano met a legend in Emile Griffith. Emile was on the downside of his great career but he had enough left to outscore Donato.

Paduano would have five more fights winning only two of them. He hung up the gloves in 1980. In all he had fifty two fights. His overall record was a fine 41-9-2. He only scored fifteen knockouts but he was stopped just once. He was a crowd pleaser and a class act.

Jim Amato

 

ERNIE TERRELL ; A GIANT IN THE SHADOW OF ALI 

Who was the second best heavyweight around during the first title reign of Muhammad Ali ? A strong argument could be made for Chicago's Ernie Terrell. Why ? Because he earned it. He was even good enough to hold the WBA version of the heavyweight title but everyone knew who the " real " champ was.

Terrell turned professional in 1957. At 6'6'' he learned early how to use his height and reach to his advantage. He developed a good jab and learned how to tie up his opponents on the inside. It wasn't pretty but it was effective. He won eighteen of his first twenty contests losing two eight round split decisions to Johnny Gray. In 1960 he was outscored by the capable Wayne Bethea. In 1962 Ernie suffered a major set back when he was halted by the powerful Cleveland Williams.

Terrell began his march to the top in 1963 defeating Williams in a return match and top contender Zora Folley. In 1964 Big Ernie beat Gerhard Zech, Jefferson Davis and stopped a young Bob Foster. When the WBA stripped Ali of his title recognition they matched Terrell with perrenial contender Eddie Machen. It was an ugly fight with a lot of wrestling and little punching but Terrell did what he had to do to win the " vacant " title.

Maybe Ernie was not considered the real champion but he did establish himself as the most formidable challenger to Ali. He closed 1965 with a decision over rugged George Chuvalo. In 1966 Terrell defeated slick Doug Jones. Finally after a failed attempt Terrell and Ali were finally matched to unify the title. The bout would take place at the Houston Astrodome. Ernie's bold refusal to acknowledge Ali's Muslim name and refer to him as Clay irked Muhammad who vowed to punish Ernie. Punish he did as Ali worked Terrell over throughout the fifteen rounder. Round after round Ali would lash out at Terrell with punishing jabs and flurries while screaming " what's my name ? ". To Ernie's credit he gamely absorbed the punishment with a very swollen eye. When it was all over there was no doubt who the King of the heavyweights was.

The WBA would later strip Ali of the title again in 1967 for refusing induction into the Armed Forces. An eight man elimination tourney was set up to determine Ali's successor. Ernie was one of the eight contestants and an early favorite to win the tournement. Terrell was eliminated in the first leg of the tourney being upset by Thad Spencer. Terrell looked to be finished when he next lost to Mexican Manuel Ramos. He would not fight again until 1970 and his comeback drew little interest until he scored a major upset in 1972 by halting highly rated Jose Luis Garcia. In 1973 Ernie lost a very controversial verdict to Chuck Wepner but his career then came crashing down when he was belted out in one round by Jeff " Candy Slim " Merritt.

In all Terrell fought 54 times winning 45 of them. He stopped 21 foes. Ernie suffered nine losses but was only stopped twice. Today Ernie is remembered as a footnote to Ali's pre-exile days. In reality he was a viable contender who was overshadowed by " The Greatest ".

Jim Amato

SHORT FILM OF ALI-TERRILL BOUT 1967

 

RETROSPECT OF CLEVELAND MIDDLEWEIGHT JACK KEOUGH
               When I attended my first meeting of the Ohio State Former Boxers And Associates organization in the early 1990's I was first greeted by a neatly dressed gray haired man. He was not a big man but he had a rugged look to him. He was very friendly though. We shook hands and told me his name was Jackie. I never saw Jackie again but I later found out he was Jackie Keough a tough mddleweight fringe contender in the early 1950's. Jackie was born in 1926 and started his professional career in 1947. He won his first seven bouts before suffering his first loss in 1948. Through 1949 his record was spotty. He did make his Madison Square Garden debut that year. He appeared at the Garden again n 1950. Also that year Jackie met contender Gene Hairston and lost a decision. In 1951 Keough traveled to England to meet Randy Turpin. The strong and powerful Turpin stopped Jackie in round seven. In his next fight Randy would upset the great Sugar Ray Robinson to capture the world's middleweight title. Later in 1951 Jackie met Hairston in a rematch and was stopped in nine rounds. In 1953 Keough would lose tough decisions to Joe Rindone and Bobby Dykes. Later that year Jackie was stopped by highly rated Rocky Castellani. Keough would lose his last bout in 1954 and then retire. In all Keough had 41 fights and posted a respectable record of 24-15-2. Amazingly he scored only one career knockout. He himself was halted four times. Later in retirement Jackie became a referee. One bout I remember Jackie acting as the third man in the ring was the 1981 bout in Cleveland featuring Roberto Duran versus Nino Gonzalez. It was Roberto's first bout after the " No Mas " debacle. Gonzalez was a former sparring partner for Roberto. Nino must have forgotten that as he came in and fought a spirited battle in this nationally broadcast bout. Roberto stirred hiself in the later rounds to win a close but well earned ten round verdict. Mr. Keogh passed away in 1992. At least I can say I had the honor to meet him...JIM AMATO

 

ALEXIS ARGUELLO ; " Talk Softly But Carry A Big Stick "

Alexis Arguello

By Jim Amato

 One of the best pure punchers of my generation was Alexis Arguello. He was aptly nicknamed " The Explosive Thin Man ". He was tall and rail thin but his punch could stop an opponent dead in his tracks.

It's hard to believe that Alexis was stopped in the very first round of his pro debut in his native Managua, Nicaragua. He would rally to win three straight then lose again. Hardly the makings of a legend.

Alexis would reel off twenty straight wins before his next loss. Then came thirteen more victories including knockouts over Octavio Gomez and Jose Legra. This led to a shot at the WBA featherweight title in 1974. The champion was the talented Ernesto Marcel of Panama. Alexis lost a fifteen round decision.

Alexis would rebound to win four in a row including a stoppage win over rugged Art Hafey of Canada. He again challenged for the WBA featherweight title in 1974. His opponent this time would be legendary Ruben Olivares. In a see saw battle Alexis took Ruben out in round thirteen and also took his title.

In 1978 Alexis moved up to 130 pounds to take on WBC junior lightweight champion Alfredo Escalera. In a great, great fight Alexis finally halted Escalera in the thirteenth round to annex that title. Alexis may go down as the best 130 champion in history. He would beat Escalera in a classic rematch. He would then go on to beat Bobby Chacon, Rolando Navarette, Bazooka Limon and Boza Edwards. All would win a piece of the junior lightweight title after Alexis left the division.

Alexis would move up again and defeat Jim Watt to win the WBC lightweight title in 1981. He would defend that title four times. Among those defenses was his victory over future champion Ray " Boom Boom " Mancini. He also nearly decapitated the future trainer of Mike Tyson, Kevin Rooney in a non title fight.

Alexis seemed unbeatable and decided to move up in weight again to challenge WBA junior welterweight champion Aaron Pryor. Their November 12, 1982 bout in Miami was one of the most action packed bouts of all time. The fiery Pryor absorbed the bombs of Arguello and finally overwhelmed Alexis to score a brutal knockout in the fourteenth round. What a fight it was ! They would meet again and this time Pryor took Alexis out in ten.

It seemed like the end for Arguello but he fought on. Over a year later he would cold cock former champion Billy Costello in the fourth round. Alexis would not fight again for eight years. He would win one and then lose one. Realizing it was no longer there, he retired for good. He ended his 90 bout career with an 82-8 record.

Alexis was a class act. He did not verbally assault his opponents. He was a true gentleman. He did what he had to do to win and he did it well. Very well...

In the words of former President Teddy Roosevelt he " Talked softly but carried a big stick " . I think the stick was called his right hand.

 

 

Cleveland's Chuck Wilburn : Talent And Tragedy


He was a good prospect out of Cleveland in the early 70's. The fortunes of Chuck Wilburn looked bright when he turned pro in 1970. He lost his second fight to Mike Harris but he stopped Harris in a rematch. He then went up to New England and beat some tough veterans like Beau Jaynes and Winston Noel. He then got a couple of wins at Madison Square Garden's Felt Forum.

In July of 1972 Chuck appeared at the main Garden. His opponent was an up and coming fighter from Puerto Rico named Esteban DeJesus. Wilburn had a record of 10-1 when he entered the ring to face DeJesus. After ten rounds DeJesus won a rather one sided decision. Four months later DeJesus would hand the great Roberto Duran his first loss. In fact it was Duran's only loss at lightweight. Esteban is a potential Hall Of Famer so a loss to him was nothing to be ashamed of.

Chuck came back in 1973 with a hard fought decision victory over Roy Barrientos in Chicago. He then traveled to San Juan, Puerto Rico to lose a points verdict to unbeaten prospect Fausto Rodriguez. In 1974 Chuck met rugged Rafael Rodriguez in St. Paul and lost a decision. He returned to St. Paul in 1975 and scored a shocking one round kayo over Pittsburgh's Rudy Bolds. Three months later Wilburn met future world champion Saoul Mamby in St. Paul where Chuck had built up a following. Mamby halted Wilburn with a vicious right in the third round.

On April 1, 1976 Chuck took on highly ranked Hector Thompson in Sydney. In a brutal battle Wilburn was halted by a savage barrage of punches midway into the tenth round. He then staggered to his corner and collapsed. Wilburn slipped into a coma and later passed away. A tragic end to a once promising career. Wilburn was only 22 years old. He had a professional record of 12-6 and met two world champions.
 
                                                                                      Jim Amato
 
 

PUNCHER FROM THE 1970's

featherweight BEN VILLAFLOR

He was a buzzsaw southpaw out of the Philippines who made his mark in the early seventies. He was a boy wonder who could punch like hell. That power would make him a two time world champion. He was born in November of 1952 and turned pro in 1966. Do the math...He won his first twelve professional contests but then lost a pair of decisions to Roger Boy Pedrano. Although he won most of his fights after that, an occasional loss spotted his record.

Ben made his move in 1970 with a KO over highly regarded Don Johnson. In 1971 he halted former featherweight title challenger Raul Cruz in the tenth. In 1972 he stopped another featherweight challenger in rugged Frankie Crawford. He also took out the respected Jose Luis Lopez in two rounds. On April 25, 1972 Villafor outscored Alfredo Marcano to win the WBA junior lightweight championship.

He had a tough defense with a disputed draw against the talented and capable Victor Echegary. In 1973 he lost the title to the slick Kuniaki Shibata. Seven months later Ben met Shibata again. This time he flattened Shibata in one round to regain the title. In 1974 he drew with the hard luck Apollo Yoshio and he blasted out future champion Yasutsune Uehara in the second.

In 1976 Ben drew with the clever challenger Samuel Serrano. Six months later Ben was outclassed by Serrano. Without a title and with no more horizons to conquer, Ben retired, one month shy of his 24th birthday. He squeezed in 69 pro bouts in his short but fabled career. His ledger was 54-8-7 with 31 career kayos. Ben was the Manny Pacquaio of his time!

JIM AMATO

REMEMBERING ARGENTINA'S "EL INTOCABLE"

NICOLINO " El Intocable " LOCCHE

He turned professional in 1958 and ten years and one day after his pro debut he became a world champion. Nevertheless it was a long road for Argentine defensive wizard Nicolino Locche. By the time he met Paul Fuji in Tokyo, Japan for the World Boxing Association Light Welterweight title, Locche had amassed over one hundred fights. He halted the pained and frustrated Fuji in the tenth round to capture the crown.

From the beginning Locche fought almost all his battles in his native Argentina. His early career had its ups and downs but he won far more times then he lost or drew. In 1963 he burst on to the international scene with a decision win over former world lightweight champion Joe " Old Bones " Brown. In 1965 Nicolino met newly crowned lightweight titlist, the slick Ismael Laguna. The non title, overweight affair was judged a draw. Laguna then lost the title back to the great Carlos Ortiz and in 1966 Locche met Ortiz in a non title affair. Again the crafty Nicolino had to settle for a draw.

Locche then set upon securing a world title shot for himself. In 1966 he won a non title ten round verdict over reigning world light welterweight champion Sandro Lopopolo. In 1967 he beat rugged L.C.Morgan and former champion Eddie Perkins. In 1968 he defeated Mexican Al Urbina. Then the shot came against Fuji who had defeated Lopopolo.

In 1969 Locche defended against former champion, the very dangerous Carlos Hernandez and the talented Joao Henrique. In 1970 he turned back the challenge of the able Adolph Pruitt. In 1971 he defeated Domingo Barrera Corpas and scored a masterful victory over Antonio " Kid Pambele " Cervantes. Finally in 1972 Nicolino was enticed to go to Panama where he met Alfonso " Peppermint " Frazier. The underdog Frazier out hustled the aging Locche to annex the crown. Nicolino would then put together a four fight win streak while Frazier lost the title to Cervantes. In 1973 Nicolino met Cervantes in Venezuela and was stopped in the beginning of the tenth round.

No longer a champion, the proud Locche reeled off seven straight victories in hopes of regaining his crown. Finally in 1976 it became apparent that a title shot was not going to materialize so Nicolino hung up the gloves for good. Locche ended up with an amazing 117-4-14 record. Although he was not a hard hitter as he scored only fourteen knockouts, Nicolino was a master boxer. He ranks right up there with the great Willie Pep as a defensive genius. He was not nicknamed " El Intocable ", ( The Untouchable ) for nothing.

Nicolino was inducted into the International Boxing Hall Of Fame in 2003. He passed away in 2005 leaving behind a true legacy of his tremendous talents.

 
                                                           Jim Amato

 

 

" GLOVES GONE BY " : CASEY GACIC


He was from Parma, Ohio and he only had twenty one fights in a career that spanned from 1971 to 1979. Still he fought tough completion and he fought well enough to be ranked by the " Bible Of Boxing ", Ring Magazine.

Casey Gacic started his career with a draw against rugged Gary Summerhays of Canada. He would then beat Summerhays over eight rounds in a rematch. Also in 1972 Casey won decisions over veteran light heavyweights Harold Carter and Joe Cokes. In 1973 Casey lost two key decisions to crafty Vinnie Curto and a rubber match to Summerhays. Casey would not fight again for over two years.

On returning to the ring in 1976 Casey created a stir when he drew with hot prospect and future world light heavyweight champion Mike Rossman. In his next fight Gacic went to Madison Square Garden and again held a highly regarded prospect Christy Elliot to a ten round draw. Casey had now served notice that he deserved a world ranking.

In his next bout Casey took on another touted prospect, unbeaten middleweight Mike Colbert. The speedy and flashy Colbert outboxed Casey over the ten round route. In his next fight Gacic traveled into the lion's den of Philadelphia to take on the slick Bobby " Boogaloo " Watts. In a heartbreaking loss, Casey was stopped on cuts in round seven. Gacic bounced back with two decision wins and then he outfought rugged Leo Saenz as part of the controversial United States Tournament. Eight months later Casey was outscored by another undefeated prospect Edgar " Bad News " Wallace.

In 1978 Casey returned to Cleveland as he won a points verdict over Charles Carey. Then it was back to Madison Square Garden where Casey took on contender Mike Baker. Gacic was stopped in the sixth round in a bout that tuned out to be his final ring appearance. Although he did not have a stellar record ( 12-6-3 ), he mixed it up with an array of rough and tumble fighters and earned his place in the rankings.
 
                                                              Jim Amato

 

THE TALE OF "BIG TRAIN"

AMOS " BIG TRAIN " LINCOLN 

He was born in 1936 and he embarked on a professional boxing career in 1954. He won twenty five of his first twenty nine fights on his way to establishing himself as a top prospect by 1962. The imposing 6' 2" Amos Lincoln was nicknamed " Big Train " and he looked like he was going to become a force to be reckoned with for some time.

Fighting out of Portland, Oregon early in his career Amos also campaigned throughout the northwest in cities like Seattle, Spokane, Tacoma, Boise and even Vancouver, Canada. In 1957 he made one of his few ventures outside the Northwest as he traveled to Chicago and defeated Marty Marshall. In June of 1962 Amos made his New York debut as he met future champion Ernie Terrell at Madison Square Garden. The lanky, long armed Terrell would box his way to a six round decision. It would be two years before Amos fought again. Appearing in Las Vegas, Lincoln was halted in the second round by Jimmy " King " Fletcher. Amos would bounce back with a decision over clever Chuck Leslie and a ninth round stoppage over highly regarded Thad Spencer.

In 1965 Amos avenged his loss to Fletcher with a four round knockout. Lincoln then went over to Italy and was outscored by Santo Amonti. Then Amos put together a nice streak beating Roberto Davila twice, Scrap Iron Johnson and Spencer again. There was an eight round no contest with the classy Henry Clark and a decision over Billy Daniels. Then there were two wins over Elmer Rush. Amos was now considered one of the best heavyweights in the world.

The fortunes of Amos Lincoln would begin to change on October 21, 1966 at New York's famous Garden when he dropped a ten round duke to Johnny Persol. Amos came back with two quick wins but then he was again taken out again by Jimmy Fletcher. Amos was then brought over to Germany where he was stopped by Karl Mildenberger. Lincoln had now fallen dramatically in the ratings. He continued to tumble as Thad Spencer was finally able to beat Amos. " Big Train " finally got back in the win column with a points call over rugged Joey Orbillo in Los Angeles. Amos returned to Los Angeles to meet Buster Mathis who was on the comeback trail after a loss to " Smokin " Joe Frazier. In a bout the featured some odd scorecards, Mathis was awarded a split decision. One judge had it 11-0 for Buster. Another had it 9-1 for Mathis. The third judge had it 5-4 for Amos. Go figure...

The feared former heavyweight champion Sonny Liston was also forging a comeback and Amos met him in Baltimore where Sonny stopped him in two. Amos was then halted by tall Tony Doyle in six. In 1970 power punching prospect Boone Kirkman got Lincoln out of there in two rounds when they fought in Seattle. Finally Amos reached the end of the line when he lost in five rounds to Terry Daniels.

Amos Lincoln finished his career with 56 fights and a fine 39-13-3 record with one no contest. He scored 22 knockouts. Please remember Lincoln's record was 3-9 over his last twelve fights. In his prime he was a fine heavyweight.

 
                                                              Jim Amato

ROY JONES JR. ; WAS HE THE BEST SUPER MIDDLEWEIGHT ?


The " Super Middleweight '" division with a 168 pound weight limit was conceived by the International Boxing Federation in 1984. On March 28th of that year rugged Murray Sutherland pounded out a fifteen round decision over Ernie Singletary in Atlantic City to become the first champion of this bastard weight classification. . The World Boxing Association began to recognize the weight class in 1987. The World Boxing Council followed suit in 1988. Somewhere along the line the lightly regarded World Boxing Organization also gave this division its blessing. In all fairness the creation of the 168 pound class has some merit. The jump from middleweight ( 160 ) to light heavyweight ( 175 ) is a serious challenge. A few have accomplished the feat but other great middleweights like Carlos Monzon and Marvin Hagler avoided the issue.

Little by little the division began to take hold. Currently the top regarded super middleweight is Joe Calzaghe although he now has a serious challenger in Mikkel Kessler. Since 1984 though the division has been graced by some great, great boxers. Sugar Ray Leonard, Tommy Hearns and James Toney all held the piece of the title at one point or another. Iran Barkley, Nigel Benn and Michael Nunn among others were recognized titleholders.

Who was the best 168 pound boxer since the inception of the weight class in 1984. Many will favor Joe Calzaghe because of his numerous title defenses. It would be hard not to say Leonard or Hearns as their classic battle at 168 lbs. ended in a controversial draw. Really neither boxer spent a lot of time in this weight class to make a major impact. Well for my money I feel the most formidable super middleweight titleholder was Roy Jones Jr. In the two years he held the crown he made six successful defenses, all by knockout.

Roy won the title by defeating unbeaten James Toney. This much anticipated Super Bout took place on November 18, 1994. Toney had won the title in 1993 with an impressive stoppage of Iran Barkley. Entering the Las Vegas ring to face Jones, Toney sported a 44-0-2 record. The fight wasn't even close. Jones scored a flash knockdown over Toney in the third round. Roy then proceeded to walk off with the title by scores of 119-108, 118-109 and 117-111.

In March of 1995 Roy blitzed the capable Antoine Byrd in a single round. Then in June he dominated the popular Vinny Pazienza. The bout was halted in six rounds. Then Roy took out veteran contender Tony Thornton in three rounds. In 1996 Roy belted out the game and hard punching Merqui Sosa in two. Rough and tough Eric Lucas was next and his grit and determination took him into the twelfth and final round when the bout was finally stopped. In 2001 Lucas would win the WBC version of the title. In his sixth and final defense he took out unbeaten Bryant Brannon in the second. One month later Roy would beat Mike McCallum for light heavyweight honors.

Taking the Toney fight and all six of his defenses into account, the combined record of Roy's opposition was an astounding 208-21-7. That should clearly show how dominant Roy was at this weight. Could Roy have beaten Leonard, Hearns or even Calzaghe at this weight ? Good question but it is plain that nobody other then maybe Calzaghe dominated like Roy did at 168 pounds.
 
                                                             Jim Amato

CLEVELAND HEAVYWEIGHT HARRY TERRELL : A TOUGH JOURNEYMAN

He only won slightly more then half of his professional fights yet he battled five men who held a piece of a world title. He also fought four others that challenged for the heavyweight title. It is fighters like Harry Terrell that brings boxing full circle. They may not be good enough to beat the best but if a boxer entertains thoughts of being a legit contender or even a champion, you've got to beat men like Harry Terrell. In my day they called fighters like Terrell " policemen " . You had to go through them to get to the elite. Boxers like George " Scrapiron " Johnson, Levi Forte and Terry Hinke among others fell into this distinction.

Terrell's professional journey began in 1976. He was 8-3 when he met Earnie Shavers in 1978. Harry was iced in one. They didn't name Earnie the " Puncher Of The Century " for nothing. Harry would rally to win four straight including wins over Lynn Ball ( who beat Ron Lyle ) and Terry Mims ( who beat Leon Spinks ). He would then lose to future title challenger, Big Leroy Jones. He ended 1979 with consecutive KO losses to Mike Weaver and James " Quick " Tillis.

In 1981 Harry would lose to S.T. Gordon, Tex Cobb and Michael Dokes. Harry would take six years off and upon his return he would lose to Reggie Gross, Alex Stewart, Greg Page, Tommy Morrison and Joe Hipp. In 1991 Harry won the vacant Ohio State heavyweight title beating Art Card. He would successfully defend that title against Card in a rematch. Harry would lose the state crown to Bill Melsop. Harry would lay off again, this time for almost nine years. He had one comeback KO loss in 2001 and called it a day.

Harry was 18-17-1 with one no contest. Surely not a stellar record. Still based on the quality of his opposition, you have to give Harry his due.

 
                                                                Jim Amato
 

Stan " Kitten " Hayward

Stan " Kitten " Hayward was just one of the many tough welterweights and middleweights that came out of Philadelphia in the 1960's and 70's. He battled the best his hometown had to offer and several other world contenders too.

Hayward began his pro career in 1959. He won sixteen of his first eighteen matches. In 1963 he dropped a ten rounder to welterweight contender Jose Stable.Later in the year he stopped Percy Manning . In 1964 and 1965 Hayward made great strides up the ladder. First he halted future welterweight champion Curtis Cokes in four brutal rounds. In 1965 he beat Vince Shomo, Tito Marshall and " Bad " Bennie Briscoe.

In 1966 Hayward suffered a setback when he lost in seven rounds to the talented Gypsy Joe Harris. Stan came right back in 1967 beating Fate Davis, Pete Toro and battling to a draw with Jean Josselin. In 1968 he drew with rugged Joe Shaw and then in October he won possibly the biggest fight of his career. Stan scored an upset ten round decision over former world champion Emile Griffith.

The win over Griffith put Hayward in line for a title shot. On March 17, 1969 he met Freddie Little for the vacant WBA and WBC versions of the junior middleweight title. The bout took place in Las Vegas and Little outscored Stan over fifteen rounds.

The loss to Little started Hayward's career on a downward spiral. Over his next fourteen fights he would go 5-8-1. He finished 1969 losing a decision in a rematch with Griffith. In 1970 He was defeated by Jean Claude Bouttier and Juan Carlos Duran. In 1971 he dropped a points verdict to Alvin Phillips. Stan's career really took a nose dive when he was blitzed in one round by the savage punching Eugene " Cyclone " Hart.

As his career was winding down, Stan was kayoed in seven by Willie " The Worm " Monroe in 1974. In 1975 he lost a rematch to Bennie Briscoe. In his final fight taking place in 1977, Stan was taken out in four rounds by Larry Davis.

Hayward amassed 48 fights in his respectable career. He finished with a 32-12-4 ledger meeting some of the best boxers of his era between the 147 and 160 pound weight classes.

 
                                                          Jim Amato

 

JEAN CLAUDE BOUTTIER ; If It Wasn't For Monzon... 

To me Jean Claude Bouttier was one of the best fighters of a great era who never won a world title. He joins Pierre Fourrie, Yaqui Lopez, Bennie Briscoe, Hedgemon Lewis, Ernie " Red " Lopez and Ray Lampkin who were boxers fighting in the wrong place at the wrong time. Even some boxers who held a fragment of a title never got the recognition they deserved because of other dominant champions. Men like Rodrigo Valdez, Esteban DeJesus and Howard Winstone.

Bouttier was probably the most popular French fighter since the beloved Marcel Cerdan. He became a professional in 1965 and by 1969 he was beginning to meet some of the better middleweights in the world. He lost two decisions to the under rated Juarez DeLima and drew with countryman Max Cohen.

Jean Claude posted a big victory in 1970 outscoring Stan " Kitten " Hayward. He also beat DeLima but lost to Lonnie Harris. Bouttier bounced back to defeat Pascual DiBendetto, Tom " The Bomb " Bethea and Harris in a rematch. He then won the European title with a fifteen round decision over Juan Carlos Duran.

He continued his march to a shot at the world title by beating Raul Soriano, Bunny Sterling, Manny Gonzalez, Doyle Baird and Fabio Bettini. On June 17, 1972 Bouttier met the great Carlos Monzon for the world's middleweight title. The bout was held in Paris. I'll never forget this fight. I was married for the first time that day. As soon as I could free myself from the " festivities ", I rushed home to watch it. " King " Carlos stopped Bouttier that day but he would return.

Jean Claude began his comeback with disqualification victories over Jose Chirino and the great Emile Griffith. He then beat Joe DeNucci, Art Hernandez and Alvin Phillips. On September 29, 1973 he met Monzon again in Paris. This time Bouttier gave Monzon all he he could handle but he faded down the stretch and dropped a fifteen round verdict.

Two fights later Bouttier lost his European title to England's rugged Kevin Finnegan. In his last fight in December of 1974, he lost his French title to Max Cohen. Bouttier had 72 fights in his fine career. His record was 64-7-1. He scored 43 knockouts. I have no doubt in my mind that if he was fighting today, he would have won one of the four titles available. Monzon had high respect for Bouttier. That in itself is a compliment.
 
                                                        Jim Amato

 

Davey "Boy" Green

 

He turned professional in 1974 and in a short time he became a serious contender for the welterweight title. Dave " Boy " Green took England by storm. He won his first 24 fights as he quickly climbed the ladder. In 1976 he halted Billy Waith in an eliminator for the British junior welterweight title. Later in the year he stopped Joey Singleton to win the British title.

1976 continued to be a big year for the busy Green as he defeated seasoned veterans Ramiro Bolanos and Jimmy Heair. Dave finished the year by knocking out Jean Baptiste Piedvache to win the European 140 pound title.

Six months before Green's win over Piedvache, John H. Stracey the man who had finally dethroned the great Jose Napoles surrendered the welterweight title to Carlos Palomino. The drums were now beating for a match between Green and Stracey. Finally in March of 1977 the two met at Wembley. This much anticipated fight ended with Green the winner in the tenth round.

Next up, a shot at Carlos Palomino and the WBC welterweight crown. This fight took place in June of 1977. What a fight it was. Green was never one to take a backward step and he forced the action from the beginning. Palomino was as tough as nails. He was a great counter puncher. He was also a devastating body puncher as Stracey had found out. Nevertheless Green forced Carlos to give ground early in the fight. As the bout wore on Palomino was working his way back in but after ten rounds it was a very close fight. Then in round eleven, boom and it was over. One punch left Green out on the canvas. Palomino had retained his title and Green had taken his first defeat.

Three months later the gritty Green bounced right back to outpoint the formidable Andy Price. A fighter who held victories over Palomino and WBA champion Pipino Cuevas. That was the start of a seven fight win streak for Dave. It all came crashing down in June of 1979 when Green was surprisingly stopped by Denmark's Joergen Hansen in the third round for the European welterweight title.

Dave came back to win two fights and then found himself again challenging for the WBC welterweight title. Palomino had been out boxed by the clever Wilfred Benitez in losing his title. In turn Benitez was halted in the final round by Sugar Ray Leonard who was now the champ. On March 31, 1980 Green came to America to challenge Leonard. With one of the most devastating left hooks I've ever seen Leonard flattened Dave in round four. It was a brutal knockout.

It is hard to recover from a loss like that but Green put together four wins to stay in contention. Finally on November 3, 1981 Green lost in five rounds to Reggie Ford, a fighter with an 8-7-1 record. It was time to hang up the gloves.

Green ended his career with 41 fights. He won 37. In all four of his losses he was stopped. In turn he won 29 by the kayo route. He was a tough, game and rugged competitor. He was among the best welterweights in the world in an era when the welterweight division was loaded with talent.
 
                                                            Jim Amato

 

 

THE CRUNCHING POWER OF CARLOS ZARATE


It is somewhat of a shame when the question comes up , who was the greatest fighter to come out of Mexico ? The answer is usually Julio Cesar Chavez. Some say Salvador Sanchez. Others may say Ruben Olivares. These three are truly legendary fighters. To me one other outstanding boxer from Mexico is Carlos Zarate.

Zarate began his career in 1970 and won his first fifty two fights. Fifty one by knockout. Amazing !!! A lot of Zarate's early opposition may have been, in the words of Greg Haugen when he questioned Chavez's fine record were over a bunch of Mexican taxi drivers. Well I don't know if I'd go that far but Carlos beefed up his record but he was also learning his trade and learning it well.

By 1974 Zarate was moving up in the ratings. He stopped a tough fighter from Odessa, Texas named James Martinez. He halted unbeaten Joe Guevara. He stopped Orlando Amores, Benicio Sosa and Nestor Jimenez.

In May of 1976 Carlos halted the talented Rodolfo Martinez in nine rounds to win the WBC bantamweight title. That would lead to a run of seven title defenses. In 1977 Carlos would meet WBA champion Alfonso Zamora in a non title match. Zarate won the " Battle Of The Z Bombers " with a convincing fourth round kayo. In 1978 Carlos would turn back the challenge of future champion Alberto Davila.

Carlos decided to move up in weight and challenge the also undefeated Wilfredo Gomez for the WBC 122 pound title. The fight took place October 28, 1978 in Puerto Rico. The extremely gifted Gomez appeared to be too fast for Zarate. Wilfredo had Carlos down and the fight was stopped in the fifth round with Gomez retaining his title.

Zarate would drop back to 118 pounds. He would defend his WBC title one more time and then meet tough Lupe Pintor. Zarate started well but Pintor came on strong in the later rounds. After fifteen rounds Pintor was awarded a very controversial decision and the title. In disgust, Carlos would walk away from the game for nearly seven years.

Carlos returned in 1986 and would reel off twelve more wins, ten by knockout. In 1987 he took on Australian sensation Jeff Fenech for the WBC Super Bantamweight title. Jeff held on to his crown by a technical decision in four rounds.On February 29, 1988 Carlos met Daniel Zaragoza for the vacant WBC 122 pound title. The rugged Zaragoza stopped Carlos in the tenth round. It would be Zarate's last fight.

In all Carlos had 70 fights. He won 66 of them. Sixty three were by the KO route. He was tall and rangy. He had a stiff jab and a booming overhand right. He also had one of the best left hooks to the liver I have ever seen. Three of his four losses were to boxers now enshrined in the International Boxing Hall Of Fame. To me he has to rank among the best bantamweights of all time.

Jim Amato
 

 

DOUG DEWITT;TRUE GRIT

I enjoy watching all different types of fighters. I appreciate the art and finesse of a clever boxer like Willie Pep. I enjoy the rock-em- sock-em style of a Joe Frazier. There were men with great jabs like Larry Holmes. I was dazzled by the hand speed of Sugar Ray Leonard and more recently by Joe Calzaghe. I was in awe of the power of a Earnie Shavers or Julian Jackson. I was in even more awe of men with the granite jaws who could absorb the power shots like George Chuvalo and Tex Cobb did .

These were just a handful of fighters I have the ultimate respect for. Overall I think my favorite trait in a boxer is a bulldog tenacity. They may not be the best boxer or the hardest puncher and at times their chin may betray them. Still as long as they are standing their opponents better be prepared to fight. I guess gritty is best adjective I can use to describe this type of fighter. Doug DeWitt fit the bill.

Doug was born on August 13, 1961 in Youngstown, Ohio. He boxed out of Yonkers, New York and turned professional in 1980. He won his first eight fights before dropping a decision to tough Ben Serrano. He bounced right back with three wins including a kayo over Danny McAloon. Later he would draw with Tony Suero and Serrano in a rematch.

Doug was also beating good fighters like Teddy Mann, Mike Tinley and Bobby Hoye. A 1984 first round knockout over Jimmy Sykes led to a match with " Dangerous " Don Lee. The " Dangerous " one had recently stopped the highly regarded contender Tony Sibson. Doug and Don battled to a draw. Next Doug would lose a verdict to Robbie Sims , the vastly under rated half brother of Marvin Hagler.

In 1986 Doug would show his grit as he lost decisions to two of the best punchers in the game at the time, Milt McCrory and Thomas " Hitman " Hearns. Just when you thought Doug's chin was made of steel he suffered a 1987 KO loss to Jose Quinones. Later that year Doug would bounce back to win the USBA middleweight title by edging the crafty Tony Thornton.

A 1988 draw with Ronnie Essett led to Doug's first shot at a world title. On November 8th he met WBA middleweight titleholder Sumbu Kalambay in Monte Carlo. Kalambay is largely forgotten these days but he was a very talented champion who holds wins over Herol Graham, Mike McCallum, Iran Barkley and Robbie Sims. In possibly his best career performance Kalambay clocked Doug in the seventh round.

Tenacity...In his very next fight Doug was rematched with Robbie Sims for the WBO version of the middleweight title. At that time the WBO was a fledging organization and did not carry the clout it has today. Be that as it may DeWitt pounded out a well deserved twelve round decision and was crowned the champion. He would successfully defend against former IBF junior middleweight champ Matthew Hilton. Matthew was a brutal puncher but Doug absorbed Hilton's bombs and rallied to stop Matthew in the eleventh.

In 1990 Doug defended against Britain's Nigel Benn. It was a savage affair that ended in the eighth round after Doug took quite a beating. No longer a champion Doug returned in 1992 and drew with Tyrone Frazier. He then got a points call over Dan Sherry. In his last fight Doug was outclassed by James Toney in six rounds ending his distinguished career.

DeWitt closed out with 46 bouts. He won 33 lost 8 and drew five times. He scored 19 knockouts and he was taken out four times. He met six other men who claimed a world title. He was smart in the ring and put his punches together well. His best asset was his fighting spirit. It made him a champion.

Jim Amato
 

WHY BOBBY CHACON WAS " BAD TO THE BONE ".

     Arturo Gatti was probably the warrior of this era. Some of his  battles, win or lose are becoming legendary. Rewind now back to early  1970's to the mid 80's. There was a boxer, a champion who was Gatti before  there was a Gatti. If anyone recalls Bobby " Schoolboy " Chacon they have  to remember his blood and guts wars with Rafael " Bazooka " Limon and
 Cornelius Boza Edwards. He was a fine boxer but in many cases his heart  over ruled his head and he decided to slug instead of box. It may have  cost Bobby some fights but the fans sure got their money's worth. The got  a lot highlight clip memories too.
      Bobby was born in 1951 and he turned professional in 1972. He became  an instant sensation winning his first 19 fights. He fought fifteen times in 1972 alone ! The streak continued into 1973. Along the way he defeated  world title challengers Tury " The Fury " Pineda and Frankie Crawford. He  also stopped former champion Jesus " Chucho " Castillo. Only fourteen  months into his pro career Bobby was matched with the great Ruben  Olivares. " Rockabye " Ruben took the " Schoolboy " to school that night  halting Bobby in the ninth round.

      To Chacon's credit he bounced right back with four straight wins and into a showdown with hard punching cross-town rival Danny " Little Red " Lopez. Danny's older brother Ernie had twice challenged the outstanding Jose Napoles for the welterweight title. Now little brother Danny appeared
 ready for stardom. The Lopez Express was derailed this night by Chacon.  Bobby boxed beautifully and stopped a dead game but beaten Lopez in round  nine. Lopez would recover and end up having a nice run as featherweight champion. Why isn't he in the International Boxing Hall Of Fame ?

      Chacon was back and he was matched with former WBA junior lightweight  champion Alfredo Marcano for the vacant WBC featherweight title. Bobby won his first title by stopping the tough Marcano in nine. He would then halt
 Jesus Estrada in two to retain his crown. Next up, a rematch with Ruben  Olivares. For all the hype it was a disappointing affair. Bobby reportedly  had trouble making weight. He came in weak and was overwhelmed in two rounds by Ruben.

      Bobby was now an ex-champion. Two fights later he dropped a decision  to Rafael Limon. Bobby then reeled off nine wins leading him to a third  match with Olivares. This tim Bobby walked off with the verdict. In Chacon's very next fight though he lost an upset decision to rugged Arturo
 Leon. Chacon rebounded again defeating Ignacio Campos, Augie Pantellas, Gerald Hayes and Shig Fukuyama. He then fought a technical draw with Limon and defeated Jose Torres. In November of 1979 Bobby was set to challenge  the dangerous Alexis Arguello for the WBC junior lightweight title. Bobby  suffered a bad cut and was forced out in the seventh.

      Chacon's career was far from over. A 1980 decision win over Limon  awarded him with another shot at the WBC 130 pound title. This time  against the clever Cornelius Boza Edwards. Boza was a talented bloke and after a savage battle, Edwards emerged as the winner in round fourteen.
 Bobby would go on to win five in a row including a rematch victory over  Leon. In the meantime Edwards lost the title to Rolando Navarette who in  turn would lose it to Rafael Limon. The stage was now set for Chacon-Limon IV. It was Ring Magazine's 1982 Fight Of The Year and deservingly so.
 Bobby was down twice but through sheer guts battled back to floor Limon in  the last round and garner a fifteen round decision. Bobby had now won titles in two weight classes.

      Now there was some unfinished business with Mr. Edwards. After  another rousing battle, this time Bobby walked off with a unanimous  decision. Next up, a shot at Ray " Boom Boom " Mancini and the WBA  lightweight title. It turned out to be a rather one sided contest. Ray proved to be too strong for Bobby and the bout was mercifully halted in
 round three. It would be last professional victory of Ray's career.

      Believe it or not Bobby would win five fights through 1985 beating the likes of Freddie Roach, ex-champion, Arturo Frias and Rafael Solis. He  was relieved of his WBC junior lightweight title for failing to come to terms to defend against Hector " Macho " Camacho. The Macho Man would stop Limon to win the vacated title.

      Bobby didn't fight again until 1987 and had to get off the canvas  three times and rally to stop Martin Guevara. In 1988 he won a ten rounder  over Bobby Jones to wrap up his illustrious career. He won 59 of 67 fights  and scored 47 knockouts. He was stopped five times. Twice by Olivares,
 once each by Arguello, Edwards and Mancini. He holds victories over seven  other men who held a world title. Olivares, Castillo, Lopez, Marcano,  Limon, Edwards and Frias.

      He the heart of a lion and a champion...

      Jim Amato
 

CLEVELAND BOXERS ; Bobby Hayman

     One of the better boxers to come out of Cleveland, Ohio in the 1970's  was welterweight Bobby Hayman. He lost eight of thirty fights but almost all his losses were to contenders.

      Hayman turned pro in 1969 and in his second fight he lost a six
 rounder to future title challenger Johnny Gant. He then lost to and drew  with Teddy Cooper. He then lost a decision to future top ten rated Roland  Pryor. Bobby then put together a ten fight win streak that included a  rubber match victory over Teddy Cooper. Two wins over tough Frankie Steele. He also defeated Juan Ramos and Primus Williams.

      In May of 1971 Bobby suffered an upset stoppage loss Ralph Correa. He  came back with two knockout victories but the lost to the ranked Jack  Tillman. Two fights later he lost a ten round rematch to Johnny Gant.  Bobby won three in a row but the lost a verdict to Detroit's Ronnie Harris. One fight later Bobby took a hiatus from the fight game. It was  1973 and he had mixed it up with some of the world's better welterweights.

      Hayman decided to return in 1977 and quickly scored a couple of kayo  victories. At this time 1976 Olympic Gold Medalist, Sugar Ray Leonard had  begun his journey into legend. By May of 1978 he had racked up nine consecutive wins. It was thought that Bobby Hayman's name would look good  on his record. The bout lasted three rounds. Leonard proved to be too good for the veteran fighter. That was Hayman's last fight.

      Bobby retired with a respectable 20-8-1 record with one no contest.
 He won eight by knockout and was halted on only two occasions.

      Jim Amato
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Buster Mathis courtesy pro.corbis.com

 

 

 

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