By Edgar Gonzalez
A rematch between Juan Diaz and Paulie Malignaggi has fallen apart. Over the course of the past two weeks Malignaggi’s promoter, Lou DiBella of DiBella Entertainment, and Diaz’s promoter, Richard Schaefer of Golden Boy Promotions, began hammering out the details of Malignaggi vs. Diaz 2, with both sides agreeing that everything would be split and distributed evenly, from the fighter’s purses to the percentage of profits off the event that both companies would keep. The two sides had begun reaching out to venues in Chicago due to its neutral location between Malignaggi’s hometown of Brooklyn, New York, and Diaz’s hometown of Houston, Texas (where the first fight took place). Even HBO was onboard, agreeing to pay a hefty license fee for the rights to air the bout on December 12. However Diaz and manager Willie Savannah rejected the offer Schaefer had struck on his behalf.
“I assumed when Golden Boy and I reached an agreement, that the deal was done, and I think Richard Schaefer believed it was going to get done,” said DiBella. “I know that Golden Boy tried to make this fight with the license fee that was available; they were frustrated by unreasonable management and an unwilling fighter.”
Diaz did not give a specific reason for his withdrawal other than saying he deferred his decision to manager Willie Savannah. Whoever made the final call, Malignaggi suspects it was the overture of neutrality that ultimately killed the bout from the Diaz end.
“If Juan is a real fighter, he will pull up his skirt and tell Willie Savannah he wants the rematch,” said Malignaggi. “Willie doesn’t want to do a rematch because they can’t screw me the second time around. In the spirit of competition, Juan should want a rematch and this rematch should happen.”
“The problem with marketplace decisions are that they give the beneficiaries the idea that they have marketplace leverage, even when they don’t,” added DiBella, who has another theory why Team Diaz has chosen to stay away from Paulie Malignaggi this time around: “I guess Juan Diaz doesn’t want to see his mother crying with her head buried in her hands again.”
Malignaggi is now moving on.
“I’m not going to wait on Juan Diaz,” he said. “I heard Diaz actually wants a rematch with Juan Manuel Marquez [who stopped Diaz in nine rounds in February], but who gives a crap? Marquez will knock him out cold again. Here’s an idea. How about Malignaggi vs. Marquez? I’ve got to keep it going, with or without Juan Diaz.”
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
WHY ISN’T LUPE PINTOR IN THE INTERNATIONAL BOXING HALL OF FAME?
LUPE PINTOR
By Jim Amato
This is a story that you may say is regrettable. You may say it is sad or that it is a simple oversight. Or you may call it what it is, a travesty! If you look at the credentials of Lupe Pintor it is plain to see that they far exceed those of some that are enshrined in the I.B.H.O.F. This is a proud warrior who should have been inducted years ago but sadly he sits on the outside looking in.
Pintor was born in Mexico in 1955 and he turned professional in 1974. He first gained attention in 1975 when he upset previously unbeaten Willie “Birdlegs” Jensen via a seventh round knockout. In 1976 he would drop a decision to highly regarded Alberto Davila. Pintor continued to rack up victories stopping Tony Rocha, Baby Kid Chocolate and Davey Vasquez. He also out pointed Gerald Hayes. In 1978 he dropped verdicts to future super bantamweight champion Leo Cruz and Jose Luis Soto. A fourth round stoppage of Richard Rozelle put Lupe back in the title picture. On June 3, 1979 Pintor met the great Carlos Zarate for the WBC bantamweight title. The once beaten Zarate boxed well early on and even had Lupe down in the fourth round. As the fight progressed Pintor began to come on. Still at the end of fifteen rounds the decision was in doubt. One judge had Zarate in front by an outrageous score of 145-133. The other two judges shocked the crowd voting for the new champion Lupe Pintor by the score of 143-142. It was a highly controversial verdict. A disgusted Zarate would stay away from boxing for nearly seven years.
Pintor proved to be a busy and worthy champion. In 1980 he turned back the challenge of the talented Alberto “Superfly” Sandoval. In his next defense he drew with tough Eijro Murata. Then came a tragic defense against the gritty Welshman Johnny Owen. Pintor kayoed Owen in round twelve. The brave Owen would die from injuries in this bout two months later. Somehow Pintor put the tragedy behind him and continued to defend his title. He would defeat Alberto Davila in a rematch. In 1981 he outscored Joe Felix Uziga and Jovito Rengifo. He then stopped Hurricane Teru in the final round. In 1982 he took out Seung Hoon Lee in the eleventh round. It was Lupe’s eighth successful title defense. He would then relinquish the crown to go after Wilfredo Gomez at 122 pounds. Pintor won a ten rounder over former WBA bantamweight king Jorge Lujan and then challenged Gomez. The fight took place on December 3, 1982. It was quite a memorable affair. When I think of great fights I have seen, Foreman – Lyle, Pryor – Arguello I, Duran – Barkley and Gomez – Pintor quickly come to mind. This was an action packed encounter with several shifts in momentum. It was a true classic that ended in round fourteen with Gomez retaining his WBC super bantamweight title.
Pintor would lay off for over a year. Upon returning he won three straight but was then upset by Adriano Arreola. In 1985 Pintor was matched with Juan “Kid” Meza who now held the WBC 122 pound crown. Meza had won the title in impressive fashion by clocking undefeated Jaime Garza in one round. Pintor surprised the experts by flooring the game Meza three times on his way to a decision victory. Pintor was again a champion. This title reign didn’t last long though. In 1986 he came in over the weight limit in a title defense and forfeited his crown. His opponent Samart Payakaroon then halted him.
Lupe did not box again for eight years. He returned in 1994 as a lightweight. Pintor won only two of seven bouts and he would retire for good in 1995. In 72 bouts Pintor posted a 56-14-2 record. He won 42 inside the distance. He held the bantamweight title for three years taking on all comers. The only worthy opponent he missed was his WBA counterpart Jeff Chandler. The unification bout just never materialized. Chandler, a great fighter in his own right was inducted way back in 2000. Where is the justice here? It is time for Lupe Pintor to get the recognition he deserves.
By Jim Amato
This is a story that you may say is regrettable. You may say it is sad or that it is a simple oversight. Or you may call it what it is, a travesty! If you look at the credentials of Lupe Pintor it is plain to see that they far exceed those of some that are enshrined in the I.B.H.O.F. This is a proud warrior who should have been inducted years ago but sadly he sits on the outside looking in.
Pintor was born in Mexico in 1955 and he turned professional in 1974. He first gained attention in 1975 when he upset previously unbeaten Willie “Birdlegs” Jensen via a seventh round knockout. In 1976 he would drop a decision to highly regarded Alberto Davila. Pintor continued to rack up victories stopping Tony Rocha, Baby Kid Chocolate and Davey Vasquez. He also out pointed Gerald Hayes. In 1978 he dropped verdicts to future super bantamweight champion Leo Cruz and Jose Luis Soto. A fourth round stoppage of Richard Rozelle put Lupe back in the title picture. On June 3, 1979 Pintor met the great Carlos Zarate for the WBC bantamweight title. The once beaten Zarate boxed well early on and even had Lupe down in the fourth round. As the fight progressed Pintor began to come on. Still at the end of fifteen rounds the decision was in doubt. One judge had Zarate in front by an outrageous score of 145-133. The other two judges shocked the crowd voting for the new champion Lupe Pintor by the score of 143-142. It was a highly controversial verdict. A disgusted Zarate would stay away from boxing for nearly seven years.
Pintor proved to be a busy and worthy champion. In 1980 he turned back the challenge of the talented Alberto “Superfly” Sandoval. In his next defense he drew with tough Eijro Murata. Then came a tragic defense against the gritty Welshman Johnny Owen. Pintor kayoed Owen in round twelve. The brave Owen would die from injuries in this bout two months later. Somehow Pintor put the tragedy behind him and continued to defend his title. He would defeat Alberto Davila in a rematch. In 1981 he outscored Joe Felix Uziga and Jovito Rengifo. He then stopped Hurricane Teru in the final round. In 1982 he took out Seung Hoon Lee in the eleventh round. It was Lupe’s eighth successful title defense. He would then relinquish the crown to go after Wilfredo Gomez at 122 pounds. Pintor won a ten rounder over former WBA bantamweight king Jorge Lujan and then challenged Gomez. The fight took place on December 3, 1982. It was quite a memorable affair. When I think of great fights I have seen, Foreman – Lyle, Pryor – Arguello I, Duran – Barkley and Gomez – Pintor quickly come to mind. This was an action packed encounter with several shifts in momentum. It was a true classic that ended in round fourteen with Gomez retaining his WBC super bantamweight title.
Pintor would lay off for over a year. Upon returning he won three straight but was then upset by Adriano Arreola. In 1985 Pintor was matched with Juan “Kid” Meza who now held the WBC 122 pound crown. Meza had won the title in impressive fashion by clocking undefeated Jaime Garza in one round. Pintor surprised the experts by flooring the game Meza three times on his way to a decision victory. Pintor was again a champion. This title reign didn’t last long though. In 1986 he came in over the weight limit in a title defense and forfeited his crown. His opponent Samart Payakaroon then halted him.
Lupe did not box again for eight years. He returned in 1994 as a lightweight. Pintor won only two of seven bouts and he would retire for good in 1995. In 72 bouts Pintor posted a 56-14-2 record. He won 42 inside the distance. He held the bantamweight title for three years taking on all comers. The only worthy opponent he missed was his WBA counterpart Jeff Chandler. The unification bout just never materialized. Chandler, a great fighter in his own right was inducted way back in 2000. Where is the justice here? It is time for Lupe Pintor to get the recognition he deserves.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
California’s Newest Inductees!
By Michele Chong
Hall of Fame luncheon honors local legends
Saturday was a busy day for members of the SoCal boxing community. While the long-hyped matchup between Riverside’s Chris Arreola and Vitali Klitschko was scheduled to take place at the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles later in the evening, over 30 local legends were inducted into the California Boxing Hall of Fame earlier in the day.
Hosted by Don Fraser, President and founder of the West Coast organization, the Class of 2009 received their honors in front of a packed Crystal Ballroom in Steven’s Steak & Seafood House in the City of Commerce.
Southern California is known for Tinsel Town, Disneyland, and our perpetual sunshine, but we also have a strong and thriving group of individuals who support and work in boxing. Fraser says this is a chance to honor those who have given back and still contribute to the sport we all love.
“These people are the grassroots of boxing,” explains the living legend, who was a fixture at the Olympic and Forum. “There’s been so much support for all of the inductees. This really just took off on its own; we’ve had calls come in from all over the country!”
Fraser worked with his staff to choose the deserving individuals for this year’s function and also gave praise to his Vice President, Frank Baltazar Sr. “Frank is head of the Selection Committee. He was a big help and did a great job.”
The afternoon was a family affair for Fraser and the inductees with most of the tables filled with proud parents and children applauding their own personal heroes. Don’s daughter, Denise, provided the weekend’s entertainment as her trio, The Denise Fraser Band (featuring Denise on drums, Karen Hernandez on keyboards and Nate Light on bass) played the theme song from “Rocky” as each honoree made their way up to the podium.
As the guests dined on a steak lunch, the inductees were announced by emcee Jim Fitzgerald as the new members of Fraser’s Hall of Fame. Included in this year’s group were Manny Pacquiao, Freddie Roach, Timothy Bradley, Gary Shaw, John Bray, Roy Englebrecht, Alex Ramos, Jesus Pimentel, Charlie Powell, Paul Vaden, Kid Rayo, Davey Gallardo, Van Barbieri, Jack O’Halloran, P.J. Goossen, Robert Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Ken Green, Howard Smith, Jesse Reid, Paul Andrews, Michael Buffer, John Jackson Sr., Gary Ballin, Jacquie Richardson, Tony Cerda, Tony Fuentes, Bob Fuentes, Alexis Arguello, Sugar Ray Robinson and Jim Jeffries.
Since he’s in camp with Pacquiao, trainer Freddie Roach’s mother was there to collect his newest award for “Man of the Year.” The spunky Barbara Roach (who is a former boxing judge) can also be given the title “Mom of the Year.” She sat at a head table with Freddie’s brothers Pepper and Paul and her pretty granddaughter, Esa. Sadly, another son, Joey, recently passed away in Las Vegas.
Promoter Gary Shaw was also given the prestigious honor and was introduced by co-promoter Ken Thompson, who said of his friend and associate, “The legacy began from New Jersey all the way to the Hall of Fame.” And if Shaw were to start a second career, he could be a comedian. The veteran promoter cracked jokes while accepting his award with his usual brand of humor and humbleness combined.
“I told my wife that this was gonna be a big day for me, with fans mobbing me at the awards,” began Shaw. “And they did mob me–when they all asked if “Perro” Angulo was coming!”
With his star fighter-on-the-rise Alfredo Angulo laughing from the audience, the promoter kidded, “You know one of my other fighters, Yonnhy Perez, bought a house for his trainer. So I think it’s time for “Perro” to buy me a house…a watch…maybe a meal at least?”
Angulo, who wears a sparkling wrist watch of his own, joked with me later on, “Yes, when I get a title–I will buy him a watch!” The popular middleweight also said that Gary Shaw is like a father to him; the duo is frequently seen together at various L.A. events. Angulo will be on the undercard of the Chad Dawson-Glen Johnson battle on November 7.
Shaw, who promotes Angulo, Dawson, Timothy Bradley, Vic Darchinyan, Rafael Marquez among many others, thanked everyone from the bottom of his heart including his wife, Judy and son, Jared who were there in attendance. He also gave acknowledgment to Ken Thompson (who he called “first class”) and Jersey Joe Walcott, who gave him his start in the boxing business through the New Jersey State Athletic Control Commission. Shaw has promoted thousands of fights including the Mike Tyson-Lennox Lewis bout and was the promoter of fallen fighters Diego Corrales and Vern Forrest.
A prostate cancer survivor, Shaw also took time to bring awareness to the illness. The founder of Gary Shaw Productions was seated with Angulo, Thompson and his wife, Vera, matchmaker Alex Camponovo and his wife, Bea, and Thompson Boxing Promotions’ Art Olson. At an adjacent table were boxer Daniel “El Travieso” Hernandez (fighting on Thompson’s October 9 card) the WBC’s Dr. Joe Noriega, and Shaw and Thompson champion Yonnhy Perez with his trainer Danny Zamora. Colombian bantamweight Perez will be facing Joseph Agbeko on October 31 at the Treasure Island Casino in Vegas.
Another promoter who was honored, and is also very active and well-known in the fight game, was Orange County’s Roy Englebrecht, who attributed “faith, family and fighting” as his secrets to success. The “Battle in the Ballroom” businessman quipped, “You have to be sustained by prayer while promoting a show–the fighters have to show up, you hope it doesn’t rain, you hope the ambulances get there…so you better believe in prayer!” He also gave credit to his mentor Don Fraser.
For older veterans like Charlie Powell and Kid Rayo, the Hall of Fame honors gave them a well-earned day in the sun as their families were able to pay tribute to all the sacrifices they made.
And family was at the forefront of the day, with heartfelt and emotional speeches from many of the inductees.
World titlist and San Diego native Paul Vaden gave a very moving and inspiring speech while he was on stage, “I was able to fulfill my dreams and answer the bell!” He also dedicated his award to his mother, his late father and to his son, Dane.
Alex Ramos, the “Bronx Bomber,” who now runs his Retired Boxers Foundation from Southern California, often states, “I’m going to die a fighter!” He takes pride in being part of the boxing world and said while at the mike, “I’ve been around boxing a long time–and I love it. I love what I do today in trying to help boxers. I’m going to die trying to help boxers!”
Also appearing at the luncheon were former fighters Danny “Little Red” Lopez, Bobby Chacon, Randy Shields, Mando Muñiz, Frankie Baltazar, Allen Syers, politicians Steve Cooley and Carmen Trutanich, and the Golden State Boxer’s Association Larry and Elsa Montalvo and Bill and Linda Dempsey Young.
As dessert was served, several of us at the luncheon had to leave the festivities to head to the Staples Center fight. New inductee P.J. Goossen’s family Goossen Tutor Promotions was a promoter of Saturday night’s marquee matchup. P.J. and his dad, Pat, were both professional boxers and the whole family is well-known throughout the San Fernando Valley and beyond. Another SFV resident, former fighter and current trainer John Bray also left a bit early, as he was doing corner work in one of the undercards of the night.
And at the awards show, the buzz was all about Arreola’s chances of making history as the first Mexican-American heavyweight champ.
While Chris was stopped short in attaining his goal, the Class of 2009 Inductees did succced in making history–their names will be forever listed as members of the California Boxing Hall of Fame.
Congratulations again to all the newest honorees!
Hall of Fame luncheon honors local legends
Saturday was a busy day for members of the SoCal boxing community. While the long-hyped matchup between Riverside’s Chris Arreola and Vitali Klitschko was scheduled to take place at the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles later in the evening, over 30 local legends were inducted into the California Boxing Hall of Fame earlier in the day.
Hosted by Don Fraser, President and founder of the West Coast organization, the Class of 2009 received their honors in front of a packed Crystal Ballroom in Steven’s Steak & Seafood House in the City of Commerce.
Southern California is known for Tinsel Town, Disneyland, and our perpetual sunshine, but we also have a strong and thriving group of individuals who support and work in boxing. Fraser says this is a chance to honor those who have given back and still contribute to the sport we all love.
“These people are the grassroots of boxing,” explains the living legend, who was a fixture at the Olympic and Forum. “There’s been so much support for all of the inductees. This really just took off on its own; we’ve had calls come in from all over the country!”
Fraser worked with his staff to choose the deserving individuals for this year’s function and also gave praise to his Vice President, Frank Baltazar Sr. “Frank is head of the Selection Committee. He was a big help and did a great job.”
The afternoon was a family affair for Fraser and the inductees with most of the tables filled with proud parents and children applauding their own personal heroes. Don’s daughter, Denise, provided the weekend’s entertainment as her trio, The Denise Fraser Band (featuring Denise on drums, Karen Hernandez on keyboards and Nate Light on bass) played the theme song from “Rocky” as each honoree made their way up to the podium.
As the guests dined on a steak lunch, the inductees were announced by emcee Jim Fitzgerald as the new members of Fraser’s Hall of Fame. Included in this year’s group were Manny Pacquiao, Freddie Roach, Timothy Bradley, Gary Shaw, John Bray, Roy Englebrecht, Alex Ramos, Jesus Pimentel, Charlie Powell, Paul Vaden, Kid Rayo, Davey Gallardo, Van Barbieri, Jack O’Halloran, P.J. Goossen, Robert Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Ken Green, Howard Smith, Jesse Reid, Paul Andrews, Michael Buffer, John Jackson Sr., Gary Ballin, Jacquie Richardson, Tony Cerda, Tony Fuentes, Bob Fuentes, Alexis Arguello, Sugar Ray Robinson and Jim Jeffries.
Since he’s in camp with Pacquiao, trainer Freddie Roach’s mother was there to collect his newest award for “Man of the Year.” The spunky Barbara Roach (who is a former boxing judge) can also be given the title “Mom of the Year.” She sat at a head table with Freddie’s brothers Pepper and Paul and her pretty granddaughter, Esa. Sadly, another son, Joey, recently passed away in Las Vegas.
Promoter Gary Shaw was also given the prestigious honor and was introduced by co-promoter Ken Thompson, who said of his friend and associate, “The legacy began from New Jersey all the way to the Hall of Fame.” And if Shaw were to start a second career, he could be a comedian. The veteran promoter cracked jokes while accepting his award with his usual brand of humor and humbleness combined.
“I told my wife that this was gonna be a big day for me, with fans mobbing me at the awards,” began Shaw. “And they did mob me–when they all asked if “Perro” Angulo was coming!”
With his star fighter-on-the-rise Alfredo Angulo laughing from the audience, the promoter kidded, “You know one of my other fighters, Yonnhy Perez, bought a house for his trainer. So I think it’s time for “Perro” to buy me a house…a watch…maybe a meal at least?”
Angulo, who wears a sparkling wrist watch of his own, joked with me later on, “Yes, when I get a title–I will buy him a watch!” The popular middleweight also said that Gary Shaw is like a father to him; the duo is frequently seen together at various L.A. events. Angulo will be on the undercard of the Chad Dawson-Glen Johnson battle on November 7.
Shaw, who promotes Angulo, Dawson, Timothy Bradley, Vic Darchinyan, Rafael Marquez among many others, thanked everyone from the bottom of his heart including his wife, Judy and son, Jared who were there in attendance. He also gave acknowledgment to Ken Thompson (who he called “first class”) and Jersey Joe Walcott, who gave him his start in the boxing business through the New Jersey State Athletic Control Commission. Shaw has promoted thousands of fights including the Mike Tyson-Lennox Lewis bout and was the promoter of fallen fighters Diego Corrales and Vern Forrest.
A prostate cancer survivor, Shaw also took time to bring awareness to the illness. The founder of Gary Shaw Productions was seated with Angulo, Thompson and his wife, Vera, matchmaker Alex Camponovo and his wife, Bea, and Thompson Boxing Promotions’ Art Olson. At an adjacent table were boxer Daniel “El Travieso” Hernandez (fighting on Thompson’s October 9 card) the WBC’s Dr. Joe Noriega, and Shaw and Thompson champion Yonnhy Perez with his trainer Danny Zamora. Colombian bantamweight Perez will be facing Joseph Agbeko on October 31 at the Treasure Island Casino in Vegas.
Another promoter who was honored, and is also very active and well-known in the fight game, was Orange County’s Roy Englebrecht, who attributed “faith, family and fighting” as his secrets to success. The “Battle in the Ballroom” businessman quipped, “You have to be sustained by prayer while promoting a show–the fighters have to show up, you hope it doesn’t rain, you hope the ambulances get there…so you better believe in prayer!” He also gave credit to his mentor Don Fraser.
For older veterans like Charlie Powell and Kid Rayo, the Hall of Fame honors gave them a well-earned day in the sun as their families were able to pay tribute to all the sacrifices they made.
And family was at the forefront of the day, with heartfelt and emotional speeches from many of the inductees.
World titlist and San Diego native Paul Vaden gave a very moving and inspiring speech while he was on stage, “I was able to fulfill my dreams and answer the bell!” He also dedicated his award to his mother, his late father and to his son, Dane.
Alex Ramos, the “Bronx Bomber,” who now runs his Retired Boxers Foundation from Southern California, often states, “I’m going to die a fighter!” He takes pride in being part of the boxing world and said while at the mike, “I’ve been around boxing a long time–and I love it. I love what I do today in trying to help boxers. I’m going to die trying to help boxers!”
Also appearing at the luncheon were former fighters Danny “Little Red” Lopez, Bobby Chacon, Randy Shields, Mando Muñiz, Frankie Baltazar, Allen Syers, politicians Steve Cooley and Carmen Trutanich, and the Golden State Boxer’s Association Larry and Elsa Montalvo and Bill and Linda Dempsey Young.
As dessert was served, several of us at the luncheon had to leave the festivities to head to the Staples Center fight. New inductee P.J. Goossen’s family Goossen Tutor Promotions was a promoter of Saturday night’s marquee matchup. P.J. and his dad, Pat, were both professional boxers and the whole family is well-known throughout the San Fernando Valley and beyond. Another SFV resident, former fighter and current trainer John Bray also left a bit early, as he was doing corner work in one of the undercards of the night.
And at the awards show, the buzz was all about Arreola’s chances of making history as the first Mexican-American heavyweight champ.
While Chris was stopped short in attaining his goal, the Class of 2009 Inductees did succced in making history–their names will be forever listed as members of the California Boxing Hall of Fame.
Congratulations again to all the newest honorees!
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Defeated Cris Arreola vows to get back into the ring quickly
'I want to fight as soon as possible, December or January,' Arreola says after losing to Vitali Klitschko. 'I'm not going to let this fight break me.'
September 27, 2009
Cris Arreola wiped away the tears that engulfed him after his first career loss, and vowed to quickly rid "the bitter taste in my mouth" that came with joining the club of losing to a Klitschko.
Riverside's Arreola (27-1) was outpunched 301-86, out-jabbed 150-62 and deemed the loser of every round by one judge Saturday before his trainer Henry Ramirez told referee Jon Schorle to award Vitali Klitschko a 10th-round technical knockout victory, blocking Arreola's quest to become the first world heavyweight champion of Mexican ancestry.
"I want to fight as soon as possible, December or January," Arreola said in the post-fight news conference after sobbing on HBO cameras as he apologized for losing. "It's back to the drawing board, back to the gym. I'm not going to let this fight break me."
"I earned this shot and got my [rear] kicked. Now, it's time for me to earn a shot again and do some [rear] kicking."
That was the tone of the post-fight evening, as Arreola's promoter Dan Goossen lamented "the only way to beat Vitali Klitschko [age 38] is to have him retire," and Klitschko and boxing powers praised the beaten challenger's toughness and charisma.
"A couple of very hard punches I land to his head," Klitschko said. "But he stay. . . . Cris Arreola has all the skills to be a world champion."
HBO's Kery Davis, who oversees the process that puts big fights on our televisions, predicted, "Arreola will have another title chance. He's just 28, has a great personality and fights in a television-friendly style [24 knockouts]."
Reached later at his post-fight party at the Palm restaurant downtown, Goossen milked a drink and said he was unprepared to assess what he'll do next with Arreola.
"It boiled down to he fought a very talented heavyweight tonight," Goossen said. "Arreola has guts. Sometimes, the other team is better than you, but it doesn't mean you can't come back and play well again."
The immediate question is how long World Boxing Council champion Vitali and his younger brother and IBF and WBO heavyweight champ Wladimir want to continue their reign of the division. They're now vowing to capture all four major belts simultaneously.
American fight fans may not like their systematic, usually un-bloodied style -- Vitali said he stuck with his "Plan A" to defeat Arreola, sidestepping the challenger's rush and submitting him to combinations led by a jab flexed from a 78-inch reach -- but, like Vitali said, "I don't want to prove my head is strong in a fight by getting hit; I want to use my head to win. I'm sorry it's not as spectacular as a knockout."
Vitali's manager, Shelly Finkel, said afterward that he'll explore a December or January bout in Europe for his fighter against a member of the WBC top 10, possibly Oleg Maskaev, who attended Saturday's match.
Finkel admits his fighter's dominance makes it problematic to attract a large audience drawn to a compelling matchup. Staples fell more than 5,000 tickets short of a sellout. The next best option is to fight overseas, where large crowds flock to the Klitschkos regardless of their foes.
"Who do you have?" Finkel asked. "There's not that much to choose from."
Arreola paid sufficient respect to the champ. "He counteracted everything I had," the Riverside fighter said.
All the beaten challenger could do was pledge to return better, and fitter.
"No more Coronas," announced Arreola, his swollen eyes finding the nearly unblemished champion. "What do you drink, Vitali?"
lance.pugmire@latimes.com
September 27, 2009
Cris Arreola wiped away the tears that engulfed him after his first career loss, and vowed to quickly rid "the bitter taste in my mouth" that came with joining the club of losing to a Klitschko.
Riverside's Arreola (27-1) was outpunched 301-86, out-jabbed 150-62 and deemed the loser of every round by one judge Saturday before his trainer Henry Ramirez told referee Jon Schorle to award Vitali Klitschko a 10th-round technical knockout victory, blocking Arreola's quest to become the first world heavyweight champion of Mexican ancestry.
"I want to fight as soon as possible, December or January," Arreola said in the post-fight news conference after sobbing on HBO cameras as he apologized for losing. "It's back to the drawing board, back to the gym. I'm not going to let this fight break me."
"I earned this shot and got my [rear] kicked. Now, it's time for me to earn a shot again and do some [rear] kicking."
That was the tone of the post-fight evening, as Arreola's promoter Dan Goossen lamented "the only way to beat Vitali Klitschko [age 38] is to have him retire," and Klitschko and boxing powers praised the beaten challenger's toughness and charisma.
"A couple of very hard punches I land to his head," Klitschko said. "But he stay. . . . Cris Arreola has all the skills to be a world champion."
HBO's Kery Davis, who oversees the process that puts big fights on our televisions, predicted, "Arreola will have another title chance. He's just 28, has a great personality and fights in a television-friendly style [24 knockouts]."
Reached later at his post-fight party at the Palm restaurant downtown, Goossen milked a drink and said he was unprepared to assess what he'll do next with Arreola.
"It boiled down to he fought a very talented heavyweight tonight," Goossen said. "Arreola has guts. Sometimes, the other team is better than you, but it doesn't mean you can't come back and play well again."
The immediate question is how long World Boxing Council champion Vitali and his younger brother and IBF and WBO heavyweight champ Wladimir want to continue their reign of the division. They're now vowing to capture all four major belts simultaneously.
American fight fans may not like their systematic, usually un-bloodied style -- Vitali said he stuck with his "Plan A" to defeat Arreola, sidestepping the challenger's rush and submitting him to combinations led by a jab flexed from a 78-inch reach -- but, like Vitali said, "I don't want to prove my head is strong in a fight by getting hit; I want to use my head to win. I'm sorry it's not as spectacular as a knockout."
Vitali's manager, Shelly Finkel, said afterward that he'll explore a December or January bout in Europe for his fighter against a member of the WBC top 10, possibly Oleg Maskaev, who attended Saturday's match.
Finkel admits his fighter's dominance makes it problematic to attract a large audience drawn to a compelling matchup. Staples fell more than 5,000 tickets short of a sellout. The next best option is to fight overseas, where large crowds flock to the Klitschkos regardless of their foes.
"Who do you have?" Finkel asked. "There's not that much to choose from."
Arreola paid sufficient respect to the champ. "He counteracted everything I had," the Riverside fighter said.
All the beaten challenger could do was pledge to return better, and fitter.
"No more Coronas," announced Arreola, his swollen eyes finding the nearly unblemished champion. "What do you drink, Vitali?"
lance.pugmire@latimes.com
Saturday, September 26, 2009
YOU CAN'T TELL THE FIGHTERS WITHOUT LOOKING AT THE BROKEN NOSES
By Roger Esty
Being with fighters is like blending in with the wall. If you didn't know any better you would think you're in an elevator with a full load of passengers. Let me put it simply. Fighters are so unassuming(to use Randy De La O's adjective),you wouldn't know that these guys made their living as modern gladiators. They're standup guys. Modest to a point,but straight forward to that point at the same time. No pretentions. Down to earth grounded with politeness,but with a record of standing alone half naked in a ring testing their manhood fighting another man. Oh they do it for the money,but it's a real macho test anyway you look at it.
You don't have to be in the Ring Record Book to hang out with them. They're the most approachable athletes around. They don't whine about not getting enough attention. They got a gravitation of all sorts when they fought. Some characters that wanted to cash in on their fame and money. Those thieves were better any pick pockets on earth.
At the boxing banquets they're fans that gather around still. Aside from the creeps that want to get the fighters' autographs to sell on EBAY,the genuine boxing fan will have their old heros to rub shoulders with.
Sometimes the old pugs have changed appearances. The toll of the sport has rearranged their outsides and sometimes what is underneath their skins. If you've lost touch with them,you can't tell who they are. I guess you have to look for the broken noses.
Being with fighters is like blending in with the wall. If you didn't know any better you would think you're in an elevator with a full load of passengers. Let me put it simply. Fighters are so unassuming(to use Randy De La O's adjective),you wouldn't know that these guys made their living as modern gladiators. They're standup guys. Modest to a point,but straight forward to that point at the same time. No pretentions. Down to earth grounded with politeness,but with a record of standing alone half naked in a ring testing their manhood fighting another man. Oh they do it for the money,but it's a real macho test anyway you look at it.
You don't have to be in the Ring Record Book to hang out with them. They're the most approachable athletes around. They don't whine about not getting enough attention. They got a gravitation of all sorts when they fought. Some characters that wanted to cash in on their fame and money. Those thieves were better any pick pockets on earth.
At the boxing banquets they're fans that gather around still. Aside from the creeps that want to get the fighters' autographs to sell on EBAY,the genuine boxing fan will have their old heros to rub shoulders with.
Sometimes the old pugs have changed appearances. The toll of the sport has rearranged their outsides and sometimes what is underneath their skins. If you've lost touch with them,you can't tell who they are. I guess you have to look for the broken noses.
Thursday, September 24, 2009
The Power and Passion of Dwight Hawkins (PART 1)
by Rick Farris
In the early sixties boxing was on the ropes and reeling from the exposure of mob corruption. Names such as Frankie Carbo, Blinky Palermo and Jim Norris became the targets of eager politicians seeking to advance their careers. Their goal was the abolition of the sport that people love to hate. In 1965, Sonny Liston's questionable one round loss to Muhammad Ali in Lewiston, Maine did nothing to help matters.
However, like the cock roach, boxing proved itself to be the ultimate survivor. The sweet science suddenly began to flourish with a brash young heavyweight champ and the re-emergence of local clubs that began to produce some solid talent. It was about this time that I was given the chance to realize my goal of becoming a boxer. At the time, I doubt that a 12-year-old kid could have had a better opportunity to do so.
In the mid sixties, boxing in Los Angeles experienced a sudden rebirth thanks to the efforts of promoter Aileen Eaton. Mrs. Eaton turned the legendary Olympic Auditorium into the most successful weekly boxing promotion on the planet. With televised weekly cards every Thursday night, fifty weeks out of the year, the Olympic showcased some of the best talent in boxing.
In recent months, I've written about many of the young boxers that came out of the Olympic Auditorium promotions. However, there were also veteran contenders that filled the 18th & Grand arena and waged great wars as the young crop developed. One of the veterans was somebody whom I had the luck to meet and get to know very well. I am speaking of former bantamweight and featherweight contender Dwight "The Hawk" Hawkins.
Before I chronicle the life and career of Dwight Hawkins, I'd like for you to imagine this: In California, you must be eighteen-years-old to qualify for a professional boxing license. However, through creative management (AKA: a phony birth certificate) you are able to get a boxing license at fifteen. At age seventeen, after only a dozen pro fights, you are matched with a brilliant 22-year-old from Mexico. The Mexican was rated number one in the world and would become an all-time great champion in the bantamweight division. The future world champ had more than fifty pro fights and you are only a senior in high school. You are listed as a 10-to-1 underdog and considered an easy tune-up for the next boxer in line to fight for the title. Before a capacity crowd, attending a title fight in the main event, you shock the world by knocking out the number one contender, knocking him out cold.
Impossible? Not if you're Dwight Hawkins. That's exactly what "The Hawk" did on November 6, 1957. The 17-year-old Manual Arts High School senior knocked out future champ Jose Beccera in the fourth round. It was the biggest upset in world class professional boxing that year.
Let me start from the beginning and introduce you to one of the most brutal punching boxers to ever step into the ring. However, if you think a 17-year-old knocking out the great Jose Becerra was amazing, wait until you hear the whole story. I was lucky to be a part of the last five years of Hawkins career, and even luckier to have this man help train me early in my pro career.
In the late 1940's Dwight Hawkins was a small, athletic kid who loved sports. At the age of seven, Hawkins' mother, grandmother and uncle packed up the family car and left the South and headed West. Young Dwight's family sought a better life in California.
On their journey West the family drove through Texas late one night. As Dwight slept in the back seat of the car, he was suddenly awakened. The car had been forced off the road by another driver and Hawkins uncle, who was driving, lost control of the vehicle. The car went off the road and flipped over. Somehow everybody escaped serious injury except Dwight, whose left leg was trapped underneath the wreckage. It was hours before another car passed by and when a Texas Ranger finally stopped to see what had happened he found the young boy in agony.
The cop called for help over his radio and nearly an hour later an ambulance arrived. It took Dwight's uncle, the Texas Ranger and the two ambulance attendants nearly an hour to free the kid's leg from under the car. It took another 45 minutes to get the boy to a hospital. By the time they reached the emergency room it was doubtful that Dwight's leg could be saved. However, if this wasn't enough, there was another problem. This was post World War II Texas and Hawkins was black.
When the ambulance arrived at the hospital the head nurse in charge told the driver that the facility did not take black patients. She told him the boy would have to be transferred to another hospital nearly an hour away. "But the kid is going to lose his leg!" the driver protested. The nurse said she did not make the rules and the boy would have to be taken elsewhere.
About this time a doctor walks into the emergency receiving area to see what all the commotion was about. He took one look at the boy's leg and ordered the nurse, "Get him into an operating room NOW"! The nurse answered, "But doctor, we don't . . ." The doctor turned to the nurse and said, "Did you hear me? I said get that kid into an operating room or you won't have a job tomorrow"!
Had it not been for the human decency of the doctor, a seven-year-old would have lost his leg and very possibly his life early that morning in 1947. As it was, it would be touch and go regarding saving the leg and the doctor told Dwight's mother that the boy would spend the rest of his life on crutches.
When the family arrived in California they settled in East Los Angeles, a predominately Mexican-American community, but at the time, still had an ethnic mix including blacks, whites and Asians. Dwight's mother immediately found a job across town in a hospital. To get back and forth from work she'd have to ride the bus for more than three hours everyday.
Dwight was left in the care of his grandmother while his mother worked. After school, the boy would sit on the curb with his leg in a brace watching the neighborhood kids play baseball, football or what ever other sports they were involved with. This would be tough on any kid, but for one as athletic as young Dwight had been, it was heartbreaking.
Dwight would toss his crutches aside and try to play anyway. Hawkins could still run but it was painful to do so. However, it beat sitting on the sidelines and watching the other kids have all the fun. If his mother had found out about this he'd have been in big trouble. But sometimes a kid just has to do what he has to do, regardless of the risk.
One day, Dwight's friend Armando told him that a boxing ring and punching bags had been set up in the basement of a local church and that boxing lesson's were going to be offered to neighborhood kids. "Why don't you come down and watch us box"? the boy offered.
Dwight's mind began to race and it occurred to him that boxing didn't require kicking and he believed that he might be able to give it a try. However, he knew that nobody was going to let a crippled kid try out for boxing. One afternoon, Hawkins followed Armando and the others boys to the basement gym. Before entering Dwight tossed his crutches under a bush and pulled his pant leg down to make sure his brace was covered. He made the other boys swear not to tell the coach about his leg and the boys agreed to keep their friend's secret.
Hawkins found the boxing coach to be a tall, well built former boxer who'd spent twenty years as a Sargent in the Marine Corps. The man was stern but fair and took a liking to Dwight. Hawkins was smaller than the other kids and worked twice as hard as the rest. He also proved himself to have a natural talent and in no time was outfighting the other boys, even the bigger ones. Dwight was able to hide the leg from the coach until it was time for the boys to compete in a kids boxing program. The boy's on the church team would all have to wear boxing trunks.
To keep his secret from the coach, Hawkins removed the brace and tossed it under the bush with his crutches. He then took an elastic band and wrapped it around his knee for extra support. The coach was no fool and noticed the boy did not move with the same balance as the others. When the boys left the gym the coach quietly watched Hawkins walk down the street and saw the boy retrieve the brace and crutches.
The next day the coach called his tough little protege aside and looked him in the eyes. "Son, do you have something to tell me"? Dwight looked up and knew immediately that coach was on to him. The boy stammered, "Uh . . ". The coach had become like a father to Hawkins and Dwight idolized the man. The kid also loved boxing, a sport that he had found a way to excel in despite his injury. Suddenly, it hit the boy that what had become so important to him was about to evaporate. Tears filled Dwight's eyes and the big man kneeled down and put his arms around gutty little kid. "Why don't you just tell me about it and we'll see what we can do".
Dwight poured out his heart and the coach understood how important it was to the boy to be a part of the boxing team. He also understood how a mother would fear for the safety of the boys leg. The coach met with Dwight's mother and together he and Dwight told her about her son's secret after school activity. Dwight was a good student in school and had never caused his mother a days worry. Dwight's mother reluctantly agreed to let her son box and the coach promised her that he would not allow the boy to continue if the activity was hurting the leg.
With both his mother and Coach supporting his boxing, Dwight Hawkins felt as if the weight of the world had been lifted from his shoulders. Almost immediately, young Dwight not only became the best junior amateur boxer on his team, but one of the best in the City of Los Angeles.
A couple of years later, Mrs. Hawkins decided that it would be best to move across town closer to the hospital where she worked. The long bus rides were not only difficult but prevented her from spending time with her son. The Hawkins family left East L.A. and moved into the Imperial Courts Housing Project in Watts. Imperial Courts was, and is today, one of the most violent and dangerous projects in the country.
It was lucky for Dwight that he had established himself in amateur boxing at the time because it gave him the strength and reputation necessary to withstand pressure from the other kids in the project to join their gang. It wasn't easy, but nothing in the life of Dwight Hawkins was easy. If it was easy then anybody could do it. And "The Hawk" isn't just anybody.
It was at Imperial Courts that Hawkins learned first hand the problems of inner city youth, he lived it. At night, he would lay in his bed and hear the sound of gunshot's ringing through Imperial Courts. He saw countless neighbor's harassed by police or sent to jail for behavior that he knew was senseless. Violent death was also a way of life in the projects.
By the age fifteen, Hawkins had another problem. He was just too good for amateur boxers and nobody wanted to fight him. His coach, the big Marine who had been like a father to him knew that his protege was good enough to beat professional boxers because Dwight was doing it every day in the gym. Another problem was money, Dwight wanted to contribute financially so as his mother would not have to work so hard. He wanted to make it possible for his family to move out of the projects and professional boxing might be the answer.
It was at this point that Hawkins' coach contacted Johnny Flores. Flores was known as "Mr. Golden Gloves" in Los Angeles for his work with amateur boxers and was also a manager & trainer for some successful professionals. Flores knew all about Hawkins and believed that the fifteen-year-old was already good enough to fight in the pros. Along with Hawkins' amateur coach, Flores and his partner Hal Benson helped Hawkins secure a phony birth certificate which enabled him to get a professional boxing license.
Dwight Hawkins was only fifteen and a sophomore at Manual Arts High School in South Central L.A. when he made his professional boxing debut. Flores and Benson chose to take Hawkins out of Los Angeles for his first pro fight. They wanted their young fighter to have a little experience before he was seen in a fight Mecca such as L.A.
Johnny Flores took Hawkins to San Diego for his pro debut on May 14, 1956. In his first pro bout, Dwight Hawkins knocked out Rudy Cisneros in the first round. Two weeks later he returned to San Diego where he KO'ed Chuck Palomeros in two. It was now time to unveil the "The Hawk" in his hometown, the City of Angels.
The problem was that most of the prelim bantamweights in L.A. knew all about Hawkins. Dwight was a devastating body puncher with an awkward style and he'd already hurt a number of local fighters in the gym. In order to get a match Flores had to agree to let Hawkins face Tom Turner, and experienced veteran. Hawkins KO'ed Turner in four rounds. A month later, Dwight was matched with winning main eventer named Al Wilcher and this was a dangerous match because Wilcher had beaten the best of local talent and was not to be taken lightly. The bout was scheduled for ten rounds at the Olympic Auditorium. In the sixth round, Hawkins caught Wilcher with a brutal left hook to the liver, sending the veteran to the canvas where he was counted out. The Olympic crowd included several of Dwight's teachers at Manual Arts High as well as a couple of dozen of his classmates.
There were no local boxers willing to take on the hard punching teenager so Flores took "The Hawk" down to Tijuana, Mexico. Before a sell out crowd he scored a unanimous ten round decision over Joel Sanchez in the Tijuana bull ring. Dwight was 5-0 (4 KO's) when he began his junior year in high school.
Hawkins returned to L.A. and took on a tough veteran named Babe Antunez at the Hollywood Legion Stadium. Antunez was awarded a highly disputed decision over Hawkins and the fans demanded a rematch. Exactly one week later, Hawkins beat Antunez by decision in the same ring.
It was becoming becoming more difficult to find established main eventers willing to fight Hawkins. Flores agreed to match Hawkins with Fuji Rodriguez, a tough Japanese-Mexican fighter whom had been rated among the top ten bantamweights in the world. Hawkins dropped Rodriguez early in the fight but was cut by a head butt in the fourth round. After six rounds the referee was forced to stop the fight due to the cut.
Two months later, Hawkins returned with a first round KO over Leo Carter at the Olympic. A couple of weeks after KOing Carter, Hawkins was matched with world rated Herman Duncan at the Olympic. The scar tissue from the cut suffered in the Rodriguez fight two months earlier was still fresh and ripped open from a grazing left hook in the opening round. After six rounds referee Tommy Hart was forced to stop the bout. Despite Hawkins leading on all score cards, "The Hawk" suffered the second loss of his young career.
After winning his next three fights, two by knockout, Hawkins fought top rated Kid Irapuato in the Tijuana Bull ring. Hawkins beat Irapuato badly in a one-sided match, but after ten rounds the hometown judges awarded the fight to the Mexican . The loss was discouraging to Hawkins who had just turned seventeen and was proving himself as good as the top bantamweights in the world. He knew that winning wasn't enough, he'd have take the decision out of the judges hands or he was never going to make it. On November 6, 1957, that's exactly what Dwight Hawkins would do.
Alphonse Halimi was the Bantamweight Champion of the World and would defend his title against Raul "Raton" Macias at the Los Angeles Sports Arena. Mexico's Jose Becerra, the number one contender, would be next in line for a shot at the title.
It was decided that Becerra should be featured on the undercard of the title match to build interest in his impending shot at the crown. Becerra was an exceptional fighter and considered by many to be the best 118 pounder on the planet. The 22-year-old from Guadalajara, Mexico had been fighting professionally for nearly five years and had a record of 48-3-1 (24 KO's). He had beaten Jose Medel twice, KO'ed Kid Irapuato as well as Manuel Armenteros, all world class bantams.
It would be impossible to overmatch Becerra, but finding anybody willing to take on the future world champ on the Halimi-Macias undercard was not easy. Former champ Mario D'Agata pulled out at the last minute, as well as two other substitutes. Just two days before the fight the frantic matchmaker came up with an opponent. Dwight "The Hawk" Hawkins would take the fight. Hawkins wasn't world rated but he'd done well in matches with Herman Duncan and Kid Irapuato and the Los Angeles fans loved "The Hawk".
As mentioned earlier in this story, Dwight Hawkins shocked the world by upsetting Becerra. Jose Becerra was knocked unconscious in the fourth round by the 17-year-old Manuel Arts High School senior with only a dozen pro fights under his belt.. This ruined Becerra's chance to challenge Halimi, the winner over Macias, in his next title defense. It would be more than a year later before he'd finally face the champ from Algeria in the ring and win the title.
Suddenly Hawkins name became well known among the world's best bantamweights. However, it was also a name to be feared. "What benefit is there to fighting Dwight Hawkins?", was the question concerned managers asked themselves. "Hell, even if you find a way to beat the guy what does your fighter gain? Broken ribs? A victory over a teenager"? Hawkins was one to avoid, boxing is tough enough without throwing the name Dwight Hawkins into the equation.
Three weeks after defeating Becerra, Hawkins went to Mexicali where he faced Felix Cervantes, whom he'd knocked out two months previous in Tijuana. Hawkins had his way with Cervantes but this time the bout went the distance. When Hawkins failed to KO the Mexican he feared he'd have little chance of winning a decision below the border. He was right, The Mexicali judges awarded the match to Cervantes despite the fighter being dropped three times during the fight. Less than two weeks later he took on Kid Anahuac, who was a top ten rated featherweight. After ten bloody rounds the larger Mexican fighter was awarded a close split-decision over Hawkins.
Three months after the loss to Anahuac, Hawkins & Flores traveled back down below the border to Guadalajara to face Jose Becerra in a rematch. Becerra's loss to Hawkins had cost him a title shot with Halimi and it was important that he avenge the loss. To insure this, the match would be held in Mexico. Why Flores' agreed to let Hawkins fight Becerra in Guadalajara (Becerra's hometown) defies common sense. While training in Guadalajara Flores paid a Mexican assistant to bring bottled water to Hawkins to assure the fighter not be poisoned by the Mexican tap water. One day after drinking the water Hawkins became violently ill. Flores called for the assistant to get more water and then followed the man after he left the room. Flores witnessed the Mexican taking the bottle and filling it with water directly from the tap. It was now understood what was wrong with Hawkins. He had Montezuma's revenge. He had been poisoned by the water.
The following day Hawkins, still ailing, entered the ring against Becerra and was stopped in the ninth round.
A few weeks after losing to Becerra Hawkins was matched against another talented L.A. contender named Auburn Copeland. Copeland was the California Bantam king and agreed to fight Hawkins in a ten rounder, but would not risk his state title. Hawkins easily beat Copeland over ten rounds. The following month, he took on another top Mexican bantam Nacho Escalante in San Bernardino and won a unanimous decision.
Nine days after Hawkins beat Escalante, he fought one of the best bantamweights to never win a world title, Jose Medel. The fight was held in Mexico City and Medel stopped the seventeen-year-old two weeks after his high school graduation. Hawkins was disappointed but not discouraged and within a month was back in the ring against world rated Herman Marques at the Olympic. After a ten round war the bout was declared a draw.
Hawkins would win his next seven, four by KO, with victories over world rated featherweight Danny Valdez, Noel Humphries and a KO over Nacho Escalante in a rematch.
It was about this time that an 18-year-old Dwight Hawkins would meet and befriend somebody that would become a very important influence in his life. His name was Davey Moore.
Davey Moore was 25-years-old when he came to Los Angeles to challenge Hogan "Kid" Bassey for the World Featherweight championship in 1959. Style-wise, Moore and Bassey were similar in the ring. Both were strong, punishing fighters with knockout power in both hands. Moore needed sparring partners who would fight him hard in the gym, just as Bassey would fight defending his title. Veteran trainer & gym owner Jake Shagrue told Moore's manager Willie Ketchum that there was only one fighter in Los Angeles capable of filling the bill and that was Dwight Hawkins.
Hawkins was hired as a sparring partner for Moore and the two immediately became friends. Hawkins thought the world of the number one contender from Springfield, Ohio and the two would spend hours talking after finishing their workouts at Moore's training camp in Hemet, California. Moore was like an older brother to Hawkins and would warn the young fighter about the pitfalls of professional boxing. However, by the age of eighteen, Hawkins had already experienced the worst boxing could offer.
One of things that Moore stressed to Hawkins was the importance of family. Davey had six children back home in Springfield and every night would call his wife to check on her and tell her how things were going.
A few weeks later, Davey Moore would knock out Hogan "Kid" Bassey and win the world featherweight title. During the next four years that Moore would hold the title he and Hawkins would remain close.
After Moore won the title Hawkins found it impossible to get fights in Los Angeles and would have to move up to the featherweight division in order to get any fights at all. Many of Hawkins recent fights had already been against featherweights despite Dwight barely tipping the beam at 120 pounds.
In his next fight he would fly to Glasgow, Scotland and lose a disputed decision to Billy Rafferty. Six months later he took on top rated Nelson Estrada in the fighter's hometown of Caracas, Venezuela. Another close fight and another loss to a hometown hero. It was 1960 and 19-yearold Dwight Hawkins was tired of fighting his heart out and not getting any closer to a shot at the title. He announced his retirement from boxing and focused his energy on his true passion, working with kids.
For the next two years Hawkins became involved with the youth of South Central Los Angeles. He organized boxing programs at Imperial Courts as an alternative to gang involvement and the kids loved Hawkins. "The Hawk" spoke their language and had risen of above the desperation of the housing project and made a name for himself. Hawkins drove a nice car, wore nice clothes and spoke about how it WAS possible to make it out of the ghetto and make a difference in the world. Hawkins programs were quite successful and he was making an impression on the youth of Imperial Courts. Violent crimes committed by gang members in the project dropped to an all-time low and Hawkins influence was credited with the change.
The faculty of Manual Arts High School, Hawkins' alma mater, were well aware of Hawkins' program and the good he was doing at Imperial Courts. The High School principal set up a meeting with L.A. City School officials and Hawkins was invited to share his knowledge of Inner-city problems and make suggestions. So impressed were the board members that they hired Hawkins to work for the Los Angeles City School System as a "trouble shooter". Hawkins' new role would be to act as a liaison between gangs and the school system. They could not have made a better choice. It would be a position that Hawkins would fill right up to present day.
After two years away from boxing, Hawkins felt as if he still had something to do in the ring. After a couple of years the younger kids were no longer aware of who Hawkins was and he realized that the exposure afforded him during his boxing career was the foundation of his success in working with kids. Only 22-years-old and anxious to take care of unfinished business, Dwight Hawkins returned to boxing on October 15, 1962.
The Hollywood Legion Stadium was packed for Hawkins return and "The Hawk" scored a fourth round knockout over Manny Linson. After scoring two more victories Dwight would join his pal Davey Moore who was training for an upcoming title defense against Cuban Sugar Ramos. Hawkins would once again be Moore's chief sparring partner for the Ramos match.
While training for the Ramos fight, Moore and Hawkins would rise early in the morning and run the hills near the Moore's training camp in Hemet. On the final day of road work, Moore and Hawkins raced to the top of a mountain and after reaching the top sat together and talked while catching their breath. Hawkins idolized the featherweight champ and Moore was in a reflective mood. Moore told Hawkins about his childhood in Springfield Ohio and how happy he was that he could provide for a better life for his family than what he had as a child. He told Dwight that he would fight about another year or so and then retire. "Too much time away from the family" Moore said.
On March 21, 1963 Dwight Hawkins was at Dodger Stadium to watch his friend defend the featherweight title. That night Moore would not only lose his title to Ramos, but he would also lose his life. When Ramos knocked out Moore, Davey hit the back of his head on the lower strand of the ring ropes. Moore passed into a coma in the dressing room following the match and a couple of days later died in the hospital having never regained consciousness. Hawkins was devastated.
The loss of Davey Moore hurt Dwight Hawkins and took his mind off his own career. A few weeks later Hawkins would head back down to Mexico where he would take on another unbeaten future champ in Vicente Saldivar. Hawkins was stopped by the brilliant southpaw in the fifth round.
The loss of Moore and losing to Saldivar would prove a turning point in the life and career of Dwight Hawkins.
About a year later I would meet Dwight. "The Hawk" would rise above the pain once again and I would witness first hand one of the most amazing fighters to ever step into the ring.
(End- Part 1)
In the early sixties boxing was on the ropes and reeling from the exposure of mob corruption. Names such as Frankie Carbo, Blinky Palermo and Jim Norris became the targets of eager politicians seeking to advance their careers. Their goal was the abolition of the sport that people love to hate. In 1965, Sonny Liston's questionable one round loss to Muhammad Ali in Lewiston, Maine did nothing to help matters.
However, like the cock roach, boxing proved itself to be the ultimate survivor. The sweet science suddenly began to flourish with a brash young heavyweight champ and the re-emergence of local clubs that began to produce some solid talent. It was about this time that I was given the chance to realize my goal of becoming a boxer. At the time, I doubt that a 12-year-old kid could have had a better opportunity to do so.
In the mid sixties, boxing in Los Angeles experienced a sudden rebirth thanks to the efforts of promoter Aileen Eaton. Mrs. Eaton turned the legendary Olympic Auditorium into the most successful weekly boxing promotion on the planet. With televised weekly cards every Thursday night, fifty weeks out of the year, the Olympic showcased some of the best talent in boxing.
In recent months, I've written about many of the young boxers that came out of the Olympic Auditorium promotions. However, there were also veteran contenders that filled the 18th & Grand arena and waged great wars as the young crop developed. One of the veterans was somebody whom I had the luck to meet and get to know very well. I am speaking of former bantamweight and featherweight contender Dwight "The Hawk" Hawkins.
Before I chronicle the life and career of Dwight Hawkins, I'd like for you to imagine this: In California, you must be eighteen-years-old to qualify for a professional boxing license. However, through creative management (AKA: a phony birth certificate) you are able to get a boxing license at fifteen. At age seventeen, after only a dozen pro fights, you are matched with a brilliant 22-year-old from Mexico. The Mexican was rated number one in the world and would become an all-time great champion in the bantamweight division. The future world champ had more than fifty pro fights and you are only a senior in high school. You are listed as a 10-to-1 underdog and considered an easy tune-up for the next boxer in line to fight for the title. Before a capacity crowd, attending a title fight in the main event, you shock the world by knocking out the number one contender, knocking him out cold.
Impossible? Not if you're Dwight Hawkins. That's exactly what "The Hawk" did on November 6, 1957. The 17-year-old Manual Arts High School senior knocked out future champ Jose Beccera in the fourth round. It was the biggest upset in world class professional boxing that year.
Let me start from the beginning and introduce you to one of the most brutal punching boxers to ever step into the ring. However, if you think a 17-year-old knocking out the great Jose Becerra was amazing, wait until you hear the whole story. I was lucky to be a part of the last five years of Hawkins career, and even luckier to have this man help train me early in my pro career.
In the late 1940's Dwight Hawkins was a small, athletic kid who loved sports. At the age of seven, Hawkins' mother, grandmother and uncle packed up the family car and left the South and headed West. Young Dwight's family sought a better life in California.
On their journey West the family drove through Texas late one night. As Dwight slept in the back seat of the car, he was suddenly awakened. The car had been forced off the road by another driver and Hawkins uncle, who was driving, lost control of the vehicle. The car went off the road and flipped over. Somehow everybody escaped serious injury except Dwight, whose left leg was trapped underneath the wreckage. It was hours before another car passed by and when a Texas Ranger finally stopped to see what had happened he found the young boy in agony.
The cop called for help over his radio and nearly an hour later an ambulance arrived. It took Dwight's uncle, the Texas Ranger and the two ambulance attendants nearly an hour to free the kid's leg from under the car. It took another 45 minutes to get the boy to a hospital. By the time they reached the emergency room it was doubtful that Dwight's leg could be saved. However, if this wasn't enough, there was another problem. This was post World War II Texas and Hawkins was black.
When the ambulance arrived at the hospital the head nurse in charge told the driver that the facility did not take black patients. She told him the boy would have to be transferred to another hospital nearly an hour away. "But the kid is going to lose his leg!" the driver protested. The nurse said she did not make the rules and the boy would have to be taken elsewhere.
About this time a doctor walks into the emergency receiving area to see what all the commotion was about. He took one look at the boy's leg and ordered the nurse, "Get him into an operating room NOW"! The nurse answered, "But doctor, we don't . . ." The doctor turned to the nurse and said, "Did you hear me? I said get that kid into an operating room or you won't have a job tomorrow"!
Had it not been for the human decency of the doctor, a seven-year-old would have lost his leg and very possibly his life early that morning in 1947. As it was, it would be touch and go regarding saving the leg and the doctor told Dwight's mother that the boy would spend the rest of his life on crutches.
When the family arrived in California they settled in East Los Angeles, a predominately Mexican-American community, but at the time, still had an ethnic mix including blacks, whites and Asians. Dwight's mother immediately found a job across town in a hospital. To get back and forth from work she'd have to ride the bus for more than three hours everyday.
Dwight was left in the care of his grandmother while his mother worked. After school, the boy would sit on the curb with his leg in a brace watching the neighborhood kids play baseball, football or what ever other sports they were involved with. This would be tough on any kid, but for one as athletic as young Dwight had been, it was heartbreaking.
Dwight would toss his crutches aside and try to play anyway. Hawkins could still run but it was painful to do so. However, it beat sitting on the sidelines and watching the other kids have all the fun. If his mother had found out about this he'd have been in big trouble. But sometimes a kid just has to do what he has to do, regardless of the risk.
One day, Dwight's friend Armando told him that a boxing ring and punching bags had been set up in the basement of a local church and that boxing lesson's were going to be offered to neighborhood kids. "Why don't you come down and watch us box"? the boy offered.
Dwight's mind began to race and it occurred to him that boxing didn't require kicking and he believed that he might be able to give it a try. However, he knew that nobody was going to let a crippled kid try out for boxing. One afternoon, Hawkins followed Armando and the others boys to the basement gym. Before entering Dwight tossed his crutches under a bush and pulled his pant leg down to make sure his brace was covered. He made the other boys swear not to tell the coach about his leg and the boys agreed to keep their friend's secret.
Hawkins found the boxing coach to be a tall, well built former boxer who'd spent twenty years as a Sargent in the Marine Corps. The man was stern but fair and took a liking to Dwight. Hawkins was smaller than the other kids and worked twice as hard as the rest. He also proved himself to have a natural talent and in no time was outfighting the other boys, even the bigger ones. Dwight was able to hide the leg from the coach until it was time for the boys to compete in a kids boxing program. The boy's on the church team would all have to wear boxing trunks.
To keep his secret from the coach, Hawkins removed the brace and tossed it under the bush with his crutches. He then took an elastic band and wrapped it around his knee for extra support. The coach was no fool and noticed the boy did not move with the same balance as the others. When the boys left the gym the coach quietly watched Hawkins walk down the street and saw the boy retrieve the brace and crutches.
The next day the coach called his tough little protege aside and looked him in the eyes. "Son, do you have something to tell me"? Dwight looked up and knew immediately that coach was on to him. The boy stammered, "Uh . . ". The coach had become like a father to Hawkins and Dwight idolized the man. The kid also loved boxing, a sport that he had found a way to excel in despite his injury. Suddenly, it hit the boy that what had become so important to him was about to evaporate. Tears filled Dwight's eyes and the big man kneeled down and put his arms around gutty little kid. "Why don't you just tell me about it and we'll see what we can do".
Dwight poured out his heart and the coach understood how important it was to the boy to be a part of the boxing team. He also understood how a mother would fear for the safety of the boys leg. The coach met with Dwight's mother and together he and Dwight told her about her son's secret after school activity. Dwight was a good student in school and had never caused his mother a days worry. Dwight's mother reluctantly agreed to let her son box and the coach promised her that he would not allow the boy to continue if the activity was hurting the leg.
With both his mother and Coach supporting his boxing, Dwight Hawkins felt as if the weight of the world had been lifted from his shoulders. Almost immediately, young Dwight not only became the best junior amateur boxer on his team, but one of the best in the City of Los Angeles.
A couple of years later, Mrs. Hawkins decided that it would be best to move across town closer to the hospital where she worked. The long bus rides were not only difficult but prevented her from spending time with her son. The Hawkins family left East L.A. and moved into the Imperial Courts Housing Project in Watts. Imperial Courts was, and is today, one of the most violent and dangerous projects in the country.
It was lucky for Dwight that he had established himself in amateur boxing at the time because it gave him the strength and reputation necessary to withstand pressure from the other kids in the project to join their gang. It wasn't easy, but nothing in the life of Dwight Hawkins was easy. If it was easy then anybody could do it. And "The Hawk" isn't just anybody.
It was at Imperial Courts that Hawkins learned first hand the problems of inner city youth, he lived it. At night, he would lay in his bed and hear the sound of gunshot's ringing through Imperial Courts. He saw countless neighbor's harassed by police or sent to jail for behavior that he knew was senseless. Violent death was also a way of life in the projects.
By the age fifteen, Hawkins had another problem. He was just too good for amateur boxers and nobody wanted to fight him. His coach, the big Marine who had been like a father to him knew that his protege was good enough to beat professional boxers because Dwight was doing it every day in the gym. Another problem was money, Dwight wanted to contribute financially so as his mother would not have to work so hard. He wanted to make it possible for his family to move out of the projects and professional boxing might be the answer.
It was at this point that Hawkins' coach contacted Johnny Flores. Flores was known as "Mr. Golden Gloves" in Los Angeles for his work with amateur boxers and was also a manager & trainer for some successful professionals. Flores knew all about Hawkins and believed that the fifteen-year-old was already good enough to fight in the pros. Along with Hawkins' amateur coach, Flores and his partner Hal Benson helped Hawkins secure a phony birth certificate which enabled him to get a professional boxing license.
Dwight Hawkins was only fifteen and a sophomore at Manual Arts High School in South Central L.A. when he made his professional boxing debut. Flores and Benson chose to take Hawkins out of Los Angeles for his first pro fight. They wanted their young fighter to have a little experience before he was seen in a fight Mecca such as L.A.
Johnny Flores took Hawkins to San Diego for his pro debut on May 14, 1956. In his first pro bout, Dwight Hawkins knocked out Rudy Cisneros in the first round. Two weeks later he returned to San Diego where he KO'ed Chuck Palomeros in two. It was now time to unveil the "The Hawk" in his hometown, the City of Angels.
The problem was that most of the prelim bantamweights in L.A. knew all about Hawkins. Dwight was a devastating body puncher with an awkward style and he'd already hurt a number of local fighters in the gym. In order to get a match Flores had to agree to let Hawkins face Tom Turner, and experienced veteran. Hawkins KO'ed Turner in four rounds. A month later, Dwight was matched with winning main eventer named Al Wilcher and this was a dangerous match because Wilcher had beaten the best of local talent and was not to be taken lightly. The bout was scheduled for ten rounds at the Olympic Auditorium. In the sixth round, Hawkins caught Wilcher with a brutal left hook to the liver, sending the veteran to the canvas where he was counted out. The Olympic crowd included several of Dwight's teachers at Manual Arts High as well as a couple of dozen of his classmates.
There were no local boxers willing to take on the hard punching teenager so Flores took "The Hawk" down to Tijuana, Mexico. Before a sell out crowd he scored a unanimous ten round decision over Joel Sanchez in the Tijuana bull ring. Dwight was 5-0 (4 KO's) when he began his junior year in high school.
Hawkins returned to L.A. and took on a tough veteran named Babe Antunez at the Hollywood Legion Stadium. Antunez was awarded a highly disputed decision over Hawkins and the fans demanded a rematch. Exactly one week later, Hawkins beat Antunez by decision in the same ring.
It was becoming becoming more difficult to find established main eventers willing to fight Hawkins. Flores agreed to match Hawkins with Fuji Rodriguez, a tough Japanese-Mexican fighter whom had been rated among the top ten bantamweights in the world. Hawkins dropped Rodriguez early in the fight but was cut by a head butt in the fourth round. After six rounds the referee was forced to stop the fight due to the cut.
Two months later, Hawkins returned with a first round KO over Leo Carter at the Olympic. A couple of weeks after KOing Carter, Hawkins was matched with world rated Herman Duncan at the Olympic. The scar tissue from the cut suffered in the Rodriguez fight two months earlier was still fresh and ripped open from a grazing left hook in the opening round. After six rounds referee Tommy Hart was forced to stop the bout. Despite Hawkins leading on all score cards, "The Hawk" suffered the second loss of his young career.
After winning his next three fights, two by knockout, Hawkins fought top rated Kid Irapuato in the Tijuana Bull ring. Hawkins beat Irapuato badly in a one-sided match, but after ten rounds the hometown judges awarded the fight to the Mexican . The loss was discouraging to Hawkins who had just turned seventeen and was proving himself as good as the top bantamweights in the world. He knew that winning wasn't enough, he'd have take the decision out of the judges hands or he was never going to make it. On November 6, 1957, that's exactly what Dwight Hawkins would do.
Alphonse Halimi was the Bantamweight Champion of the World and would defend his title against Raul "Raton" Macias at the Los Angeles Sports Arena. Mexico's Jose Becerra, the number one contender, would be next in line for a shot at the title.
It was decided that Becerra should be featured on the undercard of the title match to build interest in his impending shot at the crown. Becerra was an exceptional fighter and considered by many to be the best 118 pounder on the planet. The 22-year-old from Guadalajara, Mexico had been fighting professionally for nearly five years and had a record of 48-3-1 (24 KO's). He had beaten Jose Medel twice, KO'ed Kid Irapuato as well as Manuel Armenteros, all world class bantams.
It would be impossible to overmatch Becerra, but finding anybody willing to take on the future world champ on the Halimi-Macias undercard was not easy. Former champ Mario D'Agata pulled out at the last minute, as well as two other substitutes. Just two days before the fight the frantic matchmaker came up with an opponent. Dwight "The Hawk" Hawkins would take the fight. Hawkins wasn't world rated but he'd done well in matches with Herman Duncan and Kid Irapuato and the Los Angeles fans loved "The Hawk".
As mentioned earlier in this story, Dwight Hawkins shocked the world by upsetting Becerra. Jose Becerra was knocked unconscious in the fourth round by the 17-year-old Manuel Arts High School senior with only a dozen pro fights under his belt.. This ruined Becerra's chance to challenge Halimi, the winner over Macias, in his next title defense. It would be more than a year later before he'd finally face the champ from Algeria in the ring and win the title.
Suddenly Hawkins name became well known among the world's best bantamweights. However, it was also a name to be feared. "What benefit is there to fighting Dwight Hawkins?", was the question concerned managers asked themselves. "Hell, even if you find a way to beat the guy what does your fighter gain? Broken ribs? A victory over a teenager"? Hawkins was one to avoid, boxing is tough enough without throwing the name Dwight Hawkins into the equation.
Three weeks after defeating Becerra, Hawkins went to Mexicali where he faced Felix Cervantes, whom he'd knocked out two months previous in Tijuana. Hawkins had his way with Cervantes but this time the bout went the distance. When Hawkins failed to KO the Mexican he feared he'd have little chance of winning a decision below the border. He was right, The Mexicali judges awarded the match to Cervantes despite the fighter being dropped three times during the fight. Less than two weeks later he took on Kid Anahuac, who was a top ten rated featherweight. After ten bloody rounds the larger Mexican fighter was awarded a close split-decision over Hawkins.
Three months after the loss to Anahuac, Hawkins & Flores traveled back down below the border to Guadalajara to face Jose Becerra in a rematch. Becerra's loss to Hawkins had cost him a title shot with Halimi and it was important that he avenge the loss. To insure this, the match would be held in Mexico. Why Flores' agreed to let Hawkins fight Becerra in Guadalajara (Becerra's hometown) defies common sense. While training in Guadalajara Flores paid a Mexican assistant to bring bottled water to Hawkins to assure the fighter not be poisoned by the Mexican tap water. One day after drinking the water Hawkins became violently ill. Flores called for the assistant to get more water and then followed the man after he left the room. Flores witnessed the Mexican taking the bottle and filling it with water directly from the tap. It was now understood what was wrong with Hawkins. He had Montezuma's revenge. He had been poisoned by the water.
The following day Hawkins, still ailing, entered the ring against Becerra and was stopped in the ninth round.
A few weeks after losing to Becerra Hawkins was matched against another talented L.A. contender named Auburn Copeland. Copeland was the California Bantam king and agreed to fight Hawkins in a ten rounder, but would not risk his state title. Hawkins easily beat Copeland over ten rounds. The following month, he took on another top Mexican bantam Nacho Escalante in San Bernardino and won a unanimous decision.
Nine days after Hawkins beat Escalante, he fought one of the best bantamweights to never win a world title, Jose Medel. The fight was held in Mexico City and Medel stopped the seventeen-year-old two weeks after his high school graduation. Hawkins was disappointed but not discouraged and within a month was back in the ring against world rated Herman Marques at the Olympic. After a ten round war the bout was declared a draw.
Hawkins would win his next seven, four by KO, with victories over world rated featherweight Danny Valdez, Noel Humphries and a KO over Nacho Escalante in a rematch.
It was about this time that an 18-year-old Dwight Hawkins would meet and befriend somebody that would become a very important influence in his life. His name was Davey Moore.
Davey Moore was 25-years-old when he came to Los Angeles to challenge Hogan "Kid" Bassey for the World Featherweight championship in 1959. Style-wise, Moore and Bassey were similar in the ring. Both were strong, punishing fighters with knockout power in both hands. Moore needed sparring partners who would fight him hard in the gym, just as Bassey would fight defending his title. Veteran trainer & gym owner Jake Shagrue told Moore's manager Willie Ketchum that there was only one fighter in Los Angeles capable of filling the bill and that was Dwight Hawkins.
Hawkins was hired as a sparring partner for Moore and the two immediately became friends. Hawkins thought the world of the number one contender from Springfield, Ohio and the two would spend hours talking after finishing their workouts at Moore's training camp in Hemet, California. Moore was like an older brother to Hawkins and would warn the young fighter about the pitfalls of professional boxing. However, by the age of eighteen, Hawkins had already experienced the worst boxing could offer.
One of things that Moore stressed to Hawkins was the importance of family. Davey had six children back home in Springfield and every night would call his wife to check on her and tell her how things were going.
A few weeks later, Davey Moore would knock out Hogan "Kid" Bassey and win the world featherweight title. During the next four years that Moore would hold the title he and Hawkins would remain close.
After Moore won the title Hawkins found it impossible to get fights in Los Angeles and would have to move up to the featherweight division in order to get any fights at all. Many of Hawkins recent fights had already been against featherweights despite Dwight barely tipping the beam at 120 pounds.
In his next fight he would fly to Glasgow, Scotland and lose a disputed decision to Billy Rafferty. Six months later he took on top rated Nelson Estrada in the fighter's hometown of Caracas, Venezuela. Another close fight and another loss to a hometown hero. It was 1960 and 19-yearold Dwight Hawkins was tired of fighting his heart out and not getting any closer to a shot at the title. He announced his retirement from boxing and focused his energy on his true passion, working with kids.
For the next two years Hawkins became involved with the youth of South Central Los Angeles. He organized boxing programs at Imperial Courts as an alternative to gang involvement and the kids loved Hawkins. "The Hawk" spoke their language and had risen of above the desperation of the housing project and made a name for himself. Hawkins drove a nice car, wore nice clothes and spoke about how it WAS possible to make it out of the ghetto and make a difference in the world. Hawkins programs were quite successful and he was making an impression on the youth of Imperial Courts. Violent crimes committed by gang members in the project dropped to an all-time low and Hawkins influence was credited with the change.
The faculty of Manual Arts High School, Hawkins' alma mater, were well aware of Hawkins' program and the good he was doing at Imperial Courts. The High School principal set up a meeting with L.A. City School officials and Hawkins was invited to share his knowledge of Inner-city problems and make suggestions. So impressed were the board members that they hired Hawkins to work for the Los Angeles City School System as a "trouble shooter". Hawkins' new role would be to act as a liaison between gangs and the school system. They could not have made a better choice. It would be a position that Hawkins would fill right up to present day.
After two years away from boxing, Hawkins felt as if he still had something to do in the ring. After a couple of years the younger kids were no longer aware of who Hawkins was and he realized that the exposure afforded him during his boxing career was the foundation of his success in working with kids. Only 22-years-old and anxious to take care of unfinished business, Dwight Hawkins returned to boxing on October 15, 1962.
The Hollywood Legion Stadium was packed for Hawkins return and "The Hawk" scored a fourth round knockout over Manny Linson. After scoring two more victories Dwight would join his pal Davey Moore who was training for an upcoming title defense against Cuban Sugar Ramos. Hawkins would once again be Moore's chief sparring partner for the Ramos match.
While training for the Ramos fight, Moore and Hawkins would rise early in the morning and run the hills near the Moore's training camp in Hemet. On the final day of road work, Moore and Hawkins raced to the top of a mountain and after reaching the top sat together and talked while catching their breath. Hawkins idolized the featherweight champ and Moore was in a reflective mood. Moore told Hawkins about his childhood in Springfield Ohio and how happy he was that he could provide for a better life for his family than what he had as a child. He told Dwight that he would fight about another year or so and then retire. "Too much time away from the family" Moore said.
On March 21, 1963 Dwight Hawkins was at Dodger Stadium to watch his friend defend the featherweight title. That night Moore would not only lose his title to Ramos, but he would also lose his life. When Ramos knocked out Moore, Davey hit the back of his head on the lower strand of the ring ropes. Moore passed into a coma in the dressing room following the match and a couple of days later died in the hospital having never regained consciousness. Hawkins was devastated.
The loss of Davey Moore hurt Dwight Hawkins and took his mind off his own career. A few weeks later Hawkins would head back down to Mexico where he would take on another unbeaten future champ in Vicente Saldivar. Hawkins was stopped by the brilliant southpaw in the fifth round.
The loss of Moore and losing to Saldivar would prove a turning point in the life and career of Dwight Hawkins.
About a year later I would meet Dwight. "The Hawk" would rise above the pain once again and I would witness first hand one of the most amazing fighters to ever step into the ring.
(End- Part 1)
The Power and the Passion of Dwight Hawkins (Part II)
By Rick Farris
By the time Dwight Hawkins turned twenty-three, he'd been a professional boxer nearly eight years. Hawkins had engaged in over 40 pro fights, many in the hometowns of some of the greatest boxers of the era. In order to get fights the Hawk had become a globe trotter and had traveled to Scotland, Venezuela and, of course, Mexico.
Mexico has always produced the finest of lower weight boxers and this was especially true during the years Dwight was active. The tough part about fighting in Mexico is that it was hard to win there. Even if you were good enough to beat the exceptional Mexican talent, the officials would find a way for the Mexican boxer to win. Boxing is serious business in Mexico and it's more important to Mexican boxers to be the champion of Mexico than it is to hold a world title.
Dwight Hawkins couldn't get important fights in his hometown because nobody wanted to risk suffering the effects of a match with the Hawk. So, Hawkins would face the best fighters that Mexico had to offer in places such as Mexico City, Guadalajara, Monterrey, Juarez, Tampico, Mexicali and Tijuana.
Less than three weeks after the death of Davey Moore, the Hawk traveled to Monterrey, Mexico to take on one of the greatest featherweights in history. Vicente Saldivar was, without question, one of the best 126 pound champions to ever lace on a glove. He retired unbeaten in 1967 after defending the featherweight title eight times and then came back to recapture the crown three years later.
If facing a great fighter such as Saldivar in Mexico was not enough, Hawkins would do so just days after the death of his closest friend. The cards were not stacked in Dwight's favor. Of course, they never were.
After losing to Saldivar on April 19th, the Hawk would remain inactive thru the rest of 1963. The following year I would enter the world of boxing and as luck would have it, I would meet Dwight Hawkins. Not only would it mark the beginning of my boxing career, it would also be the start of a winning streak for Hawkins.
I'll never forget the way Johnny Flores would speak of Dwight Hawkins. Flores had a number of top fighters such as heavyweight contender Jerry Quarry and lightweight Ruben Navarro, however, when he spoke of Dwight Hawkins it was with the greatest of respect and I would soon learn why.
I'd train at the Johnny Flores Gym during the week, but would take the bus into downtown Los Angeles on the weekends to workout at the legendary Main Street Gym. Amateurs were allowed to work out until 11 am. on weekends but then would have to clear the floor for the pros.
I'd always hang around the gym for a couple of hours to watch some of the greatest professional boxers of the era workout. One of them was Dwight Hawkins. To this day I have never seen a more devistating body puncher than the Hawk. Dwight's body punches were so brutal his sparring partners had to wear a padded water ski vest to protect their ribs from the impact. I'm not talking about amateurs, but highly regarded main eventers who knew better than to risk their health for the sake of a workout with Hawkins.
I'll never forget the Saturday I saw Hawkins batter a rough featherweight contender named David Sotelo in the gym. Sotelo had hung in with Dwight for four rounds, however, as the fighter stepped out of the ring he was literally talking to himself. Sotelo was obviously incoherent after the beating he had taken.
A few weeks later, something happened that hit Hawkins almost as hard as the loss of Davey Moore: The Watts Riots.
If you had any idea how much Dwight Hawkins had put into the youth of Watts, the kids who struggled daily living in the projects of Imperial Courts and Jordan Downs, you'd understand.
Upon hearing the news of the trouble in Watts, Hawkins immediatly jumped into his car and headed for Imperial Courts, hoping he could diffuse some of the tension. However, the police had that part of the city barracaded and would not let Dwight enter the war zone. As he turned to leave he saw a group of young men take a trash can and toss it thru the window of a men's store. Hawkins parked his car and confronted the youth's as they attempted to loot
the building.
As a couple of the young men came out of the building with a stack of clothes, Hawkins asked them, "Hey man, why are you doing this? Don't you think this is dumb"? One of the bigger young men dropped the clothes he was carrying and took a step toward Hawkins, as if to start a fight. However, one look into the serious eyes of Dwight Hawkins told the youth that he best not take another step closer. Instead, he picked up the clothes and ran off with the other boys laughing.
A year later, after the riots were long over, Hawkins continued his work at Imperial Courts. He organized another boxing program and would spend his own money to provide boxing equipment for the kids at the project.
By 1966, Hawkins had remained unbeaten since the loss to Saldivar two years previous. During that time, Saldivar kayoed Sugar Ramos to win the World Featherweight title. In his first defense of the crown, Saldivar scored a 15th round knockout over a tough Los Angeles contender named Raul Rojas.
Rojas was a talented West Coast featherweight and was managed by Jackie McCoy. McCoy had been a top bantamweight back in the 40's and was one of the most respected manager-trainers in boxing. Jackie was not only a great teacher, but a well connected handler, whose boxers automatically became "house fighters" at the Olympic Auditorium. Promoter Aileen Eaton and Jackie McCoy had an unofficial alliance. McCoy's job was to provide the talent and Eaton would use her power to promote the talent into a world championship.
In 1966, Rojas was 24-years-old and after losing to Saldivar, had run up a string of victories that kept him at the top of the world ratings. Dwight Hawkins wanted nothing more than a chance to fight Rojas and was not afraid to make his desire known in public. After one of Hawkins' spectacular KO's at the Olympic, Dwight openly challenged Rojas in a televised post-fight interview. "Hey Raul, I know you're not chicken, so why don't you fight me right here at the Olympic to prove who is the best featherweight in Los Angeles". Hawkins' plea fell on deaf ears. Jackie McCoy was not a fool and neither was Aileen Eaton. The following year Rojas would defeat Enrique Higgens of Columbia to win the WBA Featherweight Title. Once again, Dwight Hawkins was left out in the cold.
Johnny Flores and Hal Benson took Dwight back down to Mexico where he would take on Mexican Featherweight Champ Aurileo Muniz in Tampico. At this point, Dwight Hawkins was at his absolute best, in his "prime" as boxing people say.
Muniz was rated in the top ten by The Ring Magazine and was second only to Saldivar among Mexican featherweights. In the seventh round, Hawkins knocked out the Mexican Champ. After the referee counted ten over Muniz, Flores grabbed Hawkins' robe and climbed up the steps into the ring. The local fans were upset that their fighter had been flattened and began to throw debris. As Hawkins and Flores awaited the decision they could see that there was some sort of commotion going on across the ring and Flores went to investigate.
The ring announcer grabbed the microphone and declared the fallen Muniz the winner on a technicality. The Mexican officials at ringside told Flores that he had violated the rules by entering the ring before the decision was announced. Now how's that for stretching it?
Flores was irate and filed a grievence with the Mexican Boxing Commission. About a week later the Commision changed the final verdict to a "draw." Today, the record reads that Hawkins and Muniz fought to a ten round draw on Arpril 7, 1967. However, the truth is Muniz never made it out of the seventh round.
Three weeks later, Hawkins scored a tenth round knockout over Jose Garcia in Las Vegas. This took place exactly a month before The Hawk would engage in one of the greatest fights in the history of Los Angeles boxing.
On June 1, 1967, Hawkins would fight top rated featherweight Bobby Valdez before a near capacity crowd at the Olympic Auditorium. It was promised that the winner of this bout would get a shot at Vicente Saldivar's world title before the end of summer. I'll never forget this fight. I was sitting with my dad and grandfather, about three rows from the ringside.
Both Valdez and Hawkins were hungry for a shot at the crown and went toe-to-toe in the most brutal prize fight I've ever seen. In the end, both fighters were bloody and had tasted the canvas. Valdez got off to a quick start and had the edge in the early rounds but Hawkins' vicious body attack started to take it's toll in the second half. Dwight had Valdez reeling in the final round but the courageous former Navy champ, from San Diego, hung on to the final bell. The bout was rightfully declared a draw and would be voted as Los Angeles' Fight of the Year for 1967.
Although the scorecards showed an even fight, the greater damage was done by Hawkins. The fight took everything out of Bobby Valdez and he was never the same again. Dwight just seemed to get better. Aileen Eaton sought an immediate rematch but Valdez's manager, Wes Wombold, said "no way". Since Hawkins was ready to fight and Valdez could'nt, he believed that he might finally get a shot at the title. However, Aileen Eaton told Flores, "no winner, no title shot". A few months later, Bobby Valdez retired.
Hawkins won his next four fights, two by KO, before leaving the country one more time to take on another unbeaten future world champ. This time, The Hawk would be headed for Tokyo, Japan.
Kiniaki Shibata is perhaps the best Japanese featherweight of all-time. On March 27, 1968, just two days before his twenty-first birthday, Shibata climbed into the ring with number three rated Dwight Hawkins at Tokyo's Kurokuen Hall. The unbeaten young Japanese contender had a record of 21-0 (15 KO's) and was looking past Hawkins to a match with his countryman, the great Fighting Harada. Harada had just lost the bantamweight title to Lionel Rose and was moving up to the featherweight division.
Unfortunatly for Shibata, he would have to get past The Hawk first. It was'nt going to happen. Hawkins beat the Japanese boxer to a pulp before putting him to sleep midway thru the seventh round. Shibata was unconcious so long that he had to be carried out of the ring on a stretcher. A couple of years later, Kiniaki Shibata would knock out Vicente Saldivar and win the World Featherweight championship.
I'll never forget the night Johnny Flores walked into his backyard gym after returning from Japan with Hawkins. He was carrying the front page of a Japanese newspaper and there was a huge picture of Shibata being carried out of the ring on a stretcher. Flores was very happy because the Japanese loved Hawkins and were offering big money for him to fight there.
A few weeks later Hawkins would return to Japan and take on another world rated Japanese featherweight, Rokuro Ishiyama. Hawkins flattened the Japanese featherweight champ in two rounds.
More popular than ever, Dwight Hawkins was once again invited back to Tokyo. In his next bout, Dwight Hawkins would be matched with the greatest Japanese boxer ever, former two-time World Champion, Mashiko Fighting Harada.
On June 5, 1968, Dwight Hawkins would step into a Tokyo boxing ring for the third time in just over two months. Fighting Harada was more than a former world champ, he was a Japanese legend. Hawkins and Harada went toe-to-toe in the center of the ring for ten rounds. Neither fighter would take a backward step and thruout the bout their heads crashed together opening cuts over the eyes of both boxers. At the end of the fight, Harada's white satin boxing trunks were red with blood. An American reporter in attendence told Flores that he'd counted more than eighty head butts during the fight.
The fight had been close but it appeared as if Dwight Hawkins had once again defeated a Japanese boxer. However, Harada was'nt just any Japanese boxer and the hometown officials were not going to allow their national hero to lose. Harada was awarded a split-decision win over Hawkins and was now in line for a shot at the new featherweight title holder, Johnny Famechon. Famechon had won the title following Vicente Saldivar's sudden retirement the previous year. However, ten rounds with Hawkins had taken a lot out of the Japanese great and Harada would lose twice to Famechon in two attempts to win the 126 pound title.
Despite the loss to Harada, Dwight Hawkins remains a celebrity in Japan to this day. It would be in Japan where Dwight would meet and marry his current wife of more than thirty years.
Back in Los Angeles, Jack Kent Cooke opened a beautiful new sports venue right next door to the Hollywood Park race track. Cooke named his state-of-the-art arena "The Fabulous Forum" and would use it to showcase the two professional teams he owned, The Los Angeles Lakers of the NBA and his hockey team, the Los Angeles Kings.
The Forum was one of the finest sports arenas on earth and could hold more than 18,000 fans for a boxing match. Legendary boxing promoter George Parnassus would take on the responsibility of promoting boxing matches at The Forum and Johnny Flores hoped this might offer his fighter Dwight Hawkins a chance to fight for a world title. There was no hope of Hawkins getting a title fight thru Aileen Eaton, who refused to allow any of her Olympic Auditorium "house boxers" to fight The Hawk.
After scoring a unanimous decision over a Filipino-Hawaiian named Jet Parker in Honolulu, Dwight Hawkins would face another tough Los Angeles based featherweight in his Forum Debut. On November 4, 1968, Dwight Hawkins and "Irish" Frankie Crawford would headline an all-start card that also featured the U.S. debut of future Welterweight Champ Jose Napoles and Dwight's stablemate, Ruben Navarro, the "Maravilla Kid" from East L.A.
This was a fight that had Hawkins concerned. I remember that all of the boxers fighting on the card would train daily in a boxing gym set-up in the ball room of the Alexandria Hotel in downtown L.A. George Parnassus' office was at the Alexandria and on weekends I'd finish my workouts at the Main Street Gym and then hurry over to the Alexandria to watch Hawkins, Crawford and the rest of the fighters on the upcoming Forum card workout.
I was sixteen at the time and remember sitting next to Hawkins as he wrapped his hands prior to one of the workouts. Hawkins was not worried about defeating Crawford but he was concerned about Frankie's dirty style. Crawford was one of the dirtiest fighters in the sport and I overheard Hawkins tell Navarro that if Frankie tried any of his garbage he would get it back worse. Dwight Hawkins did'nt need illegal tactics to win, but was well versed in the art of dirty fighting, if necessary. At the time Crawford was being managed by televison star Robert Conrad, whose TV series "The Wild, Wild West" was number one in the ratings. Conrad was a "wanna be" boxer who lived vicariously thru Crawford and took great pleasure in working his fighter's corner.
Crawford was a legitimatly tough world class contender whom had defeated lightweight champ Mando Ramos among others during his career. I remember attending the fight with my father and was a bit disappointed that our seats were not a little bit closer. However, thanks to a pair of binoculars, I had a very good view of what went on in the ring that night. In the first round Crawford hit Dwight with an uppercut below the belt and Hawkins landed on the seat of his pants. My binoculars were focused right in on the face of Hawkins and I knew that Crawford was about to pay dearly for this. Hawkins jumped to his feet and, from that moment on, handed Frankie Crawford the worst beating of his career. In the eighth round, Crawford was literally knocked thru the ropes and nearly fell out of the ring. If it were not for the ringside press who put there hands out to catch Frankie, he'd have rolled to the floor. Crawford struggled to get to his feet but could'nt beat the count of ten. Hawkins not only KO'ed Frankie Crawford, but did so in spectacular style. I would have to say that the funniest thing about this was the look on the face of Robert Conrad's -- the actor was in shock.
Hawkins would win several more times after defeating Crawford, however, was getting no closer to a title fight. Nearly thirty years old, time was running out on Dwight Hawkins. He'd been fighting professionally for nearly half his life and had more than eighty fights undr his belt.
The Ring magazine rated Hawkins number one in the world and an elimination match was set up to determine the next challenger for World Featherweight champ Johnny Famechon. Once again, Dwight Hawkins would be matched with yet another unbeaten future world champion. This time Hawkins would fight Venezuela's Antonio Gomez in a ten round title elimination bout on the undercard of the Lionel Rose-Ruben Olivares bantamweight title bout at The Forum.
While training for the Gomez fight, Hawkins sparred with bantamweight champ Lionel Rose one afternoon at the Alexandria Hotel. However, it would be a one time experience because The Hawk's devastating body shots bruised the Austrailian's ribs. As a result, Rose was forced to miss sparring for the next couple of days to allow his ribs to heal.
Before a packed house at the Fabulous Forum, Dwight Hawkins would fight his heart out for the very last time. At the end of nine rounds Hawkins had a slight edge on the scorecards of all three officials. It looked like Dwight Hawkins was just one round away from the title fight that had been alluding him for more than a dozen years. However, in the tenth and final round, Dwight Hawkins went down from a solid left hook to the chin. The Hawk struggled to his feet by the count of eight and told referee Dick Young he was "OK". However, Hawkins was not OK and Gomez battered Dwight against the ropes. Hawkins took a number of solid shots but refused to go down. The leg that Dwight had almost lost as a child was still supported by the elastic band he'd used so many years before when he began boxing as a child. The Hawk's legs were unsteady, but he was on his feet and trying to fight back.
With less than a minute remaining in the fight, Hawkins long time manager Johnny Flores, threw in the towel. Flores would later tell us that it was the hardest thing he ever had to do during the half century he had worked with boxers.
A few moments later I saw something that I had never seen before and will likely never see again. As I walked toward the dressing room area to see Hawkins, I saw tears in the eyes of some of the toughest boxing personalities in the sport. Many of them were in the house a dozen years earlier when Hawkins, only a teenager, had KO'ed Jose Becerra.
I've never felt so bad over a boxer losing a fight as I did that night in 1969. I felt empty inside and could'nt help but wonder, "What's next for Dwight Hawkins"? I would get the answer the following day at the Main Street Gym.
The next morning I was shadow boxing in front of a mirror next to the entrance to the gym floor and was surprised to see the Hawk walk in carrying his gym bag. I couldn't imagine why he would be in the gym the morning after a tough fight like he'd had the night before. Hawkins looked around and spotted Johnny Flores who was talking with Hal Benson and a couple of trainers. When Benson saw Hawkins he greeted the Hawk with a big smile on his face. Before Dwight could say a word Benson told him that he had some good news. Lionel Rose had also been knocked out the night before by Ruben Olivares, losing his banatmweight title. George Parnassus had told Benson after the fight that Rose would be moving up to the featherweight division and that he would like to match Hawkins with Rose, with the winner to get a shot at the featherweight title. Hawkins just smiled and told Benson "No thanks, I'm finished". He then handed Flores his gym bag and told Johnny to give the equipment to some young fighter who could us it. Benson put his hand on Dwight's shoulder and tried to convince him that he was one fight away from a title shot. The Hawk just smiled and then left the gym for the last time.
The following year I turned professional and after a half dozen fights I saw Dwight Hawkins in the gym one day. I immediatly went over to the Hawk to say hello and was happy to hear that he had returned to help Flores train heavyweight Mac Foster. Foster was a top heavyweight and had just signed a management contract with Flores. That day I got some great news from Johnny Flores. Flores told me that Hawkins would also be training me.
I was scheduled to fight on the undercard of a world lightweight title bout between champion Ken Buchanan and my stablemate Ruben Navarro. Ironically, the card would be held at the Los Angeles Sports Arena, they same building where 17-year-old Dwight Hawkins had upset Jose Becerra more than fourteen years earlier. I was eighteen at the time and found myself being over powered by stronger, more mature opponents. My boxing skills and speed allowed me to compete with these men but I needed more power. With the help of Dwight Hawkins, I was able to gain the extra punching power I needed. With Flores and the Hawk in my corner, I knocked out a tough vet who had held me to a draw in my first pro fight.
I lost contact with Hawkins after I stopped boxing and it was more than twenty years later before I would see him again. In 1995, I was recovering from a work-related injury that had me on crutches for a few weeks. As I hobbled around on the crutches I couldn't help but think of Dwight Hawkins and how he had been on crutches as a child. I began to wonder how the Hawk was doing and decided to try and locate him. A call to information was all I needed to find Dwight Hawkins and when I called I was happy that he still remembered who I was. A couple of days later my friend John Brumshagen who, ironiclly, had been close with featherweight Frankie Crawford, drove me to Hawkins house for a visit.
It was great visiting with Dwight Hawkins. As we sat in Dwight's living room and talked, I kept bringing up great fights from the past I'd seen him in. Dwight would smile and politely acknowledge his boxing career but would then quickly change the subject to what he really considered important. Dwight's main concern today is the kids of South Central Los Angeles and the problem related to the gangs.
It's guys like Dwight Hawkins that represent the best of boxing. More accuratly, it's guys like Dwight Hawkins that represent the best of humanity.
How lucky for me to have been around a guy like the Hawk.
By the time Dwight Hawkins turned twenty-three, he'd been a professional boxer nearly eight years. Hawkins had engaged in over 40 pro fights, many in the hometowns of some of the greatest boxers of the era. In order to get fights the Hawk had become a globe trotter and had traveled to Scotland, Venezuela and, of course, Mexico.
Mexico has always produced the finest of lower weight boxers and this was especially true during the years Dwight was active. The tough part about fighting in Mexico is that it was hard to win there. Even if you were good enough to beat the exceptional Mexican talent, the officials would find a way for the Mexican boxer to win. Boxing is serious business in Mexico and it's more important to Mexican boxers to be the champion of Mexico than it is to hold a world title.
Dwight Hawkins couldn't get important fights in his hometown because nobody wanted to risk suffering the effects of a match with the Hawk. So, Hawkins would face the best fighters that Mexico had to offer in places such as Mexico City, Guadalajara, Monterrey, Juarez, Tampico, Mexicali and Tijuana.
Less than three weeks after the death of Davey Moore, the Hawk traveled to Monterrey, Mexico to take on one of the greatest featherweights in history. Vicente Saldivar was, without question, one of the best 126 pound champions to ever lace on a glove. He retired unbeaten in 1967 after defending the featherweight title eight times and then came back to recapture the crown three years later.
If facing a great fighter such as Saldivar in Mexico was not enough, Hawkins would do so just days after the death of his closest friend. The cards were not stacked in Dwight's favor. Of course, they never were.
After losing to Saldivar on April 19th, the Hawk would remain inactive thru the rest of 1963. The following year I would enter the world of boxing and as luck would have it, I would meet Dwight Hawkins. Not only would it mark the beginning of my boxing career, it would also be the start of a winning streak for Hawkins.
I'll never forget the way Johnny Flores would speak of Dwight Hawkins. Flores had a number of top fighters such as heavyweight contender Jerry Quarry and lightweight Ruben Navarro, however, when he spoke of Dwight Hawkins it was with the greatest of respect and I would soon learn why.
I'd train at the Johnny Flores Gym during the week, but would take the bus into downtown Los Angeles on the weekends to workout at the legendary Main Street Gym. Amateurs were allowed to work out until 11 am. on weekends but then would have to clear the floor for the pros.
I'd always hang around the gym for a couple of hours to watch some of the greatest professional boxers of the era workout. One of them was Dwight Hawkins. To this day I have never seen a more devistating body puncher than the Hawk. Dwight's body punches were so brutal his sparring partners had to wear a padded water ski vest to protect their ribs from the impact. I'm not talking about amateurs, but highly regarded main eventers who knew better than to risk their health for the sake of a workout with Hawkins.
I'll never forget the Saturday I saw Hawkins batter a rough featherweight contender named David Sotelo in the gym. Sotelo had hung in with Dwight for four rounds, however, as the fighter stepped out of the ring he was literally talking to himself. Sotelo was obviously incoherent after the beating he had taken.
A few weeks later, something happened that hit Hawkins almost as hard as the loss of Davey Moore: The Watts Riots.
If you had any idea how much Dwight Hawkins had put into the youth of Watts, the kids who struggled daily living in the projects of Imperial Courts and Jordan Downs, you'd understand.
Upon hearing the news of the trouble in Watts, Hawkins immediatly jumped into his car and headed for Imperial Courts, hoping he could diffuse some of the tension. However, the police had that part of the city barracaded and would not let Dwight enter the war zone. As he turned to leave he saw a group of young men take a trash can and toss it thru the window of a men's store. Hawkins parked his car and confronted the youth's as they attempted to loot
the building.
As a couple of the young men came out of the building with a stack of clothes, Hawkins asked them, "Hey man, why are you doing this? Don't you think this is dumb"? One of the bigger young men dropped the clothes he was carrying and took a step toward Hawkins, as if to start a fight. However, one look into the serious eyes of Dwight Hawkins told the youth that he best not take another step closer. Instead, he picked up the clothes and ran off with the other boys laughing.
A year later, after the riots were long over, Hawkins continued his work at Imperial Courts. He organized another boxing program and would spend his own money to provide boxing equipment for the kids at the project.
By 1966, Hawkins had remained unbeaten since the loss to Saldivar two years previous. During that time, Saldivar kayoed Sugar Ramos to win the World Featherweight title. In his first defense of the crown, Saldivar scored a 15th round knockout over a tough Los Angeles contender named Raul Rojas.
Rojas was a talented West Coast featherweight and was managed by Jackie McCoy. McCoy had been a top bantamweight back in the 40's and was one of the most respected manager-trainers in boxing. Jackie was not only a great teacher, but a well connected handler, whose boxers automatically became "house fighters" at the Olympic Auditorium. Promoter Aileen Eaton and Jackie McCoy had an unofficial alliance. McCoy's job was to provide the talent and Eaton would use her power to promote the talent into a world championship.
In 1966, Rojas was 24-years-old and after losing to Saldivar, had run up a string of victories that kept him at the top of the world ratings. Dwight Hawkins wanted nothing more than a chance to fight Rojas and was not afraid to make his desire known in public. After one of Hawkins' spectacular KO's at the Olympic, Dwight openly challenged Rojas in a televised post-fight interview. "Hey Raul, I know you're not chicken, so why don't you fight me right here at the Olympic to prove who is the best featherweight in Los Angeles". Hawkins' plea fell on deaf ears. Jackie McCoy was not a fool and neither was Aileen Eaton. The following year Rojas would defeat Enrique Higgens of Columbia to win the WBA Featherweight Title. Once again, Dwight Hawkins was left out in the cold.
Johnny Flores and Hal Benson took Dwight back down to Mexico where he would take on Mexican Featherweight Champ Aurileo Muniz in Tampico. At this point, Dwight Hawkins was at his absolute best, in his "prime" as boxing people say.
Muniz was rated in the top ten by The Ring Magazine and was second only to Saldivar among Mexican featherweights. In the seventh round, Hawkins knocked out the Mexican Champ. After the referee counted ten over Muniz, Flores grabbed Hawkins' robe and climbed up the steps into the ring. The local fans were upset that their fighter had been flattened and began to throw debris. As Hawkins and Flores awaited the decision they could see that there was some sort of commotion going on across the ring and Flores went to investigate.
The ring announcer grabbed the microphone and declared the fallen Muniz the winner on a technicality. The Mexican officials at ringside told Flores that he had violated the rules by entering the ring before the decision was announced. Now how's that for stretching it?
Flores was irate and filed a grievence with the Mexican Boxing Commission. About a week later the Commision changed the final verdict to a "draw." Today, the record reads that Hawkins and Muniz fought to a ten round draw on Arpril 7, 1967. However, the truth is Muniz never made it out of the seventh round.
Three weeks later, Hawkins scored a tenth round knockout over Jose Garcia in Las Vegas. This took place exactly a month before The Hawk would engage in one of the greatest fights in the history of Los Angeles boxing.
On June 1, 1967, Hawkins would fight top rated featherweight Bobby Valdez before a near capacity crowd at the Olympic Auditorium. It was promised that the winner of this bout would get a shot at Vicente Saldivar's world title before the end of summer. I'll never forget this fight. I was sitting with my dad and grandfather, about three rows from the ringside.
Both Valdez and Hawkins were hungry for a shot at the crown and went toe-to-toe in the most brutal prize fight I've ever seen. In the end, both fighters were bloody and had tasted the canvas. Valdez got off to a quick start and had the edge in the early rounds but Hawkins' vicious body attack started to take it's toll in the second half. Dwight had Valdez reeling in the final round but the courageous former Navy champ, from San Diego, hung on to the final bell. The bout was rightfully declared a draw and would be voted as Los Angeles' Fight of the Year for 1967.
Although the scorecards showed an even fight, the greater damage was done by Hawkins. The fight took everything out of Bobby Valdez and he was never the same again. Dwight just seemed to get better. Aileen Eaton sought an immediate rematch but Valdez's manager, Wes Wombold, said "no way". Since Hawkins was ready to fight and Valdez could'nt, he believed that he might finally get a shot at the title. However, Aileen Eaton told Flores, "no winner, no title shot". A few months later, Bobby Valdez retired.
Hawkins won his next four fights, two by KO, before leaving the country one more time to take on another unbeaten future world champ. This time, The Hawk would be headed for Tokyo, Japan.
Kiniaki Shibata is perhaps the best Japanese featherweight of all-time. On March 27, 1968, just two days before his twenty-first birthday, Shibata climbed into the ring with number three rated Dwight Hawkins at Tokyo's Kurokuen Hall. The unbeaten young Japanese contender had a record of 21-0 (15 KO's) and was looking past Hawkins to a match with his countryman, the great Fighting Harada. Harada had just lost the bantamweight title to Lionel Rose and was moving up to the featherweight division.
Unfortunatly for Shibata, he would have to get past The Hawk first. It was'nt going to happen. Hawkins beat the Japanese boxer to a pulp before putting him to sleep midway thru the seventh round. Shibata was unconcious so long that he had to be carried out of the ring on a stretcher. A couple of years later, Kiniaki Shibata would knock out Vicente Saldivar and win the World Featherweight championship.
I'll never forget the night Johnny Flores walked into his backyard gym after returning from Japan with Hawkins. He was carrying the front page of a Japanese newspaper and there was a huge picture of Shibata being carried out of the ring on a stretcher. Flores was very happy because the Japanese loved Hawkins and were offering big money for him to fight there.
A few weeks later Hawkins would return to Japan and take on another world rated Japanese featherweight, Rokuro Ishiyama. Hawkins flattened the Japanese featherweight champ in two rounds.
More popular than ever, Dwight Hawkins was once again invited back to Tokyo. In his next bout, Dwight Hawkins would be matched with the greatest Japanese boxer ever, former two-time World Champion, Mashiko Fighting Harada.
On June 5, 1968, Dwight Hawkins would step into a Tokyo boxing ring for the third time in just over two months. Fighting Harada was more than a former world champ, he was a Japanese legend. Hawkins and Harada went toe-to-toe in the center of the ring for ten rounds. Neither fighter would take a backward step and thruout the bout their heads crashed together opening cuts over the eyes of both boxers. At the end of the fight, Harada's white satin boxing trunks were red with blood. An American reporter in attendence told Flores that he'd counted more than eighty head butts during the fight.
The fight had been close but it appeared as if Dwight Hawkins had once again defeated a Japanese boxer. However, Harada was'nt just any Japanese boxer and the hometown officials were not going to allow their national hero to lose. Harada was awarded a split-decision win over Hawkins and was now in line for a shot at the new featherweight title holder, Johnny Famechon. Famechon had won the title following Vicente Saldivar's sudden retirement the previous year. However, ten rounds with Hawkins had taken a lot out of the Japanese great and Harada would lose twice to Famechon in two attempts to win the 126 pound title.
Despite the loss to Harada, Dwight Hawkins remains a celebrity in Japan to this day. It would be in Japan where Dwight would meet and marry his current wife of more than thirty years.
Back in Los Angeles, Jack Kent Cooke opened a beautiful new sports venue right next door to the Hollywood Park race track. Cooke named his state-of-the-art arena "The Fabulous Forum" and would use it to showcase the two professional teams he owned, The Los Angeles Lakers of the NBA and his hockey team, the Los Angeles Kings.
The Forum was one of the finest sports arenas on earth and could hold more than 18,000 fans for a boxing match. Legendary boxing promoter George Parnassus would take on the responsibility of promoting boxing matches at The Forum and Johnny Flores hoped this might offer his fighter Dwight Hawkins a chance to fight for a world title. There was no hope of Hawkins getting a title fight thru Aileen Eaton, who refused to allow any of her Olympic Auditorium "house boxers" to fight The Hawk.
After scoring a unanimous decision over a Filipino-Hawaiian named Jet Parker in Honolulu, Dwight Hawkins would face another tough Los Angeles based featherweight in his Forum Debut. On November 4, 1968, Dwight Hawkins and "Irish" Frankie Crawford would headline an all-start card that also featured the U.S. debut of future Welterweight Champ Jose Napoles and Dwight's stablemate, Ruben Navarro, the "Maravilla Kid" from East L.A.
This was a fight that had Hawkins concerned. I remember that all of the boxers fighting on the card would train daily in a boxing gym set-up in the ball room of the Alexandria Hotel in downtown L.A. George Parnassus' office was at the Alexandria and on weekends I'd finish my workouts at the Main Street Gym and then hurry over to the Alexandria to watch Hawkins, Crawford and the rest of the fighters on the upcoming Forum card workout.
I was sixteen at the time and remember sitting next to Hawkins as he wrapped his hands prior to one of the workouts. Hawkins was not worried about defeating Crawford but he was concerned about Frankie's dirty style. Crawford was one of the dirtiest fighters in the sport and I overheard Hawkins tell Navarro that if Frankie tried any of his garbage he would get it back worse. Dwight Hawkins did'nt need illegal tactics to win, but was well versed in the art of dirty fighting, if necessary. At the time Crawford was being managed by televison star Robert Conrad, whose TV series "The Wild, Wild West" was number one in the ratings. Conrad was a "wanna be" boxer who lived vicariously thru Crawford and took great pleasure in working his fighter's corner.
Crawford was a legitimatly tough world class contender whom had defeated lightweight champ Mando Ramos among others during his career. I remember attending the fight with my father and was a bit disappointed that our seats were not a little bit closer. However, thanks to a pair of binoculars, I had a very good view of what went on in the ring that night. In the first round Crawford hit Dwight with an uppercut below the belt and Hawkins landed on the seat of his pants. My binoculars were focused right in on the face of Hawkins and I knew that Crawford was about to pay dearly for this. Hawkins jumped to his feet and, from that moment on, handed Frankie Crawford the worst beating of his career. In the eighth round, Crawford was literally knocked thru the ropes and nearly fell out of the ring. If it were not for the ringside press who put there hands out to catch Frankie, he'd have rolled to the floor. Crawford struggled to get to his feet but could'nt beat the count of ten. Hawkins not only KO'ed Frankie Crawford, but did so in spectacular style. I would have to say that the funniest thing about this was the look on the face of Robert Conrad's -- the actor was in shock.
Hawkins would win several more times after defeating Crawford, however, was getting no closer to a title fight. Nearly thirty years old, time was running out on Dwight Hawkins. He'd been fighting professionally for nearly half his life and had more than eighty fights undr his belt.
The Ring magazine rated Hawkins number one in the world and an elimination match was set up to determine the next challenger for World Featherweight champ Johnny Famechon. Once again, Dwight Hawkins would be matched with yet another unbeaten future world champion. This time Hawkins would fight Venezuela's Antonio Gomez in a ten round title elimination bout on the undercard of the Lionel Rose-Ruben Olivares bantamweight title bout at The Forum.
While training for the Gomez fight, Hawkins sparred with bantamweight champ Lionel Rose one afternoon at the Alexandria Hotel. However, it would be a one time experience because The Hawk's devastating body shots bruised the Austrailian's ribs. As a result, Rose was forced to miss sparring for the next couple of days to allow his ribs to heal.
Before a packed house at the Fabulous Forum, Dwight Hawkins would fight his heart out for the very last time. At the end of nine rounds Hawkins had a slight edge on the scorecards of all three officials. It looked like Dwight Hawkins was just one round away from the title fight that had been alluding him for more than a dozen years. However, in the tenth and final round, Dwight Hawkins went down from a solid left hook to the chin. The Hawk struggled to his feet by the count of eight and told referee Dick Young he was "OK". However, Hawkins was not OK and Gomez battered Dwight against the ropes. Hawkins took a number of solid shots but refused to go down. The leg that Dwight had almost lost as a child was still supported by the elastic band he'd used so many years before when he began boxing as a child. The Hawk's legs were unsteady, but he was on his feet and trying to fight back.
With less than a minute remaining in the fight, Hawkins long time manager Johnny Flores, threw in the towel. Flores would later tell us that it was the hardest thing he ever had to do during the half century he had worked with boxers.
A few moments later I saw something that I had never seen before and will likely never see again. As I walked toward the dressing room area to see Hawkins, I saw tears in the eyes of some of the toughest boxing personalities in the sport. Many of them were in the house a dozen years earlier when Hawkins, only a teenager, had KO'ed Jose Becerra.
I've never felt so bad over a boxer losing a fight as I did that night in 1969. I felt empty inside and could'nt help but wonder, "What's next for Dwight Hawkins"? I would get the answer the following day at the Main Street Gym.
The next morning I was shadow boxing in front of a mirror next to the entrance to the gym floor and was surprised to see the Hawk walk in carrying his gym bag. I couldn't imagine why he would be in the gym the morning after a tough fight like he'd had the night before. Hawkins looked around and spotted Johnny Flores who was talking with Hal Benson and a couple of trainers. When Benson saw Hawkins he greeted the Hawk with a big smile on his face. Before Dwight could say a word Benson told him that he had some good news. Lionel Rose had also been knocked out the night before by Ruben Olivares, losing his banatmweight title. George Parnassus had told Benson after the fight that Rose would be moving up to the featherweight division and that he would like to match Hawkins with Rose, with the winner to get a shot at the featherweight title. Hawkins just smiled and told Benson "No thanks, I'm finished". He then handed Flores his gym bag and told Johnny to give the equipment to some young fighter who could us it. Benson put his hand on Dwight's shoulder and tried to convince him that he was one fight away from a title shot. The Hawk just smiled and then left the gym for the last time.
The following year I turned professional and after a half dozen fights I saw Dwight Hawkins in the gym one day. I immediatly went over to the Hawk to say hello and was happy to hear that he had returned to help Flores train heavyweight Mac Foster. Foster was a top heavyweight and had just signed a management contract with Flores. That day I got some great news from Johnny Flores. Flores told me that Hawkins would also be training me.
I was scheduled to fight on the undercard of a world lightweight title bout between champion Ken Buchanan and my stablemate Ruben Navarro. Ironically, the card would be held at the Los Angeles Sports Arena, they same building where 17-year-old Dwight Hawkins had upset Jose Becerra more than fourteen years earlier. I was eighteen at the time and found myself being over powered by stronger, more mature opponents. My boxing skills and speed allowed me to compete with these men but I needed more power. With the help of Dwight Hawkins, I was able to gain the extra punching power I needed. With Flores and the Hawk in my corner, I knocked out a tough vet who had held me to a draw in my first pro fight.
I lost contact with Hawkins after I stopped boxing and it was more than twenty years later before I would see him again. In 1995, I was recovering from a work-related injury that had me on crutches for a few weeks. As I hobbled around on the crutches I couldn't help but think of Dwight Hawkins and how he had been on crutches as a child. I began to wonder how the Hawk was doing and decided to try and locate him. A call to information was all I needed to find Dwight Hawkins and when I called I was happy that he still remembered who I was. A couple of days later my friend John Brumshagen who, ironiclly, had been close with featherweight Frankie Crawford, drove me to Hawkins house for a visit.
It was great visiting with Dwight Hawkins. As we sat in Dwight's living room and talked, I kept bringing up great fights from the past I'd seen him in. Dwight would smile and politely acknowledge his boxing career but would then quickly change the subject to what he really considered important. Dwight's main concern today is the kids of South Central Los Angeles and the problem related to the gangs.
It's guys like Dwight Hawkins that represent the best of boxing. More accuratly, it's guys like Dwight Hawkins that represent the best of humanity.
How lucky for me to have been around a guy like the Hawk.
Sunday, September 20, 2009
The Welterweights I remember . . .
By Rick farris
They were guys who usually stepped up from lower weight classes, like Jose Napoles.
Napoles was a lightweight who fought junior welters, and finally won the 147 lb. title at what was considered the "end" of his career.
We were a little light in the number of world titles available when guys like Mantequilla, Homicide Henry and the "real" Sugar Ray ruled the 147 pound division.
There was only ONE title, and only one guy got to claim it.
Napoles, Armstrong and Robinson never looked down in weight when considering challenges.
Well into his 30's, about fifteen years into his career, Napoles had exhausted all of the welter challengers of his era, and it was a great era.
He didn't look down in search of a blown up featherweight to fight, he challenged an all-time great middleweight champ in his prime, Carlos Monzon.
Robinson stepped up to middleweight and won the title five times. Many consider him the best ever, all-time P4P (in contemporary boxing fan lingo?)
Ray also stepped up and challenged Joey Maxim for the light-heavy crown on a hot summer night at Yankee Stadium.
The intense heat and weight disadvantage did Robinson in late in the fight. I never heard of Sugar Ray challenging Chalky Wright.
He didn't look down to see what the little guys were doing.
Armstrong was a little guy, I doubt weighed much more than 132lbs when holding every title between 126-147.
Armstrong had to go up and down, and still defended the welter title a record 18 times in less than two years. He whipped Ceferino Garcia in a title defense.
When Garcia won the middleweight title, Armstrong took him on, hoping to add the middleweight title to his collection.
Armstrong dominated, but the fight was declared a draw, a bad decision?
Today, I communicated with another pretty good welter champ, he held the title three times, his name is Emile Griffith.
Griffith had won and lost the welter title, re-winning it twice. Like other greats, he'd dominated the welterweights then stepped up to win the middleweight title twice.
Emile told me he'll be at the WBHOF banquet again this year. He'd be coming with his son, Luis, and will also bring James "Bonecrusher" Smith.
I was pleased we were speaking for reasons not related to the WBHOF, I almost hesitated telling him I was involved with the organization.
Just a few seconds ago, I hear Jim Lampley scream with excitement that Floyd Mayweather Jr. "IS BETTER THAN EVER!!!!"
I truly believe that Mantequilla Napoles would have looked better than ever had he fought men two divisions below has natural weight class, instead of two above.
To bring things a little closer to present, a few years back another welterweight champ, Sugar Ray Leonard, demanded all the edges and usually got them.
However, Sugar Ray Leonard fought bigger men as his career progressed, not the smaller.
Floyd Mayweather looked sharp tonight. Of course he did. He wasn't in the ring with Shane Mosely. That's who he should have fought.
The problem with Shane Mosely is obvious. He's too much man for a guy who calls himself "Money".
They were guys who usually stepped up from lower weight classes, like Jose Napoles.
Napoles was a lightweight who fought junior welters, and finally won the 147 lb. title at what was considered the "end" of his career.
We were a little light in the number of world titles available when guys like Mantequilla, Homicide Henry and the "real" Sugar Ray ruled the 147 pound division.
There was only ONE title, and only one guy got to claim it.
Napoles, Armstrong and Robinson never looked down in weight when considering challenges.
Well into his 30's, about fifteen years into his career, Napoles had exhausted all of the welter challengers of his era, and it was a great era.
He didn't look down in search of a blown up featherweight to fight, he challenged an all-time great middleweight champ in his prime, Carlos Monzon.
Robinson stepped up to middleweight and won the title five times. Many consider him the best ever, all-time P4P (in contemporary boxing fan lingo?)
Ray also stepped up and challenged Joey Maxim for the light-heavy crown on a hot summer night at Yankee Stadium.
The intense heat and weight disadvantage did Robinson in late in the fight. I never heard of Sugar Ray challenging Chalky Wright.
He didn't look down to see what the little guys were doing.
Armstrong was a little guy, I doubt weighed much more than 132lbs when holding every title between 126-147.
Armstrong had to go up and down, and still defended the welter title a record 18 times in less than two years. He whipped Ceferino Garcia in a title defense.
When Garcia won the middleweight title, Armstrong took him on, hoping to add the middleweight title to his collection.
Armstrong dominated, but the fight was declared a draw, a bad decision?
Today, I communicated with another pretty good welter champ, he held the title three times, his name is Emile Griffith.
Griffith had won and lost the welter title, re-winning it twice. Like other greats, he'd dominated the welterweights then stepped up to win the middleweight title twice.
Emile told me he'll be at the WBHOF banquet again this year. He'd be coming with his son, Luis, and will also bring James "Bonecrusher" Smith.
I was pleased we were speaking for reasons not related to the WBHOF, I almost hesitated telling him I was involved with the organization.
Just a few seconds ago, I hear Jim Lampley scream with excitement that Floyd Mayweather Jr. "IS BETTER THAN EVER!!!!"
I truly believe that Mantequilla Napoles would have looked better than ever had he fought men two divisions below has natural weight class, instead of two above.
To bring things a little closer to present, a few years back another welterweight champ, Sugar Ray Leonard, demanded all the edges and usually got them.
However, Sugar Ray Leonard fought bigger men as his career progressed, not the smaller.
Floyd Mayweather looked sharp tonight. Of course he did. He wasn't in the ring with Shane Mosely. That's who he should have fought.
The problem with Shane Mosely is obvious. He's too much man for a guy who calls himself "Money".
Saturday, September 19, 2009
TARNISHED SHOES
By Roger Esty
The talk about knowing when to hang up the gloves. Those old fighters know that they can't recapture the light. Some say they can,but they know when they walk into the gym that the light is gone. Sometimes we believe they can recapture it,but in the end it's always a wash.We want to see their greatness again. So they say that they've got it back . We believe them. It's a fragile faith,but to see that greatness again,that genius that we lived our lives through, is what we want to believe they can recapture. So why do they continue? Some miss the spotlight. Most miss the money. Most know that fighting is all they know in order to make the money.
At the end of his career Denny Moyer knew he could always make a thousand bucks fighting in Nevada. I remember he'd fight on cards at the Silver Slipper. Train more or less in San Diego. Do his share of non training activities, and then fight at the Silver Slipper. In those days a thousand bucks was good money. In those days Denny spent it as fast a ten round fight.
We know he's hurting now. He's got his wife to protect him. He's lucky she's his faith. All those fights in Nevada when he should have been thinking about the consequences. Denny think about consequences? If it crossed his mind,he just set up the bar. Now there's no champagne to drink from the silver slipper.
The talk about knowing when to hang up the gloves. Those old fighters know that they can't recapture the light. Some say they can,but they know when they walk into the gym that the light is gone. Sometimes we believe they can recapture it,but in the end it's always a wash.We want to see their greatness again. So they say that they've got it back . We believe them. It's a fragile faith,but to see that greatness again,that genius that we lived our lives through, is what we want to believe they can recapture. So why do they continue? Some miss the spotlight. Most miss the money. Most know that fighting is all they know in order to make the money.
At the end of his career Denny Moyer knew he could always make a thousand bucks fighting in Nevada. I remember he'd fight on cards at the Silver Slipper. Train more or less in San Diego. Do his share of non training activities, and then fight at the Silver Slipper. In those days a thousand bucks was good money. In those days Denny spent it as fast a ten round fight.
We know he's hurting now. He's got his wife to protect him. He's lucky she's his faith. All those fights in Nevada when he should have been thinking about the consequences. Denny think about consequences? If it crossed his mind,he just set up the bar. Now there's no champagne to drink from the silver slipper.
California to probe boxing regulation panel over free tickets
The investigation is announced after The Times reported that commissioners, who also oversee mixed martial arts, requested the free passes from promoters whom they license and regulate.
California boxing regulators gave free fight tickets to friends, records show
By Michael Rothfeld
September 19, 2009
Reporting from Sacramento - California's ethics watchdog agency opened an investigation Friday into the California State Athletic Commission, in connection with free admission to big-ticket events that board members obtained for themselves, relatives, friends and associates.
The investigation was announced after The Times reported that commissioners, who oversee boxing and mixed martial arts, requested the free passes from promoters whom they license and regulate. Requests were made to admit more than 50 people in the last year and a half who did not work for the board; most of the guests were friends and associates of the commissioners.
Most of the free access was not reported to the California Fair Political Practices Commission, an ethics agency that can fine high-ranking officials who violate state law that requires gifts to be disclosed and not to exceed annual limits.
"Based on the information in The Times' article, the [Fair Political Practices] Commission will be investigating the activities of the athletic commission," said Roman Porter, the ethics agency's executive director.
Matt David, a spokesman for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, said in a statement, "We fully support their investigation and will demand compliance with their findings."
Erin Shaw, a spokeswoman for the athletic commission, said she had "nothing further" to add to the statement from the governor's office.
Those invited to events free included actor Sylvester Stallone, who is a friend of Commission Chairman Timothy Noonan; John Cruz, a high-ranking aide to Schwarzenegger; one commissioner's pastor; and other friends and relatives of the panel's members.
Schwarzenegger and his son sat next to Stallone at a January fight for which tickets cost up to $300. Six of the seven part-time commissioners were appointed by the governor.
Some commissioners disclosed free admissions after The Times inquired about their practices in July, though they said Thursday they'd already been in the process of doing so. They also reimbursed promoters so they would not exceed state gift-acceptance limits, but they did so well after the 30-day legal window for such action. The governor made a similar payment last month.
michael.rothfeld@latimes.com
California boxing regulators gave free fight tickets to friends, records show
By Michael Rothfeld
September 19, 2009
Reporting from Sacramento - California's ethics watchdog agency opened an investigation Friday into the California State Athletic Commission, in connection with free admission to big-ticket events that board members obtained for themselves, relatives, friends and associates.
The investigation was announced after The Times reported that commissioners, who oversee boxing and mixed martial arts, requested the free passes from promoters whom they license and regulate. Requests were made to admit more than 50 people in the last year and a half who did not work for the board; most of the guests were friends and associates of the commissioners.
Most of the free access was not reported to the California Fair Political Practices Commission, an ethics agency that can fine high-ranking officials who violate state law that requires gifts to be disclosed and not to exceed annual limits.
"Based on the information in The Times' article, the [Fair Political Practices] Commission will be investigating the activities of the athletic commission," said Roman Porter, the ethics agency's executive director.
Matt David, a spokesman for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, said in a statement, "We fully support their investigation and will demand compliance with their findings."
Erin Shaw, a spokeswoman for the athletic commission, said she had "nothing further" to add to the statement from the governor's office.
Those invited to events free included actor Sylvester Stallone, who is a friend of Commission Chairman Timothy Noonan; John Cruz, a high-ranking aide to Schwarzenegger; one commissioner's pastor; and other friends and relatives of the panel's members.
Schwarzenegger and his son sat next to Stallone at a January fight for which tickets cost up to $300. Six of the seven part-time commissioners were appointed by the governor.
Some commissioners disclosed free admissions after The Times inquired about their practices in July, though they said Thursday they'd already been in the process of doing so. They also reimbursed promoters so they would not exceed state gift-acceptance limits, but they did so well after the 30-day legal window for such action. The governor made a similar payment last month.
michael.rothfeld@latimes.com
Friday, September 18, 2009
State boxing panel has a poor record
The California State Athletic Commission has a history of poor record-keeping, faulty revenue collection and a harassment claim.
By Michael Rothfeld
September 18, 2009
Reporting from Sacramento - The California State Athletic Commission, one of many consumer-protection boards, is responsible for ensuring the safety of athletes in boxing and mixed martial arts by licensing them and event promoters, among other tasks.
But records from the state and the boxing industry reveal a pattern of poor performance by a board that has had trouble following its own rules.
An internal audit in late 2003, around the time Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger took office, found sloppy record-keeping, inaccurate revenue collection, outdated technology and staffing shortages. Such problems prompted state lawmakers to let the commission's authority lapse for six months in 2006 before it was launched again in 2007.
Since then the situation has not improved, follow-up state audits show.
Armando Garcia, the executive officer brought in to turn the commission around, was ousted late last year after a sexual harassment complaint by a subordinate. He has not been permanently replaced.
Garcia wrote the subordinate numerous e-mails, obtained by The Times under California's public records law, which he signed with messages such as "Loving you" in English and Spanish. In April, the panel and its parent agency, the state Department of Consumer Affairs, settled the complaint for $75,000.
The commission acknowledged a regulatory failure in March after a mixed martial arts fighter was allowed to compete even though he had hepatitis C and didn't have the required HIV test result on file.
Records from a national registry, Fight Fax, indicate that others have been permitted to compete this year while on suspension -- pending, for instance, medical tests -- or without an identification card required under federal law.
Dave Thornton, the commission's acting executive officer, said that in most cases, the agency had not updated the registry for months but the fighters were appropriately allowed to compete; in two cases, they competed while on suspension. Thornton said the agency was working to address its "occasional" regulatory errors and long-standing administrative problems. "I think we've made quite a bit of progress," he said. "It's gone on for a while, so we do need some time to make it right."
michael.rothfeld@latimes.com
By Michael Rothfeld
September 18, 2009
Reporting from Sacramento - The California State Athletic Commission, one of many consumer-protection boards, is responsible for ensuring the safety of athletes in boxing and mixed martial arts by licensing them and event promoters, among other tasks.
But records from the state and the boxing industry reveal a pattern of poor performance by a board that has had trouble following its own rules.
An internal audit in late 2003, around the time Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger took office, found sloppy record-keeping, inaccurate revenue collection, outdated technology and staffing shortages. Such problems prompted state lawmakers to let the commission's authority lapse for six months in 2006 before it was launched again in 2007.
Since then the situation has not improved, follow-up state audits show.
Armando Garcia, the executive officer brought in to turn the commission around, was ousted late last year after a sexual harassment complaint by a subordinate. He has not been permanently replaced.
Garcia wrote the subordinate numerous e-mails, obtained by The Times under California's public records law, which he signed with messages such as "Loving you" in English and Spanish. In April, the panel and its parent agency, the state Department of Consumer Affairs, settled the complaint for $75,000.
The commission acknowledged a regulatory failure in March after a mixed martial arts fighter was allowed to compete even though he had hepatitis C and didn't have the required HIV test result on file.
Records from a national registry, Fight Fax, indicate that others have been permitted to compete this year while on suspension -- pending, for instance, medical tests -- or without an identification card required under federal law.
Dave Thornton, the commission's acting executive officer, said that in most cases, the agency had not updated the registry for months but the fighters were appropriately allowed to compete; in two cases, they competed while on suspension. Thornton said the agency was working to address its "occasional" regulatory errors and long-standing administrative problems. "I think we've made quite a bit of progress," he said. "It's gone on for a while, so we do need some time to make it right."
michael.rothfeld@latimes.com
California boxing regulators gave free fight tickets to friends, records show
By law, Athletic Commission members are required to report gifts worth $50 or more obtained from an outside firm for anyone else. Only a fraction of the tickets were disclosed before The Times asked.
By Michael Rothfeld
September 18, 2009
Reporting from Sacramento - State officials who regulate boxing have used their positions to gain admission to big-ticket events for friends -- actor Sylvester Stallone among them -- relatives and other associates who sit ringside for free, records show.
One member of the California State Athletic Commission directed state employees to obtain free passes for his wife and pastor. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who appointed all but one of the commissioners, attended an event gratis, as did one of his high-ranking aides.
At some fights, guests were placed in VIP rows, in front of fans whose tickets cost hundreds of dollars apiece. Schwarzenegger and his son sat with Stallone at the Antonio Margarito-Shane Mosley welterweight championship bout in January. Tickets to that fight cost up to $300.
Commissioners themselves receive free entry because of their jobs. But Timothy Lueckenhoff, president of the Assn. of Boxing Commissions, a national organization, said asking promoters to admit guests lends the appearance that officials are abusing their regulatory power for personal benefit. The commission can "hold over their head" the ability to approve promoters' fights, license athletes, collect fees and state taxes on ticket sales and pay out winnings, he said.
"It's the appearance of inappropriate activity," Lueckenhoff said. Panel members' acceptance of promoters' largess could suggest that the businesses "are buying some sort of favoritism," he said.
State law requires that commissioners report as gifts anything worth $50 or more obtained from an outside company for anyone else, including friends and relatives. They are required to report their own free admission as well if they do not perform a function related to their jobs while at the event.
But only a fraction of the free entries were disclosed until The Times asked about them. One commissioner did not request admission regularly, the state records show. None responded to requests for comment.
Dave Thornton, the commission's acting executive officer, said that board members were in the process of amending their disclosures before The Times requested the records, and that his predecessor had told them that free admission for guests was "a routine perk of their position."
The revelations are another blow for the commission's parent agency, the California Department of Consumer Affairs, and for Schwarzenegger. He has pledged to make state government more efficient and to impose strict ethical standards, such as a ban he imposed three years ago on gifts to his aides.
Schwarzenegger recently overhauled the state board that monitors registered nurses after The Times and the nonprofit news group ProPublica disclosed major enforcement delays. Before that, the consumer protection agency's director and her boss quit in scandals over taxpayer-funded trips and illegal speaking fees.
On Thursday, as The Times was preparing to publish information on the free admissions, Schwarzenegger sent a letter to the commissioners reiterating that "appointees do not accept gifts" and directing them to follow his policy or resign.
The governor "continues to take aggressive steps to oversee these boards and commissions," Schwarzenegger's spokesman, Matt David, said after the letter went out.
On Aug. 6, Schwarzenegger paid the promoter $180 toward the $600 cost of the fight he attended Jan. 24 with his son, so as not to exceed the state gift limit of $420, David said, and John Cruz, Schwarzenegger's appointments secretary, was planning a similar payment. Such payments are supposed to be made within 30 days under state law.
The 80-year-old athletic commission is responsible for licensing fighters and promoters, safeguarding athletes' health and safety and managing a pension fund for boxers. Its inspectors, referees and other workers travel across California overseeing huge championship bouts, niche shows put on by promoters like Chaos in the Cage and events for select audiences at places such as the Playboy mansion.
The commissioners -- who work part time, earn $100 a day and usually meet monthly -- are Chairman Timothy Noonan, an insurance executive from Los Angeles; Mario Rodriguez, the commission's vice chairman and a business consultant from San Clemente; Howard Rose, a Beverly Hills talent agent; Peter Lopez, an L.A. entertainment lawyer; John Frierson, a former Los Angeles County deputy sheriff; Christopher Giza, a pediatric neurologist from Culver City; and June Collison, a healthcare executive from Etiwanda and a former Olympic runner.
The athletic commission keeps no formal record of the people for whom it obtains access to events that it regulates. In response to a request by The Times in late July, the panel printed a stack of e-mails between commissioners and staff discussing arrangements for events.
Those records, though an incomplete accounting, showed that in the last year and a half the agency obtained free admission for more than 50 people who did not work for the commission. Lists of guests who received access to events contained names of people not employed by the state, with no explanation of why they received admission.
Noonan has obtained credentials for at least four events for Stallone, a friend who spent time in the ring in the "Rocky" films. Noonan once gave his own credential to someone else, the records show, and assigned Armando Garcia, then the commission's top-ranking administrator, to make sure that guest and another person got in smoothly.
"Armando is planning on seeing you & Jeff this Saturday night at the Home Depot Center," Noonan wrote in an e-mail last year to one of those guests, Don Johnson [not the "Miami Vice" star]. "There will be a credential under your name, and because of my absence, Jeff is to use my credential. . . . Enjoy!"
Frierson obtained credentials for his pastor for one fight and invited a guest from New Jersey. He regularly placed his wife, Susie, on the free-entry list along with state employees.
Rodriguez has been granted free admission for at least 20 guests, including Schwarzenegger aide Cruz, since the beginning of 2008. In January, Rodriguez and Noonan attended the Margarito-Mosley fight with guests in L.A. on the same night they obtained admission for others to another show in Anaheim, former commission officials said.
Only Collison did not regularly seek free admissions, according to the records.
Before a weekend of three matches in January, William Douglas, the assistant executive officer, sent out a mass e-mail with a chart that commissioners could use to check their desired events and the number of guests they wanted. They requested at least 18 credentials that weekend.
"You assume that because it is a state agency and it is a regulatory agency that they're not taking advantage," said David Itskowitch, chief operating officer of Golden Boy Promotions, which has sponsored several major fights in the last two years.
Most of the free admissions still have not been reported to the Fair Political Practices Commission, the state's ethics enforcement agency.
In early August, after The Times requested information about their guests, Rodriguez, Rose, Lopez and Giza amended the disclosures they had filed earlier in the year to include gifts not previously reported. The revised filings said promoters gave them free tickets to events including a $600-a-head fight on May 3, 2008, between Oscar De La Hoya and Steve Forbes, and the Margarito-Mosley event.
Rodriguez, Rose and Lopez cut checks for hundreds of dollars to Golden Boy Promotions, one of the sponsors of those events, because the value of the tickets exceeded the state's annual gift limit from a single source, which was $390 last year and rose to $420 on Jan. 1. Noonan had done the same earlier in July as the state Senate was reviewing his reappointment by the governor, which is still pending.
In some cases those payments were made more than a year after the fight, despite the 30-day requirement.
michael.rothfeld@latimes.com
By Michael Rothfeld
September 18, 2009
Reporting from Sacramento - State officials who regulate boxing have used their positions to gain admission to big-ticket events for friends -- actor Sylvester Stallone among them -- relatives and other associates who sit ringside for free, records show.
One member of the California State Athletic Commission directed state employees to obtain free passes for his wife and pastor. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who appointed all but one of the commissioners, attended an event gratis, as did one of his high-ranking aides.
At some fights, guests were placed in VIP rows, in front of fans whose tickets cost hundreds of dollars apiece. Schwarzenegger and his son sat with Stallone at the Antonio Margarito-Shane Mosley welterweight championship bout in January. Tickets to that fight cost up to $300.
Commissioners themselves receive free entry because of their jobs. But Timothy Lueckenhoff, president of the Assn. of Boxing Commissions, a national organization, said asking promoters to admit guests lends the appearance that officials are abusing their regulatory power for personal benefit. The commission can "hold over their head" the ability to approve promoters' fights, license athletes, collect fees and state taxes on ticket sales and pay out winnings, he said.
"It's the appearance of inappropriate activity," Lueckenhoff said. Panel members' acceptance of promoters' largess could suggest that the businesses "are buying some sort of favoritism," he said.
State law requires that commissioners report as gifts anything worth $50 or more obtained from an outside company for anyone else, including friends and relatives. They are required to report their own free admission as well if they do not perform a function related to their jobs while at the event.
But only a fraction of the free entries were disclosed until The Times asked about them. One commissioner did not request admission regularly, the state records show. None responded to requests for comment.
Dave Thornton, the commission's acting executive officer, said that board members were in the process of amending their disclosures before The Times requested the records, and that his predecessor had told them that free admission for guests was "a routine perk of their position."
The revelations are another blow for the commission's parent agency, the California Department of Consumer Affairs, and for Schwarzenegger. He has pledged to make state government more efficient and to impose strict ethical standards, such as a ban he imposed three years ago on gifts to his aides.
Schwarzenegger recently overhauled the state board that monitors registered nurses after The Times and the nonprofit news group ProPublica disclosed major enforcement delays. Before that, the consumer protection agency's director and her boss quit in scandals over taxpayer-funded trips and illegal speaking fees.
On Thursday, as The Times was preparing to publish information on the free admissions, Schwarzenegger sent a letter to the commissioners reiterating that "appointees do not accept gifts" and directing them to follow his policy or resign.
The governor "continues to take aggressive steps to oversee these boards and commissions," Schwarzenegger's spokesman, Matt David, said after the letter went out.
On Aug. 6, Schwarzenegger paid the promoter $180 toward the $600 cost of the fight he attended Jan. 24 with his son, so as not to exceed the state gift limit of $420, David said, and John Cruz, Schwarzenegger's appointments secretary, was planning a similar payment. Such payments are supposed to be made within 30 days under state law.
The 80-year-old athletic commission is responsible for licensing fighters and promoters, safeguarding athletes' health and safety and managing a pension fund for boxers. Its inspectors, referees and other workers travel across California overseeing huge championship bouts, niche shows put on by promoters like Chaos in the Cage and events for select audiences at places such as the Playboy mansion.
The commissioners -- who work part time, earn $100 a day and usually meet monthly -- are Chairman Timothy Noonan, an insurance executive from Los Angeles; Mario Rodriguez, the commission's vice chairman and a business consultant from San Clemente; Howard Rose, a Beverly Hills talent agent; Peter Lopez, an L.A. entertainment lawyer; John Frierson, a former Los Angeles County deputy sheriff; Christopher Giza, a pediatric neurologist from Culver City; and June Collison, a healthcare executive from Etiwanda and a former Olympic runner.
The athletic commission keeps no formal record of the people for whom it obtains access to events that it regulates. In response to a request by The Times in late July, the panel printed a stack of e-mails between commissioners and staff discussing arrangements for events.
Those records, though an incomplete accounting, showed that in the last year and a half the agency obtained free admission for more than 50 people who did not work for the commission. Lists of guests who received access to events contained names of people not employed by the state, with no explanation of why they received admission.
Noonan has obtained credentials for at least four events for Stallone, a friend who spent time in the ring in the "Rocky" films. Noonan once gave his own credential to someone else, the records show, and assigned Armando Garcia, then the commission's top-ranking administrator, to make sure that guest and another person got in smoothly.
"Armando is planning on seeing you & Jeff this Saturday night at the Home Depot Center," Noonan wrote in an e-mail last year to one of those guests, Don Johnson [not the "Miami Vice" star]. "There will be a credential under your name, and because of my absence, Jeff is to use my credential. . . . Enjoy!"
Frierson obtained credentials for his pastor for one fight and invited a guest from New Jersey. He regularly placed his wife, Susie, on the free-entry list along with state employees.
Rodriguez has been granted free admission for at least 20 guests, including Schwarzenegger aide Cruz, since the beginning of 2008. In January, Rodriguez and Noonan attended the Margarito-Mosley fight with guests in L.A. on the same night they obtained admission for others to another show in Anaheim, former commission officials said.
Only Collison did not regularly seek free admissions, according to the records.
Before a weekend of three matches in January, William Douglas, the assistant executive officer, sent out a mass e-mail with a chart that commissioners could use to check their desired events and the number of guests they wanted. They requested at least 18 credentials that weekend.
"You assume that because it is a state agency and it is a regulatory agency that they're not taking advantage," said David Itskowitch, chief operating officer of Golden Boy Promotions, which has sponsored several major fights in the last two years.
Most of the free admissions still have not been reported to the Fair Political Practices Commission, the state's ethics enforcement agency.
In early August, after The Times requested information about their guests, Rodriguez, Rose, Lopez and Giza amended the disclosures they had filed earlier in the year to include gifts not previously reported. The revised filings said promoters gave them free tickets to events including a $600-a-head fight on May 3, 2008, between Oscar De La Hoya and Steve Forbes, and the Margarito-Mosley event.
Rodriguez, Rose and Lopez cut checks for hundreds of dollars to Golden Boy Promotions, one of the sponsors of those events, because the value of the tickets exceeded the state's annual gift limit from a single source, which was $390 last year and rose to $420 on Jan. 1. Noonan had done the same earlier in July as the state Senate was reviewing his reappointment by the governor, which is still pending.
In some cases those payments were made more than a year after the fight, despite the 30-day requirement.
michael.rothfeld@latimes.com
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Scarface: The Rough & Tumble Life Of A Boxing Superstar
By Chris Oakley
He shook up the sports world as few men had before him or would after him. He was loved by millions of people, detested by millions of others, feared by many of the opponents he faced in the ring, and remembered by everyone who saw him. Al "Scarface" Capone was one of the most successful-- and controversial --fighters in boxing history, and his legacy would loom large in the ring long after he had hung up his gloves for the last time.
Alphonse Gabriel Capone was born in Brooklyn, New York on January 17th, 1899. He was introduced to the sweet science at the age of 13 by a neighborhood candy store owner who had once fought professionally as a middleweight; the boxing lessons helped channel Capone’s aggressive impulses into socially acceptable outlets and keep him from getting sucked into the dangerous criminal underworld of early 20th century New York. By age 15 he was skilled enough to enter local youth amateur tournaments; at 20 he won the prestigious Golden Gloves championship in the heavyweight division. Some sports historians even believe that Capone might have made the 1916 US Olympic boxing team had World War I not forced the cancellation of the Summer Games that year.
Capone, who moved to Chicago just after World War I ended, finally did make the Olympic boxing squad in time for the 1920 Summer Games in Antwerp; he won the gold medal in his weight class by virtue of his fierce, pedal-to-the-metal fighting style and an uppercut that could literally almost take a man’s head off. One challenger that Capone was scheduled to face in the Olympic tournament chose to forfeit the match rather than endure the punishing body blows and headshots he almost certainly would have undergone at Capone’s hands.
Capone got the nickname "Scarface" from a cut he sustained on his temple during his first professional bout in 1921. The cut happened during the third round of that bout and nearly provoked the referee to stop the fight; it took half a dozen stitches to close the wound. Some of Capone’s family and friends resented the moniker; Capone himself, however, was rather fond of it-- it implied toughness, a simultaneous ability to take punishment from his opponents and dish it right back out to them.
That ability would propel him steadily up the ranks over the next year and a half. By the spring of 1923 Capone was number two among the top ten contenders for the world heavyweight title, and there wasn’t much doubt in anyone’s mind he would soon be number one on that list.
Only one man stood in the way of his attainment of that pinnacle....
******
Eliot Ness, known to his fans as "Untouchable" because his foes could never seem to land a punch on him, was Al "Scarface" Capone’s main rival in the fight game at the time the two men were booked to face one another in June of 1923 in the main event of a heavyweight card in Detroit. Whereas Capone relied on power to gain victory, Ness’ fighting technique emphasized quick timing and concentration of blows on a particularly vulnerable part of his opponent’s body. But while he may have been different from Capone in many respects, he had one notable similarity to the Chicago brawler: like Capone, he had been steadily working his way up the ladder after winning the gold medal in his weight class at the 1920 Summer Olympics.
The two fighters had something else in common too-- undefeated records. When Ness and Capone stepped into the ring on the afternoon of June 17th, 1923 Ness boasted a record of 24 wins and 1 draw over 25 fights; Capone had 23 consecutive victories to his credit, 20 of them by knockout in the first or second round. Just about everyone who was in attendance that day expected the match to be a long one; up in the press boxes, the sportswriters had a running bet that the fight would not end any earlier than the eighth round.
As it turned out, Ness and Capone would slug it out at least ten rounds before Ness could gain a noticeable if slight advantage; not until the eleventh round, when Ness was ahead on points, did Capone get the first knockdown of the bout. When the Cleveland native fell to the canvas, you could have heard a pin drop in the arena-- no previous opponent had been able to even come close to doing that to Ness. In the Capone corner Capone’s trainer and occasional sparring partner, Frank Nitti, let out a whoop loud enough to echo all the way back to the arena’s locker rooms.
1:42 into the eleventh round, Capone knocked Ness down a second time; the arena crowd, which was predominantly pro-Ness, reacted with mingled alarm and outrage. At least one spectator threw an empty paper cup in the direction of the ring and was ejected by police for his troubles. By now Capone was overtaking Ness on points and had softened him up to the point where another knockdown would end both the fight and Ness’ undefeated streak.
In desperation, Ness aimed an uppercut at Capone’s nose. That would prove to be the Clevelander’s crucial mistake; Capone landed a body blow which sent Ness sprawling to the mat and left him literally flat on his face. The referee called for the bell and officially named Capone the winner by technical knockout; only a massive Detroit Police presence inside the arena prevented a full-fledged riot from erupting.
And even with the cops around, some people couldn’t resist taking a shot at him, verbal or otherwise-- an Auburn Hills man was arrested for attempted assault after he tried to crack Capone’s skull with a two-by-four.
Charges that Capone had used illegal tactics to gain the victory over Ness created a firestorm in the press in the days immediately after the bout; however, Capone himself denied the accusations and no definitive proof was ever found to back them up. In early September of 1923, the investigation into these charges was closed and the scandal largely forgotten.1
******
As great as his triumph over Ness had been, however, a still greater accomplishment lay ahead for Capone. Jack Dempsey, world heavyweight champion since 1919, was booked to defend his belt against Capone in early December of 1923 in Kansas City; for Capone, it was an opportunity he couldn’t refuse-- the chance to both become world champion and smash the legend of Dempsey’s invincibility in one fell swoop.
To prepare for his clash with the champion, Capone embarked on the toughest training regimen of his career. Part of that regimen was watching films of Dempsey at work in the ring; in fact, Capone is widely credited as being one of the first boxers in any weight class to make viewing films of his opponents a regular part of pre-fight preparations. He also took part in a number of long sparring sessions with Frank Nitti, working at all hours to perfect his jabs and body blows. Though an outgoing man by nature, Capone cut back sharply on his socializing in the weeks leading up to his showdown with Dempsey. He even, albeit somewhat reluctantly, gave up his Friday night visits to his favorite speakeasy.2
Finally, on December 4th, 1923, Capone and Dempsey met face-to-face in a smoke-filled Kansas City arena; everybody who was there knew the stakes in this bout were sky-high, and nobody understood it better than Capone and Dempsey themselves. For Dempsey a win meant continuing his historic undefeated streak; for Capone victory would put him down in the history books as a giant-killer and give him the world heavyweight title.
For twelve rounds Capone and Dempsey went at each other like angry rhinos. The closest either man came to knocking the other man out was when Capone knocked Dempsey down twice in the tenth round; some of the sportswriters covering the bout began quietly making bets after the eighth round that the bout would end in a draw. But when the bell rang for the end of the twelfth round and the judges’ scores were tallied up, Capone would turn out to have earned a split decision win to become the new world heavyweight champion. Jack Dempsey, sure he’d beaten Capone, fell to the canvas in shock when the judges’ decision was announced; some sports historians suggest that Dempsey’s defeat in Kansas City may have marked the beginning of the end for his boxing career. It certainly shattered the myth of his invincibility.
Making good on a promise he’d given prior to the bout, Capone hosted a steak dinner for his family and closest friends back home in Chicago to celebrate his newly won title. He posed for photos with one of the other great American sports idols of the 1920s, George Herman "Babe" Ruth, and spoke at length to sportswriters from the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun-Times about his match against Dempsey. He was on top of the world that night...
******
....and would stay there for a long time. Capone proved to be the most dominant boxing champion of his generation, winning 38 bouts in a row, with 36 of those bouts lasting just five rounds or less; of those 36 matches thirty would be won in the first two rounds, and out of that group of thirty at least fifteen fights would be won by first- round KO. "I just forgot how to lose." Capone joked to sportwriters after his September 1925 four-round win over fellow Chicagoan ‘Bugs’ Moran, and there was certainly no shortage of opponents willing to refresh his memory. In fact, other than Eliot Ness, ‘Bugs’ Moran was Capone’s most persistent rival for the world heavyweight championship. Capone and Moran had known and disliked each other for years; Moran accused Capone of costing him a spot on the 1920 US Olympic boxing team, and in turn Capone charged that Moran had disparaged Capone’s wife behind her back. And the Capone-Moran fights weren’t confined to the ring, either; three months before Capone’s four-round victory, he and Moran had gotten into a vicious brawl at a party hosted by actress Clara Bow after Moran made a remark mocking Capone’s Italian heritage.
Nor would the September 1925 fight be the last time Moran stepped through the ropes to face Capone; in May of 1927 the two squared off in a highly publicized and ferociously fought rematch at Braves Field in Boston. That bout lasted just two rounds, halted by the referee at the 1:42 mark of the second round after Capone broke Moran’s jaw with a strong right cross which also opened a cut on Moran’s right temple. Moran nearly retired from boxing after that defeat, and in fact a year would pass before he stepped into the ring again.
******
For most of the year Moran was out of boxing, Capone kept right on winning, so convincingly and in such swift fashion that at one point some promoters suggested retiring the world heavyweight title altogether. There didn’t seem to be anyone left who wanted to take him on; Capone himself bluntly told a Los Angeles Herald-Tribune boxing beat correspondent, "I’ve whipped so many guys by now everybody’s gone yellow...there ain’t nobody left in the whole wide world who has the guts to fight me."3
There were certainly fewer and fewer fighters on American soil willing to risk their necks to try and wrest Capone’s heavyweight belt from him; even Eliot Ness, the champion’s most unrelenting adversary, was starting to seem a bit hesitant to face him again. And it couldn’t have helped Ness’ courage any when Capone wrecked Gene Tunney in three rounds in February of 1928 in a bout rightly dubbed by sportswriters as "the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre".4 Boxing promoters looking for a challenger who had the moxie to stand toe-to-toe with Scarface found themselves increasingly having to look to Europe to find fighters to take on the champion.
But there was an American fighter who wasn’t the slightest bit intimidated by the Al Capone mystique: one Benjamin "Bugsy"5 Siegel, a brawler with an uppercut that had left more than one foe flat on his back. Siegel, who’d turned pro shortly after the first Capone-Moran bout, had a record of sixteen wins and one draw at the time of the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre and was eager to prove he could take the world heavyweight champion down.
On a Monday afternoon in March of 1928, Siegel confronted Capone at the South Side gym where Capone trained in between fights; to the shock of everyone present and the outrage of Capone himself, the 22- year-old New Yorker labeled the heavyweight champion a "relic" and a "worthless coward" and dared Capone to face him in the ring. Capone, hellbent on putting this New York upstart in his place, took Siegel up on the dare and the match was booked for July 1st at the Los Angeles Coliseum.
That day would see the Coliseum host the largest crowd in boxing history-- and the end of Scarface’s title reign.
******
107,634 people packed Los Angeles Coliseum for the Siegel-Capone fight-- among them Bugs Moran and Eliot Ness, who while sitting in separate sections were both rooting for Siegel to wipe the canvas with Capone. Ness brought his manager Frank Wilson to the fight, and Moran showed up at the Coliseum with his sparring partners Dion O’Banion and Hymie Weiss in tow.
Ness and Moran weren’t the only famous faces to show up for the Siegel-Capone bout; writer Ernest Hemingway, singer/actor Al Jolson, and Capone’s old pal Babe Ruth were just some of the VIPs on hand for the bout. There was even a brief chat prior to the bout between Siegel and disgraced evangelist Aimee Semple MacPherson. Herbert Hoover, then campaigning to succeed the outgoing Calvin Coolidge as President of the United States, arrived at the Coliseum just before the start of the second round and stayed until the fight was over.
It was clear Capone was in trouble when Siegel knocked him down twice during the eighth round; none of Capone’s previous opponents had ever managed to accomplish that, and only one-- Jack Dempsey --had even been able to come close, sending Capone to the canvas once in the sixth round of their legendary December 1923 bout. But Siegel had a ton of self-confidence, his famous uppercut, and the backing of most of the Coliseum crowd in his favor. By the ninth round Siegel held the edge on points and could sense the champion was on his last legs; in the tenth round he delivered the coup de grace, his patented uppercut nailing Capone square on the nose and sending the champion tumbling to the canvas. One ten-count later, Bugsy Siegel was the new heavyweight champion of the world...
******
....and Al Capone’s boxing career had started falling into an irreversible decline. Following his loss to Siegel, Capone went into seclusion for the next seven months, and when he finally stepped back into the ring in February of 1929, he lost in six rounds to up-and- coming Italian heavyweight Primo Carnera. He tried to get his career back on track with a final showdown against longtime rival Eliot Ness in June of 1929, only to have Ness embarrass him by knocking him out in four rounds.
Things weren’t much better for him outside the ring either. In August of 1929 Mae Coughlin Capone, his wife since 1918, left him and filed for divorce after the former champion lashed out at her one night in a violent alcoholic rage; two months later, he lost most of his personal fortune in the Wall Street stock market crash that began the Great Depression.
His misfortunes grew even worse in April of 1930 when he was indicted on charges of tax evasion after an IRS audit of his financial records between 1925 and 1927 turned up evidence that Capone might have falsified some of his income tax statements; his trial, which lasted more than six months, was avidly followed by America’s major newspapers and radio networks and ended with Capone being sentenced to three years in prison for tax fraud. He served a year and a half of that sentence and was released in September of 1932, a shell of the larger-than-life figure boxing fans had known at the height of his success as world heavyweight champion.
In what would turn out to be his final professional match ever, Capone, hoping to recapture some of his past glory, faced Bugs Moran one more time in January of 1933 at the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco. But Capone’s hopes were emphatically dashed; Moran, letting loose years of pent-up frustration over his previous defeats at the hands of Capone, tore the ex-champion apart like paper. The man who’d once ruled the heavyweight ranks with an iron fist met the same fate he had inflicted on so many of his foes-- a first-round defeat by knockout.
Shortly after his loss to Moran in San Francisco, Capone got some devastating news from his personal physician: he had been diagnosed with dementia pugilistica, a brain disorder common to boxers which is incurable. This diagnosis crushed Capone’s spirit as even his worst defeats in the ring had never done, and Frank Nitti would later recall that Capone returned from his doctor’s visit "wearing the look of a men who’s just been sentenced to the electric chair".6 Capone knew that those afflicted with dementia pugilistica became vegetables sooner or later, and that was a fate he couldn’t bear to endure.
On August 17th, 1933 Nitti got a phone call from the landlady of the bachelor apartment where Capone had been living since his divorce from Mae became final; in great agitation, she told Nitti that there had been no sound or movement from Capone’s flat since 10:30 PM the night before. Nitti, immediately sensing the worst, phoned the Chicago Police, who sent a detail to bust down the door of Capone’s apartment. When they got in, they found Capone sprawled out on the floor of his bedroom with what looked like a bottle of strychnine in one hand.
The former world heavyweight champion had committed suicide.
******
Al Capone was laid to rest on August 21st, 1933 in one of the largest funerals Chicago had ever seen. The procession to Capone’s gravesite spanned five city blocks; the mausoleum where his body was interred was bigger than some Chicagoans’ houses. Today, next to Wrigley Field and the Sears Tower, the mausoleum ranks as the Windy City’s most famous tourist attraction. Indeed, Capone left his mark on Chicago and the sport of boxing in endless ways large and small; for example a particularly hard body blow is now known in boxing lingo as "a Capone punch", and a boxing school named in his honor has been operating on Chicago’s South Side since the late 1940s.
Mae Capone remarried two years after her divorce from Al Capone was finalized and moved to Manhattan, where she died in 1986. Frank Nitti was killed in March of 1941 in a car crash near the Illinois town of Cicero; Eliot Ness retired from professional boxing in 1939 to become a CBS Radio sportscaster, a job he held until his death from a heart attack in 1957. Bugs Moran defeated Massachusetts native Jack Sharkey for the world heavyweight title in October of 1933 only to end up losing the title to German sports legend Max Schmeling five months later; he retired in 1942 to become a promoter, booking boxing matches throughout the Midwest until his death in 1951.
Hymie Weiss and Dion O’Banion were both gunned down in the spring of 1935 in Newark, New Jersey during a bank holdup attempt gone awry. Their killer was caught three weeks later, convicted of conspiracy to commit bank robbery and second-degree murder, and executed in the New Jersey State Prison electric chair in September of 1936.
After losing the heavyweight championship to Jack Sharkey in 1930, Bugsy Siegel endured a long and hard struggle to return to the top of the heavyweight ranks. In February of 1935 he took on Max Schmeling in London and beat the German colossus in six rounds to regain the world heavyweight title; after his second championship reign ended in June of 1937, he embarked on a second career as a movie serials actor and became romantically involved with a Hollywood chorus girl. Siegel was killed in a plane crash in the Nevada desert in 1950.
The End
He shook up the sports world as few men had before him or would after him. He was loved by millions of people, detested by millions of others, feared by many of the opponents he faced in the ring, and remembered by everyone who saw him. Al "Scarface" Capone was one of the most successful-- and controversial --fighters in boxing history, and his legacy would loom large in the ring long after he had hung up his gloves for the last time.
Alphonse Gabriel Capone was born in Brooklyn, New York on January 17th, 1899. He was introduced to the sweet science at the age of 13 by a neighborhood candy store owner who had once fought professionally as a middleweight; the boxing lessons helped channel Capone’s aggressive impulses into socially acceptable outlets and keep him from getting sucked into the dangerous criminal underworld of early 20th century New York. By age 15 he was skilled enough to enter local youth amateur tournaments; at 20 he won the prestigious Golden Gloves championship in the heavyweight division. Some sports historians even believe that Capone might have made the 1916 US Olympic boxing team had World War I not forced the cancellation of the Summer Games that year.
Capone, who moved to Chicago just after World War I ended, finally did make the Olympic boxing squad in time for the 1920 Summer Games in Antwerp; he won the gold medal in his weight class by virtue of his fierce, pedal-to-the-metal fighting style and an uppercut that could literally almost take a man’s head off. One challenger that Capone was scheduled to face in the Olympic tournament chose to forfeit the match rather than endure the punishing body blows and headshots he almost certainly would have undergone at Capone’s hands.
Capone got the nickname "Scarface" from a cut he sustained on his temple during his first professional bout in 1921. The cut happened during the third round of that bout and nearly provoked the referee to stop the fight; it took half a dozen stitches to close the wound. Some of Capone’s family and friends resented the moniker; Capone himself, however, was rather fond of it-- it implied toughness, a simultaneous ability to take punishment from his opponents and dish it right back out to them.
That ability would propel him steadily up the ranks over the next year and a half. By the spring of 1923 Capone was number two among the top ten contenders for the world heavyweight title, and there wasn’t much doubt in anyone’s mind he would soon be number one on that list.
Only one man stood in the way of his attainment of that pinnacle....
******
Eliot Ness, known to his fans as "Untouchable" because his foes could never seem to land a punch on him, was Al "Scarface" Capone’s main rival in the fight game at the time the two men were booked to face one another in June of 1923 in the main event of a heavyweight card in Detroit. Whereas Capone relied on power to gain victory, Ness’ fighting technique emphasized quick timing and concentration of blows on a particularly vulnerable part of his opponent’s body. But while he may have been different from Capone in many respects, he had one notable similarity to the Chicago brawler: like Capone, he had been steadily working his way up the ladder after winning the gold medal in his weight class at the 1920 Summer Olympics.
The two fighters had something else in common too-- undefeated records. When Ness and Capone stepped into the ring on the afternoon of June 17th, 1923 Ness boasted a record of 24 wins and 1 draw over 25 fights; Capone had 23 consecutive victories to his credit, 20 of them by knockout in the first or second round. Just about everyone who was in attendance that day expected the match to be a long one; up in the press boxes, the sportswriters had a running bet that the fight would not end any earlier than the eighth round.
As it turned out, Ness and Capone would slug it out at least ten rounds before Ness could gain a noticeable if slight advantage; not until the eleventh round, when Ness was ahead on points, did Capone get the first knockdown of the bout. When the Cleveland native fell to the canvas, you could have heard a pin drop in the arena-- no previous opponent had been able to even come close to doing that to Ness. In the Capone corner Capone’s trainer and occasional sparring partner, Frank Nitti, let out a whoop loud enough to echo all the way back to the arena’s locker rooms.
1:42 into the eleventh round, Capone knocked Ness down a second time; the arena crowd, which was predominantly pro-Ness, reacted with mingled alarm and outrage. At least one spectator threw an empty paper cup in the direction of the ring and was ejected by police for his troubles. By now Capone was overtaking Ness on points and had softened him up to the point where another knockdown would end both the fight and Ness’ undefeated streak.
In desperation, Ness aimed an uppercut at Capone’s nose. That would prove to be the Clevelander’s crucial mistake; Capone landed a body blow which sent Ness sprawling to the mat and left him literally flat on his face. The referee called for the bell and officially named Capone the winner by technical knockout; only a massive Detroit Police presence inside the arena prevented a full-fledged riot from erupting.
And even with the cops around, some people couldn’t resist taking a shot at him, verbal or otherwise-- an Auburn Hills man was arrested for attempted assault after he tried to crack Capone’s skull with a two-by-four.
Charges that Capone had used illegal tactics to gain the victory over Ness created a firestorm in the press in the days immediately after the bout; however, Capone himself denied the accusations and no definitive proof was ever found to back them up. In early September of 1923, the investigation into these charges was closed and the scandal largely forgotten.1
******
As great as his triumph over Ness had been, however, a still greater accomplishment lay ahead for Capone. Jack Dempsey, world heavyweight champion since 1919, was booked to defend his belt against Capone in early December of 1923 in Kansas City; for Capone, it was an opportunity he couldn’t refuse-- the chance to both become world champion and smash the legend of Dempsey’s invincibility in one fell swoop.
To prepare for his clash with the champion, Capone embarked on the toughest training regimen of his career. Part of that regimen was watching films of Dempsey at work in the ring; in fact, Capone is widely credited as being one of the first boxers in any weight class to make viewing films of his opponents a regular part of pre-fight preparations. He also took part in a number of long sparring sessions with Frank Nitti, working at all hours to perfect his jabs and body blows. Though an outgoing man by nature, Capone cut back sharply on his socializing in the weeks leading up to his showdown with Dempsey. He even, albeit somewhat reluctantly, gave up his Friday night visits to his favorite speakeasy.2
Finally, on December 4th, 1923, Capone and Dempsey met face-to-face in a smoke-filled Kansas City arena; everybody who was there knew the stakes in this bout were sky-high, and nobody understood it better than Capone and Dempsey themselves. For Dempsey a win meant continuing his historic undefeated streak; for Capone victory would put him down in the history books as a giant-killer and give him the world heavyweight title.
For twelve rounds Capone and Dempsey went at each other like angry rhinos. The closest either man came to knocking the other man out was when Capone knocked Dempsey down twice in the tenth round; some of the sportswriters covering the bout began quietly making bets after the eighth round that the bout would end in a draw. But when the bell rang for the end of the twelfth round and the judges’ scores were tallied up, Capone would turn out to have earned a split decision win to become the new world heavyweight champion. Jack Dempsey, sure he’d beaten Capone, fell to the canvas in shock when the judges’ decision was announced; some sports historians suggest that Dempsey’s defeat in Kansas City may have marked the beginning of the end for his boxing career. It certainly shattered the myth of his invincibility.
Making good on a promise he’d given prior to the bout, Capone hosted a steak dinner for his family and closest friends back home in Chicago to celebrate his newly won title. He posed for photos with one of the other great American sports idols of the 1920s, George Herman "Babe" Ruth, and spoke at length to sportswriters from the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun-Times about his match against Dempsey. He was on top of the world that night...
******
....and would stay there for a long time. Capone proved to be the most dominant boxing champion of his generation, winning 38 bouts in a row, with 36 of those bouts lasting just five rounds or less; of those 36 matches thirty would be won in the first two rounds, and out of that group of thirty at least fifteen fights would be won by first- round KO. "I just forgot how to lose." Capone joked to sportwriters after his September 1925 four-round win over fellow Chicagoan ‘Bugs’ Moran, and there was certainly no shortage of opponents willing to refresh his memory. In fact, other than Eliot Ness, ‘Bugs’ Moran was Capone’s most persistent rival for the world heavyweight championship. Capone and Moran had known and disliked each other for years; Moran accused Capone of costing him a spot on the 1920 US Olympic boxing team, and in turn Capone charged that Moran had disparaged Capone’s wife behind her back. And the Capone-Moran fights weren’t confined to the ring, either; three months before Capone’s four-round victory, he and Moran had gotten into a vicious brawl at a party hosted by actress Clara Bow after Moran made a remark mocking Capone’s Italian heritage.
Nor would the September 1925 fight be the last time Moran stepped through the ropes to face Capone; in May of 1927 the two squared off in a highly publicized and ferociously fought rematch at Braves Field in Boston. That bout lasted just two rounds, halted by the referee at the 1:42 mark of the second round after Capone broke Moran’s jaw with a strong right cross which also opened a cut on Moran’s right temple. Moran nearly retired from boxing after that defeat, and in fact a year would pass before he stepped into the ring again.
******
For most of the year Moran was out of boxing, Capone kept right on winning, so convincingly and in such swift fashion that at one point some promoters suggested retiring the world heavyweight title altogether. There didn’t seem to be anyone left who wanted to take him on; Capone himself bluntly told a Los Angeles Herald-Tribune boxing beat correspondent, "I’ve whipped so many guys by now everybody’s gone yellow...there ain’t nobody left in the whole wide world who has the guts to fight me."3
There were certainly fewer and fewer fighters on American soil willing to risk their necks to try and wrest Capone’s heavyweight belt from him; even Eliot Ness, the champion’s most unrelenting adversary, was starting to seem a bit hesitant to face him again. And it couldn’t have helped Ness’ courage any when Capone wrecked Gene Tunney in three rounds in February of 1928 in a bout rightly dubbed by sportswriters as "the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre".4 Boxing promoters looking for a challenger who had the moxie to stand toe-to-toe with Scarface found themselves increasingly having to look to Europe to find fighters to take on the champion.
But there was an American fighter who wasn’t the slightest bit intimidated by the Al Capone mystique: one Benjamin "Bugsy"5 Siegel, a brawler with an uppercut that had left more than one foe flat on his back. Siegel, who’d turned pro shortly after the first Capone-Moran bout, had a record of sixteen wins and one draw at the time of the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre and was eager to prove he could take the world heavyweight champion down.
On a Monday afternoon in March of 1928, Siegel confronted Capone at the South Side gym where Capone trained in between fights; to the shock of everyone present and the outrage of Capone himself, the 22- year-old New Yorker labeled the heavyweight champion a "relic" and a "worthless coward" and dared Capone to face him in the ring. Capone, hellbent on putting this New York upstart in his place, took Siegel up on the dare and the match was booked for July 1st at the Los Angeles Coliseum.
That day would see the Coliseum host the largest crowd in boxing history-- and the end of Scarface’s title reign.
******
107,634 people packed Los Angeles Coliseum for the Siegel-Capone fight-- among them Bugs Moran and Eliot Ness, who while sitting in separate sections were both rooting for Siegel to wipe the canvas with Capone. Ness brought his manager Frank Wilson to the fight, and Moran showed up at the Coliseum with his sparring partners Dion O’Banion and Hymie Weiss in tow.
Ness and Moran weren’t the only famous faces to show up for the Siegel-Capone bout; writer Ernest Hemingway, singer/actor Al Jolson, and Capone’s old pal Babe Ruth were just some of the VIPs on hand for the bout. There was even a brief chat prior to the bout between Siegel and disgraced evangelist Aimee Semple MacPherson. Herbert Hoover, then campaigning to succeed the outgoing Calvin Coolidge as President of the United States, arrived at the Coliseum just before the start of the second round and stayed until the fight was over.
It was clear Capone was in trouble when Siegel knocked him down twice during the eighth round; none of Capone’s previous opponents had ever managed to accomplish that, and only one-- Jack Dempsey --had even been able to come close, sending Capone to the canvas once in the sixth round of their legendary December 1923 bout. But Siegel had a ton of self-confidence, his famous uppercut, and the backing of most of the Coliseum crowd in his favor. By the ninth round Siegel held the edge on points and could sense the champion was on his last legs; in the tenth round he delivered the coup de grace, his patented uppercut nailing Capone square on the nose and sending the champion tumbling to the canvas. One ten-count later, Bugsy Siegel was the new heavyweight champion of the world...
******
....and Al Capone’s boxing career had started falling into an irreversible decline. Following his loss to Siegel, Capone went into seclusion for the next seven months, and when he finally stepped back into the ring in February of 1929, he lost in six rounds to up-and- coming Italian heavyweight Primo Carnera. He tried to get his career back on track with a final showdown against longtime rival Eliot Ness in June of 1929, only to have Ness embarrass him by knocking him out in four rounds.
Things weren’t much better for him outside the ring either. In August of 1929 Mae Coughlin Capone, his wife since 1918, left him and filed for divorce after the former champion lashed out at her one night in a violent alcoholic rage; two months later, he lost most of his personal fortune in the Wall Street stock market crash that began the Great Depression.
His misfortunes grew even worse in April of 1930 when he was indicted on charges of tax evasion after an IRS audit of his financial records between 1925 and 1927 turned up evidence that Capone might have falsified some of his income tax statements; his trial, which lasted more than six months, was avidly followed by America’s major newspapers and radio networks and ended with Capone being sentenced to three years in prison for tax fraud. He served a year and a half of that sentence and was released in September of 1932, a shell of the larger-than-life figure boxing fans had known at the height of his success as world heavyweight champion.
In what would turn out to be his final professional match ever, Capone, hoping to recapture some of his past glory, faced Bugs Moran one more time in January of 1933 at the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco. But Capone’s hopes were emphatically dashed; Moran, letting loose years of pent-up frustration over his previous defeats at the hands of Capone, tore the ex-champion apart like paper. The man who’d once ruled the heavyweight ranks with an iron fist met the same fate he had inflicted on so many of his foes-- a first-round defeat by knockout.
Shortly after his loss to Moran in San Francisco, Capone got some devastating news from his personal physician: he had been diagnosed with dementia pugilistica, a brain disorder common to boxers which is incurable. This diagnosis crushed Capone’s spirit as even his worst defeats in the ring had never done, and Frank Nitti would later recall that Capone returned from his doctor’s visit "wearing the look of a men who’s just been sentenced to the electric chair".6 Capone knew that those afflicted with dementia pugilistica became vegetables sooner or later, and that was a fate he couldn’t bear to endure.
On August 17th, 1933 Nitti got a phone call from the landlady of the bachelor apartment where Capone had been living since his divorce from Mae became final; in great agitation, she told Nitti that there had been no sound or movement from Capone’s flat since 10:30 PM the night before. Nitti, immediately sensing the worst, phoned the Chicago Police, who sent a detail to bust down the door of Capone’s apartment. When they got in, they found Capone sprawled out on the floor of his bedroom with what looked like a bottle of strychnine in one hand.
The former world heavyweight champion had committed suicide.
******
Al Capone was laid to rest on August 21st, 1933 in one of the largest funerals Chicago had ever seen. The procession to Capone’s gravesite spanned five city blocks; the mausoleum where his body was interred was bigger than some Chicagoans’ houses. Today, next to Wrigley Field and the Sears Tower, the mausoleum ranks as the Windy City’s most famous tourist attraction. Indeed, Capone left his mark on Chicago and the sport of boxing in endless ways large and small; for example a particularly hard body blow is now known in boxing lingo as "a Capone punch", and a boxing school named in his honor has been operating on Chicago’s South Side since the late 1940s.
Mae Capone remarried two years after her divorce from Al Capone was finalized and moved to Manhattan, where she died in 1986. Frank Nitti was killed in March of 1941 in a car crash near the Illinois town of Cicero; Eliot Ness retired from professional boxing in 1939 to become a CBS Radio sportscaster, a job he held until his death from a heart attack in 1957. Bugs Moran defeated Massachusetts native Jack Sharkey for the world heavyweight title in October of 1933 only to end up losing the title to German sports legend Max Schmeling five months later; he retired in 1942 to become a promoter, booking boxing matches throughout the Midwest until his death in 1951.
Hymie Weiss and Dion O’Banion were both gunned down in the spring of 1935 in Newark, New Jersey during a bank holdup attempt gone awry. Their killer was caught three weeks later, convicted of conspiracy to commit bank robbery and second-degree murder, and executed in the New Jersey State Prison electric chair in September of 1936.
After losing the heavyweight championship to Jack Sharkey in 1930, Bugsy Siegel endured a long and hard struggle to return to the top of the heavyweight ranks. In February of 1935 he took on Max Schmeling in London and beat the German colossus in six rounds to regain the world heavyweight title; after his second championship reign ended in June of 1937, he embarked on a second career as a movie serials actor and became romantically involved with a Hollywood chorus girl. Siegel was killed in a plane crash in the Nevada desert in 1950.
The End
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