Boxing History: As Kevin Kelley Reaches The End, Recalling his Greatest Victory

The long and always exciting career of “The Flushing Flash”, Kevin Kelley appears to be over. After his crushing four round defeat at the Hands of Bobby Pacquiao two weeks ago it would certainly be a good time for Kevin to Hang “em up. He has nothing left – at least compared to the once formidable fighting talents he once had – and being a smart guy I fully expect the New Yorker to do the right thing. He certainly made his mark in the sport during his largely successful boxing career though, and he was responsible for providing some of the featherweight division’s most thrilling fights.

Bouts with the likes of Naseem Hamed, Goyo Vargas and Troy Dorsey were among the most memorable in the division’s history. But it is the fight that is the subject of this article that I will always think of whenever Kevin Kelley’s name is mentioned. The fight he had with Derrick “Smoke” Gainer is one of my all-time favourites and is, to my mind, the finest exhibition of guts and heart seen in the featherweight division in the last two decades. I will never tire of watching this fight on video.

Kevin Kelley was defending his lightly regarded WBU featherweight belt, but despite the lack of respect this title may have had, there was nothing negative about the quality of his match-up with fellow southpaw Derrick “Smoke” Gainer. This was a fine pairing of featherweights and going in, picking a winner divided many an opinion. If anything, Gainer was a very slight favourite, thanks in large part to his five year youth advantage. The fight took place on the fifteenth of June 1996 at the Coliseum in Jacksonville Florida. The action that unfolded was truly incredible.

In the opening round, Gainer started off by throwing a strong left hand at Kelley in an attempt to immediately show who was the boss. Derrick had advantages in height and reach and he boxed and moved in an effort to use them. Kelley advanced throughout the round, despite the quick start by Gainer he was the more naturally aggressive of the two. The round ended and
it was a close one to score. Certainly there was no sign of the unforgettable action to come.

In the second, Kelley started to get more physical and backed Gainer to the ropes. The ring was announced as being only sixteen foot, which one would have thought would benefit the champion. And in the middle of the session Gainer started to engage Kelley more and the first signs of a slugfest were evident. Gainer looked very sharp, however, and won the round.

The third round, and things heated up in a major way here. Kelley was still coming forward, trying to make it his fight all the way, whereas Gainer was content to stick and move. Then, with just less than a minute left, both guys appeared to slip to the canvas simultaneously. But where Gainer had clearly slipped, Kelley reacted as though he had been floored legitimately.
Maybe he had been hurt. Gainer certainly thought so, and as action recommenced he went on the attack. He poured it on but as he did so Kelley landed a perfect over-hand left and decked his man. This was a definite knockdown and Gainer was badly hurt. As the bell came to end the round the commentators- Rich Marotta and Tony Paige – proclaimed that “The war was on!” Was it ever!

In the fourth, Kelley went out looking to land more hurt on Gainer. His fairly low held hands left some openings for Derrick though, and a couple of minutes in he was in some trouble. Gainer landed a good cluster of punches and Kelley went down. He was clearly in some distress and as he rose it was easy to see why. His right eye was completely closed and he bellowed to the referee, Frank Santori, how Gainer had thumbed him. Judging by the way his eye had shut as tight as a ball, and in such an immediate fashion, he had been. In fact, he had gone down because of the eye injury, he simply had no choice.

Despite desperate work done on his eye during the minute’s rest, Kevin’s vision was still utterly compromised. There was nothing that could be done on an eye that had been slammed so tightly shut. At the start of the fifth, “The Flushing Flash” went out for a KO. He had to. Amazingly he looked like getting it. He again landed his over-hand left flush on Gainer’s jaw and he was down! This fight was incredible now, as was the display of heart Kelley was putting on. Gainer beat the count but his legs looked gone. Kelley put everything he could into his punches in a frantic bid to bring matters to a close. But then Gainer came fighting back! This was some drama. Both guys appeared shaky now, but Kelley was still loading up on his punches and as the round wore down it was the challenger who was running.

At the very start of round six, Gainer slipped in his own corner due to the amount of water that had been used to revive him. Then he went back to his stick and move tactics. Kelley tried targeting his body and had some success. He was without doubt the man with the heavier fire power, but his eye was in a terrible state. Gainer started shooting punches at it, punches
that Kevin couldn’t see coming. He was in a somewhat pitiful condition now. Yet still he marched forward, refusing to give up.

In the seventh, It looked like a lost cause for Kelley as Gainer’s long range tactics started to dominate. There was just no way Kelley could win this fight from the outside. He had to get underneath and wing punches. He tried his best and near the round’s end Gainer was in a touch of trouble. With the perilous position his opponent was in, one would have been forgiven for thinking Gainer should have been more aggressive. At the bell though, he was running again. He clearly knew how dangerous Kelley still was, even with only one eye. During the minute’s break the doctor looked very closely at the right eye but due to Kelley’s pleas the fight continued. It looked like being a good night for the local man though, and his fans must have been convinced victory awaited him.

There have been some astonishing turnarounds in fights, but what Kevin Kelley managed to pull off in round eight was truly awe-inspiring. He came out and gave what seemed to be his last ditch effort. He had absolute desperation in his face as he gave everything he had left. He threw every punch in the hope that it would end his torment and the spectacle the fired up crowd were witness to was something they will surely never forget. Blood trickled from Kelley’s nose, further adding to his problems, as the two went punch for punch. The heart being shown, by both fighters, was incredible.

It seemed like Gainer would end matters though, as he forced Kelley to the ropes. But Kevin managed to fight his way out to ring centre and as he did so he landed a KO punch that will never be erased from my memory. As close to certain defeat as any fighter in history, Kelley dipped inside and smashed a huge left hand into Gainer’s head. He collapsed instantly and was utterly destroyed. Kevin Kelley had snatched victory from the most ominous looking jaws of defeat imaginable!

Yes, the fighting days of Kevin Kelley look to be over – but he can always look back on his great performances with his head held high, knowing that he always gave his best in the ring. This was never more the case than in the incredible fight recalled here.