The death of Jimmy Young at the age of fifty-six was a sobering piece of information for most of us who grew up watching the great heavyweights of the 1970’s. I have written articles on Ali, Shavers, Lyle, Quarry, Ellis, etc…but never Jimmy Young. Why? Well that is a very good question that oddly enough…
This movie will never be ranked with “Raging Bull” or even “Rocky” when lists of excellent boxing films are compiled. With that being said, the movie “Dempsey” starring Treat Williams as Jack is well worth a watch. Dempsey’s story is so well known, it made making this movie a real challenge. All in all, I…
Youngstown, Ohio’s unbeaten middleweight Kelly Pavlik will get some much needed exposure from SHOWTIME. Kelly will be part of a ” ShoBox: The New Generation” doubleheader on March 4th from Choctaw, Mississippi. Kelly is sporting a 23-0 ledger with 20 KO’s. He is currently ranked number by the W.B.O., number ten by the W.B.C. and…
Former two time world champion of the late 1960’s, Fighting Harada is recovering steadily after brain surgery January 24th. Harada suffered a brain hemorrhage the day before the surgery. Doctors removed a blood clot and Harada may remain hospitalized for at least another month. Harada won the world flyweight title by stopping Pone Kingpetch of…
Mark May 14th on your calender as The Boxing Ministry has their annual awards banquet. This year the Ministry will honor the great former WBC light heavyweight champion, Hall Of Famer Matthew Saad Muhammad. Also tenetively slated to be on hand is WBA welterweight champion Jose Rivera. This talented champion sports an impressive 37-3-1 record…
The title for this motion picture has eerie overtones. The great Salvador Sanchez made a cameo appearance in this film. Shortly afterwards, he lost his life in an a tragic crash. This may well have been his last fight. The movie was dedicated to Salvador. Sadly we will never know how great he would have…
There have been so many wonderful boxing movies that have graced the big screen over the decades. It was very difficult to decide what my favorite pugilistic film was. After much thought, I decided on the 1942 production of “Gentleman Jim.” Why? First of all it was based on a true story and an authentic…
There are several classic boxing movies that are available at your local video store to fill a void left by a lack of live boxing action. I’m going to list some of my favorites that you may find entertaining. “Gentleman Jim,” the story of James J.Corbett is my personal favorite. Errol Flynn is great as…
In watching the broadcast of the recent “Winky’ Wright-Shane Mosley contest, HBO showed highlights from the recent heavyweight card that featured wins by Chris Byrd, Hasim “Rock’ Rahman and John Ruiz. It also showed highlights of Larry Donald’s one sided decision victory over Evander Holyfield. This fight prompted the New York State Athletic Commission to…
There may have never been a more talent rich period in the heavyweight division then from 1968 to 1978. With Muhammad Ali (a.k.a. Cassius Clay) on the sidelines due to his draft case, other big men emerged. They would compete with each other on an almost equal basis for the next decade. Joe Frazier had…
In 1966, two heavyweights of Puerto Rican heritage turned professional. Each would have an impact on the talent rich heavyweight division of the late sixties and early seventies. Their careers would mirror each other’s and they even took the time to cross gloves on a couple of occasions. Pedro Agosto and Jose “King’ Roman met…
Well, let’s get this over with once and for all. Who was the best white heavyweight since Ingo, or since 1960? Many names come to mind but few have reached the pinnacle of world champion status.You could make a case for South African Gerrie Coetzee who briefly held the WBA crown. He was a game…