The diminutive, curly-headed boxer was a phenom. He was a fine technician. He could outbox you if he wanted to. But he had a killer instinct and dynamite in his gloves, and so he preferred war. He was an assassin in red, white and blue trunks. Wilfredo Gomez was 32-0-1 with 32 knockouts heading into
Wilfredo Gomez Was An Assassin in Puerto Rican Red, White And Blue Read More »
The pictures show Oscar De La Hoya and Ryan Garcia standing over fallen opponents, 26 years apart. At that time in their careers, both were undefeated and impressively climbing the ranks – De La Hoya having just planted Jorge Paez in 1994, and Garcia having done the same to Francisco Fonseca in 2020. The images
Ryan Garcia And Conor Benn Look To Escape Shadows of Oscar De La Hoya & Nigel Benn Read More »
When Miguel Cotto’s fist touched the chin of Zab Judah and made his legs jiggle like a serving of Tembleque, the crowd at Madison Square Garden hit like a shot of Pitorro. It was Puerto Rican Day Parade weekend in New York City 2007, and Cotto was the main course. While the actual parade was
It was early 1986 and Stevie Cruz was becoming restless with his boxing career. The former amateur star – he was a Junior Olympic, Texas and National Golden Gloves champion – had only lost one of 26 fights as a professional, but the momentum had slowed. It felt like the boxing world had forgotten about
Besides giant sombreros, Corona beer ads, and too many tequila shots, Cinco de Mayo has also become synonymous in recent decades with Mexican boxing, as the sport’s promoters put on major shows that often showcase the sport’s biggest Mexican superstar against an outstanding rival. It’s often called boxing’s Super Bowl weekend. But the glamour has
David Benavidez And Gilberto Ramírez Return ‘Cinco De Mayo’ Weekend To Its Raza Roots Read More »
Forty-three years ago, undefeated Davey Moore was scheduled to defend his WBA junior middleweight title against legendary former lightweight and welterweight champ Roberto Duran on May 27, 1983, in South Africa. It was to be the co-main event of a supercard that also included Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini defending his lightweight title vs. Kenny “Bang
Terence Crawford revealed anew what past generations have known for a long time: the WBC (World Boxing Council) is a terrible organization. Consider, it’s been 35 years since then-WBC President Jose Sulaiman tried to deny the heavyweight title from James “Buster” Douglas after the underdog’s shocking knockout victory over Mike Tyson. Yet, the WBC continued
The WBC has Always Been A Scourge on Boxing Read More »
In 1987, world middleweight champion Marvelous Marvin Hagler fought Sugar Ray Leonard in a superfight that was expected to be an easy win for Hagler. Considered the longtime best fighter in boxing, the ferocious Hagler was making his 13th defense against Leonard, a retired former welterweight and junior middleweight champ coming off retinal surgery who hadn’t
Canelo Alvarez vs Terence Crawford: Legacies On The Line Read More »
Al Bernstein was a few years into his career as a boxing broadcaster when he received the assignment of a lifetime. He had been calling ESPN’s weekly Top Rank Boxing series and had worked one other superfight. But this was different. This was Marvelous Marvin Hagler vs. Thomas “Hitman” Hearns. “It was quite an event
Al Bernstein Recalls Hagler-Hearns 40 Years Later: ‘This Felt Like Another Level’ Read More »
Going into the biggest fight of his life, Livingstone Bramble was seen as a tough challenge for WBA lightweight champion Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini, if not a little run-of-the-mill. He had banged out many a 10-round decision over solid competition on cable television but didn’t do so with any particular flair. He was simply a
Livingstone Bramble Wasn’t Great; But For 27 Months-He Was Damn Good Read More »
