BraggingRightsCorner.com - The Hottest Corner in Boxing!

AN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH 'ICEMAN' JOHN SCULLY... by Ed Ludwig
BRC: What happened with you and Chad Dawson and why are you no longer training him?
ICE: It’s no secret and I’m going to put it in my book. We had trained together and everything was great and I was told by people that he was going to be tough to work with and this and that but in the time we worked together he did everything I told him to do. He tried everything I told him to do and executed it. We worked on his jab and body punches a lot and it makes me laugh now when people talk about it because he never did that before I started working with him and he admitted that in one interview... He then called me a couple of weeks later, and he just comes out with it and told me he signed with Gary Shaw, and I’m thinking where does that leave me?

MOSLEY'S FORMER TRAINER SAYS BOXER KNOWINGLY DOPED...
Trainer Derryl Hudson and convicted steroids dealer Victor Conte said they both saw Mosley take EPO during a meeting in which Mosley was told the benefits and risks of performance-enhancing drugs and...

GREAT TRAINERS HAVE COME FROM THE DETROIT AREA... by Stephen Jones
Is it a fluke as to how many of the great trainers either passed through or began their careers in the Detroit or Michigan area? Apart from the obvious Kronk Centre, the great Jackie Blackburn trained Joe Louis in Detroit at the old Brewster Centre where he and Manny Seamon would whip the ATG heavyweight into the champ he would become and remain for years. However, amongst the Louis camp a young Eddie Futch would offer sometimes great sparring for the Brown Bomber.

WHERE ARE THEY NOW? - BOB FOSTER... by Shawn Murphy

Recently I had the great pleasure to speak with former Light Heavyweight Champion Bob Foster. Without question he was one of the greatest Light Heavyweights of all time, and there are those that say he may in fact be the greatest.

Foster had limited success as a Heavyweight, but he owned the Light Heavyweight division. He beat Dick Tiger in 1968 for the world title. He was stripped by the WBA of his title in 1971, but kept on defending his WBC portion. In 1972 Foster unified the title, beating Vincente Rondon by a second round KO. Throughout his career he would defend his title fourteen times. He would fight twice for the Heavyweight title, losing to Joe Frazier and Muhammad Ali.

Foster retired in 1974, but came back in 1975 and fought seven more times, winning five. He retired for good in 1978 and was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990.

STICK A FORK IN HIM, BECAUSE THIS BYRD IS DONE! ... by Rizwaan Zahid
Former heavyweight champion and Olympic middleweight Chris Byrd was recently hammered in Las Vegas against relatively unknown Brooklyn native Shaun George. George landed his right hand at will against the once crafty and elusive slick heavyweight.
The fight started with both fighters studying each other; however, it was George who started being aggressive and Byrd had no replies to any of George’s power shots.

REMEMBERING TONY LICATA IN PASSING... by Elmo Adolph
I got a call last week telling me that Tony Licata had died of a heart attack. Tony was a very special person. He was kind, quiet and very unpretentious. But if you look at his legend in boxing you could certainly accept him if he was loud and boastful. He had a right to be...

KEVIN JOHNSON: 'THE POLITICS IN BOXING ARE SCREWED UP...' An Exclusive Interview by Ed Ludwig
“Have Gloves Will Travel” might be the best way to describe Heavyweight prospect Kevin “Kingpin” Johnson (19-0-1, 6 KO’s). With an undefeated record, seven of his wins in opponents' hometowns and many goals to be fulfilled, Johnson does not shy away about his feelings regarding the politics in the sport. He is willing to do whatever it takes to make his mark.
Johnson’s most recent victory came over rugged Terry Smith on ESPN Friday Night Fights one month ago. With the Heavyweight division so wide open right now, Johnson is slowly moving up the ranks and he is more than willing to take on anyone to make a name for himself.

EX-BOXER GINO GELORMINO KILLED IN AN ACCIDENT...
Gelormino won the Golden Gloves in 1977 and began his professional career in 1981, where he enjoyed a nine-year stint fighting as a featherweight and junior lightweight. He went 31-3 with 22 knockouts and, in 1988, captured the World Boxing Commission's Continental Americas super-featherweight championship belt.

ROUND 2 WITH ALFONSO GOMEZ... by Dominic Nicosia
When a person suffers a setback in his or her ultimate plans, that person often feels compelled to take a bit of a break. It’s natural to want to go explore other things and get away for a while. With the amount of talent Alfonso Gomez has going for him, he could have easily made a career transition after his recent and rather decisive loss to Miguel Cotto. Instead, he took it on the chin, took a mini-vacation and went right back to the drawing board to work toward his next in-ring endeavor.
-Photo Credit: Jose Hernandez/BRC-

OHIO ATHLETIC COMMISSION SUSPENDS MATCHMAKER JOE BERMUDEZ!
BraggingRightsCorner.com has learned that matchmaker Joe Bermudez was issued a one-year administrative suspension by the Ohio Athletic Commission, a successor to the State Boxing Commission. The Commission regulates boxing, mixed martial arts, wrestling, kick boxing, karate, tough person contests and Athlete Agents within the State of Ohio in an effort to protect the safety of the participants and the interests of the public.

SKILLS, COMPETENCY, HONESTY AND INTEGRITY: AN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH REFEREE ELMO ADOLPH... by Ricky Ray Taylor
Elmo Adolph was already a seasoned referee by the time they made headgear mandatory in the amateurs. He refereed his first bout in '64, and currently there are only a small handful of boxing folks who can match his credentials.
In fact, by the time he decided to turn the page ending a storybook career last month (I'm trying to get him to write a book on his experiences!) as a referee or judge, he's estimated to have worked in over 23,000 amateur bouts.
Elmo worked in over 1600 international matches and well over 130 bouts in Seoul through the '88 Olympics.  He soon transferred his expertise into the PRO ranks working as a referee or judge in over 500 sanctioned matches ~ 142 of which were Championship fights.

BOXING GREAT ELMO ADOLPH RETIRES!
You have been very gracious in your expressions of confidence in my work. That alone was so very important for me to continue doing it for so many years. I, like so many others, made a lot of sacrifices to be an official. I had to settle to seeking employment that restricted my income because of having to avail myself to boxing, especially the amateur program. There were many times that important days, like Mother's Day, when tournaments were scheduled, we could not be home to share them with family. But it was not all bad; even though some things had to be overcome to be a part of boxing, there were other benefits that very rewarding.

THE MAYWEATHER FAMILY: "WE'RE NOT SO DYSFUNCTIONAL AFTER ALL..." by Jeff Mayweather
I have been writing about the division among the Mayweathers and the things that have happened within my family that have made us a target for most boxing writers. We have been made to look like there is no such thing as peace and harmony and unity in our family.
I took the initiative to start the healing process within the Mayweather family. We aren't different from any other large family; it's just that we happen to be successful in the world of boxing which has put our every action under the spotlight and a microscope, and there have been times when even the smallest thing has being scrutinized...

CLEVELAND'S CECIL SHORTS... by Jim Amato
Cecil Shorts was a wonderful welterweight who fought out of Cleveland in the 1950's and 60's. Born in 1938, Cecil turned pro in 1956 and won his first ten bouts. Among those wins were decisions over Larry Boardman and soon to be Hall Of Famer Eddie Perkins. Cecil lost his first bout in 1958 dropping a decision to Rudy Sawyer. He was then stopped in two rounds by Perkins in a rematch. Cecil bounced back to win three straight including a split decision victory over Benny "Kid" Paret. He was then halted by another Hall Of Famer, the crafty Luis Rodriguez.

FIVE FIGHTERS YOU WANT TO SEE K.T.F.O. (Part One)... by Martin Wade
Looking at Chris Tucker nowadays it’s hard to imagine that the finely tailored “buddy movie” actor coined the crude catchphrase used in combat sports message boards worldwide. Without showing my age, the year was 1995, Ice Cube was still “Gangsta” and the scrawny regular from Def Comedy Jam was participating in a soon to be cult classic. The movie “Friday” was our (“our” meaning black folks) version of a little movie about nothing, brothas still living with mom and kicking it in that 90’s epicenter of all things hood - Compton. I’m sure at the time the movie was meant as a vehicle for the rapper turned actor “Cube” but like Morris Day a generation before, Chris Tucker stole the show by comedic force. Of all of the hilarious one-liners delivered with dizzying frequency, the line that has become “Americana” and part of fistic dialect is… DAAAAAAAAAYUUM, YOU GOT K.T.F.O.!!
-Photo Credit: D M Warr/DKP-

BJ FLORES VISITS FORT HOOD TO HONOR TRAINER KENNY ADAMS
On Saturday morning, prior to the celebration, BJ spoke to and gave a boxing demonstration for the teenagers in a youth boxing program at Ronnie Hughes' gym in Killeen, Texas.

“It’s always nice to give back and they also had a lot of questions about professional boxing. Some of them had seen my fight against Wilson on ESPN and they wanted to know more about my career. My focus to them was to get a solid amateur background and be disciplined in your training. Those were the keys to my success.”

RICHIE 'FLASH' GONZALES SUCCUMBS TO INJURIES SUSTAINED IN TRAFFIC ACCIDENT...
Richie 'Flash' Gonzales, age 66 passed away on April 25, 2008 due to injuries sustained when, according to police reports, he was hit by a tractor-trailer in Jacksonville, Florida. Mr. Gonzales was born in Elizabeth, New Jersey and resided in Roselle, New Jersey for several years. At the time of his passing "Flash" Gonzalez was residing in Lake Worth, Florida, with his brother Manny.

TODAY'S HEAVYWEIGHTS... by Jim Amato
I was in a bad mood today...Why am I mad? Well, I had a lousy day at work. I have a strained relationship with my girlfriend. I'm moving from my house to a one bedroom apartment that nobody will ever compare to a room at the Ritz. I have money going out about twice as fast as it's coming in. BUT...What really pisses me off is the state of the heavyweight division today. In a word it Sucks. That's right, with a capital S...

PHELPS vs GUNN, ROUND BY ROUND
Cory “The Cobra” Phelps and White Lightning Promotions have received numerous requests for their March 22nd professional boxing match against Bobby Gunn to be made available on the Internet. The 6 round fight, which resulted in a highly controversial draw, was purchased at the event from the promoter by Larry Phelps, the father and trainer of Cory Phelps. While the initial reports regarding the cause of the bloody mess that was made of Gunn’s face (which Bobby Gunn reported as requiring 36 stitches) was incorrectly reported as an accidental head-butt, the video clearly shows that the cut Gunn suffered was the result of punches, not head-butting.

A SHORT ON SHIBATA... by Jim Amato
Born in 1947, Shibata turned professional in 1965. He was a very strong fighter with decent power but he could also be a clever boxer at times. It was Shibata's chin that would betray him on five different occasions and probably eliminated him years later as a potential Hall of Famer. In the late 60's Shibata was stopped by dangerous Dwight Hopkins and Hubert Kang for the Orient featherweight title. Finally in 1970 Shibata shook up the world by forcing the great featherweight champion Vicente Saldivar to retire after twelve brutal rounds of action.

LUIS RESTO COMES CLEAN AFTER 25 YEARS: HIS KNUCKLES WERE CAST IN PLASTER, PADDING REMOVED FROM HIS GLOVES
The truth has finally been revealed regarding one of sports’ darkest hours. Former prize fighter Luis Resto admitted today at a press conference in New York City that he not only battered “Irish” Billy Collins Jr. for ten rounds during a boxing match, with padding-removed gloves, but that his knuckles were pre-cast with tape soaked in plaster of Paris - before the hollowed gloves were placed over his fists.
As the 25-year-anniversary approaches of the incident that created a sensational scandal following the Collins-Resto welterweight bout at Madison Square Garden in 1983, Bronx native Resto finally came clean...

CORNERED - A LIFE CAUGHT IN THE RING
On June 16, 1983, in front of a capacity crowd of 25,000 at Madison Square Garden, the lives of two young men were forever changed during a controversial boxing match. A tough club fighter from Puerto Rico named Luis Resto fought Billy Collins Jr., an Irish golden boy, for ten grueling rounds. Resto was declared the winner, but within minutes, was accused of tampering with the padding in his gloves - in effect brutalizing Collins Jr. with his bare fists for thirty minutes...

KO KING EDWIN VALERO LICENSED TO FIGHT IN TEXAS
Teiken Promotions is pleased to announce that WBA Super Featherweight champion Edwin Valero's application for a boxing license in the state of Texas was recently approved by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, the state agency governing boxing.
Valero, who holds a perfect 23-0, 23 KOs record, including 19 first-round KOs, has taken all the medical tests required by the Department of Licensing and Regulation and has been licensed to fight in Texas.

EDWIN VALERO, REY DEL KO, CON LICENCIA PARA PELEAR EN TEXAS
La empresa Teiken Promotions se complace en anunciar que la aplicación para la licencia de boxeo del Campeón Mundial Súper Pluma de la AMB, Edwin Valero, fue aprobada por el Departamento de Licencias y Regulación del Estado de Texas, la agencia estatal la cual gobierna el boxeo. Valero, quien tiene un record perfecto de 23-0 (23 KO’s) incluyendo 19 de ellos en el primer asalto, ha hecho todos los exámenes requeridos por el Departamento de Licencias y Regulación y se le ha dado una licencia para pelear en Texas.

WBA LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION DANNY GREEN RETIRES... by Justin Manolikos/Green Machine Promotions
It is with great disappointment, yet pride, I confirm that as of today WBA Light Heavyweight Champion Danny "Green Machine" Green has retired from professional boxing.
Having been a two time and two weight division world champion, Danny goes down in the record books as one of Australia's greatest ever fighters.
Danny always wanted to retire on top and that he has!
He wishes to thank his family, his sponsors and all his loyal supporters who have never let him down. He also thanks those "doubters and kickers" that drove him to two world titles!

ASSOCIATION OF BOXING COMMISSIONS SELECTS OFFICIAL MMA RECORD KEEPER...
The record keeper would be responsible for maintaining a database composed of factual and verified fighting records as well as fighter suspensions and fighter information. This information is vital to the administration of the sport and goes a long way in increasing the professionalism of the sport.

ASSOCIATION OF BOXING COMMISSIONS LEGAL COMMITTEE MINUTES...
The ABC Legal Committee reviewed the actions, and acknowledged the diligence, of past President and ABC Legal Committee member Greg Sirb regarding the following matters:
a. Boxer Saoul Mamby (age 60 and currently on "administrative suspension" from North Carolina) and Iran Barkley (age 48 who hasn't fought since 1999 and is reputed to have "eye problems") being scheduled to participate in separate bouts on a fight card being regulated by the Nez Perce Tribe in Idaho on 2/23/08. As a result of Mr. Sirb's efforts, neither bout occurred.
b. An "open" letter written by Mr. Sirb to Jose Sulaiman, President, WBC regarding the impropriety of the WBC taking $25,000 from boxer Kelly Pavlik as a "fee" for Pavlik participating in a non-sanctioned, non-championship bout against Jermain Taylor at the "catch weight" of 166.

MINUTES: ABC LEGAL COMMITTEE CONFERENCE CALL
1. Sex with ring girl as "compensation" to an MMA victor
It has been brought to the attention of the ABC (by one of its members) that a Florida MMA "promotions group" is promoting events entitled "Bang the Champ" on the premise that the winner of the event "gets to have sex" with one of the ring girls. The "promotions group" has an "adult themed" website [BangtheChamp.com] (deemed inappropriate for access via a government-owned computer).

THIS WEEK IN THE SQUARED CIRCLE... by Tom Dickey
After an exciting week of fights this past week, filled with knockouts and big upsets, the sweet science returns with another solid week of televised fights. Of course this is the week of the huge Manny Pacquiao-Juan Manuel Marquez fight, but there are some good fights on TV prior to Saturday that should whet your appetite just in time for Saturday's big card.
Here's a look at what you can check out on the tube this week...

JERRY TAYLOR, LAND SHARKS AND BOXING TIME CLOCKS... by Ricky Ray Taylor
I started fighting in '82 and my dad was my shadow. He came to all the fights and got his license to keep time at the shows. (Remember, 1982, we're talking the hammer and bell here!) My old man was a "Mr. Fixit" around the house and he thought that he could do something better for boxing by way of keeping time. He expressed aspirations to build a better boxing time clock.

THE FULL PAD WORK FOR FEBRUARY 2008... by Martin Wade
2007 was a banner year and pretty damned good for a sport that was “dying.” Lesson #1 when someone and/or something in (perceived) direct competition with you (for a job, a woman, money) prophesizes your doom that doesn’t make it fact. In truth, propaganda is only a “tool” utilized in war, it doesn’t guarantee victory. Haven’t we endured enough smack talk from boxers to know the difference between talk and reality? Now we’re in 2008 and lo and behold there’s been a Roy Jones sighting, and I mean a big one, with 500,000 pay per view buys in the bank!

LUCKY 07.. by Rizwaan Zahid
Just about twelve months ago I wrote an article looking forward to the year 2007 and the possible match ups that could happen. Most of them did take place and we have seen a great year of boxing filled with quality fights and the best fighting the best.
Here is a review of lucky number ’07.

WHAT'S IN STORE FOR AUSTRALIAN FIGHTERS IN 2008? ... by Darren Yates from Down Under
Well after a pretty good year for Australian boxers in general, what is in store for Australia’s highest profile boxers in 2008? Let's take a look...
MICHAEL KATSIDIS (WBO Interim Lightweight Champion, Juan Diaz holds the legitimate WBO title)
In my opinion Kats has produced the goods better than any other Australian fighter on the international stage, winning two high profile bouts with enough action for both to be considered Fight of the Year material.

SUGGESTIONS FOR 2008... Sharkie's Machine by Frank Gonzalez Jr.

Boxing needs to create Boxing Leagues, like say, “The American Boxing League” with maybe four divisions that would include an A.B.L. North, South, East and West. That would create a lot of bragging rights and stronger national interest in Boxing.
If Boxing promoters and managers and fighters want to enjoy the benefits that sports like Football, Baseball, Basketball and Hockey enjoy, like financial security for the athletes, humongous contracts with major networks and advertisers, then they have to emulate some of the practices and principles those sports employ. Officials, from referees to judges, must be held to account for bad calls and demoted accordingly; we can’t have bad officiating smearing the legitimacy of the sport. You MUST have a legitimate rankings system based on MERIT, not influence.

THE MOST OVERUSED WORDS IN BOXING: PAY PER VIEW... by Rizwaan Zahid
Although these fights are great, we often find fights that have absolutely no reason for being on pay per view. A perfect recent example is the fight between Winky Wright and Bernard Hopkins, which was ironically dubbed “Coming to Fight.” It would have made more sense if it was dubbed “Coming to Clinch” since reportedly there were 132 clinches during the fight, an average of about three or four 'hugs' per minute! Even harder to believe is the fact that both fighters combined for just over 300 punches during the entire fight!

DEAR SANTA: A BOXING WISH LIST FOR 2008... by Tom Dickey
2007 was an exciting year for Boxing. Many of the fights that we Boxing fans wanted came to fruition. I have come to realize over the years that you will never get every that you want to see. So all you can do is hope to get as many as possible and in 2007 we were lucky to get a lot of the premier fights that we had hoped for. Let's hope 2008 is the same, because there are still plenty of exciting, potential fights out there. Here's a look by weight class at my wish list for 2008...

A PUGILISTIC EULOGY... by George Elsasser

The Gerry Cooney professional pugilistic life began at age 20 on February 15, 1977 - it died on January 15, 1990. Finished with a 28-3, 24 by KO career record - so much for stats.
Since all that glitters isn’t gold, it wasn’t necessarily the undefeated 25 kept appointments with 22 scalps taken, that propelled likable Gerry into that fatal meeting with Larry Holmes on June 11, 1982.

2007: SAYING HELLO TO SOME AND GOOD BYE TO OTHERS.. Tom Dickey
As 2007 winds down, boxing fans were treated to an exciting year of big fights. Many fighters emerged onto the scene in 2007, while we also said good bye to past greats. In many ways the year was exciting and energizing, but in many ways the year was also sad. While 2007 was a reminder of why we love boxing, it was also a reminder of how tough the sport can be.
Here's a short look at guys who emerged and some guys we said good bye to...

HOW LOW CAN ANTHONY MUNDINE GO?... by Darren Yates from Down Under
Mundine claims to be the greatest ever athlete to come out of Australia. He isn’t even Australia’s greatest boxer, doesn’t even come close.
“In reality Anthony Mundine has only held the WBA regular Super Middleweight title on two separate occasions (Sven Ottke, Mikkel Kessler & Joe Calzaghe have held the WBA Super Middleweight Championship during all of Mundine's title reigns). While this in itself is a good achievement, one Mundine should be proud of, it doesn’t give him the right to...”

FANS ELECT COTTO FIGHTER OF THE YEAR!
World welterweight champion Miguel Cotto was voted "Fighter of the Year" on Fox Sports Premios. This is the third consecutive win for the Puerto Rican idol, who humbly stated, "This is a great honor and very special to me as it comes from the fans. It shows that hard work will always be rewarded."

WBC NEWS: RUDY LOPEZ-NAOKI MATSUDA RULED "NO CONTEST"
The World Boxing Council announces that the Boxing Commission of Cancun and Jose Manzur, the WBC representative for the Rudy Lopez vs. Naoki Matsuda fight that took place in Cancun last Saturday, have decided that the fight will definitely remain with a final result of “no contest.”

INTRODUCING NATALIA LAUREN LUDWIG
Birth Date: December 18, 2007
Time:   12:57 a.m.
Weight:  7 pounds 11 ounces
Place:  Royal Columbian Hospital, New Westminster, BC
Proud Parents:  Tara and Ed Ludwig
Interesting Fact:   My name means “born in the Christmas season.”

Congratulations to the Ludwigs from all of us at BraggingRightsCorner.com.
What a way to kick off the Holiday Season!

WHY CAN'T GUINN WIN?... by Ed Ludwig @ ringside
All the tools are there for the one time heir apparent of the heavyweight division but the downward spiral for Dominick Guinn (28–6–1 19 KO’s) shows no signs of slowing down. During Thursday’s press conference in Vancouver, BC Guinn sounded very confident that his fight with Robert Hawkins was the one that would put his career back on track.
As we all witnessed Friday night the complete opposite happened. Guinn is mentally shot and there is no other way to put it. He is afraid to engage and thinking too much before reacting. The question needs to be asked, why is Guinn still even in the ring?
-Photo Credit: Anthony Ramsell/BRC-

~ For more on Dominick Guinn visit our Fight Recaps Directory ~

WBC NEWS: 2007 - WHAT A GREAT YEAR FOR BOXING!
What a great year it has been for boxing! On behalf of all the members of the WBC, I would like to congratulate all those involved in this great sport: all the boxers, from four-rounders to world champions, all promoters, managers, trainers, television networks, sanctioning organizations, media, and especially the boxing fans around the world.
This year boxing broke all existing records in pay-per-view, paid attendance and great shows in many countries, and most importantly network television is coming back to cover the sport in many countries of the world.
Following, you will find the candidates for the WBC’s “Best of” in 2007...

¿TÉCNICA O TÁCTICA, CUAL ES LA PRIORIDAD? ... por Roberto Quesada
El error más grande que puede cometer un entrenador es pensar que entrenar no es enseñar. Entrenar es básicamente enseñar a boxear a los jóvenes. Y esto es mucho más que dar unas directrices o diseñar unos ataques o unas defensas. Para mi el ataque y la defensa son instrumentos a través de los cuales la enseñanza llega a realizarse y tiene lugar. Muchos entrenadores piensan que son los ataques los que ganan los combates o creen que es la defensa la que evita que el otro boxeador salga victorioso.

ALEXIS ARGUELLO: 'TALK SOFTLY BUT CARRY A BIG STICK' ... by Jim Amato
One of the best pure punchers of my generation was Alexis Arguello. He was aptly nicknamed "The Explosive Thin Man." He was tall and rail thin but his punch could stop an opponent dead in his tracks.
It's hard to believe that Alexis was stopped in the very first round of his pro debut in his native Managua, Nicaragua. He would rally to win three straight then lose again. Hardly the makings of a legend.
Alexis would reel off twenty straight wins before his next loss. Then came thirteen more victories including knockouts over Octavio Gomez and Jose Legrá.

WHAT AN AMAZING YEAR! ... by Joe Calzaghe
I have gone to 44 unbeaten in my career and am now dreaming of huge fights in the United States in 2008 with Americans Bernard Hopkins, Winky Wright and Jermain Taylor all possible opponents.
However, it hasn't just been Joe Calzaghe's year, 2007 has seen all eight members of our Team Calzaghe stable go unbeaten.
My father Enzo, Britain's coach of the year, now looks after three world champions, a number one contender in Gary Lockett and a Commonwealth champion.

JOE CALZAGHE: WHAT MORE CAN GAVIN REES AND ENZO CALZAGHE DO TO GET RECOGNITION?
I genuinely find it staggering that Gavin doesn't get the chance to share the spotlight this year. What more can he do?
Also, the Welsh version of Sports Personality of the Year doesn't have a Coach of the Year category as the Sports Council of Wales recognize the best coaches with their own awards. And guess what, my father and trainer Enzo didn't win. I could quite easily accept that decision, but he wasn't even nominated! He's training four world champions, a commonwealth champion and three of Britain's brightest young boxing prospects.

CALZAGHE WINS BBC SPORTS PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR
Welsh boxing superstar Joe Calzaghe brought his superb year to a close by winning the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award.
The 35-year-old finished ahead of Formula One star Lewis Hamilton, while boxer Ricky Hatton was in third place.

CALZAGHE ON HOPKINS: "I'D CERTAINLY PUT HIM OUT TO PASTURE AND SMASH HIM UP"
"For those of you who didn't read it yesterday, Hopkins basically said he's going to batter me if we fight and that he will give me a "free facelift!" I can only laugh when I hear such things.
I couldn't give the old man a free facelift because he's just too ugly, but I'd certainly put him out to pasture and smash him up.

BERBICK'S NEPHEW SENTENCED TO LIFE IN PRISON
Trevor Berbick's nephew was sentenced to life in prison on Friday for the former heavyweight champion's murder, according to a report on a Jamaican website.
Harold Berbick, 21, will be eligible for parole in 20 years.
The jury reportedly also found Harold Berbick's accomplice, Kenton Gordon, guilty of manslaughter in the October 2006 killing of Berbick, who became the first Jamaican to hold a world heavyweight title when he scored a 12-round unanimous decision over Pinklon Thomas in March 1986 to win the WBC belt. Gordon was sentenced to 14 years in prison, according to the report.

BOXER SLAIN BY NEPHEW
A nephew of Trevor Berbick has been convicted along with another man of killing the 54-year-old former heavyweight champion.
A jury Thursday found 21-year-old Harold Berbick guilty of murder and 19-year-old Kenton Gordon guilty of manslaughter in the death of the former boxer following a four-week trial. The judge ordered both men jailed pending their Jan. 11 sentencing.
Authorities said the nephew and Gordon beat Berbick to death in October, leaving his body in a church courtyard in Portland. Harold Berbick had been involved in a land dispute with his uncle. Berbick grew up in the area and returned to live there following his deportation from the United States in 2002. He was the last fighter to face Muhammad Ali in the ring and briefly held the WBC heavyweight title before losing it to Mike Tyson in 1986.

HANK KAPLAN - CELEBRATION OF A GREAT LIFE... by Ron Ross
We came to say goodbye to our beloved Hank Kaplan today. There was no grieving, no mourning, though. Instead, it was a celebration of his life – an extraordinary life, a giving life, a life always dedicated to glorifying and commemorating the gallant efforts and deeds of those young warriors who climbed through the ropes of prize rings around the world fighting their hearts out whether for twenty-five dollars or twenty-five million dollars. To Hank, they were all under one roof and he cloaked them all with dignity and pride. It was their entitlement...
-Photo Credit: Audrey Chang/BRC-

EDDIE PERKINS ON HIS WAY TO THE HALL OF FAME IN CANASTOTA, NEW YORK... by Jim Amato
Besides the two losses to Perkins and losses to Zovek Barajas, Marcos Geraldo and Angel Espada, Muniz was awarded a 1975 title fight with the great champion Jose Napoles. In Muniz' defense during that time period he did defeat Ernie Lopez and Hedgemon Lewis. Nevertheless in 1974 Eddie deserved a title shot especially after a win over Japan's Ryu Sorimachi. That would be Eddie's last victory. After his failure to win the middleweight title from Carlos Monzon, Napoles opted to fight a rematch with Hedgemon Lewis. This left the deserving Perkins out in the cold.

THE CZAR IS GONE, LONG LIVE NEW JERSEY BOXING... by Keith Terceira

“I want to be fair about this, judge Larry Hazzard on the job that he has done. Forget about the personality issues, because my personality has nothing to do with whether or not I can do the job. I wanted to set the record straight on that.”
Larry, when you are a PUBLIC SERVANT, personality matters greatly; the ability to get along, compromise, and fall somewhere in the middle of things instead of swinging to the extreme could have served New Jersey better. Always being on the cutting edge only served Larry Hazzard's ego and not boxing in the state of New Jersey.

NATE CAMPBELL CLEARED OF ALL CHARGES...
After reviewing all available evidence, the Hillsborough County State Attorney's office announced that it has declined to pursue charges against boxer Nate Campbell relating to his September 27 arrest following a domestic disturbance. Campbell, the IBF #1 mandatory challenger to unified Champion Juan Diaz, was clearly relieved and gave the following statement. "I've said from the beginning that there are two sides to every story, and I'm just glad to have this officially behind me, and can now focus all my energy on winning the world title. I also want to thank my family, friends, and fans who stood by me while this process ran its course, and didn't just blindly believe what they may have read somewhere."

REST IN PEACE BILL HARTACK... by Elmo Adolph
I learned yesterday of the death of my good friend, Bill Hartack. Besides being one of the greatest jocks ever to ride, he was a wonderful person who I had the pleasure of becoming close to because of boxing. He was a big fan and I got to meet him because he recognized me as a referee.
Being horse racing addicts, Bill and I had a chance meeting when a horse named for me raced and won at the Fairgrounds... He summoned me to the Stewards office (where he worked) and we became instant friends.
I had the pleasure of having Bill accompany me to Tunica, Mississippi where I worked boxing matches. We spent 4 days together and all of the myths as to him being cold toward fans and not giving autographs is not true. He had a great time and took pictures with fans and autographed anything put before him.
Bill had a heart attack while on a hunting trip (he was avid and loved the sport of hunting). Please, please say prayers for him..
Watch for him God, as he is coming through on the rail!!!

NOVEMBER FIGHT CALENDAR MIXED BAG OF PROMISE AND HUMOR... by George Elsasser
A quick glimpse of the upcoming November fistic calendar hints of mixed bag of promise and humor for us faithful followers of the sweet science.
NOVEMBER 3: On the other side of the pond at Cardiff, Wales - it’s Calzaghe - Kessler in super middleweight unification filled with promise - same date on this side of the water is Juan Manuel Marquez and Rocky Juarez for the WBC featherweight trophy. Both pairings on paper suggest more guarantee than promise...

BACK AWAY FROM THE 'HIRED GUNS' ... by Martin Wade
Joe Louis was a man weighed down by the pressures of his race but at his core he was a warrior -and warriors if anything- are accountable. Today’s external “pressures” would have mandated Joe make a change outside the ring (scapegoat) but back then Louis knew the change had to be made inside it. Joe Louis didn’t have an “issue” with the man who supervised his training and fitness; he had a problem with the man who kicked his ass. Novel concepts by today’s standards...

IF IT'S EVEN, THEN CALL IT A DRAW... by Scott Sanders
In boxing history there used to be an ample number of fights that ended in a draw. Rounds that weren't clear were scored as even. In the last 10-20 years there has been a call to eliminate draws. Some people suggest having an odd number of rounds. Of course a knockdown or point deduction totally kills that logic. There is also a call for having no more even rounds, the rationale being that no round can truly be even. That might be applicable if the rounds were reviewed with selected replays by the judges. However, the reality is that judges have only mere seconds to record their decisions.

JOHNNY SAXTON (07-04-1930) - DOWN BUT NOT OUT... by George Elsasser

Born in Jersey fight town of Newark - early attention came when winning NYC Golden Gloves tourney - then on May 5, 1949 and nearing age 19, the jump start to a sterling professional career of 55-9-2, 21 KO’s.
Johnny was out of the gate like a Derby winner with 37 consecutive wins before a draw with heralded welter Wallace “Bud” Smith - he would then follow with wins over Charlie Williams and power punching Joe Miceli before suffering his first career setback via split decision to Philly favorite Gil Turner.

RINGS HIS BELL - STRIPPER THROWS CROSS-DRESS PIX SUIT AT OSCAR... by Paula Froelich
The stunning Siberian-born stripper who sold widely circulated pictures of boxer Oscar de la Hoya strutting his stuff in drag will file a $100 million lawsuit today against the "Golden Boy" charging him with unleashing a smear campaign against her to stop the photos from emerging...

McCLINE TO FILE OFFICIAL PROTEST WITH THE WBC!
"After watching the fight on tape, not only do I think I won, but I think that I would have stopped Peter if the referee (Mike Ortega) did not give him so much time to recover from the knockdowns in round three. Also, Judge Bill Costello had the fight 10-2 in rounds, which is absolutely ridiculous."

MICHAEL KATSIDIS, AUSTRALIA'S MOST EXCITING ACTIVE FIGHTER... by Darren Yates from Down Under
Since Kostya Tszyu lost his IBF 140 pound title to Ricky Hatton over two years ago, I have been looking for another exciting fighter who I just couldn’t wait to see fight again. Little did I realize that I would be lucky enough to see such a fighter come out of my native Australia.

LOS DIURÉTICOS: DROGAS ILEGALES Y PELIGROSAS PARA LOS BOXEADORES... por Roberto Quesada
Han ocurrido algunos casos lamentables de lesiones irreversibles, incluso de muertes en los últimos tiempos recientes y me atrevo a señalar categóricamente que las autoridades boxísticas, (promotores, managers y comisiones) no tienen ninguna responsabilidad y soy testigo de las exigencias que se hacen cumplir para que un boxeador vaya a una pelea en perfectas condiciones y eso es avalado por pruebas médicas que se realizan obligatoriamente antes de cada combate.

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