Battle Hymn – Part 3: Rising Up?

Published

11 years ago

March 27, 2014

By the summer of 1939, Aaron “Little Tiger” Wade was regularly knocking down white men for pay. Chuck Vickers was one of them, and he had a big mouth. He arrived in Peoria from Cincinnati bragging that he had “never been beaten by a Negro.” When reminded by a local reporter of Wade’s reputation as a ferocious puncher, Vickers flexed his muscles. “He’ll know he has been in a fight,” he said.

Wade told the Peoria Star that he would do something about “the Vickers situation.”

In the third round, Vickers dropped his guard for a moment and that was that. A right-hand blast came out of nowhere and 2500 fans saw him go down like he got shot. After he was counted out, Vickers clawed his way up the ropes only to collapse to the canvas in a daze. He wasn’t saying much on the train home to Cincinnati.

According to the Peoria Star and the Peoria Journal-Transcript, it was Wade’s 61^st win in 62 professional fights. That was in August 1939. It had had been four years since he left the amateur circuit and nearly as long since he left his mother behind to follow big brother Bruce to sunny San Francisco.

Bruce, known as “Big Tiger” Wade, spent years competing alongside his younger brother as an amateur and won two localGolden Gloves championships. He turned professional in 1935 and migrated to California by the end of that year, destined to become a journeyman going nowhere. Leroy, the youngest of the four surviving brothers, joined his brothers in California in 1942. Known as “Young Tiger” Wade, he was a Golden Gloves champion in Illinois and Wisconsin before embarking on a professional career that saw him down and out more often than Bruce and Aaron put together. They called him “Canvas Back.”

At eighty-three years old, Bobby Warren is one of only a handful still around who witnessed Murderers’ Row tearing up the West Coast. He spends his afternoons at the King’s Gym in Oakland training fighters. I called him there the day after New Year’s to poke around his memory. “Yeah, I remember the Wades,” he said. “Aaron was the best of the three brothers.” He sure was. Where Bruce was knocked cold by Tony Zale and Leroy was trounced by Carl “Bobo” Olson, Aaron would defeat a future light heavyweight champion now revered as one of boxing’s gods.

The secret of Little Tiger Wade’s success was his power. It was downright startling at times. When he stepped into the ring at National Hall to face Ray Campo after a long layoff, Eddie Muller, the boxing writer for the San Francisco Examiner, sat peering over his typewriter. “A savage left hook caught Campo on the chin and dropped him in a heap,” he wrote. The time was 18 seconds—including the count. Muller never failed to remind sports fans about that power. “Too many guns,” he said, “a deadly puncher with both hands”; “strictly a socker.”

Fists that carry a general anesthetic tend to make light work of opponents. Most trainers consider power a gift, but like most gifts, it comes with a shadow. “Punchers” can get infatuated by the instant gratification of singular shots and early nights; so jabs get put on the shelf and combinations which set up shots and pile up points diminish in frequency. They’re tempted to sleep late too—why bother to train for ten rounds when all you’ll need is three? Wade was gaining weight. By the time he was 26, he had eaten his way out of the welterweight division permanently. “He had a passion for pork,” his son Alan Roy Wade, now 66, told me. “Pork chops, sausage; everything pork. Every day.” There was a butcher shop in the Bay area that he frequented in the forties and he was good to go there with whatever remained of his divvied-up purse. The press noted an ever-widening torso over short legs that inexplicably stayed spindly. “Roly-poly Wade,” said the Baltimore Sun;“The chunky little fellow,” said Muller.

Muller tells us that Wade stood a little over 5’5 and fought small. Crouched and bent at the middle, he got under long arms to “root with both hands in close.” His bull-neck was turned so that his chin was pressed into a shoulder to protect it and make himself a moving target, bobbing like a buoy on stormy seas and winging thunder as he came up. His arms were abnormally long and his punches, Muller noted, were accurate. To old-timers, he was the second coming of the “Barbados Demon” Joe Walcott—which made for a frightening image in the opposite corner. As a result, he was avoided by nearly every contender within reach, and that partially explains why he spent only two months of a twelve-year career in The Ring Ratings.

In his search for fame and fortune, the Little Tiger roamed back and forth between Peoria and San Francisco until 1940, when he established his territory in the City by the Bay. He was known to spend days at Billy Newman’s Gym in Nob Hill, waiting for calls. He’d take a six or eight-rounder just to maintain some kind of an income stream, and became a reliable stand-in for desperate promoters—fighting short-notice fights against Big Boy Hogue in place of an injured Billy Soose, Jack Chase in place of Archie Moore, and R.J. Lewis in place of Charley Burley. Sometimes the calls didn’t come and Wade became frustrated enough to go on hiatuses doing God knows what. One of them lasted a year; and in an era when up-and-comers would fight twice a month, a year off would render a fighter near forgotten.

Sometimes other black gypsies looking for trouble drifted in and Wade would rouse himself for an ambush. R.J. Lewis and Harvey Massey were among his victims.

Lewis had been a professional for four years and fought in fifteen states when he arrived at the Coliseum Bowl. His game plan to beat Little Tiger Wade went out the window when a left hook gonged off his head. A right whistled in next, exploded off his chin, and “when Lewis went down,” Muller tells us, “his head thudded on the canvas and his legs went straight up in the air.” He wobbled up, but the fight was called off by the referee—in 58 seconds. Lewis was dumbstruck. He called it a fluke and demanded a rematch. Two weeks later he went down five times in four rounds before the fight was stopped.

Not long after that, Wade faced Harvey Massey. In over a hundred professional bouts, only two fighters stopped him—Charley Burley and Lloyd Marshall. Wade stopped him in four rounds and became the third. After the fight, Massey went around telling anyone who would listen that he wasn’t hurt and demanded a rematch. Muller tells us more: “A firm believer in his own ability, Massey insisted the match be made on a winner-take-all basis.”

Two weeks later, he was knocked into retirement.

Wade took both purses and went to the pork store.

Fight reports and other points of facts found in Reno Evening Gazette 11/22/35; Nevada State Journal 11/23/35;San Francisco Examiner 8/8/42, 6/6/43 (Wade avoided); 7/17, 18, 19, 20/43; Wade’s style, build, and avoidance issues in San Francisco Examiner 12/11/44, 6/29/40, 6/20/43, and 6/23/43; Joe Walcott comparison, Holyoke Transcript-Telegram, 10/14/47.

Springs Toledo can be contacted at scalinatella@hotmail.com .

Post Views: 1,914

Share The Sweet Science experience!

Springs Toledo

Bivol Evens the Score with Beterbiev; Parker and Stevenson Win Handily

Published

2 hours ago

February 22, 2025

David A. Avila

Bivol-Evens-the-Score-with-Beterbiev-Parker-and-Stevenson-Win-Handily

It was labeled the best boxing card in history.

That’s up for debate.

And there was some debate as Dmitry Bivol avenged his loss to Artur Beterbiev to become the new undisputed light heavyweight world champion on Saturday by majority decision in a tactical battle.

“He gave me this chance and I appreciate it,” said Bivol of Beterbiev.

Bivol (24-1, 12 KOs) rallied from behind to give Beterbiev (21-1, 20 KOs) his first pro loss in their rematch at a sold out crowd in the Venue Riyadh Season in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Like their first encounter the rematch was also very close.

Four months ago, these two faced each other as undefeated light heavyweights. Now, after two furious engagements, both have losses.

Beterbiev was making his first defense as undisputed light heavyweight champion and made adjustments from their first match. This time the Russian fighter who trains in Canada concentrated on a body attack and immediately saw dividends.

For most of the first six rounds it seemed Beterbiev would slowly grind down Bivol until he reached an unsurmountable lead. But despite the momentum he never could truly hurt Bivol or gain separation.

Things turned around in the seventh round as Bivol opened up with combinations to the head and body while slipping Beterbiev’s blows. It was a sudden swing of momentum. But how long could it last?

“It was hard to keep him at the distance. I had to be smarter and punch more clean punches,” said Bivol.

Beterbiev attempted to regain the momentum but Bivol was not allowing it to happen. In the final 10 seconds he opened up with a machine gun combination. Though few of the punches connected it became clear he was not going to allow unclarity.

Using strategic movement Bivol laced quick combinations and immediately departed. Betebiev seemed determined to counter the fleet fighter but was unsuccessful for much of the second half of the fight.

Around the 10^th round Beterbiev stepped on the gas with the same formula of working the body and head. It gave Bivol pause but he still unleashed quick combos to keep from being overrun.

Bivol connected with combinations and Beterbiev connected with single body and head shots. It was going to be tough for the referees to decide which attack they preferred. After 12 rounds with no knockdowns one judge saw it a draw at 114-114. But two others saw Bivol the winner 116-112, 115-113.

“I was better. I was pushing myself more, I was lighter. I just wanted to win so much today,” said Bivol.

Beterbiev was gracious in defeat.

“Congratulations to Bivol’s team” said Beterbiev. “I think this fight was better than the first fight.”

After the match it was discussed that an effort to make a third fight is a strong possibility.

Heavyweight KO by Parker

Joseph Parker (36-3, 24 KOs) once again proved he could be the best heavyweight without a world title in knocking out the feared Martin Bakole (21-2, 16 KOs) to retain his WBO interim title. It was quick and decisive.

“Catch him when he is coming in,” said Parker, 33, about his plan.

After original foe IBF heavyweight titlist Daniel Dubois was forced to withdraw due to illness, Bakole willingly accepted the match with only two days’ notice. Many experts and fans around the world were surprised and excited Parker accepted the match.

Ever since Parker lost to Joe Joyce in 2022, the New Zealander has proven to be vastly improved with wins over Deontay Wilder and Zhilei Zhang. Now you can add Bakole to the list of conquests.

Bakole, 33, was coming off an impressive knockout win last July and posed a serious threat if he connected with a punch. The quick-handed Bakole at 310 pounds and a two-inch height advantage is always dangerous.

In the first round Parker was wary of the fighter from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. He kept his range and moved around the ring looking to poke a jab and move. Bakole caught him twice with blows and Parker retaliated.

It proved to be a very important test.

Parker refrained from moving and instead moved inside range of the big African fighter. Both exchanged liberally with Bakole connecting with an uppercut and Parker an overhand right.

Bakole shook his head at the blow he absorbed.

Both re-engaged and fired simultaneously. Parker’s right connected to the top of the head of Bakole who shuddered and stumbled and down he went and could not beat the count. The referee stopped the heavyweight fight at 2:17 of the second round. Parker retains his interim title by knockout.

“I’m strong, I’m healthy, I’m sharp,” said Parker. “I had to be patient.”

Shakur Wins

Despite an injured left hand southpaw WBC lightweight titlist Shakur Stevenson (23-0, 11 KOs) won by stoppage over late replacement Josh Padley (15-1, 6 KOs). It was an impressive accomplishment.

Often criticized for his lack of action and safety-first style, Stevenson was supposed to fight undefeated Floyd Schofield who pulled out due to illness. In stepped British lightweight Padley who had nothing to lose.

Padley was never hesitant to engage with the super-quick Stevenson and despite the lightning-quick combos by the champion, the British challenger exchanged liberally. It just wasn’t enough.

Even when Stevenson injured his left hand during an exchange in the sixth round, Padley just couldn’t take advantage. The speedy southpaw kept shooting the right jabs and ripping off right hooks. At the end of the sixth Stevenson briefly switched to a right-handed fighting style.

Stevenson used his right jabs and hooks to perfection. Double right hooks to the head and body seemed to affect the British challenger. A clean left to the body of Padley sent him to the floor for the count in the ninth round. It was a surprising knockdown due to his injured left. Padley got up and the fight resumed. Stevenson unloaded with right hooks to the body and down went the British fighter once again. He got up and tried to fight his way out but was met with another left to the body and down he went a third time. Padley’s corner tossed in a white towel to signify surrender. The referee stopped the fight at the end of the round. Stevenson scored his 11^th knockout win.

Photo credit: Mark Robinson / Matchroom

To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE

Post Views: 186

Share The Sweet Science experience!

Early Results from Riyadh where Hamzah Sheeraz was Awarded a Gift Draw

Published

5 hours ago

February 22, 2025

Arne K. Lang

Early-Results-from-Riyadh-where-Hamza-Sheeraz-was-Awarded-a-Gift-Draw

After two 6-round appetizers, British light heavyweights Joshua Buatsi and Callum Smith got the show rolling with a lusty 12-round skirmish. Things went south in the middle of the seven-fight main card when WBC middleweight champion Carlos Adames locked horns with challenger Hamzah Sheeraz. This was a drab fight owing to a milquetoast performance by the favored Sheeraz.

Heading in, the lanky six-foot-three Sheeraz, whose physique is mindful of a young Thomas Hearns, was undefeated in 21 fights. Having stopped five of his last six opponents in two rounds or less, the 25-year-old Englishman was touted as the next big thing in the middleweight division. However, he fought off his back foot the entire contest, reluctant to let his hands go, and Adames kept his title when the bout was scored a draw.

Sheeraz had the crowd in his corner and two of the judges scored the match with their ears. Their tallies were 115-114 for Sheeraz and 114-114. The third judge had it 118-110 for Adames, the 30-year old Dominican, now 24-1-1, who had Ismael Salas in his corner.

Ortiz-Madrimov

Super welterweight Vergil Ortiz Jr, knocked out his first 21 opponents, begging the question of how he would react when he finally faced adversity. He showed his mettle in August of last year when he went a sizzling 12 rounds with fellow knockout artist Serhii Bohachuk, winning a hard-fought decision. Tonight he added another feather in his cap with a 12-round unanimous decision over Ismail Madrimov, prevailing on scores of 117-111 and 115-113 twice.

Ortiz won by adhering tight to Robert Garcia’s game plan. The elusive Madrimov, who bounces around the ring like the energizer bunny, won the early rounds. But eventually Ortiz was able to cut the ring off and turned the tide in his favor by landing the harder punches. It was the second straight loss for Madrimov (10-2-1), a decorated amateur who had lost a close but unanimous decision to Terence Crawford in his previous bout.

Kabayel-Zhang

No heavyweight has made greater gains in the last 15 months than Agit Kabayel. The German of Kurdish descent, whose specialty is body punching, made his third straight appearance in Riyadh tonight and, like in the previous two, fashioned a knockout. Today, although out-weighed by more than 40 pounds, he did away with Zhilei “Big Bang” Zhang in the sixth round.

It didn’t start out well for Kabayel. The New Jersey-based, six-foot-six Zhang, a two-time Olympian for China, started fast and plainly won the opening round. Kabayel beat him to the punch from that point on, save for one moment when Zhang put him on the canvas with a straight left hand.

That happened in the fifth round, but by the end of the frame, the 41-year-old Zhang was conspicuously gassed. The end for the big fellow came at the 2:29 mark of round six when he couldn’t beat the count after crumbling to the canvas in a delayed reaction after taking a hard punch to his flabby midsection.

Kabayel remains undefeated at 26-0 (18 KOs). Zhang (27-3-1) hadn’t previously been stopped.

Smith-Buatsi

The all-British showdown between light heavyweights Joshua Buatsi and Callum Smith was a grueling, fan-friendly affair. A former 168-pound world title-holder, Smith, 34, won hard-earned unanimous decision, prevailing on scores of 115-113, 116-112, and a ludicrous 119-110.

There were no knockdowns, but Liverpool’s Smith, who advanced to 31-2 (22) finished the contest with a bad gash in the corner of his right eye. It was the first pro loss for Buatsi (19-1), an Olympic bronze medalist who entered the contest a small favorite and was the defending “interim” title-holder.

This contest was also a battle of wits between two of America’s most prominent trainers, Buddy McGirt (Smith) and Virgil Hunter (Buatsi).

Check back shortly for David Avila’s wrap-up of the last three fights.

Photo credit: Mark Robinson / Matchroom

To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE

Post Views: 368

Share The Sweet Science experience!

Cain Sandoval KOs Mark Bernaldez in the Featured Bout at Santa Ynez

Published

21 hours ago

February 21, 2025

David A. Avila

Cain-Sandoval-KOs-Mark-Bernaldez-in-the-Featured-Bout-at-Santa-Ynez

Northern California’s Cain Sandoval remained undefeated with a knockout win over Mark Bernaldez in a super lightweight battle on Friday on a 360 Promotions card.

Sandoval (15-0, 13 KOs) of Sacramento needed four rounds to figure out tough Filipino fighter Bernaldez (25-7, 14 KOs) in front of a packed crowd at Chumash Casino in Santa Ynez.

Bernaldez had gone eight rounds against Mexico’s very tough Oscar Duarte. He showed no fear for Sandoval’s reputed power and both fired bombs at each other from the second round on.

Things turned in favor of Sandoval when he targeted the body and soon had Bernaldez in retreat. It was apparent Sandoval had discovered a weakness.

In the beginning of the fourth Sandoval fired a stiff jab to the body that buckled Bernaldez but he did not go down. And when both resumed in firing position Sandoval connected with an overhand right and down went the Filipino fighter. He was counted out by referee Rudy Barragan at 34 seconds of the round.

“I’m surprised he took my jab to the body. I respect that. I have a knockout and I’m happy about that,” Sandoval said.

Other Bouts

Popular female fighter Lupe Medina (9-0) remained undefeated with a solid victory over the determined Agustina Vazquez (4-3-2) by unanimous decision after eight rounds in a minimumweight fight between Southern Californians.

Early on Vazquez gave Medina trouble disrupting her patter with solid jabs. And when Medina overloaded with combination punches, she was laced with counters from Vazquez during the first four rounds.

Things turned around in the fifth round as Medina used a jab to keep Vazquez at a preferred distance. And when she attacked it was no more than two-punch combination and maintaining a distance.

Vazquez proved determined but discovered clinching was not a good idea as Medina took advantage and overran her with blows. Still, Vazquez looked solid. All three judges saw it 79-73 for Medina.

A battle between Southern Californian’s saw Compton’s Christopher Rios (11-2) put on the pressure all eight rounds against Eastvale’s Daniel Barrera (8-1-1) and emerged the winner by majority decision in a flyweight battle.

It was Barrera’s first loss as a pro. He never could discover how to stay off the ropes and that proved his downfall. Neither fighter was knocked down but one judge saw it 76-76, and two others 79-73 for Rios.

In a welterweight fight Gor Yeritsyan (20-1,16 KOs) scorched Luis Ramos (23-7) with a 12-punch combination the sent him to the mat in the second round. After Ramos beat the count he was met with an eight punch volley and the fight was stopped at 2:11 of the second round by knockout.

Super feather prospect Abel Mejia (7-0, 5 KOs) floored Alfredo Diaz (9-12) in the fifth round but found the Mexican fighter to be very durable in their six-round fight. Mejia caught Diaz with a left hook in the fifth round for a knockdown. But the fight resumed with all three judges scoring it 60-53 for Mejia who fights out of El Modena, Calif.

To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE

Post Views: 442

Share The Sweet Science experience!