Featured Articles
Broner Dishes Out Disses, Near-Classic Comedy, At Thursday Presser
![](https://cdn.ib.tv/thesweetscience/images/adrien-broner,-shawn-porter-a618.jpg)
Crying shame it was, them not streaming the Thursday presser which saw Adrien Broner acting out, talking trash galore, getting into it with a father and a son, for good measure, two days out from his PBC tangle on NBC.
A-side AB took it to Saturday foe Shawn Porter, and his pop, Kenny, showed off his abs and yes, that mouth, which was motorted up, revving hard and spewing amusing and confrontational talk.
Oh yes, it was humorous but threatened to tilt over the edge into real-deal heated; dad Kenny yapped at Broner, when Broner told him to get out front, stand in front of him, instead of son Shawn, during the stare-down. Sam Watson told Kenny to stand down, as he was commanding the Cinci boxer to “look him in the eyes.”
Broner was in gym gear while Porter was in neo-Haymon attire, a most sharp suit with a crisp hanky poking out of his chest pocket. Promoter Floyd Mayweather, sporting a “Brooklyn” ballcap, watched, mildly interested, while AB kept yapping. “He can get it too,” said the bratty boxer, referencing the pop, “This is easy work.”
Porter was silent, but his nostrils flared, and then he broke into a grin as AB whispered trash talk to him. Then, AB showed off his abs, and said, “We made weight fine…Make sure you make weight,” he said, at Porter. It was the AB show, fully…
Broner said that he’d whip Kenny after whupping Shawn, as he left the stage and Kenny accepted the invite. “AB, absolutely broke,” said Kenny, responding to the needling AB dispensed during the presser. That had AB teasing that the father was spending all the son’s money.
“I’m fighting Shawn Porter, and I’m fighting his dad,” the quipster said, going on to describe how he thinks the purse money from Porter fights is chopped up. Shawn has to get an Uber or take a bummy ride while dad takes rides in a luxe ride, he joked. “He got the girl that Shawn is supposed to have…even today he got on a better suit…they live together, let him live, have some fun,” AB said, in a mildly classic standup set. Kenny then made a crack about child-support, and how AB should be kicking funds there. “He high,” Broner responded, off wearing patent leather.
Broner did well to try and get into Shawn’s head, telling him he liked him, but that he got negative energy from dad. He offered to sign Porter to his promotional outfit, and yes, the look on Porters’ face said that the goat-getting was working. “Saturday night I’m gonna put on a show, this boys not gonna beat me,” he said…indeed, he put on a show then and there.
This was old school drama and humor and comedy, the variety of which the PBC have tried to steer away from, while trying to dust off the rep of the sport a bit. I’d recommend they continue to loosen the reins, let the yappers yap, let their personalities flap in the wind. This is an adult sport, Broner has an adult personality, might as well run with it, not from it.
Here is the release sent out by the PBC peeps re: the presser–
FIREWORKS BETWEEN ADRIEN BRONER & SHAWN PORTER AT PREMIER BOXING CHAMPIONS ON NBC FINAL PRESS CONFERENCE
Photos – Lucas Noonan/Premier Boxing Champions
Antonio DeMarco Vows To Defeat Rances Barthelemy For Cancer-Stricken Sister on Premier Boxing Champions on CBS
Promoter Floyd Mayweather & Premier Boxing Champions Fighters
Final Press Conference Quotes
LAS VEGAS (June 18, 2015) – An animated Adrien “The Problem” Broner held court for several minutes Thursday, as a calm “Showtime” Shawn Porter delivered his own strong message in advance of the exciting weekend of Premier Boxing Champions action at MGM Grand.
In a different role than his usual one as boxing’s pound-for-pound king, President of Mayweather Promotions Floyd “Money” Mayweather helped run the press conferences alongside Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe.
On the Saturday, June 20 PBC on NBC show, Broner (30-1, 22 KOs) will take on Porter (25-1-1, 16 KOs) after Errol “The Truth” Spence Jr. (16-0, 13 KOs) battles Phil “The Italian Sensation” Lo Greco (26-1, 14 KOs). Televised coverage on NBC begins at 8:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. PT.
Also at Thursday’s press conference, main event participant on the Sunday, June 21 PBC on CBS card Antonio DeMarco (22-0, 13 KOs) vowed to bring home a victory for his cancer-stricken sister in Sunday’s PBC on CBS main event showdown against former world champion Rances Barthelemy (31-4-1, 23 KOs). Sunday’s co-feature showcases a welterweight matchup between Sammy Vasquez (18-0, 13 KOs) and Wale Omotoso (25-1, 21 KOs). Televised coverage begins on CBS Sports at 4 p.m. ET/1 p.m. PT.
Also in attendance on Thursday were rising stars from Mayweather Promotions who will be competing on both Saturday and Sunday.
Tickets for Saturday’s event are priced at $400, $300, $100 and $50 and tickets for Sunday’s event are priced at $100, $75, $50, and $25 not including applicable service charges and taxes are on sale now. To charge by phone with a major credit card for tickets to both events, call Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. Tickets for both events are also available at www.mgmgrand.com or www.ticketmaster.com. The weekend of action is promoted by Mayweather Promotions in association with TGB Promotions.
Here is what the press conference participants had to say:
FLOYD MAYWEATHER, President of Mayweather Promotions
“Mayweather Promotions has always done record-breaking numbers and our ultimate goal is to find the next Floyd Mayweather. With all of the talent out there, it will soon happen.
“I want all of the fighters out there to keep working hard, stay focused and know that there is no limit to what you can do.
“With all the media here talking to him, it’s obvious that Adrien is doing something right. He’s entertaining and people like it.
“There’s no limit to how far Adrien Broner can go in this sport. He can fight. I’m in the gym with him and he’s boxing top guys. He’s pushing himself.
“Shawn Porter is a really solid competitor. It’s not an easy task for Adrien, he’s going to have to fight.
“Mayweather Promotions wants to continue to work with all fighters and help build their careers so that they can get to that top level.”
ADRIEN BRONER
“This is the AB show. You’re all getting it first, live and personal.
“I’m fighting Shawn Porter and I’m fighting his dad. It’s like I’m fighting his dad because the check comes in his dad’s name, then he pays Shawn.
“Since both Shawn and his dad get a check, if I whoop both of them, will I get paid twice?
“I like Shawn as a person, but he gets so much negative energy from his dad. That’s just the truth.
“After I whoop you Shawn, come sign with About Billions and I’ll buy you a nicer car than your dad’s. I already wrote out the contract.
“This is going to be a great fight. I’m very excited because I love putting on a show for the fans. This boy will not beat me.
“I’m coming to deliver a beat down. Shawn Porter is a football player, I’m going to take him out. It’s going to be fun.”
SHAWN PORTER
“I feel great, it’s a good day. I’m just counting down until fight night.
“I’ve been working on everything in camp. I have a lot of speed, power, quickness and the whole nine. It’s going to take everything to win this fight.
“He’s got good speed, so we’re preparing for him to use a lot of that. We’ll make adjustments as we go along but the key is definitely taking care of his speed with our speed.
“It’s so sweet to be fighting at MGM Grand, this is what you want as a fighter. It’s my time now. I’m so excited about this opportunity.
“Number one, we have to take care of business. We know that if we take care of business it’ll be a great Father’s Day on Sunday.”
ERROL SPENCE JR.
“I just have to stay focused and put on a spectacular performance on Saturday night. Hopefully next time I’ll be the main event. It’s a process but I’m getting there.
“I’m ready for anybody in the welterweight division, I’m ready for any kind of step up in competition period. I’m not the guy to shy away from anybody.
“Porter and Broner are a little more seasoned that me, but skill wise I think I’m right on par with them. Skill for skill I can match anybody in boxing.
“A lot of guys aren’t in the position that I’m in to get the opportunities that I have. This is my third year as a pro and it’s all been coming pretty fast. It’s all about timing. I’m enjoying the process.
“You’re going to be looking at the future of the sport come Saturday night.”
PHIL LO GRECO
“There’s no such thing as the right moment. The perfect fight is when you want it to be. I got the call and decided that this is the perfect timing.
“It took me about 30 seconds to decide to take this fight. When you know why you fight, it makes these decisions easy.
“A year ago there was no way I thought I’d be on this stage. Now I have real opportunities and we’re here now.
“Win, lose or draw, I’m going back to the gym next week.
“I’m a pressure fighter. I like to engage and give the fans what they want to see. This is a great opportunity. Saturday is going to be fun.”
RANCES BARTHELEMY
“I’m feeling good moving up in weight. Everybody knows Antonio DeMarco is a very, very tough fighter. He’s one of the best I’ve ever fought. His record who he has faced proves that. He’s experienced, but so am I.
“I want to be the best Cuban fighter of all-time and I’m on my way.
“I’m in tremendous shape and I’m ready to go. I want to showcase my skills on Sunday to show the world how I can fight.
“Who do I want to fight? I’ll fight anyone they put in my way. I’ll fight Godzilla if he’s there.
“I don’t do predictions but this is going to be an entertaining fight. Unlike past Cuban fighters, I have power and can knock people out. In the amateurs you don’t need power. But in the pros, that’s what it’s all about.”
ANTONIO DEMARCO
“This is going to be a tough fight, a difficult fight, but I have a great responsibility. My 15-year-old sister told me that if I win, she will beat cancer. She was diagnosed with bone cancer last November – and it was life-threatening. But her last chemo treatment was yesterday.
“From a ring standpoint, I am really looking forward to Sunday. I am very prepared, I am relaxed and ready to go. Besides for my sister, my other main motivation is that this is a chance to get my career back on track. A victory and I can get back to where I was and in position to challenge the best.
“I am treating it like another fight, but of course it is much more. Exposure-wise, you can’t get better than network television.
“I know Rances is going to be a difficult opponent. He’s a great fighter. But I have the experience to come up with a game plan to win. From a career-standpoint, this is a very important fight and I’m ready for it.”
SAMMY VASQUEZ
“It’s an honor to be here in this building among some of the greatest fighters in the world. Omotoso has never fought anyone like me before.
“I’m here to restore the greatness of Pittsburgh boxing. Everyone knows ‘The Pittsburgh Kid’, Paul Spadafora, but we all carry the torch differently. I respect him as a fighter and he’s done some great things. We were raised differently and I’m amazed at the great things he’s accomplished. But I’m here to bring a new look to Pittsburgh boxing.
“Omotoso is tough. His record speaks for itself at 25-1. His only loss was to Jessie Vargas who’s fighting for a world title. I don’t take anybody lightly. I’ve trained hard for this and I don’t think he’s fought anyone as fast as me or hits as hard as me with both hands.
“I’m going to throw a lot of punches and it should be fun to see. It will be an entertaining fight. The main goal is to win. If the opportunity presents itself to knock him out then I will. I’m not going to go in there trying to knock his head off or anything. I have to box smart.
“In this game it’s all about longevity and the less you get hit the longer you can fight so I don’t want to get hit. That’s my goal.”
WALE OMOTOSO
“I feel blessed to have the opportunity to fight on such a big stage. Fighting on network TV provides all of us such a lift. Getting this kind of national exposure is what fighters like me need and what we work so hard to get.
“I’m totally ready to take advantage and I look forward to being able to showcase my talents on Sunday. All my friends and countrymen are going to be able to watch it, and I don’t want to let them down.
“I really don’t know much about Vasquez, other than he’s a southpaw whose quick, he is just another fighter who can fight. But we can all fight. It’s not like he has four hands and two heads.
“The best man will be victorious and I am confident that is me.
“I can’t wait for Sunday. I wish it was time to fight right now. This is going to be my Father’s Day present to my kids and wife.”
Featured Articles
Avila Perspective, Chap. 309: 360 Promotions Opens with Trinidad, Mizuki and More
![Avila-Perspective-Chap-309-360-Promotions-Opens-with-Trinidad-Mizuki-and-More](https://tss.ib.tv/boxing/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Avila.png)
Avila Perspective, Chap. 309: 360 Promotions Opens with Trinidad, Mizuki and More
Best wishes to the survivors of the Los Angeles wildfires that took place last week and are still ongoing in small locales.
Most of the heavy damage took place in the western part of L.A. near the ocean due to Santa Ana winds. Another very hot spot was in Altadena just north of the Rose Bowl. It was a horrific tragedy.
Hopefully the worst is over.
Pro boxing returns with 360 Boxing Promotions spotlighting East L.A.’s Omar Trinidad (17-0-1, 13 KOs) defending a regional featherweight title against Mike Plania (31-4, 18 KOs) on Friday, Jan. 17, at the Commerce Casino in Commerce, Calif.
“I’m the king of L.A. boxing and I’ll be ready to put on a show headlining again in the main event. This is my year, I’m ready to challenge and defeat any of the featherweight world champions,” said Trinidad.
UFC Fight Pass will stream the Hollywood Night fight card that includes a female world championship fight and other intriguing match-ups.
Tom Loeffler heads 360 Promotions and once again comes full force with a hot prospect in Trinidad. If you’re not familiar with Loeffler’s history of success, he introduced America to Oleksandr Usyk, Gennady “GGG” Golovkin and the brothers Wladimir and Vitaly Kltischko.
“We’ve got a wealth of international talent and local favorites to kick off our 2025 in grand style,” said Loeffler.
He knows talent.
Trinidad hails from the Boyle Heights area of East L.A. near the Los Angeles riverbed. Several fighters from the past came from that exact area including the first Golden Boy, Art Aragon.
Aragon was a huge gate attraction during the late 1940s until 1960. He was known as a lady’s man and dated several Hollywood starlets in his time. Though he never won a world title he did fight world champions Carmen Basilio, Jimmy Carter and Lauro Salas. He was more or less the king of the Olympic Auditorium and Los Angeles boxing during his career.
Other famous boxers from the Boyle Heights area were notorious gangster Mickey Cohen and former world champion Joey Olivo.
Can Trinidad reach world title status?
Facing Trinidad will be Filipino fighter Plania who’s knocked off a couple of prospects during his career including Joshua “Don’t Blink” Greer and Giovanni Gutierrez. The fighter from General Santos in the Philippines can crack and hold his own in the boxing ring.
It’s a very strong fight card and includes WBO world titlist Mizuki Hiruta of Japan who defends the super flyweight title against Mexican veteran Maribel Ramirez. It’s a tough matchup for Hiruta who makes her American debut. You can’t miss her with that pink hair and she has all the physical tools to make a splash in this country.
![Mizukii Hiruta Mizukii Hiruta](https://tss.ib.tv/boxing/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Mizukii-Hiruta-300x298.png)
Mizukii Hiruta
Two other female bouts are also planned, including light flyweight banger L.A.’s Gloria Munguilla (6-1) against Coachella’s Brook Sibrian (5-1) in a match set for six rounds. Both are talented fighters. Another female fight includes super featherweights Iyana “Right Hook Roxy” Verduzco (2-0) versus Lindsey Ellis (2-1) in another six-rounder. Ellis can crack with all her wins coming via knockout. Verduzco is a multi-national titlist as an amateur.
Others scheduled to perform are Ali Akhmedov, Joshua Anton, Adan Palma and more.
Doors open at 4:30 p.m.
Boxing and the Media
The sport of professional boxing is currently in flux. It’s always in flux but no matter what people may say or write, boxing will survive.
Whether you like Jake Paul or not, he proved boxing has worldwide appeal with monstrous success in his last show. He has media companies looking at the numbers and imagining what they can do with the sport.
Sure, UFC is negotiating a massive billion dollar deal with media companies, as is WWE, both are very similar in that they provide combat entertainment. You don’t need to know the champions because they really don’t matter. Its about the attractions.
Boxing is different. The good champions last and build a following that endures even beyond their careers a la Mike Tyson.
MMA can’t provide that longevity, but it does provide entertainment.
Currently, there is talk of establishing a boxing league again. It’s been done over and over but we shall see if it sticks this time.
Pro boxing is the true warrior’s path and that means a solo adventure. It’s a one-on-one sport and that appeals to people everywhere. It’s the oldest sport that can be traced to prehistoric times. You don’t need classes in Brazilian Jiujitsu, judo, kick boxing or wrestling. Just show up in a boxing gym and they can put you to work.
It’s a poor person’s path that can lead to better things and most importantly discipline.
Photos credit: Lina Baker
To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE
Featured Articles
Boxing Trainer Bob Santos Paid his Dues and is Reaping the Rewards
![Boxing-Trainer-Bob-Santos-Paid-his-Dues-and-is-Reaping the Rewards](https://tss.ib.tv/boxing/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Santos2.png)
Bob Santos, the 2022 Sports Illustrated and The Ring magazine Trainer of the Year, is a busy fellow. On Feb. 1, fighters under his tutelage will open and close the show on the four-bout main portion of the Prime Video PPV event at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Jeison Rosario continues his comeback in the lid-lifter, opposing Jesus Ramos. In the finale, former Cuban amateur standout David Morrell will attempt to saddle David Benavidez with his first defeat. Both combatants in the main event have been chasing 168-pound kingpin Canelo Alvarez, but this bout will be contested for a piece of the light heavyweight title.
When the show is over, Santos will barely have time to exhale. Before the month is over, one will likely find him working the corner of Dainier Pero, Brian Mendoza, Elijah Garcia, and perhaps others.
Benavidez (29-0, 24 KOs) turned 28 last month. He is in the prime of his career. However, a lot of folk rate Morrell (11-0, 9 KOs) a very live dog. At last look, Benavidez was a consensus 7/4 (minus-175) favorite, a price that betokens a very competitive fight.
Bob Santos, needless to say, is confident that his guy can upset the odds. “I have worked with both,” he says. “It’s a tough fight for David Morrell, but he has more ways to victory because he’s less one-dimensional. He can go forward or fight going back and his foot speed is superior.”
Benavidez’s big edge, in the eyes of many, is his greater experience. He captured the vacant WBC 168-pound title at age 20, becoming the youngest super middleweight champion in history. As a pro, Benavidez has answered the bell for 148 rounds compared with only 54 for Morrell, but Bob Santos thinks this angle is largely irrelevant.
“Sure, I’d rather have pro experience than amateur experience,” he says, “but if you look at Benavidez’s record, he fought a lot of soft opponents when he was climbing the ladder.”
True. Benavidez, who turned pro at age 16, had his first seven fights in Mexico against a motley assortment of opponents. His first bout on U.S. soil occurred in his native Pheonix against an opponent with a 1-6-2 record.
While it’s certainly true that Morrell, 26, has yet to fight an opponent the caliber of Caleb Plant, he took up boxing at roughly the same tender age as Benavidez and earned his spurs in the vaunted Cuban amateur system, eventually defeating elite amateurs in international tournaments.
“If you look at his [pro] record, you will notice that [Morrell] has hardly lost a round,” says Santos of the fighter who captured an interim title in only his third professional bout with a 12-round decision over Guyanese veteran Lennox Allen.
Bob Santos is something of a late bloomer. He was around boxing for a long time, assisting such notables as Joe Goossen, Emanuel Steward, and Ronnie Shields before becoming recognized as one of the sport’s top trainers.
A native of San Jose, he grew up in a Hispanic neighborhood but not in a household where Spanish was spoken. “I know enough now to get by,” he says modestly. He attended James Lick High School whose most famous alumnus is Heisman winning and Super Bowl winning quarterback Jim Plunkett. “We worked in the same apricot orchard when we were kids,” says Santos. “Not at the same time, but in the same field.”
After graduation, he followed his father’s footsteps into construction work, but boxing was always beckoning. A cousin, the late Luis Molina, represented the U.S. as a lightweight in the 1956 Melbourne Summer Olympics, and was good enough as a pro to appear in a main event at Madison Square Garden where he lost a narrow decision to the notorious Puerto Rican hothead Frankie Narvaez, a future world title challenger.
Santos’ cousin was a big draw in San Jose in an era when the San Jose / Sacramento territory was the bailiwick of Don Chargin. “Don was a beautiful man and his wife Lorraine was even nicer,” says Santos of the husband/wife promotion team who are enshrined in the International Boxing Hall of Fame. Don Chargin was inducted in 2001 and Lorraine posthumously in 2018.
Chargin promoted Fresno-based featherweight Hector Lizarraga who captured the IBF title in 1997. Lizarraga turned his career around after a 5-7-3 start when he hooked up with San Jose gym operator Miguel Jara. It was one of the most successful reclamation projects in boxing history and Bob Santos played a part in it.
Bob hopes to accomplish the same turnaround with Jeison Rosario whose career was on the skids when Santos got involved. In his most recent start, Rosario held heavily favored Jarrett Hurd to a draw in a battle between former IBF 154-pound champions on a ProBox card in Florida.
“I consider that one of my greatest achievements,” says Santos, noting that Rosario was stopped four times and effectively out of action for two years before resuming his career and is now on the cusp of earning another title shot.
The boxer with whom Santos is most closely identified is former four-division world title-holder Robert “The Ghost” Guerrero. The slick southpaw, the pride of Gilroy, California, the self-proclaimed “Garlic Capital of the World,” retired following a bad loss to Omar Figueroa Jr, but had second thoughts and is currently riding a six-fight winning streak. “I’ve known him since he was 15 years old,” notes Santos.
Years from now, Santos may be more closely identified with the Pero brothers, Dainier and Lenier, who aspire to be the Cuban-American version of the Klitschko brothers.
Santos describes Dainier, one of the youngest members of Cuba’s Olympic Team in Tokyo, as a bigger version of Oleksandr Usyk. That may be stretching it, but Dainier (10-0, 8 KOs as a pro), certainly hits harder.
![Dainier Pero Dainier Pero](https://tss.ib.tv/boxing/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Daiinier-Pero-300x250.png)
Dainier Pero
This reporter was a fly on the wall as Santos put Dainier Pero through his paces on Tuesday (Jan. 14) at Bones Adams gym in Las Vegas. Santos held tight to a punch shield, in the boxing vernacular a donut, as the Cuban practiced his punches. On several occasions the trainer was knocked off-balance and the expression on his face as his body absorbed some of the after-shocks, plainly said, “My goodness, what the hell am I doing here? There has to be an easier way to make a living.” It was an assignment that Santos would have undoubtedly preferred handing off to his young assistant, his son Joe Santos, but Joe was preoccupied coordinating David Morrell’s camp.
Dainer’s brother Lenier is also an ex-Olympian, and like Dainier was a super heavyweight by trade as an amateur. With an 11-0 (8 KOs) record, Lenier Pero’s pro career was on a parallel path until stalled by a managerial dispute. Lenier last fought in March of last year and Santos says he will soon join his brother in Las Vegas.
There’s little to choose between the Pero brothers, but Dainier is considered to have the bigger upside because at age 25 he is the younger sibling by seven years.
Bob Santos was in the running again this year for The Ring magazine’s Trainer of the Year, one of six nominees for the honor that was bestowed upon his good friend Robert Garcia. Considering the way that Santos’ career is going, it’s a safe bet that he will be showered with many more accolades in the years to come.
To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE
Featured Articles
Bygone Days: The Largest Crowd Ever at Madison Square Garden Sees Zivic TKO Armstrong
![Bygone-Days-The-Largest-Crowd-Ever-at-Madison-Square-Garden-Sees-Zivic-TKO-Armstrong](https://tss.ib.tv/boxing/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/zivic2.png)
Bygone Days: The Largest Crowd Ever at Madison Square Garden Sees Zivic TKO Armstrong
There’s not much happening on the boxing front this month. That’s consistent with the historical pattern.
Fight promoters of yesteryear tended to pull back after the Christmas and New Year holidays on the assumption that fight fans had less discretionary income at their disposal. Weather was a contributing factor. In olden days, more boxing cards were staged outdoors and the most attractive match-ups tended to be summertime events.
There were exceptions, of course. On Jan. 17, 1941, an SRO crowd of 23,180 filled Madison Square Garden to the rafters to witness the welterweight title fight between Fritzie Zivic and Henry Armstrong. (This was the third Madison Square Garden, situated at 50th Street and Eighth Avenue, roughly 17 blocks north of the current Garden which sits atop Pennsylvania Station. The first two arenas to take this name were situated farther south adjacent to Madison Square Park).
This was a rematch. They had fought here in October of the previous year. In a shocker, Zivic won a 15-round decision. The fight was close on the scorecards. Referee Arthur Donovan and one of the judges had it even after 14 rounds, but Zivic had won his rounds more decisively and he punctuated his well-earned triumph by knocking Armstrong face-first to the canvas as the final bell sounded.
This was a huge upset.
Armstrong had a rocky beginning to his pro career, but he came on like gangbusters after trainer/manager Eddie Mead acquired his contract with backing from Broadway and Hollywood star Al Jolson. Heading into his first match with Zivic – the nineteenth defense of the title he won from Barney Ross – Hammerin’ Henry had suffered only one defeat in his previous 60 fights, that coming in his second meeting with Lou Ambers, a controversial decision.
Shirley Povich, the nationally-known sports columnist for the Washington Post, conducted an informal survey of boxing insiders and found only person who gave Zivic a chance. The dissident was Chris Dundee (then far more well-known than his younger brother Angelo). “Zivic knows all the tricks,” said Dundee. “He’ll butt Armstrong with his head, gouge him with his thumbs and hit him just as low as Armstrong [who had five points deducted for low blows in his bout with Ambers].”
Indeed, Pittsburgh’s Ferdinand “Fritzie” Zivic, the youngest and best of five fighting sons of a Croatian immigrant steelworker (Fritzie’s two oldest brothers represented the U.S. at the 1920 Antwerp Olympics) would attract a cult following because of his facility for bending the rules. It would be said that no one was more adept at using his thumbs to blind an opponent or using the laces of his gloves as an anti-coagulant, undoing the work of a fighter’s cut man.
Although it was generally understood that at age 28 his best days were behind him, Henry Armstrong was chalked the favorite in the rematch (albeit a very short favorite) a tribute to his body of work. Although he had mastered Armstrong in their first encounter, most boxing insiders considered Fritzie little more than a high-class journeyman and he hadn’t looked sharp in his most recent fight, a 10-round non-title affair with lightweight champion Lew Jenkins who had the best of it in the eyes of most observers although the match was declared a draw.
The Jan. 17 rematch was a one-sided affair. Veteran New York Times scribe James P. Dawson gave Armstrong only two rounds before referee Donovan pulled the plug at the 52-second mark of the twelfth round. Armstrong, boxing’s great perpetual motion machine, a world title-holder in three weight classes, repaired to his dressing room bleeding from his nose and his mouth and with both eyes swollen nearly shut. But his effort could not have been more courageous.
At the conclusion of the 10th frame, Donovan went to Armstrong’s corner and said something to the effect, “you will have to show me something, Henry, or I will have to stop it.” What followed was Armstrong’s best round.
“[Armstrong] pulled the crowd to its feet in as glorious a rally as this observer has seen in twenty-five years of attendance at these ring battles,” wrote Dawson. But Armstrong, who had been stopped only once previously, that coming in his pro debut, had punched himself out and had nothing left.
Armstrong retired after this fight, siting his worsening eyesight, but he returned in the summer of the following year, soldiering on for 46 more fights, winning 37 to finish 149-21-10. During this run, he was reacquainted with Fritzie Zivic. Their third encounter was fought in San Francisco before a near-capacity crowd of 8,000 at the Civic Auditorium and Armstrong got his revenge, setting the pace and working the body effectively to win a 10-round decision. By then the welterweight title had passed into the hands of Freddie Cochran.
Hammerin’ Henry (aka Homicide Hank) Armstrong was named to the International Boxing Hall of Fame with the inaugural class of 1990. Fritzie Zivic followed him into the Hall three years later.
Active from 1931 to 1949, Zivic lost 65 of his 231 fights – the most of anyone in the Hall of Fame, a dubious distinction – but there was yet little controversy when he was named to the Canastota shrine because one would be hard-pressed to find anyone who had fought a tougher schedule. Aside from Armstrong and Jenkins, he had four fights with Jake LaMotta, four with Kid Azteca, three with Charley Burley, two with Sugar Ray Robinson, two with Beau Jack, and singles with the likes of Billy Conn, Lou Ambers, and Bob Montgomery. Of the aforementioned, only Azteca, in their final meeting in Mexico City, and Sugar Ray, in their second encounter, were able to win inside the distance.
By the way, it has been written that no event of any kind at any of the four Madison Square Gardens ever drew a larger crowd than the crowd that turned out on Jan. 17, 1941, to see the rematch between Fritzie Zivic and Henry Armstrong. Needless to say, prizefighting was big in those days.
A recognized authority on the history of prizefighting and the history of American sports gambling, TSS editor-in-chief Arne K. Lang is the author of five books including “Prizefighting: An American History,” released by McFarland in 2008 and re-released in a paperback edition in 2020.
To comment on this stoty in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE
-
Featured Articles3 weeks ago
The Ortiz-Bohachuk Thriller has been named the TSS 2024 Fight of The Year
-
Featured Articles3 weeks ago
For Whom the Bell Tolled: 2024 Boxing Obituaries PART ONE (Jan.-June)
-
Featured Articles2 weeks ago
R.I.P. Paul Bamba (1989-2024): The Story Behind the Story
-
Featured Articles4 weeks ago
Lucas Bahdi Forged the TSS 2024 Knockout of the Year
-
Featured Articles4 weeks ago
Usyk Outpoints Fury and Itauma has the “Wow Factor” in Riyadh
-
Featured Articles3 weeks ago
Oleksandr Usyk is the TSS 2024 Fighter of the Year
-
Featured Articles2 weeks ago
For Whom the Bell Tolled: 2024 Boxing Obituaries PART TWO: (July-Dec.)
-
Featured Articles4 weeks ago
Steven Navarro is the TSS 2024 Prospect of the Year