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R.I.P. Iconic L.A. Boxing Figure Marty Denkin
Marty Denkin passed away at his home in West Covina, California, on Thursday, Nov. 29, at age eighty-four. Denkin wore many hats during his 40-plus years on the SoCal boxing scene. He refereed hundreds of fights and judged thousands. During his terms as an assistant executive director of the California State Athletic Commission he ran the Los Angeles office. He also played himself in several movies and owns the distinction of being the only man to count out Rocky Balboa.
Denkin was born in New York City but moved with his family to Los Angeles at a very young age. By his count, he had 124 amateur fights but never turned pro. Hard sparring sessions with professionals such as lightweight champion Lauro Salas convinced him that his future lay elsewhere.
During a period that started in the late 1980s, the CSAC was under such a severe budget crunch that the Los Angeles office had only one full-time staffer. That was Denkin. With the power to approve or disapprove matches, to fine or suspend licensees of any stripe â a power that he wasnât shy about wielding â Denkin made many enemies.
In June of 1989, Denkin was fired from his $40,000 a year post after he was accused of accepting cash and jewelry from assorted people â a promoter, three managers, and two matchmakers â in return for certain favors. Additionally, one of his assistants accused him of accepting money in return for rigging the scale when a fighter was certain to come in a few pounds overweight. By California law, a person in Denkinâs position was required to report any gratuity of $50 or more.
Denkin vehemently denied the charges.
He appealed the ruling and was eventually vindicated.
In November of 1991, in a 14-page ruling, an administrative law judge ruled that the evidence was overwhelming that Denkinâs accusers conspired to get him fired because they had an axe to grind. Denkin was reinstated.
But he wasnât free of controversy. Shortly before he was fired, Denkin approved the re-licensing of boxing manager Harold Rossfields Smith who had just been released from prison after serving six years for embezzling $25 million from the Wells Fargo bank. His license application was not placed before the commission, as was standard procedure, but acted upon privately. The late Los Angeles Times boxing writer Earl Gustkey broke the story. Also, Denkinâs close relationship with WBC president Jose Sulaiman was looked upon in some quarters as a conflict of interest.
In May of 1995, Gustkey revealed that Denkin once put together a group to manage the affairs of hot prospect Oscar De La Hoya and that the âGolden Boyâ had flown the coup without reimbursing them for training expenses, or so they claimed. This was a definite conflict of interest. Denkin refereed De La Hoyaâs first professional fight, a first round stoppage of Lamar Williams at the Great Western Forum. (The Denkin group wasnât alone. Shelly Finkel alleged that he subsidized De La Hoya when Oscar was an amateur and was left holding the bag when Oscar turned pro. Steve Nelson and Bob Mittleman, Oscarâs original managers, had a similar tale of woe when Bob Arum entered the picture.)
In May of 2015, Denkin announced that he would retire after working as a judge for the WBC world flyweight title fight at the Forum between Roman âChocolatitoâ Gonzalez and challenger Edgar Sosa. But in common with so many of the boxers with whom he rubbed elbows, his pronouncement was premature. He continued to work as a judge at small California shows, including a few MMA fights, right through this year.
Denkin and his wife Rachel were married for 52 years. He is survived by three children, seven grandchildren, and two great grandchildren. We here at The Sweet Science send our condolences. May he rest in peace.
Photo from the twitter page of Frank Espinoza of the Espinoza Boxing Club
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Floyd Schofield Wins a Banger and Gabriela Fundora Wins by KO
Floyd Schofield Wins a Banger and Gabriela Fundora Wins by KO
LAS VEGAS-Shades of Henry Armstrong and Baby Arizmendi. If you donât know those names, look them up.
Floyd Schofield battled his way past Mexicoâs super tough Rene Tellez Giron who walked through every blow the Texan could fire but lost by decision on Saturday.
It was a severe test and perfect matchmaking for Schofield who yearns for the big bouts against the lightweight giants roaming the world.
Schofield (18-0, 12 KOs) remains undefeated and won the war over thick-necked Mexican Tellez Giron (20-4, 13 KOs) who has never been knocked out and proved to be immune to big punches.
In the opening rounds, the Texas fighter came out firing rapid combinations from the southpaw and orthodox stances. Meanwhile the shorter Tellez Giron studied and fired back an occasional counter for two rounds.
Tellez Giron had seen enough and took his stand in the third stanza. Both unleashed blazing bombs with Schofield turning his back to the Mexican. At that moment referee Tom Taylor could have waved the fight over.
You never turn your back.
The fight resumed and Schofield was damaged. He tried to open up with even more deadly fire but was rebuked by the strong chin of Tellez Giron who fired back in the mad frenzy.
For the remainder of the fight Schofield tried every trick in his arsenal to inflict damage on the thick-necked Mexican. He could not be wobbled. In the 11th round both opened up with serious swing-from-the-heels combinations and suddenly Schofield was looking up. He beat the count easily and the two remained slugging it out.
âHe hit me with a good shot,â Schofield said of the knockdown. âI just had to get up. Iâm not going to quit.â
In the final round Schofield moved around looking for the proper moment to engage. The Mexican looked like a cat ready to pounce and the two fired furious blows. Neither was hit with the big bombs in the last seconds.
There was Tellez Giron standing defiantly like Baby Arizmendi must have stood in those five ferocious meetings against the incomparable Henry Armstrong. Three of their wars took place in Los Angeles, two at the Olympic Auditorium in the late 1930s as the U.S. was emerging from the Great Depression.
In this fight, Schofield took the win by unanimous decision by scores 118-109 twice and 116-111. It was well-deserved.
âI tried to bang it out,â said Schofield. âToday I learned you canât always get the knockout.â
Fundora
IBF flyweight titlist Gabriela Fundora needed seven rounds to figure out the darting style of Argentinaâs Gabriela Alaniz before firing a laser left cross down the middle to end the battle and become the undisputed flyweight world champion.
Fundora now holds all four titles including the WBO, WBA and WBC titles that Alaniz brought in the ring.
Fundora knocked down Alaniz midway through the seventh round. She complained it was due to a tangle of the legs. Several seconds later Fundora blasted the Argentine to the floor again with a single left blast. This time there was no doubt. Her corner wisely waved a white towel to stop the fight at 1:40 of the seventh round.
No one argued the stoppage.
Other Bouts
Bektemir Melikuziev (15-1, 10 KOs) didnât make weight in a title bout but managed to out-fight David Stevens (14-2, 10 KOs) in a super middleweight fight held at 12 rounds.
Melikuziev used his movement and southpaw stance to keep Pennsylvaniaâs Stevens from being able to connect with combinations. But Stevens did show he could handle âThe Bullyâsâ punching power over the 12-round fight.
After 12 rounds one judge favored Stevens 116-112, while two others saw Melikuziev the winner by split decision 118-110 and 117-111.
Super middleweight WBA titlist Darius Fulghum (13-0, 11 KOs) pummeled his way to a technical knockout win over southpaw veteran Chris Pearson (17-5-1, 12 KOs) who attempted the rope-a-dope strategy to no avail.
Fulghum floored Pearson in the first round with a four-punch combination and after that just belted Pearson who covered up and fired an occasional blow. Referee Mike Perez stopped the fight at 1:02 of the third round when Pearson did not fire back after a blazing combination.
Young welterweight prospect Joel Iriarte (5-0, 5 KOs) blasted away at the three-inch shorter Xavier Madrid (5-6, 2 KOs) who hung tough for as long as possible. At 2:50 of the first round a one-two delivered Madrid to the floor and referee Thomas Taylor called off the beating.
Iriarte, from Bakersfield, Calif., could not miss with left uppercuts and short rights as New Mexicoâs Madrid absorbed every blow but would not quit. It was just too much firepower from Iriarte that forced the stoppage.
Photos credit: Cris Esqueda / Golden Boy
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Results and Recaps from Turning Stone where OâShaquie Foster Nipped Robson Conceicao
Top Rank was at the Turning Stone casino-resort in Verona, New York, tonight with an 8-bout card topped by a rematch between Robson Conceicao and OâShaquie Foster with the victor retaining or recapturing his IBF world junior lightweight title. When the smoke cleared, the operative word was “recapturing” as Foster became a two-time title-holder, avenging his controversial setback to the Brazilian in Newark on July 6.
This was a somewhat better fight than their initial encounter and once again the verdict was split. Foster prevailed by 115-113 on two of the cards with the dissenting judge favoring Conceicao by the same margin. Conceicao seemingly had the edge after nine frames, but Foster, a 4/1 favorite, landed the harder shots in the championship rounds.
It was the thirteenth victory in the last 14 starts for Foster who fights out of Houston. A two-time Olympian and 2016 gold medalist, the 36-year-old Conceicao is 19-3-1 overall and 1-3-1 in world title fights.
Semi-wind-up
SoCal lightweight Raymond Muratalla (22-0, 17 KOs) made a big jump in public esteem and moved one step closer to a world title fight with a second-round blast-out of Jose Antonio Perez who was on the canvas twice but on his feet when the fight was stopped at the 1:24 mark of round two. Muratalla, a product of Robert Garciaâs boxing academy, is ranked #2 by the WBC and WBO. A Tijuana native, Perez (25-6) earned this assignment with an upset of former Olympian and former 130-pound world titlist Jojo Diaz,
Other Bouts
Syracuse junior welterweight Bryce Mills, a high-pressure fighter with a strong local following, stopped scrawny Mike OâHan Jr whose trainer Mark DeLuca pulled him out after five one-sided rounds. Mills improved to 17-1 (6 KOs). It was another rough day at the office for Massachusetts house painting contractor OââHan (19-4) who had the misfortune of meeting Abdullah Mason in his previous bout.
In a junior lightweight fight that didnât heat up until late in the final round, Albanyâs Abraham Nova (23-3-1) and Tijuana native Humberto Galindo (14-3-3) fought to a 10-round draw. It was another close-but-no- cigar for the likeable Nova who at least stemmed a two-fight losing streak. The judges had it 97-93 (Galindo), 96-94 (Nova) and 95-95.
Twenty-one-year-old Long Island middleweight Jahi Tucker advanced to 13-1-1 (6 KOs) with an eighth-round stoppage of Stocktonâs teak-tough but outclassed Quilisto Madera (14-6). Madera was on a short leash after five rounds, but almost took it to the final bell with the referee intervening with barely a minute remaining in the contest. Madera was on his feet when the match was halted. Earlier in the round, Tucker had a point deducted for hitting on the break.
Danbury, Connecticut heavyweight Ali Feliz, one of two fighting sons of journeyman heavyweight Fernely Feliz, improved to 4-0 (3) with a second-round stoppage of beefy Rashad Coulter (5-5). Feliz had Coulter pinned against the ropes and was flailing away when the bout was halted at the 1:34 mark. The 42-year-old Coulter, a competitor in all manner of combat sports, hadnât previously been stopped when competing as a boxer.
Featherweight Yan Santana dominated and stopped Mexicoâs Eduardo Baez who was rescued by referee Charlie Fitch at the 1:57 mark of round four. It was the 12th knockout in 13 starts for Santana, a 24-year-old Dominican father of three A former world title challenger, Mexicaliâs Baez declines to 23-7-2 but has lost six of his last eight.
In his most impressive showing to date, Damian Knyba, a six-foot-seven Pole, knocked out paunchy Richard Lartey at the 2:10 mark of round three. A right-left combination knocked Lartey into dreamland, but it was the right did the damage and this was of the nature of a one-punch knockout. Referee Ricky Gonzalez waived the fight off without starting a count.
Knyba, 28, improved to 14-0 (8 KOs). A native of Ghana coming off his career-best win, a fourth-round stoppage of Polish veteran Andrzej Wawrzyk, Lartey declined to 16-7 with his sixth loss inside the distance.
Photo credit: Mikey Williams / Top Rank
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Avila Perspective, Chap. 303: Spotlights on Lightweights and More
Those lightweights.
Whether junior lights, super lights or lightweights, itâs the 130-140 divisions where most of boxingâs young stars are found now or in the past.
Think Oscar De La Hoya, Sugar Shane Mosley and Floyd Mayweather.
Floyd Schofield (17-0, 12 KOs) a Texas product, hungers to be a star and takes on Mexicoâs Rene Tellez Giron (20-3, 13 KOs) in a 12-round lightweight bout on Saturday, Nov. 2, at the Virgin Hotels Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada.
DAZN will stream the Golden Boy Promotion card that includes a female undisputed flyweight championship match pitting Argentinaâs Gabriela Alaniz and Gabriela Fundora.
Like a young lion looking to flex, Schofield (pictured on the left) Â is eager to meet all the other young lions and prove theyâre not equal.
âIâve been in the room with Shakur, Tank. I want to give everyone a good fight. I feel like my preparation is getting better, I work hard, Iâve dedicated my whole life to this sport,â said Schofield naming fellow lightweights Shakur Stevenson and Gervonta âTankâ Davis.
Now he meets Mexicoâs Tellez who has never been stopped.
âI’m willing to do whatever it takes,â said Tellez.
Even in Las Vegas.
Verona, New York
Meanwhile, in upstate New York, a WBC junior lightweight title rematch finds Robson Conceicao (19-2-1, 9 KOs) looking to prove superior to former titlist OâShaquie Foster (22-3, 12 KOs) on Saturday, Nov. 2, at the Turning Stone Resort and Casino in Verona, N.Y. ESPN+ will stream the Top Rank fight card.
Last July, Conceicao and Foster clashed and after 12 rounds the title changed hands from Foster to the Brazilian by split decision.
âI feel that a champion is a fighter who goes out there and doesn’t run around, who looks for the fight, who tries to win, and doesn’t just throw one or two punches and then moves away,” said Conceicao.
Foster disagrees.
âI hope he knows the name of the game is to hit and not get hit. That’s the name of the game,â said Foster.
Also on the same card is lightweight contender Raymond Muratalla (21-0, 16 KOs) who fights Mexicoâs Jesus Perez Campos (25-5, 18 KOs).
Perez recently defeated former world champion Jojo Diaz last February in California.
âWe’re made for challenges. I like challenges,â said Perez.
Muratalla likes challenges too.
“I think these fights are the types of fights I need to show my skills and to prove I deserve those title fights,” said Fontanaâs Muratalla.
Female Undisputed Flyweight Championship
WBA, WBC and WBO flyweight titlist Gabriela âLa Chuckyâ Alaniz (15-1, 6 KOs meets IBF titlist Gabriela Fundora (14-0, 6 KOs) on Saturday Nov. 2, at the Virgin Hotels Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada. DAZN will stream the clash for the undisputed flyweight championship.
Argentinaâs Alaniz clashed twice against former WBA, WBC champ Marlen Esparza with their first encounter ending in a dubious win for the Texas fighter. In fact, three of Esparzaâs last title fights were scored controversially.
But against Alaniz, though they fought on equal terms, Esparza was given a 99-91 score by one of the judges though the world saw a much closer contest. So, they fought again, but the rematch took place in California. Two judges deemed Alaniz the winner and one Esparza for a split-decision win.
âIâm really happy to be here representing Argentina. We are ready to fight. Nothing about this fight has to do with Marlen. So, I hope she (Fundora) is ready. I am ready to prepare myself for the great fight of my life,â said Alaniz.
In the case of Fundora, the extremely tall American fighter at 5â9â in height defeated decent competition including Maria Santizo. She was awarded a match with IBF flyweight titlist Arely Mucino who opted for the tall youngster over the dangerous Kenia Enriquez of Mexico.
Bad choice for Mucino.
Fundora pummeled the champion incessantly for five rounds at the Inglewood Forum a year ago. Twice she battered her down and the fight was mercifully stopped. Fundoraâs arm was raised as the new champion.
Since that win Fundora has defeated Christina Cruz and Chileâs Daniela Asenjo in defense of the IBF title. In an interesting side bit: Asenjo was ranked as a flyweight contender though she had not fought in that weight class for seven years.
Still, Fundora used her reach and power to easily handle the rugged fighter from Chile.
Immediately after the fight she clamored for a chance to become undisputed.
âIt doesnât get better than this, especially being in Las Vegas. This is the greatest opportunity that we can have,â said Fundora.
It should be exciting.
Fights to Watch
Sat. ESPN+ 2:50 p.m. Robson Conceicao (19-2-1) vs OâShaquie Foster (22-3).
Sat. DAZN 5 p.m. Floyd Schofield (17-0) vs Rene Tellez Giron (20-3); Gabriela Alaniz (15-1) vs Gabriela Fundora (14-0).
Photo credit: Cris Esqueda / Golden Boy
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