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No Charge for Champions at Brockton’s Shrine to Rocky and Marvelous Marvin

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Rocky

An Italian joint is changing hands in the City of Champions, but this ain’t just any old restaurant, it’s the venerable George’s Cafe at 228 Belmont Street. At this famous Massachusetts eatery, established in 1937 by patriarch George Tartaglia, there are several decades worth of boxing history riveted to the walls in the form of photos, press clippings, and other signed memorabilia devoted to champions Rocky Marciano and Marvelous Marvin Hagler.

Each get their own shrine at George’s.

According to the Brockton Enterprise which reported the 2.4 million dollar transaction on Monday, January 7th, George’s will still be called George’s and will still serve the same classic menu items including veal parmigiana and pan style pizza. The seasoned waitstaff and kitchen employees will be retained, and most importantly to some people, the boxing stuff is staying put.

“They’re keeping all the photographs,” says 83-year-old Charlie Tartaglia of new group owner Hamilton Rodrigues’ nostalgic desire to buy more than just a hole in the wall for hungry people to eat. “They want it authentic. They want it Brockton,” Tartaglia told his hometown newspaper.

“But there is one thing I’m keeping,” Tartaglia told me. It’s a piece of authentic hand drawn boxing art, penned and signed by the greatest. “Muhammad Ali sat down with me in a booth,” he recalled. “And on a paper placemat he drew a boxing ring with two stick figures inside. He named them Ali and Frazier. He said, ‘I love Frazier, we made a lot of money together.’”

Why is Tartaglia selling his family owned and operated business? Having lost two of his children in the late 2000s and with his own health now failing, he knows the restaurant business is incredibly hard work. He’s not sure any of his eight grandchildren are up to the task of taking over.

Located exactly one mile from a massive twenty-two foot tall statue of Marciano on the grounds of nearby Brockton High School, George’s is a classy portal to the city’s rich boxing history. How would I describe it to somebody who’s never been there? Ever gone to Jimmy’s Corner in Times Square? It’s similar but much bigger with better food. It’s a lot like Graziano’s in Canastota, New York if the International Boxing Hall of Fame were situated in Brockton, Mass.

When they’re not serving Basilio sausage sandwiches to uninitiated locals, Graziano’s exists to honor the memory of Canastota’s two homegrown world champions Billy Backus and Carmen Basilio. The biggest difference between the two boxing themed restaurants is that Graziano’s has the IBHOF’s annual Induction Weekend festivities to help keep the business afloat.

There hasn’t been a world champion or even a very good contender from Brockton in a long time. It’s all about the Rocky statue now. It’s becoming quite a tourist attraction. A beautiful brick wall was recently constructed at its base, surrounding Marciano in a squared circle of red rocks that now includes a section commissioned in remembrance of Allie Colombo, Rocky’s trainer.

If you came to Brockton when ‘The Rock’ was unveiled in 2012 on the 60th anniversary of his 13th-round KO of Jersey Joe Walcott to win the title in Philadelphia, George’s was the go-to hot spot for those celebrating the life and times of boxing’s only undefeated heavyweight champion.

There was a fiesta in the boxing community that September 23rd with George’s walls of fame serving as inner sanctum. If you wanted to see a tipsy Larry Holmes singing his heart out into a silver spoon in praise of the 49-0 Marciano, George’s dimly lit dining room was the place to be.

I know because I was there. Holmes, a formerly fierce critic of Marciano’s accomplishments, acted as goodwill ambassador for boxing, earning respect and forgiveness from Brocktonians for his below the belt comments about Rocky.

As Holmes sipped red wine and dined on authentic Italian fare, all that hate melted away like so much pork fat. George’s is where Holmes made amends to the people he’d hurt with his words. All those memories are memorialized on the walls and in the stories told at the two bars.

Marciano, reigning heavyweight champion, was a regular customer during his time in Brockton though I know for a fact that he never had to pay for a meal. Rocky and his trainers used to analyze all his fights in the dining room over dinner: spaghetti and meatballs with orange soda.

When former heavyweight king Muhammad Ali came to the City of Champions in 1995, he famously visited George’s twice; dining with local politicians and meeting with eager fight fans hungry for his valuable autograph. Ali’s pilgrimage to the birthplace of the real Rocky remains one of the greatest events in Brockton sports history and a highlight of George’s VIP guest list.

Put it on your bucket list.

Nothing less than boxing royalty has passed through George’s doors and into their old world. You’ll love it. Newly elected boxing Hall of Famer Tony “Nardo” DeMarco, Vinny Pazienza, and Irish Micky Ward are just a few fighters from New England who’ve crossed the threshold.

One of the most interesting items on display inside is a boxing license application for Sugar Ray Robinson. It’s dated March 5, 1955. It’s signed by Robinson and features a note typed up by the Boston doctor who examined him with three images taken from Sugar Ray’s electrocardiogram.

Talk about the heart and soul of boxing.

Other notable guests at George’s include Willie Pep, Paul Pender, Kenny Norton, Riddick Bowe, James Toney, Emanuel Steward, Lou Duva, Don King, Teddy Atlas, Vito Antuofermo, Leon Spinks, and the late WBC President José Sulaimán who the Tartaglias credit for Rocky’s statue.

Without the WBC’s generous funding, there is no statue. “I’ve got a pizza named after José on the menu, double cheese and ham. He’s one of the nicest gentlemen I ever met,” says Tartaglia.

If Brockton ever gets around to erecting a tribute statue for its all-time great middleweight champion Marvin Hagler, rest assured the Marvelous One will make the long trip home from Italy where he’ll find George’s Cafe waiting for him—a time machine to his championship past.

Will that day ever come to pass?

The city doesn’t seem interested in paying for it and the WBC hasn’t offered to fund it. If Hagler wants a statue of his own, it sounds like he should consider paying for it himself. That’s what Tartaglia did when he recently put up a bronze plaque in honor of Hagler at Brockton’s Massasoit Community College. “Nobody ever did nothing for Marvin,” Charlie reminds me.

In a rapidly changing world where what’s old and white isn’t necessarily what’s loved anymore, George’s will remain an oasis of greatness devoted to the good old days of Brockton, Rocky and Marvin; the good old days of a proud city many no longer recognize. New owner Hamilton Rodrigues plans to modernize the establishment—but he promises not to change a thing.

“I’m not rocking the boat.”

I’ll raise a glass to that. Salud!

Boxing writer Jeffrey Freeman grew up in the City of Champions, Brockton, Massachusetts from 1973 to 1987, during the marvelous career of Marvin Hagler. He then lived in Lowell, Mass during the best years of Irish Micky Ward’s illustrious career. A new member of the Boxing Writers Association of America, Freeman covers boxing for The Sweet Science in New England.

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Skylar Lacy Blocked for Lamar Jackson before Making his Mark in Boxing

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Skylar Lacy, a six-foot-seven heavyweight, returns to the ring on Sunday, Feb. 2, opposing Brandon Moore on a card in Flint, Michigan, airing worldwide on DAZN.

As this is being written, the bookmakers hadn’t yet posted a line on the bout, but one couldn’t be accused of false coloring by calling the 10-round contest a 50/50 fight. And if his frustrating history is any guide, Lacy will have another draw appended to his record or come out on the wrong side of a split decision.

This should not be construed as a tip to wager on Moore. “Close fights just don’t seem to go my way,” says the boxer who played alongside future multi-year NFL MVP Lamar Jackson at the University of Louisville.

A 2021 National Golden Gloves champion, Skylar Lacy came up short in his final amateur bout, losing a split decision to future U.S. Olympian Joshua Edwards. His last Team Combat League assignment resulted in another loss by split decision and he was held to a draw in both instances when stepping up in class as a pro. “In my mind, I’m still undefeated,” says Lacy (8-0-2, 6 KOs). “No one has ever kicked my ass.”

Lacy was the B-side in both of those draws, the first coming in a 6-rounder against Top Rank fighter Antonio Mireles on a Top Rank show in Lake Tahoe, Nevada, and the second in an 8-rounder against George Arias, a Lou DiBella fighter on a DiBella-promoted card in Philadelphia.

Lacy had the Mireles fight in hand when he faded in the homestretch. The altitude was a factor. Lake Tahoe, Nevada (officially Stateline) sits 6,225 feet above sea level. The fight with Arias took an opposite tack. Lacy came on strong after a slow start to stave off defeat.

Skylar will be the B-side once again in Michigan. The card’s promoter, former world title challenger Dmitriy Salita, inked Brandon Moore (16-1, 10 KOs) in January. “A capable American heavyweight with charisma, athleticism and skills is rare in today’s day and age. Brandon has got all these ingredients…”, said Salita in the press release announcing the signing. (Salita has an option on Skylar Lacy’s next pro fight in the event that Skylar should win, but the promoter has a larger investment in Moore who was previously signed to Top Rank, a multi-fight deal that evaporated after only one fight.)

Both Lacy and Moore excelled in other sports. The six-foot-six Moore was an outstanding basketball player in high school in Fort Lauderdale and at the NAIA level in college. Lacy was an all-state football lineman in Indiana before going on to the University of Louisville where he started as an offensive guard as a redshirt sophomore, blocking for freshman phenom Lamar Jackson. “Lamar was hard-working and humble,” says Lacy about the player who is now one of the world’s highest-paid professional athletes.

When Lacy committed to Louisville, the head coach was Charlie Strong who went on to become the head coach at the University of Texas. Lacy was never comfortable with Strong’s successor Bobby Petrino and transferred to San Jose State. Having earned his degree in only three years (a BA in communications) he was eligible immediately but never played a down because of injuries.

Returning to Indianapolis where he was raised by his truck dispatcher father, a single parent, Lacy gravitated to Pat McPherson’s IBG (Indy Boxing and Grappling) Gym on the city’s east side where he was the rare college graduate pounding the bags alongside at-risk kids from the city’s poorer neighborhoods.

Lacy built a 12-6 record across his two seasons in Team Combat League while representing the Las Vegas Hustle (2023) and the Boston Butchers (2024).

For the uninitiated, a Team Combat League (TCL) event typically consists of 24 fights, each consisting of one three-minute round. The concept finds no favor with traditionalists, but Lacy is a fan. It’s an incentive for professional boxers to keep in shape between bouts without disturbing their professional record and, notes Lacy, it’s useful in exposing a competitor to different styles.

“It paid the bills and kept me from just sitting around the house,” says Lacy whose 12-6 record was forged against 13 different opponents.

As a sparring partner, Lacy has shared the ring with some of the top heavyweights of his generation, e.g., Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua and Dillian Whyte. He was one of Fury’s regular sparring partners during the Gypsy King’s trilogy with Deontay Wilder. He worked with Joshua at Derrick James’ gym in Dallas and at Ben Davison’s gym in England, helping Joshua prepare for his date in Saudi Arabia with Francis Ngannou and had previously sparred with Ngannou at the UFC Performance Center in Las Vegas. Skylar names traveling to new places as one of his hobbies and he got to scratch that itch when he joined Whyte’s camp in Portugal.

As to the hardest puncher he ever faced, he has no hesitation: “Ngannou,” he says. “I negotiated a nice price to spend a week in his camp and the first time he hit me I knew I should have asked for more.”

Lacy is confident that having shared the ring with some of the sport’s elite heavyweights will get him over the hump in what will be his first 10-rounder (Brandon Moore has never had to fight beyond eight rounds, having won his three 10-rounders inside the distance). Lacy vs. Moore is the co-feature to Claressa Shields’ homecoming fight with Danielle Perkins. Shields, basking in the favorable reviews accorded the big-screen biopic based on her first Olympic journey (“The Fire Inside”) will attempt to capture a title in yet another weight class at the expense of the 42-year-old Perkins, a former professional basketball player.

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Mizuki Hiruta Dominates in her U.S. Debut and Omar Trinidad Wins Too at Commerce

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Japan’s Mizuki Hiruta smashed through Mexico’s Maribel Ramirez with ease in winning by technical decision and local hero Omar Trinidad continued his assault on the featherweight division on Friday.

Hiruta (7-0, 2 KOs), who prefers to be called “Mimi,” made her American debut with an impressive performance against Mexican veteran Maribel Ramirez (15-11-4) and retained the WBO super flyweight world title by unanimous decision at Commerce Casino in Commerce, Calif.

The pink-haired Japanese southpaw champion quickly proved to be quicker, stronger and even better than advertised. In the opening round Ramirez landed on the floor twice after throwing errant blows. On one instance, it could have been ruled a knockdown but it was not a convincing blow.

In the second round, Ramirez again attacked and again was met with a Hiruta check right hook and down went the Mexican. This time referee Ray Corona gave the eight-count and the fight resumed.

It was Hiruta’s third title defense but this time it was on American soil. She seemed nervous by the prospect of getting a favorable review from the more than 700 fans inside the casino tent.

For more than a year Hiruta has been training off and on with Manny Robles in the L.A. area. Now that she has a visa, she has spent considerable time this year learning the tricks of the trade. They proved explosively effective.

Though Mexico City’s Ramirez has considerable experience against world champions, she discovered that Hiruta was not easy to hit. Often, the Japanese champion would slip and counter with precision.

It was an impressive American debut, though the fight was stopped in the eighth round after a collision of heads. The scores were tallied and all three saw Hiruta the winner by scores of 80-71 twice and 79-72.

“I’m so happy. I could have done much more,” said Hiruta through interpreter Yuriko Miyata. “I wanted to do more things that Manny Robles taught me.”

Trinidad Wins Too

Omar Trinidad (18-0-1, 13 KOs) discovered that challenger Mike Plania (31-5, 18 KOs) has a very good chin and staying power. But over 10 rounds Trinidad proved to be too fast and too busy for the Filipino challenger.

Immediately it was evident that the East L.A. featherweight was too quick and too busy for Plania who preferred a counter-puncher attack that never worked.

“He was strong,” said Trinidad. “He took everything.”

After 10 redundant rounds all three judges scored for Trinidad 100-90 twice and 99-91. He retains the WBC Continental Americas title.

Other Bouts

Ali Akhmedov (23-1, 17 KOs) blasted out Malcolm Jones (17-5-1) in less than two rounds. A dozen punches by Akhmedov forced referee Thomas Taylor to stop the super middleweight fight.

Iyana “Roxy” Verduzco (3-0) bloodied Lindsey Ellis in the first round and continued the speedy assault in the next two rounds. Referee Ray Corona saw enough and stopped the fight in favor of Verduzco at 1:34 of the third round.

Gloria Munguilla (7-1) and Brook Sibrian (5-2) lit up the boxing ring with a nonstop clash for eight rounds in their light flyweight fight. Munguilla proved effective with a slip-and-counter attack. Sibrian adjusted and made the fight closer in the last four rounds but all three judges favored Munguilla.

More Winners

Joshua Anton, Tayden Beltran, Adan Palma, and Alexander Gueche all won their bouts.

Photos credit: Al Applerose

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Avila Perspective, Chap. 309: 360 Promotions Opens with Trinidad, Mizuki and More

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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

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

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