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Words In, Words Out: This Fight Scribe’s Reading Guide

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Words In, Words Out: This Fight Scribe’s Reading Guide

Happy New Year 2020 to the TSS community!

It’s hard to believe we’ve arrived at this point in the future. So many of yesterday’s top boxing writers and boxing media outlets are gone but not forgotten.

Wordsmiths like Pat Putnam and Joe Rein are no longer with us. The glory days of Max Boxing and other internet start-ups have passed. Newspaper writers like Boston’s own Ron Borges are harder and harder to access as print media recedes from view. It’s a new decade and my sights are set on the best of today.

As evidenced by their yearly haul of BWAA Bernie Awards, your choice to read and frequent The Sweet Science is smartly based on both quality AND quantity. This is a space where professional boxing journalism is still being done by real pros.

Thank you for being here.

My sincere thanks also to fellow writers Arne Lang, David Avila, Ted Sares, Kelsey McCarson—and the two Matts. You fellas have set a good example and you’ve set a standard for others like myself to follow.

Special congratulations to TSS colleagues Bernard Fernandez and Thomas Hauser for their recent, well-earned election to the International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota. To any true fistic journalist, BFern and Hauser (as they’re called) are the best examples of what to do and how to do it.

“There are two elements required to produce a quality boxing story,” explains Fernandez. “One is the writing. The other is the depth and accuracy of the reporting, the detail stuff. Thomas Hauser not only writes elegantly, demonstrating a mastery of the language, but he digs as deep as anyone to ensure that his copy includes every pertinent and verifiable bit of information.”

A very well-spoken boxer recently thanked me for the diligence I put into telling his story on TSS. I didn’t watch him train in the gym or spend any time with him in his dressing room before a big fight. But I did do my homework. I owe every fighter that much. It is the high bar set by new Hall of Famers Hauser and Fernandez that challenges me to write and report at their level.

There is a well-read soft-cover copy of Mr. Hauser’s famous book Muhammad Ali: His Life and Times in my bathroom in Maine. My favorite scene in Rocky Balboa is when Fernandez (playing himself) tells the panel on ESPN, including Bert Randolph Sugar, that Mason Dixon “never had to dig down to rally back” and that he doesn’t have a big enough shovel anyway.

Apparently, Fernandez wrote his own line of dialogue about that shovel and ad-libbed it into the 2006 film. The director liked it. “I facetiously asked if that would get me a screenwriting credit.”

THE WRITE STUFF

In 2018, only Boxing News and ESPN (led by investigative reporter Mark Kreigel) outdid The Sweet Science in the annual BWAA writing contest participated in by its members. The popular Boxing Scene tied TSS for third place.

No lightweight in the industry, Boxing Scene publishes respected writers such as Cliff Rold and Lyle Fitzsimmons but the hyper-busy website actively flips the notion of quality over quantity. Other news outlets finishing in the top ten included The Sporting News, RingTV (the online face of The Ring magazine), The Los Angeles Times, The Associated Press, and Sports Illustrated.

If I’m not writing about boxing, I am reading about it. Or watching it. For every single word I write, a hundred or more must be read. Words in, words out, see? But where exactly do I find fighting words worth reading in 2020? Here are a few of my sources, laid bare for your examination.

The list is by no means exhaustive but it is an honest accounting of who I read where. These are the sites and writers I turn to when there’s nothing fresh to consume and digest on TSS.

Springs Toledo: This North End Bostonian is the best boxing writer in the world, word-for-word. I read Toledo wherever I can find him. His old-fashioned books are meticulously researched and flow like poetry. His columns and features are recognized with Bernie Awards year after year. An exceptional contributor at TSS and elsewhere, Toledo’s real baby is his boxing ratings program, the Transnational Boxing Ranking Board. I enjoy the site’s feedback page more than its top tens. It is here that Toledo answers his critics and tries to make sense of his decisions.

The Fight City: Appropriately based out of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, The Fight City online offers its readers a “literary edge that embraces this brutal, cruel, glorious, heartbreaking sport in all its facets.” Featuring bylines from Lee Wylie and Ralph E. Semein, the site updates frequently enough to keep me coming back looking for another insightful column or new quality feature. While I wait, I gladly take in their many Top Twelve lists and fleshed out historical flashbacks.

Ringside Seat: Boasting a murderers’ row of “old guard” fight writers including Nigel Collins, Steve Farhood, Ivan Goldman, Carlo Rotella, Don Stradley and Eric Raskin, Ringside Seat is an e-mag designed to “provide boxing fans with a product unlike any other currently available.” For six bucks you can download the latest issue or any one of their exquisitely designed eight back issues; all of which feature thoughtful cover art and the typical trappings of a magazine.

Hannibal Boxing: Joseph Santoliquito (current BWAA President) recently joined a packed staff of contributors that’s already loaded with heavy hitters like Carlos Acevedo, Tris Dixon, and Frank Lotierzo. Hannibal Boxing regulars Sean Nam and Jimmy Tobin are also excellent writers. Boston based Hamilcar Publications, the book publishing division of Hannibal Boxing, offers a line of boxing titles in print (a few of them were reviewed here) with several more forthcoming in 2020.

NYFights: This relatively new website of former TSS editor-in-chief Michael Woods placed fourth in the latest BWAA writing contest. I go there for the TalkBox podcasts with Woodsy & Guests but end up staying for the Commissioner’s Corner columns by New York State boxing icon Randy Gordon. Stick around a bit longer and you might develop a taste for their man on the streets John Gatling.

 

groves

Honorable Mentions: The RingTV website ain’t what it used to be but I still enjoy the Travelin’ Man reports penned by one of the friendliest people in boxing, Lee Groves (pictured above). If friendly fun is all you’re really looking for, check out the reimagined Ring Magazine under creative editor-in-chief Douglas Fischer the next time you’re stuck at an airport or sitting in a Barnes & Noble. The retro covers and the cool content reflect his true love of the fight game. And with HBO Boxing gone but not forgotten, I don’t read as much Kieren Mulvaney as in years past, but what a writer.

Photo: 2020 IBHOF inductees Thomas Hauser and Bernard Fernandez flank BWAA president Joseph Santoliquito. Photo compliments of Joseph Santoliquito.

Boxing Writer Jeffrey Freeman grew up in the City of Champions, Brockton, Massachusetts from 1973 to 1987, during the Marvelous career of Marvin Hagler. JFree 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 and a Bernie Award Winner in the Category of Feature Under 1500 Words, Freeman covers boxing for The Sweet Science in New England.

Check out more boxing news on video at The Boxing Channel 

To comment on this story in The Fight Forum CLICK HERE

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Mercito Gesta Victorious Over Jojo Diaz at the Long Beach Pyramid

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LONG BEACH, CA.-Those in the know knew Mercito Gesta and Jojo Diaz would be a fight to watch and they delivered.

Gesta emerged the winner in a super lightweight clash between southpaws that saw the judges favor his busier style over Diaz’s body attack and bigger shots and win by split decision on Saturday.

Despite losing the main event because the star was overweight, Gesta (34-3-3, 17 KOs) used an outside method of tactic to edge past former world champion Diaz (32-4-1, 15 KOs) in front of more than 5,000 fans at the Pyramid.

The speedy Gesta opened up the fight with combination punching up and down against the peek-a-boo style of Diaz. For the first two rounds the San Diego fighter overwhelmed Diaz though none of the blows were impactful.

In the third round Diaz finally began unloading his own combinations and displaying the fast hands that helped him win world titles in two divisions. Gesta seemed stunned by the blows, but his chin held up. The counter right hook was Diaz’s best weapon and snapped Gesta’s head back several times.

Gesta regained control in the fifth round after absorbing big blows from Diaz. He seemed to get angry that he was hurt and opened up with even more blows to send Diaz backpedaling.

Diaz targeted his attack to Gesta’s body and that seemed to slow down Gesta. But only for a round.

From the seventh until the 10th each fighter tried to impose their style with Gesta opening up with fast flurries and Diaz using right hooks to connect with solid shots. They continued their method of attack until the final bell. All that mattered was what the judges preferred.

After 10 rounds one judge saw Diaz the winner 97-93 but two others saw Gesta the winner 99-91, 98-92. It was a close and interesting fight.

“I was expecting nothing. I was the victor in this fight and we gave a good fight,” said Gesta. “It’s not an easy fight and Jojo gave his best.”

Diaz was surprised by the outcome but accepted the verdict.

Everything was going good. I thought I was landing good body shots,” said Diaz. “I was pretty comfortable.”

Other Bouts

Mexico’s Oscar Duarte (25-1-1, 20 KOs) knocked out Chicago’s Alex Martin (18-5, 6 KOs) with a counter right hand after dropping him earlier in the fourth round. The super lightweight fight was stopped at 1:14 of the round.

A battle between undefeated super welterweights saw Florida’s Eric Tudor (8-0, 6 KOs) emerge the winner by unanimous decision after eight rounds versus Oakland’s Damoni Cato-Cain.

The taller Tudor showed polished skill and was not bothered by a large cut on his forehead caused by an accidental clash of heads. He used his jab and lead rights to defuse the attacks of the quick-fisted southpaw Cato-Cain. The judges scored the fight 80-72 and 78-74 twice for Tudor.

San Diego’s Jorge Chavez (5-0, 4 KOs) needed less than one round to figure out Nicaragua’s Bryan Perez (12-17-1, 11 KOs) and send him into dreamland with a three-punch combination. No need to count as referee Ray Corona waved the fight over. Perez shot a vicious right followed by another right and then a see-you-later left hook at 3.00 of the first round of the super featherweight match.

Photo credit: Al Applerose

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Jojo Diaz’s Slump Continues; Mercito Gesta Prevails on a Split Decision

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At age 30, Jojo Diaz’s career is on the skids. The 2012 U.S. Olympian, a former world title holder at 126 and 130 pounds and an interim title holder at 135, Diaz suffered his third straight loss tonight, upset by Mercito Gesta who won a split decision at the Walter Pyramid in Long Beach, CA.. The scoring was strange with Gesta winning nine of the 10 rounds on one of the cards and only three rounds on another. The tie-breaker, as it were, was a 98-92 tally for Gesta and even that didn’t capture the flavor of what was a closely-contested fight.

Originally listed as a 12-rounder, the match was reduced to 10 and that, it turned out, did Diaz no favors. However, it’s hard to feel sorry for the former Olympian as he came in overweight once again, having lost his 130-pound title on the scales in February of 2021.

Diaz also has issues outside the ropes. Best elucidated by prominent boxing writer Jake Donovan, they include a cluster of legal problems stemming from an arrest for drunk driving on Feb. 27 in the LA suburb of Claremont.

With the defeat, Diaz’s ledger declined to 32-4-1. His prior losses came at the hands of Gary Russell Jr, Devin Haney, and William Zepeda, boxers who are collectively 83-2. Mercito Gesta, a 35-year-old San Diego-based Filipino, improved to 34-3-3.

Co-Feature

Chihuahua, Mexico super lightweight Oscar Duarte has now won nine straight inside the distance after stopping 33-year-old Chicago southpaw Alex Martin in the eighth frame. Duarte, the busier fighter, had Martin on the deck twice in round eight before the fight was waived off.

Duarte improved to 25-1-1 (20). Martin, who reportedly won six national titles as an amateur and was once looked upon as a promising prospect, declined to 18-5.

Other Bouts of Note

New Golden Boy signee Eric Tudor, a 21-year-old super welterweight from Fort Lauderdale, overcame a bad laceration over his right eye, the result of an accidental clash of heads in round four, to stay unbeaten, advancing to 8-0 (6) with a hard-fought unanimous 8-round decision over Oakland’s Damoni Cato-Cain. The judges had it 80-72 and 78-74 twice. It was the first pro loss for Cato-Cain (7-1-1) who had his first five fights in Tijuana.

In the DAZN opener, lanky Hawaian lightweight Dalis Kaleiopu went the distance for the first time in his young career, improving to 4-0 (3) with a unanimous decision over 36-year-old Colombian trial horse Jonathan Perez (40-35). The scores were 60-52 across the board. There were no knockdowns, but Perez, who gave up almost six inches in height, had a point deducted for a rabbit punch and another point for deducted for holding.

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‘Big Baby’ Wins the Battle of Behemoths; TKOs ‘Big Daddy’ in 6

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Lucas “Big Daddy” Browne weighed in at a career-high 277 pounds for today’s battle in Dubai with Jarrell “Big Baby” Miller, but he was the lighter man by 56 pounds. It figured that one or both would gas out if the bout lasted more than a few stanzas.

It was a war of attrition with both men looking exhausted at times, and when the end came it was Miller, at age 34 the younger man by nine years, who had his hand raised.

Browne was the busier man, but Miller, whose physique invites comparison with a rhinoceros, hardly blinked as he was tattooed with an assortment of punches. He hurt ‘Bid Daddy’ in round four, but the Aussie held his own in the next frame, perhaps even forging ahead on the cards, but only postponing the inevitable.

In round six, a succession of right hands knocked Browne on the seat of his pants. He beat the count, but another barrage from Miller impelled the referee to intervene. The official time was 2:33. It was the 21st straight win for Miller (26-0-1, 22 KOs). Browne declined to 31-4 and, for his own sake, ought not fight again. All four of his losses have come inside the distance, some brutally.

The consensus of those that caught the livestream was that Floyd Mayweather Jr’s commentary was an annoying distraction that marred what was otherwise an entertaining show.

As for what’s next for “Big Baby” Miller, that’s hard to decipher as he has burned his bridges with the sport’s most powerful promoters. One possibility is Mahmoud Charr who, like Miller, has a big gap in his boxing timeline. Now 38 years old, Charr – who has a tenuous claim on a WBA world title (don’t we all?) —  has reportedly taken up residence in Dubai.

Other Bouts of Note

In a 10-round cruiserweight affair, Suslan Asbarov, a 30-year-old Russian, advanced to 4-0 (1) with a hard-fought majority decision over Brandon Glanton. The judges had it 98-92, 97-93, and a more reasonable 95-95.

Asbarov was 12-9 in documented amateur fights and 1-0 in a sanctioned bare-knuckle fight, all in Moscow, entering this match. He bears watching, however, as Glanton (18-2) would be a tough out for almost anyone in his weight class. In his previous fight, at Plant City, Florida, Glanton lost a controversial decision to David Light, an undefeated Australian who challenges WBO world title-holder Lawrence Okolie at Manchester, England next week.

A 10-round super featherweight match between former world title challengers Jono Carroll and Miguel Marriaga preceded the semi-windup. Carroll, a 30-year-old Dublin southpaw, overcame a cut over his left eye suffered in the second round to win a wide unanimous decision in a fairly entertaining fight.

It was the sixth straight win for Carroll (24-2-1, 7 KOs) who elevated his game after serving as a sparring partner for Devin Haney. Marriaga, a 36-year-old Colombian, lost for the fourth time in his last five outings, declining to 30-7.

To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE

 

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