Featured Articles
Beware Fearless Freddie
Beware Fearless Freddie
Some fighters launch and sustain long winning streaks; others engage long losing streaks. Some, like Mexican cult legend Quirino Garcia (40-28-4) and the late Saoul Mamby (45-34-6), did both.
And some, like Joey Olivera (21-13-1), Rogers Mtagwa (27-17-2), Manning Galloway (63-19-1) and Emanuel Augustus (38-34-6) mixed things up in spurts. Another, Darnell Boone (24-25-5), is still fighting and is very unpredictable as Andre Ward, Adonis Stevenson, and Sergey Kovalev discovered. When these men are on their game, their opponents can be on the dangerous side of things
For those who like to go back in time, Teddy âRed Topâ Davis (71-75-6) provided early TV fans with many shockers as did Holly Mims (68-28-6). The names from back then go on and on.
A favorite was the very active, old schoolish âFearlessâ Freddie Pendleton (47-26-6) who fought a remarkable 25 times in Atlantic City but also duked frequently in California and Nevada. And get this, the Philadelphian went in with 17 world champions!
The Record
With only a handful of amateur fights, Freddie lost four of his first six including his debut on November 5, 1981. But he was naturally talented, a combination boxer-puncher with a bazooka for a right hand.
In just his sixth pro fight, he was put in against the very skilled, undefeated and streaking Jerome Coffee and dropped a UD. He then reeled off four quick wins before losing to Gerald Hayes (20-18-4) in October 1982 and to Bobby Johnson (16-0) in March of the following year. After beating one Jose Rodriguez, he stepped up against Anthony Fletcher (13-0 at the time) and lost a 10-rounder but not before decking âTwo Gunsâ in the fifth round, signaling that he could be a dangerous opponent for anyone.
After a draw and three wins in a row, he lost to former world champion Hilmer Kenty by UD at Cobo Hall in Detroitâbut many thought Freddie had been stiffed: âThat was highway robbery. I beat him from pillar to postâŠEverybody expected me to get knocked out, and when I beat him up like that, I pissed off a lot of people in Detroit,â he told Anson Wainwright for a story in The Ring magazine.
Two months later in Detroit and again at Cobo Hall, âFearlessâ took the fight away from the judges and shocked undefeated Tyrone Trice (12-0) by flooring him three times in the first round for a big TKO. People now knew who Pendleton was and what he was capable of. (As an aside and reflecting the significance of this win, multiple title challenger Trice subsequently won 16 straight.)
âYou could see the confidence that he (Trice) was going to just walk in there and destroy me. I expected a tough fight, and then the first shot I caught him with heâs down. I knew I was the outsider, so I went after him and put him away. That was one of the biggest wins early in my career.â
Unlike Trice, however, Freddie lost four of his next seven though against very tough opposition including Adolfo Medal (21-1), Joe Manley (20-2), Frankie Randall (21-0), Jimmy Paul (23-1), and a very slick and underrated Darryl Martin (9-2) whom he beat for a regional title,
In March 1986, Pendleton (14-13 at the time) took on Roger Mayweather (23-3) in Las Vegas and amazingly knocked out Roger in the 6th round with a lightning fast right that put Roger to sleep in frightening fashion.
Freddie then drew with Frankie Randall in July 1086 and also with Livingstone Bramble (24-2-1) almost a year later. Then, amidst a 6-fight win steak, he ambushed and stopped Bramble in a rematch in July 1988. After being KOd by John Montes (38-4) in a slugfest, he extended Pernell Whitaker (20-1) for 12 rounds before losing a close UD with the WBC and IBF world lightweight title belts at stake.
Even though his record was a most deceptive 24-16-3, his reputation was growing fast and it only seemed a matter of time for the big show.
His time was NOW!
Fearless launched a 12-fight undefeated streak after his loss to Whitaker that included a draw with Tracy âSlam Bamâ Spann and wins over the likes of Eric Podolak, Felix Dubray, and Spann in a rematch. This later win in January 1993 in Atlantic City earned Freddie the IBF world lightweight title. His record at the time was just 32-17-4.
âFearlessâ successfully defended it against the dangerous Jorge Paez (46-6-4) in July 1993 but then lost three controversial fights in a row. The one against Rafael Ruelas (39-1) was especially questionable as Rafael hit the deck twice in the first round. This loss cost Freddie his title, and he would never regain a major belt.
Freddie launched still another win-streak in late 1994 by knocking out Steve Larrimore in the tenth round. He stopped Darryl Tyson (45-6-1) in 1995 and then he outslugged and stopped Tony Lopez (45-5-1) by decking him four times in Las Vegas in what can only be termed an under-the-radar-classic. Lopez (whose level of opposition was equally off the charts) had decked Freddie twice. These were big wins, especially the one against Lopez.
Pendleton would then win some and lose some including three unsuccessful title attempts against Felix Trinidad (28-0), Vince Phillips (37-3), and James Page (24-3).
After stopping one Horatio Garcia (12-3-1) for something called the IBA Americas Welterweight Title, he met Ricky Hatton (25-0) in Manchester, England, on October 27,2001 for the World Boxing Union Super Lightweight title. Freddie was knocked out early by the prime Hatton and that ended his remarkable career.
Freddie Pendleton, now 57 and a trainer, was inducted into the Florida Boxing Hall of Fame in June 2011.
If any fighter lived up to his nickname, it was âFearlessâ Freddie Pendleton.
Ted Sares can be reached at tedsares@roadrunner.com
Check out more boxing news on video at The Boxing ChannelÂ
To comment on this story in The Fight Forum CLICK HERE
Featured Articles
Ramon Cardenas Channels Micky Ward and KOs Eduardo Ramirez on ProBox
The Wednesday night bi-monthly series of fights on the ProBox TV platform is the best deal in boxing; the livestream is free with no strings attached! Tonightâs episode was headlined by a super bantamweight match between San Antonioâs Ramon Cardenas and Eduardo Ramirez who brought a caravan of rooters from his hometown in Guaymas, Sonora, Mexico.
Cardenas, coached by Joel Diaz, entered the contest ranked #4 by the WBA. He was expected to handle Ramirez with little difficulty, but this was a close, tactical fight through eight frames when lightning struck in the form of a left hook to the liver from Cardenas. Ramirez went down on one knee and wasnât able to beat the count. It was as if Cardenas summoned the ghost of Micky Ward who had a penchant for terminating fights with the same punch that arrived out of the blue.
The official time was 1:37 of round nine. Cardenas improved to 25-1 with his14th win inside the distance. Ramirez, who was stopped in the opening round by Nick âWreckingâ Ball in London in his lone previous fight outside Mexico, falls to 23-3-3.
Co-Feature
In an upset, Tijuana super welterweight Damian Sosa won a split decision over previously undefeated Marques Valle, a local area fighter who was stepping up in class in his first 10-round go. Sosa was the aggressor, repeatedly backing his taller opponent into the ropes where Valle was unable to get good leverage behind his punches.
The 25-year-old Valle, managed by the influential David McWater, was the house fighter. This was his 10th appearance in this building. He brought a 10-0 (7) record and was hoping to emulate the success of his younger brother Dominic Valle who scored a second-round stoppage of his opponent in this ring two weeks ago, improving to 9-0. But Sosa, who brought a 24-2 record, proved to be a bridge too high.
The judges had it 97-93 and 96-94 for the Tijuana invader and a disgraceful 98-92 for the house fighter.
Also
In a fight whose abrupt ending would be echoed by the main event, 34-year-old SoCal featherweight Ronny Rios, now training in Las Vegas, returned to the ring after a 22-month hiatus and scored a fifth-round stoppage over Nicolas Polanco of the Dominican Republic.
A three-punch combo climaxed by a left hook to the liver took the breath out of Polanco who slumped to his knees and was counted out. A two-time world title challenger, Rios advanced to 34-4 (17 KOs). Polanco, 34, declined to 21-6-1. The official time was 0:54 of round five.
—
The next ProBox show (Wednesday, May 8) will have an international cast with fighters from Kazakhstan, Japan, Mongolia, and the United Kingdom. In the main event, Liverpoolâs Robbie Davies Jr will make his U.S. debut against the California-based Kazakh Sergey Lipinets.
To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE
Featured Articles
Haney-Garcia Redux with the Focus on Harvey Dock
Saturdayâs skirmish between Ryan Garcia and WBC super lightweight champion Devin Haney was a messy affair, and yet a hugely entertaining fight fused with great drama. In the aftermath, Garcia and Haney were celebrated â the former for fooling all the experts and the latter for his gallant performance in a losing effort â but there were only brickbats for the third man in the ring, referee Harvey Dock.
Devin Haney was plainly ahead heading into the seventh frame when there was a sudden turnabout when Garcia put him on the canvas with his vaunted left hook. Moments later, Dock deducted a point from Garcia for a late punch coming out of a break. The deduction forced a temporary cease-fire that gave Haney a few precious seconds to regain his faculties. Before the round was over, Haney was on the deck twice more but these were ruled slips.
The deduction, which effectively negated the knockdown, struck many as too heavy-handed as Dock hadnât previously issued a warning for this infraction. Moreover, many thought he could have taken a point away from Haney for excessive clinching. As for Haneyâs second and third trips to the canvas in round seven, they struck this reporter â watching at home â as borderline, sufficient to give referee Dock the benefit of the doubt.
In a post-fight interview, Ryan Garcia faulted the referee for denying him the satisfaction of a TKO. âAt the end of the day, Harvey Dock, I think he was tripping,â said Garcia. âHe could have stopped that fight.â
Those that played the rounds proposition, placing their coin on the âunder,â undoubtedly felt the same way.
The internet lit up with comments assailing Dockâs competence and/or his character. Some of the ponderings were whimsical, but they were swamped by the scurrilous screeching of dolts who find a conspiracy under every rock.
Stephen A. Smith, reputedly Americaâs highest-paid TV sports personality, was among those that felt a need to weigh-in: âThis referee is absolutely terribleâŠ.Unreal! Horrible officiating,â tweeted Stephen A whose primary area of expertise is basketball.
Harvey Dock
Dock fought as an amateur and had one professional fight, winning a four-round decision over a fellow novice on a show at a non-gaming resort in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania. He says that as an amateur he was merely average, but he was better than that, a New Jersey and regional amateur champion in 1993 and 1994 while a student New Jerseyâs Essex County Community College where he majored in journalism.
A passionate fan of Sugar Ray Leonard, he started officiating amateur fights in 1998 and six years later, at age 32, had his first documented action at the professional level, working low-level cards in New Jersey. The top boxing referees, to a far greater extent than the top judges, had long apprenticeships, having worked their way up from the boonies and Dock is no exception.
Per boxrec, Haney vs Garcia was Harvey Dockâs 364th assignment in the pros and his forty-second world title fight. Some of those title fights were title in name only, they werenât even main events, but, bit by bit, more lucrative offerings started coming his way.
On May 13, 2023, Dock worked his first fights in Nevada, a 4-rounder and then a 12-rounder on a card at the Cosmopolitan topped by the 140-pound title fight between Rolly Romero and Ismael Barroso. It was the first time that this reporter got to watch Dock in the flesh.
Ironically (in hindsight), the card would be remembered for the actions of a referee, in this case Tony Weeks who handled the main event. Barroso was winning the fight on all three cards when Weeks stepped in and waived it off in the ninth round after Romero cornered Barroso against the ropes and let loose a barrage of punches, none of which landed cleanly. Few âpremature stoppagesâ were ever as garishly, nay ghoulishly, premature.
With all the brickbats raining down on Weeks, I felt a need to tamp down the noise by diverting attention away from Tony Weeks and toward Harvey Dock and took to the TSS Forum to share my thoughts. Referencing the 12-rounder, a robust junior welterweight affair between Batyr Akhmedov and Kenneth Sims Jr, I noted that Dockâs Las Vegas debut went smoothly. He glided effortlessly around the ring, making him inconspicuous, the mark of a good referee. (This post ran on May 15, two days after the fight.)
Folks at the Nevada State Athletic Commission were also paying attention. Dock was back in Las Vegas the following week to referee the lightweight title fight between Devin Haney and Vasyl Lomachenko and before the year was out, he would be tabbed to referee the biggest non-heavyweight fight of the year, the July 29 match in Las Vegas between Terence Crawford and Errol Spence Jr.
The Haney-Garcia fight wasnât Harvey Dockâs best hour, Iâll concede that, but a closer look at his full body of work informs us that he is an outstanding referee.
—
While the Haney-Garcia bout was in progress, WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman threw everyone a curve ball, tweeting on âXâ that Devin Haney would keep his title if he lost the fight. Everyone, including the TV commentators, was under the impression that the title would become vacant in the event that Haney lost.
Sulaiman cited the precedent of Corrales-Castillo II.
FYI: The Corrales-Castillo rematch, originally scheduled for June 3, 2005 and aborted on the day prior when Castillo failed to make weight, finally came off on Oct. 8 of that year, notwithstanding the fact that Castillo failed to make weight once again, scaling three-and-a-half pounds above the lightweight limit. He knocked out Corrales in the fourth round with a left hook that Las Vegas Review-Journal boxing writer Kevin Iole, alluding to the movie âBlazing Saddles,â described as Mongo-esque (translation: the punch would have knocked out a horse). After initially insisting on a rubber match, which had scant chance of happening, WBC president Jose Sulaiman, Mauricioâs late father, ruled that Corrales could keep his title.
Whether or not you agree with Mauricio Sulaimanâs rationale, the timing of his announcement was certainly awkward.
Haneyâs mandatory is Spanish southpaw Sandor Martin (42-3, 15 KOs), a cutie best known for his 2021 upset of Mikey Garcia. A bout between Haney and Martin has the earmarks of a dull fight.
To comment on this story in the Fight Forum, CLICK HERE
Â
Featured Articles
In a Shocker, Ryan Garcia Confounds the Experts and Upsets Devin Haney
Its good to be crazy. Like a fox.
Ryan âKingRyâ Garcia knocked down WBC super lightweight titlist Devin Haney three times to remind everyone of his fighting abilities in winning by majority decision on Saturday.
âI just knew what I could do,â Garcia said.
Fans will not forget the lanky kid from Victorville, California now.
Garcia (25-1, 20 KOs) fooled everyone in playing crazy weeks before the fight, then showed shocking power to hand Haney (30-1, 15 KOs) his first loss as a professional at Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
Haneyâs WBC super lightweight title was not at stake for Garcia because he weighed three pounds over the limit.
After Garcia seemingly acting out of control on social media, Haneyâs guard must have slipped in the first round during the first few seconds as Garcia connected with that hellish left hook and Haney, with a look of shock in his eyes, almost went down. He barely survived the first round.
âHe caught me with it,â said Haney.
During the next few rounds, Haney proceeded to advance toward Garcia seemingly fully aware of the lethal left hook. He used feints and rights to score with a busier approach as Garcia seemed cocked and ready to counter with a left hook.
In the fourth round it seemed Haney was confident he had regained control of the fight, but every time he opened up with more than a two-punch combination Garcia reminded him whose hands were faster and more dangerous.
Though Garcia seldom jabbed he seemed bent on looking for the right moment to unleash his deadly left hook. And every time the Southern California fighter opened up with a combination he scored and Haney dare not exchange.
A few times Haney smiled as if signifying he escaped.
In the seventh round Haney looked to punish Garciaâs body and instead was met with a three-punch combination included a left hook to the chin and down went Haney slumped on the ground. He managed to beat the count and as soon as Garcia came within reach Haney wrapped his arms around him with a python grip. Despite the warnings by referee Harvey Dock, the fallen fighter would not release and Garcia impatiently fired a weak punch during the break. The referee deducted a point from Garcia though he could have deducted a point from Haney for not obeying his instructions to release his hold. Haney actually went down three times in the round but only one was counted by the referee.
From that point on Haney was very cautious but still looking to win by decision.
Though Garcia kept using a shoulder-roll defense that left his body exposed, he would retaliate with three and four punch combinations that usually Haney could defend against other fighters.. But Garciaâs blazing combinations were too fast to defend.
In the 10th round Haney looked to attack and was countered by Garciaâs right and a blinding left hook to the chin and another two blows that sent the former undisputed lightweight champion to the floor again.
It didnât look good for Haney to survive.
Garcia walked into the 11th round still composed and never out-of-control He dared Haney to exchange and when within striking distance Garcia unleashed another lightning combination and down went Haney again with a defeated look.
Both fighters had fought each other as amateurs six times so there were no surprises between them. But Garciaâs power and speed were superior and that was the difference in a professional fight.
In the final round both were cautious with Garciaâs combination punching proving too dangerous for Haney to open up. Garcia celebrated early as the round ended confident of victory.
After 12 rounds Garcia was seen the victor by majority decision 112-112, 114-110, 115-109.
âYou really thought I was crazy,â Garcia told the interviewer and the crowd. âYou guys hated on me.â
Other Bouts
Arnold Barboza (30-0) won a curious split decision victory over United Kingdomâs Sean McComb (18-2) in a 10-round super lightweight fight. McCombâs long reach and busy southpaw style gave Barboza trouble. But he managed to win the fight though the crowd was not pleased.
Bektemir Melikuziev (14-1, 10 KOs) defeated Franceâs Pierre Dibombe (22-1-1) by technical decision after eight rounds due to a cut on his eye from an accidental head butt. It was a very competitive super middleweight fight.
Costa Ricaâs David Jimenez (16-1, 11 KOs) outworked John âScrappy Ramirez (13-1, 9 KOs) in a 12-round scrap to upset the Los Angeles based fighter. After a few close rounds Jimenez simply bullied his way inside and forced Ramirez against the ropes and unloaded his guns.
After 12 rounds two judges saw it 117-111 and 116-114 all for Jimenez.
âIâm a hard-working man from Cartago I come from nothing,â said Jimenez. âMy corner told me I had to work inside.â
Charles Conwell (19-0, 14 KOs) stepped on the gas early with vicious body shots and uppercuts and blasted through the resilient Nathaniel Gallimore (22-8-1, 17 KOs) for several rounds. After a brutal fifth and sixth round the referee halted the one-side beating in favor of Conwell who was fighting for the first time under the Golden Boy banner.
Another winner was Sergiy Derevyanchenko (15-5) by decision over Vaughn Alexander (18-11-1) in a super middleweight match.
To comment on this story in the Forum CLICK HERE
-
Featured Articles7 days ago
In a Massive Upset, Dakota Linger TKOs Kurt Scoby on a Friday Night in Atlanta
-
Featured Articles3 weeks ago
Hitchins Controversially Upends Lemos on a Matchroom Card at the Fontainebleau
-
Featured Articles4 weeks ago
Undercard Results from Arizona where Richard Torrez Jr Scored Another Fast KO
-
Featured Articles4 weeks ago
Avila Perspective, Chap. 278: Clashes of Spring in Phoenix, Las Vegas, and LA
-
Featured Articles4 weeks ago
Zurdo Ramirez Accomplishes Another First; Unseats Cruiser Titlist Goulamirian
-
Featured Articles3 weeks ago
Avila Perspective, Chap. 280: Oscar Valdez, One of Boxingâs Good Guys, and More
-
Featured Articles3 weeks ago
The Hauser Report: Â Literary Notes and More
-
Featured Articles3 weeks ago
The Sky is the Limit for Globetrotting Aussie Featherweight Skye Nicolson