Archie Moore’s Toledo Phase

Published

2 years ago

June 29, 2023

Archie Moore’s Toledo Phase

The most attractive boxing card on this weekend’s docket is being staged in Toledo, Ohio. Jared Anderson and Arslanbek Makhmudov, fast-rising heavyweight contenders with eye-popping knockout ratios, meet credible opponents in the featured bouts. ESPN will televise the Top Rank promotion.

The show will inevitably spawn references to the first big heavyweight fight in Toledo, the July 4, 1919 clash between Jack Dempsey and Jess Willard, the fountainhead of America’s Golden Era of Sports. From the standpoint of historic importance, no other boxing event in Toledo has ever come close to matching it, but the city on the shores of Maumee Bay has served as the stomping ground for some colorful boxers including Archie Moore, the man widely considered the greatest of all the light heavyweight title-holders.

Moore’s Toledo phase hasn’t received much attention. That’s understandable as there were so many phases to his remarkable 28-year career.

In a 1954 story for Sports Illustrated, Budd Schulberg found the perfect metaphor. He likened Moore to a tumbleweed.

Indeed, perhaps no other boxer in history drifted across more of the planet. Moore’s peregrinations took him to 25 U.S. states plus the District of Columbia, and 12 foreign countries spread across four continents!

It seems fitting that Archie’s final ring engagement came against a professional wrestler, Iron Mike DiBiase. Back in those days, long before cable television and flat screen TVs, there were more than a dozen influential wrestling promoters in America, each controlling a specific regional territory. Pro wrestlers hunkered down for a spell when they went to a new city. Eventually the local mat fans would tire of them and off they would go to a new territory. The female counterparts of the pro wrestlers were the bump-and-grind dancers that worked the burlesque circuit.

Archie Moore had much in common with those wrestlers. Early in his career, he had eight fights within a five-month span in San Diego. This was his first of several San Diego phases. The city eventually became his adopted home. St. Louis, where he spent his boyhood, and Baltimore also factored large in his “Mongoose” days before the prefix “Old” was attached to it. He bunched multiple fights inside tight windows in both places.

One of Moore’s more interesting phases began in March of 1940. From his base in Sydney, he had seven fights in Australian rings over the next four months, each scheduled for 12 rounds. He would have another foreign phase in 1951. From his base in Buenos Aires, he had eight fights in nine weeks, seven in Argentina and the other in neighboring Uruguay.

Before leaving for South America, Moore had eight fights in Toledo, the first six in 1949.

These were his opponents, listed chronologically:

Jan. 10, 1949 – Alabama Kid – An old warhorse who had been around since 1928, the Alabama Kid was born Clarence Reeves in Georgia. Moore knocked him out in the fourth round. They would fight again later that year in Columbus, Ohio, where the “Kid” then hung his hat and the result would be virtually identical (Moore KO 3).

Jan. 31, 1949 – Bob Satterfield – A fighter who would be remembered as a knockout artist with a glass jaw, Satterfield was credited with having knocked out 28 of his 35 opponents in pre-fight reports. Moore knocked him down four times before the fight was stopped in the third round.

April 11, 1949 – Jimmy Bivins – This was the fourth meeting of what would be a five-fight series. A future Hall of Famer whose best days were behind him, Bivins brutalized Moore in their first encounter in 1945, but Archie won the rest, stopping Bivins in the eighth round on this occasion. Unlike most of Moore’s previous fights, this one achieved good national coverage. The Associated Press had a reporter and a photographer in attendance.

Oct. 4, 1949 – Bob Amos – A Detroiter whose once promising career was on the skids, Amos had gone 10 rounds with Moore in Washington DC the previous year, losing a wide decision. This fight was something of a carbon. “Most of the ringsiders were under the impression that Archie could have put Amos to sleep just about anytime he wanted,” said a story in the Toledo Union Journal. Moore may have been saving himself for Phil Muscato. That fight, already signed, was only 20 days away.

Oct. 24, 1949 – Phil Muscato – Hailing from Buffalo where he had developed a strong following, Muscato owned two wins over Lee Savold, a future heavyweight title claimant, and two wins over Tiger Ted Lowry who would go on to fight Rocky Marciano twice, lasting the 10-round distance on both occasions. Moore nearly had Muscato out in the fourth frame and knocked him down four times in the sixth before the match was halted.

Dec. 13. 1949 – Leonard Morrow – This would stand as Archie Moore’s most satisfying triumph until he became a world title-holder. They had met the previous year in Oakland, Morrow’s hometown, and Morrow, with only 15 fights under his belt, pulled a shocker, knocking out Archie in the opening round. That killed a match between Moore and light heavyweight title-holder Gus Lesnevich, a match that was close to being signed. The rematch, slated for 15 rounds, was all Moore from the opening bell. Morrow was taken from the ring unconscious after Archie knocked him through the ropes in the tenth round and was never the same fighter.

Jan. 31, 1950 – Bert Lytell – Moore and Lytell ran in the same circle, but only fought twice. Moore won a comfortable 10-round decision over Lytell in Baltimore in 1947. The rematch was closer but Moore prevailed.

March 13, 1951 – Abel Cestac – Moore had four intervening fights between Lytell and Cestac, including a fight in Panama. An Argentine who was recognized as the heavyweight champion of South America, Cestac outweighed Moore by 43 pounds but Archie, now in his mid-30’s, was too fast for him and won a 10-round decision. They fought again three months later in Buenos Aires and Moore stopped him in nine.

—-

Archie Moore’s Toledo phase rejuvenated his career. It came on the heels of a 1948 campaign pocked by four losses. However, the powers that be were in no mood to give the Old Mongoose a crack at the light heavyweight title. His second fight with Leonard Morrow was framed as an eliminator with the winner facing the newly crowned light heavyweight champion Joey Maxim, but Moore would have 25 more fights before he caught up with Maxim with whom he then shared the same manager in Doc Kearns (a story for another day).

During his light heavyweight title reign, which lasted nine years, Moore made frequent forays into the heavyweight division including title fights with Rocky Marciano and Floyd Patterson. After years of fighting for small purses – “moving around money” in the words of the great sportswriter Jimmy Cannon – Archie finally got to swim with the big fish.

Arne K. Lang’s third boxing book, titled “George Dixon, Terry McGovern and the Culture of Boxing in America, 1890-1910,” rolled off the press in September of last year. Published by McFarland, the book can be ordered directly from the publisher or via Amazon.

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Arne K. Lang

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

Published

3 days ago

January 19, 2025

Arne K. Lang

Skylar-Lacy-Blocked-for-Lamar-Jackson-Before-Making-his-Mark-in-Boxing

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

Published

5 days ago

January 18, 2025

David A. Avila

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

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

Published

6 days ago

January 16, 2025

David A. Avila

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

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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