As long as Alex Ramos is missing as a selectee, I submit the credibility of the selections as a whole comes into serious question?
Back in December 2013, the Daily News reported that the Golden Gloves was encouraging competitors and fans of the tournament to submit their nominations for the first-ever Hall of Fame class through the Daily News Golden Gloves Facebook page.
This inaugural Hall of Fame class will focus on boxers who have had success in and out of the ring. The five-member selection committee included current tournament director and three-time Gloves champion Bryan Adams, longtime Daily News writer and Gloves historian Bill Farrell, Gleason?s Gym owner Bruce Silverglade, Yonkers PAL director Sal Corrente, and longtime boxing trainer and educator Julio Albino Salinas. This committee will meet annually to review and discuss the merits of all eligible candidates. While the committee expects to name 12 candidates to the initial class, no more than six athletes will be selected thereafter.
The panel?s initial selections are (in alphabetical order):
Mark Breland John Campi Sean Daughtry Howard Davis Jr. Bill Gallo Paul Gallico Jean Martin Floyd Patterson Captain Joseph Medill Patterson Sugar Ray Robinson Lou Salica Vince Shomo Nick Spanakos Pete Spanakos Davey Vasquez
See http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/more-sports/hall-call-gloves-announce-inaugural-class-article-1.1723196 for details regarding each selectee.
Okay panelists, if you say so. And the first name that did come to my mind was Mark Breland, a five-time NY Golden Gloves champion, a gold medal winner at the 1984 Olympics, possessing an astounding amateur record of 110?1-1 and an admirable professional mark of 35-3-1 including a world welterweight title. His outside-the-ring activities have been impressive as well. He is the poster boy for all that is right about boxing and is the perfect selection. However, after Mark, things begin to get rather dicey in my opinion.
Where, for example, is Alex ?The Bronx Bomber? Ramos, who was a four-time NY Golden Glove winner in the late 1970s? Ramos, who had a marvelous amateur record of 143-15 with a disproportionate number of KO wins, fought pro and retired with a 39-10-2 record. Perhaps most importantly and after overcoming several serious personal obstacles, he founded the Retired Boxers Foundation (a non-profit foundation) with the help of the saintly Jacquie Richardson. Alex turned pro after his amateur career was abruptly ended by President Carter?s decision to boycott the 1980 Olympics in Moscow due to the Russian invasion of Afghanistan.
In the scheme of things, I also wonder where Michael Bentt is. Although he has remained somewhat under the radar, certainly the panelists must know that Bentt was one of the most decorated amateur boxers in history and became a world heavyweight champion. His achievements are simply amazing. Bentt has also distinguished himself in his post-boxing career becoming a highly successful actor.
Questions
Now here are my questions to the Selection Panel:
1) Did you ever notify Alex Ramos about the concept of an inaugural class back in December 2013? 2) If not, why not? 3) If so, why is he not one of the selectees? 4) And while you are at it, where is Michael Bentt?
As long as Alex Ramos is missing as a selectee, I submit the credibility of the selections as a whole comes into serious question.
