On the night of January 25th, 2007, Deandre Latimore would come into his bout against Ian Gardner as a rising young jr. middleweight prospect (with a shiny mark of 11-0) who was beginning to create some buzz in boxing circles with a string of knockout victories and some strong work as a sparring partner for then-IBF jr. middleweight titlist Roman Karmazin the previous summer.
That evening would end with Latimore getting stopped in three rounds by the perennial spoiler.
Taking on Gardner at that point was a huge step up, and taking Gardner period, was questioned by many boxing observers. After all, it’s Ian Gardner, who makes Junior Witter look textbook in his technique.
?I was against it,” said his promoter Steve Smith, who runs Rumbletime Promotions out of St. Louis, Missouri, where Latimore hails from. “You and I spoke about this and you said, ‘What are you doing?’ I said, ‘I’m against it, I agree.’ But at that time I had some other partners that really wanted him to fight Ian Gardner and I knew Ian Gardner was an awkward fighter. It’s OK to step him up to a guy like Ian, but I knew that wasn’t the type of guy to be sliding along the ropes, just an unorthodox fighter. I knew that was a bad fight.”
(For the record, yes, this reporter did inquire as to why they would choose Gardner at this, or any stage of their career. If you have seen Gardner ply his trade, you didn’t have to be Teddy Brenner to have reservations about that bit of matchmaking.)
“When he lost, I just told him, ‘We’ve got to get you away from St. Louis and get you focused because you can be a guy that beats Ian Gardner but you need experience and you need to learn how to box and jab and make people fight your fight,'” recalled Smith.
St. Louis, best known for Anheuser-Busch (at least for now) and being a great baseball city (with their beloved Cardinals) is like many other metropolitan cities which are plagued with urban blight and economic depression below the surface of their shiny exteriors.
But would a young man who was born and bred for the ‘Loo depart his home so readily?
“I got my stuff, I packed up, I left,” said Latimore when faced with the ultimatum. And within weeks he was headed to the desert of Las Vegas, best known for its neon lights and vice, but also a boxing haven, with an atmosphere much more conducive to learning the trade of boxing.
?I think there were just so many other pressures outside of just boxing here in St. Louis,” said Smith. “Deandre’s from the Peabody Projects and his focus, here, he was running with the wrong crowd and I told him, ‘If you want to be serious about this, you’re going to have to go off to Vegas.’ It was our matchmaker?s idea because he knew Kenny Adams and I said, ‘Deandre, you have a choice, either stop boxing or you’re going to move forward.”
So the move was made west, where he met the no nonsense Adams, a noted disciplinarian who does things one way – his way. But Latimore and the grizzled trainer hit it off right away. “Me and him got along well, when he seen me at the airport, I seen him, we connected at that moment, just like that,” said Latimore.
The rebuilding of ‘the Bull’ was swift, and with Adams in his corner he would perform seven more times in 2007, which included easy wins over no-hopers like Brian Paul (who had a mark of 5-17), Rodney Tatum (8-22) and Ed Lee Humes (5-37-1). With his record now at 18-1, his management decided it was time to take a step up and face Sechew Powell, then the top rated 154-pounder by the IBF, as the main event on ESPN2’s Wednesday Night Fights. And they would do it on his turf in New York City, no less.
“To be honest with you, Deandre’s manager Jerry Giuliano was talking to me about it and we were talking with Mark Vaz (Powell’s adviser) about making the fight and not for one second did I think there’s no way Deandre can beat Sechew Powell,” Smith says. “The first thing that came to my mind was that it was the perfect opponent. ‘We gotta get them to take the fight.’ I didn’t think they would take the fight honestly. When his manager brought it up to me, I said, ‘Well, I think it could be a good opportunity to be on the main stage in front of a lot of people, to show the results of Kenny Adams. To be honest, I never second guessed Sechew.”
The fight would be made for June 11th.
?From the beginning, we said we’re going to try to pressure Sechew because we thought and knew for sure he would look past us and be looking at a Verno Phillips fight,” said Smith. “So I sent the best sparring out there to him, I sent Ian Gardner, who had beat Deandre, and put Willie Lee, another guy who went ten rounds with Sechew prior to that. I knew both guys would give him the proper sparring and that’s really what happened.”
On this night, Latimore would emphatically erase the memories of his lone professional blemish with a spirited effort. Starting quickly, he would buzz Powell in the first with a laser-like left cross. Then after some entertaining back-and-forthing that saw both southpaws hurt, Latimore would simply take over in rounds five and six before stopping Powell with his rugged doggedness in round seven. While he kept coming, Powell simply lost the will to compete when it mattered most.
“I had a lot of confidence in myself. Sechew’s a good fighter, I’m a good fighter, as well, and I just had a lot of confidence going into that fight, I was determined to win and that’s what I did,” said Latimore, who on this particular night simply wanted it more. While Powell seemed to be looking past Latimore, ‘the Bull’ had his sights set squarely on Powell, who seemed to be dismissive of his former camp mate. “I really don’t know how they took the fight, what their actions were and what they were thinking,” he says of his opponent?s mindset. “I just knew what I had to do, train hard and get ready.”
While Powell, who failed the post-fight drug test for marijuana, faded as the bout headed into the middle rounds, Latimore just kept surging.
“We just knew when the time was to do everything,” he says.” That’s what we did.”
Interestingly enough, not in his corner that night was Adams, who was in Japan with WBA jr. lightweight belt-holder Edwin Valero. But Adams, who’s not prone to blow smoke was telling anyone who would listen that Latimore would defeat Powell.
“I think he’s learned how to box, he’s learned defense, he has movement now, punches very well, he’s a very powerful puncher, and he takes a good shot. He seems to be the real deal,” says the veteran trainer, in assessing his pupil. “Sechew Powell hurt him maybe three, four different times and he withstood it well and continued to deliver. I think the key thing about him is that he wanted to learn so bad and after his first loss to Gardner – he truly didn’t know how to fight, to tell you the truth. He didn’t know anything except to throw that winging right-hook.
“So I re-molded him completely. I took his power away from him, taught him how to box, how to use defense and then moving and slipping, catching, blocking, parrying. He was such an intense student, one of the best I’ve seen. He wanted to learn so bad. He was just sticking with me like glue and he did a great job.”
For Adams, the turning point came in the fight that preceded the face off with Powell, a ten round decision versus Durrell Robinson, who came into that fight with a record of 10-0.
“The Richardson fight was the one that really ran us to the road. We went ten rounds with Richardson. It was the best thing that could’ve happened to him. He dropped Richardson three times, two in one round and almost had him out but I’m glad he didn’t stop him because ten rounds is the best thing that could’ve ever happened to him.”
With the entertaining nature of his victory, Latimore has gained the attention of the sport?s power brokers, who want to jump aboard his bandwagon.
“Every promoter, except for one, every major promoter has approached me about trying to do a deal, co-promotional,” says Smith, who is listening to all offers that come his way. “We’ve talked to one seriously and to be honest, we think we can work a fair deal and I’d love to work with this promoter. I’ve been with Deandre from day one and there’s a lot of loyalty between Deandre and I. If I was to get out of the promotional end of it and let someone else take over, Deandre and I would still be great friends. I’d still be a part of his career.”
His management is waiting to see where they will be ranked by the IBF before plotting their next move. But regardless, the future is bright and it couldn’t have happened without Latimore getting out of the ‘Gateway City’. He swears he doesn’t miss his hometown.
?Nah, I mean, it’s still going to be here when I become world champion,” he states. “If I want to move back, then I’ll do that. But that’s going to be there.”
When asked if this was the best thing to ever happen to him, he answers, “Actually, the loss is the best thing that ever happened. If I would’ve never lost, I would’ve never been out here.”
St. Louis has a history of producing standout prizefighters, from the Spinks clan, Freddy Norwood, Ed Hopson and another bright prospect, Devon Alexander. Unlike many other cities in the midwest, they produce champions, not cannon fodder.
But according to Latimore, “I had to get away because I had to think about my wife, my family and I just had to look at the bigger picture. That’s all that was. If I wanted to do it and become a world champion, I had to get away.”
On the surface, ‘Sin City’ doesn’t seem to be the ideal environment for someone looking for discipline.
?You really don’t get distracted here unless you’re a guy who gambles and goes in the casinos,” Adams says. “So basically that’s what it’s all about. But it hasn’t distracted him at all. He stays out there close by my area, the Summerland area, close by the 215.”
Adams is of the belief that guys who are from areas, “where you walk over bodies” need to get out.
“Back there, it just wasn’t the place for me to be if I wanted to become the type of fighter I am now,” admits Latimore. “So I had to get out and just focus more. 100-percent boxing.”
But there was one big adjustment – the sweltering Las Vegas heat – which caused him to change hairstyles.
“I had dreadlocks when I moved out there,” he says. “I was out there for a month-and-a-half, the dreadlocks were gone.”
Latimore now lives a focused and peaceful life with his wife and four daughters, who are all under the age of five. Yeah, his life will be real fun in about a dozen years. He laughs as you bring that up. As of now, he’s just thinking about his immediate future and his career.
“I feel like I’m one of the best at 154 and I just want to fight the best fighters in the division,” he says. “I feel like I got my foot in the door and now I just need to climb on up the ladder anyway I can.”
READY FOR PAC?
The night after Latimore’s victory over Powell, in Japan, Adams would oversee Edwin Valero’s seventh round stoppage of Tak Shimada. The hard-hitting Venezuelan would still show many of the rough edges that mark his game. Adams says he still has a lot of work to do in settling down Valero and getting him to throw straighter punches, along with tightening up his overall defense.
But when you ask if he’s ready to face Manny Pacquiao, he doesn’t hesitate in answering.
“Oh, hell yeah, is Pacquiao ready for him? That’s the question. I mean because Edwin punches harder than he does. He’s got more speed and he’s very confident. Now, his last fight he was lax in his defense somewhat with the right hand, but that was primarily because he didn’t respect this guy. He just walked right through him. Once again, he has to move up anyway, because the weight was really getting the best of him. So it’s best for him to move up.
“He’s definitely ready for him. He’s a very determined kid and he has the same drive and determination, somewhat like Pacquiao had that same drive and determination.”
FINAL FLURRIES
I saw a great documentary on Showtime – ‘Cocaine Cowboys’ – about the drug trade in Miami/South Florida in the 70’s and 80’s. I’m shocked, here I thought Miami was just a wholesome environment for producing great football players and a great college football program…..Speaking of great docs, ‘Fists of Freedom’ was aired once again on HBO this past Tuesday. What’s sadly ironic is that John Carlos and Tommie Smith are estranged because of their differing recollections on what took place in Mexico City….I didn’t know Gary Shaw was into recycling, but he has signed Ricardo Williams to a promotional deal. You do remember him right? Speaking of which, wasn’t he a bit of a ‘Cocaine Cowboy’?…..Elton Brand, how could he do that to the Clips? Los Angeles is back to having one NBA team again. I guess you could label this- ‘(David) Falk, who goes there?’….So Christie Brinkley’s soon-to-be fourth ex-husband spent $3,000 a month on porn? Just one thought- that’s a helluva lot of porn. I mean, I think $300 a month is excessive and this guy?s shelling out more per year on this stuff than many people earn in salary….I don’t disagree with Chef Ramsay tabbing Christine as the winner of this season?s ‘Hells Kitchen’ but I did feel bad for Petrozza, he’s a swell guy….How many of you will remember to watch Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. this weekend on Azteca America. How many of you even know if you get the network?…..I hear that Amir Khan, who has moved down to 130-pounds, is thinking about hooking up with a big-name Stateside trainer…..
