Memo to world-class boxers: If you want to be considered for induction into the International Boxing Hall of Fame, preferential treatment is given to those who fought on American television. This is the reason I see for the inclusion of Orlando Canizales in the IBHOF Class of 2009.
Don’t get me wrong, Canizales was a very fine champion. In fact, I think Canizales possessed Hall of Fame skill that was never tested against a similarly gifted boxer. But should Canizales be inducted before more deserving champions like Ernesto Marcel, or Yoko Gushiken? Would Canizales have been selected if he had fought his whole career in Japan, Argentina, or Germany? I would say no to both questions. It seems clear that the IBHOF’s voters reward name recognition over accomplishments. The IBHOF’s motto should be, ?If we did not see it in America, it does not exist.?
This will not turn into an anti-Canizales feature, I have too much respect for him as a fighter and person. But that does not mean he should leapfrog more laudable boxers. I have nothing but positive things to say about Canizales, and feel sick about having to use him as a friendly fire victim for my beef with the selection process of the IBHOF. This is the fault of the IBHOF, who have unfairly hoisted Canizales into the crosshairs of historical evaluation. Here, unfortunately, Canizales’ record does not pass the test, despite an impressive career that saw him make 16 defenses of the IBF bantamweight title. However, if this is the new criteria by which the IBHOF will operate, they better put Sven Ottke (who made 21 defenses of the IBF super middleweight title, unified it with the WBA title, and retired undefeated) on their speed dial for next year.
Asians Need Not Apply?
In no way do I believe that there is a cabal within the IBHOF that lobbies against Asian boxers. But, the fact remains that until Jun-Koo Chang or Myung-Woo Yuh enter this distinguished club, the IBHOF should have the word ‘International’ removed as an adjective to describe it. Instead, replace the word international with the phrase, ‘boxers seen on American TV’. In general, the Hall of Fame does a fine job, and there are no glaring omissions outside of lower weight and Asian boxers. It is actually the opposite with the Hall of Fame. It’s the IBHOF’s admissions that confuse. Ingemar Johansson? Randy Turpin? Jose Torres? Bobo Olson? Barry McGuigan? All were fine and popular fighters, but questionable inductions when the word merit is tossed about.
The IBHOF’s voters are failing to distinguish popular from great. Quick, without looking at Boxrec.com (well go ahead because you won’t find the answer there either) name one great fighter that Orlando Canizales defeated? The closest he ever came was a split decision loss, at home, to Wilfredo Vasquez. Canizales, and the fighters listed above were all popular, even historical figures within boxing. Nevertheless, when ring records are compared with boxers still left on the outside looking in, they do not measure up. I loved watching Barry McGuigan fight and, as my last name indicates, I rooted for him as a fan, but his induction is clearly a case of popularity over substance. Should one win over an aging Hall of Famer (Eusebio Pedroza), and two title defenses ensure induction to a hall of immortals?
On the positive front, of the IBHOF’s roster of inductees for 2009 is the selection of a boxer who I have campaigned for inclusion. South Africa’s Brian Mitchell has finally been given entrance to boxing’s Valhalla, and he no doubt received extra credit for his role as one of boxing’s great road warriors. But even in his case, I believe that there were more deserving boxers who could have gotten in first. I was also very happy to see my favorite boxing writer get a plaque in the Hall. Scotsman Hugh McIlvanney has been covering boxing since the 1950’s, and he breathed life and insight into all the major fights since that time. His prose and wit are superb, and I would read him if he were covering an under 10 badminton tourney at a local YMCA. I would rather have McIlvanney read his article on a great English fight of the past then watch it myself.
Back to the task at hand though, and I don’t like it when people only criticize, neglecting to give answers to their arguments. It is not fair of me to critique the IBHOF without offering up solutions. So I am listing five boxers I believe are more deserving than boxers I cited previously. It contains more than just Asian fighters, but it is the Asian contingent which seems the most obviously overlooked group of potential entrants. It is hard to come up with a valid theory for the ignorance displayed by nearly 250 voters at the IBHOF. These electors are shunning worthy boxers from their hallowed halls, while lesser boxing lights are allowed to prance in with fanfare. I think the responsibility of these voters merits due diligence, that is obviously not put forth. Our own Lee Groves seems to be the exception, clearly making the case for or against boxers on these cyberpages.
My Top Five
Ernesto Marcel (40-4-2, 23 KOs) – Where do you go when you defended your title against future champion Samuel Serrano, then dismantled future hall of Famer Alexis Arguello? You retire!? I agree, it is not the career choice I would have made, but that is exactly what Marcel did. The Panamanian is one of the few to retire while still holding his title, announcing he would do so before his defense against Arguello. At 26, Marcel doubtlessly had a lot of fight left in him, so the decision confuses on many levels. Marcel was a clever boxer who used every inch of the ring to set up traps, and his slip and counter style has rarely been duplicated. One of Marcel’s early career losses came in an all-time forgotten classic, when 16-0 countryman Roberto Duran was able to rally and score a last round knockout. Marcel defeated future champion Alfredo Marcano twice on his way to a title winning decision over hometown boy Antonio Gomez. The Associated Press report on Marcel’s last title defense against Alexis Arguello is telling. ?In the early and late rounds Arguello moved forward with his longer reach while Marcel dealt left and right hooks that sent the Nicaraguan’s long hair flying. Arguello took so many punches in the 7th round that Referee Sergio Tulio Lay went to his corner after the round and asked him if he wanted to continue.” After retirement, Marcel went into local politics to help the people of his community. Outside of a propensity to fight in his native Panama (which does not seem to be held against American nominees), there is little to fault Marcel on besides his early retirement. And don’t we want our champs to retire while on top?
Myung-Woo Yuh (38-1, 14 KOs) ? His stamina and defense befuddled opponents, leaving them open for some of the lengthiest streams of punches ever thrown in an Asian ring. One of the greatest shames of boxing is that Yuh was prevented (the usual claims of not enough money to encourage Carbajal or Gonzalez to make the trip to Korea) from, perhaps proving, his superiority in clashes with Michael Carbajal, or Chiquita Gonzalez. When it became apparent the fights would not happen, Yuh retired as a champion after an eleven year career. After winning the title at age 21, Myung made 17 defenses of his title. He handed future three division champ Leo Gamez his first two losses. Other future champions Yuh defeated included Rodolfo Blanco, and Jose De Jesus. Yuh’s lone loss came via split decision (in the challenger?s home nation) to Japan?s Hiroki Ioka, who was able to use his speed to tap and move his way to a win. Yuh refused any fights until he got a rematch with Ioka eleven months later. He traveled back to Osaka, and took the crown by decision in a fight whose excitement exceeded all expectations. Gained a Korean nickname akin to ?Monsoon? because of the continuous rain of punches he unleashed on opponents. The one negative on Yuh is that he only fought twice outside of Korea, but has the IBHOF held that against American boxers?
Yoko Gushiken (23-1, 15 KOs) ?The Fierce Eagle? was appropriately named, and had a short career. The same can be said of inductees like Jeff Fenech, Michael Spinks, or Lazlo Papp. Boxing has mourned heroes that fought much too long. So, why not celebrate Gushiken, who retired at age 26, and was still near peak performance levels? The only question with Yoko that I have is ?what if?? How much more could he have done? A very good amateur career ended with a national title and a 62-3 (52 KOs) record. Upon his pro debut, the 5-foot-3 inch bundle of intellectual fury was heralded by Masaki Kanehira (known as the maker of champions in Japan) as, “A genius who appears once every 100 years.” Watching tapes, it seems Gushiken was always moving into striking Distance. He was relentless but without ever showing opponents two shoulders. Like a shark, he circled into position before attacking, then quickly returned to a sound defensive posture. The southpaw won the WBA jr. flyweight crown in only his ninth fight, knocking out Dominican slugger Juan Guzman. Gushiken reigned four and a half years, making 13 title defenses (a record for Japanese world champions). Eight of those defenses came via knockout, including defenses against future champions Alfonso Lopez and Rafael Pedroza. Like other smaller fighters, his decline can be traced to making weight more than an erosion of skills. He lost his title to Mexican Pedro Flores, and it was widely accepted that Gushiken could win more titles after some rest and a move up in weight. We?ll never know because he retired to live off his investments. For once, it was a happy ending in boxing.
Davey Moore (59-7-1, 30 KOs) – One of the very few overlooked American boxers. Nicknamed ?The Springfield Rifle?, this featherweight lived up to that moniker by firing precision punches behind a steady stream of jabs. He was an all-around fighter who had a weakness for allowing himself to get drawn into brawls by lesser boxers. At 5’2 1⁄2?, he surprised many opponents by outjabbing them via timing and clever use of angles. Was an outstanding amateur boxer, at bantamweight, winning the AAU national title and representing America at the 1952 Olympics. Began to box at age 14, and turned pro six years later with less success than was initially expected of him. Was probably rushed into big fights too early, suffering five setbacks in his first 27 bouts. He even traveled to Panama, Colombia, and Canada to take fights. But in 1957, Moore found his form, winning 37 of 38 fights that included a title winning effort against Hogan ‘Kid’ Bassey. Defended the title five times, three of which came on the road, over a four year period. Then came the fateful bout against Sugar Ramos, in Los Angeles, which televised his demise to a national audience. Moore’s death was an accident more than the result of a bad beating, even though the fight with Ramos was intense. His injury was sustained as a result of a whiplash action, when Moore’s head struck the bottom rope after a knockdown. Moore even walked back to his dressing room (after his manager stopped the fight after ten rounds), and gave interviews to reporters, after which he complained of a headache before passing out, never regaining consciousness. An autopsy revealed the damage could not have been caused by a punch, and neurologists called it a “million-to-one accident.? Moore was having problems making weight, but he looked to be a late bloomer who still had a lot of good fights left in him.
Jun-Koo Chang (38-4, 17 KOs)? In the 45 year history of Korean boxing, Chang was the best it ever produced. It is like the baseball hall of fame excluding the best Dominican player of all time. Three of Chang?s four losses came at the end of his career, after weight making problems drained him of his biggest ally – relentless combination punching. Chang was a smaller version of Jeff Fenech, before Fenech erupted onto the boxing scene. What separates Chang from other Korean and Japanese boxers is that he had no amateur experience. During his prime, Chang only lost once, to Hilario Zapata, an equally underrated boxer. Jun first made a name for himself by beating former champs Alfonso Lopez and Amado Ursua in a seven month span before challenging for his first title. Like many others, he faltered the first time out when Zapata retained his title via split decision. The lesson was learned, and it only took Chang three rounds to knock Hilario out in the rematch. Fifteen title defenses ensued, where quality future champions
German Torres, Hideyuki Ohashi, and Isidro Perez were denied titles. It took a special fighter like Humberto ?Chiquita? Gonzalez (as well as outside the ring problems with his wife, and a financial disaster) to unseat Chang, who seemingly burned out overnight after the loss. Two more losses to quality practitioners Sot Chitalada & Muangchai
Kittikasem, taken more for the money than a shot at the title, showed Chang that he should retire
