Carlos Ortiz is a Puerto Rican who was a three-time world boxing champion, twice in the lightweight division and once in the Junior Welterweights. Ortíz is mentioned among the best Puerto Rican boxers of all time by sports journalists and analysts, along with Félix “Tito” Trinidad, Wilfredo Gómez, Héctor “Macho” Camacho, and Wilfred Benítez.
June 29, 1968 proved to be Ortiz’s last day as a world champion, as he lost his world lightweight title to Dominican Carlos Cruz on a 15 round decision in the Dominican Republic. Ortiz kept on fighting, but he never got another chance at a world title. He retired after losing at the Madison Square Garden by a knockout in 6 rounds to Ken Buchanan. It was the only time he was stopped in his career. His final record was of 61 wins, 7 losses and 1 draw, with one bout declared a no-contest and 30 knockout wins.
Ortiz is also a member of the International Boxing Hall Of Fame. He always enjoys taking photos with his fans and signing autographs for them.
Tony Mazzarella, a board-member of the Ring 8 Club, a New York group formed in 1954 to help and honor former boxers, has been trying to get a HOF for years. He’s offered space at his restaurant, the Waterfront Crabhouse in Long Island City, for plaques and memorabilia. A physical location is being hunted down.
Here’s the first class of honorees to be inducted. It includes 12 boxers and eight non-boxers:
“Sugar” Ray Robinson; “Iron” Mike Tyson; Jake “Bronx Bull” LaMotta; Carmen “Upstate Onion Farmer” Basilio; Riddick “Big Daddy” Bowe; Carlos Ortiz; Mike “Bodysnatcher” McCallum; Gene “The Fighting Marine” Tunney; Benny “The Ghetto Wizard” Leonard; and Tony Canzoneri.
Also included are: judge/HBO analyst Harold Lederman; coach/instructor Steve Acunto; trainer/cut-man Jimmy Glenn; posthumously, trainers Gil Clancy and Ray Arcel; Ring Magazine founder Nat Fleischer; New York Daily News boxing reporter/cartoonist Bill Gallo; and referee Arthur Mercante Sr.
Ring 8 president Bob Duffy announced plans for the kickoff dinner. “We plan to do this every year,” Duffy said. “Our first introduction dinner will be at Russo’s on The Bay in March of 2012. We have a wall at Waterfront Crabhouse, which will list our Class of 2012 and another at the New York State Athletic Commission. We started this to honor New York fight people.”
The inductees were selected by a six-member NYSBHOF nominating committee made up of Boxing Writers Association president Jack Hirsch, Steve Farhood, Henry Hascup, Bobby Cassidy Jr., Ron McNair and Neil Terens.
The oldest fighter in boxing history to win a world title, Bernard “The Executioner” Hopkins and former World Champion “Bad” Chad Dawson will meet again to settle their heated feud following their October 2011 bout, which was originally scored as a TKO win for Dawson, but later ruled a no decision by the California State Athletic Commission. The two are ready to resume their high-stakes rivalry on Saturday, April 28 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The 12 round bout for Hopkins’ WBC and Ring Magazine light heavyweight world championships.
“Whenever Bernard Hopkins fights, I get the chills because he is a living legend,” said Richard Schaefer, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions. “Bernard has an amazing history, having fought and defeated so many world champions. I truly believe that he and Dawson facing off in Atlantic City on HBO World Championship Boxing is a recipe for an unforgettable night.”
“Hopkins vs. Dawson: Once And For All,” a 12 round bout for Hopkins’ WBC and Ring Magazine light heavyweight world championships, is presented by Golden Boy Promotions and Gary Shaw Productions and sponsored by Caesars Atlantic City.
Nazim Richardson is an American boxing trainer, most notable for training “Sugar” Shane Mosley and Bernard Hopkins, and for catching Antonio Margarito with a plaster-like substance in his hand wraps prior to Margarito’s fight with Mosley, leading to Margarito’s eventual suspension from the sport of boxing.
Richardson is a devout Muslim.
In 2007, Richardson suffered a stroke that nearly caused loss of the entire left side of Richardson’s body.
Soon after returning to boxing, Richardson became “Sugar” Shane Mosley’s trainer for three of the biggest fights of the boxer’s career – his win over Margarito and his loss to both Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao.
Richardson is currently Bernard Hopkins’ head trainer.
Timothy Ray “Tim” Bradley Jr. is an undefeated American professional boxer. Born in Cathedral City, California and training out of Indio, California, Bradley is the current WBO welterweight champion and former WBO and two-time WBC junior welterweight champion. Bradley is trained by former title contender Joel Díaz.
Timothy Bradley Jr. was born in Cathedral City, California on August 29, 1983 and grew up in Palm Springs, California. Prior to becoming a professional boxer, Bradley worked as a dishwasher and as a waiter. He married his high school friend, Monica Manzo, in 2006 and became an adoptive father to Manzo’s two children. Bradley, before fights, adheres to a strict diet and goes vegan.
Bradley fought Manny Pacquiao on June 9, 2012 for Pacquiao’s WBO welterweight title. Bradley scored a controversial victory over Pacquiao by way of split decision, with two of the judges scoring it 115–113 to Bradley and the other 115–113 to Pacquiao. The decision ended Pacquiao’s 7-year undefeated streak and gave Bradley the title.
Bradley’s next bout is scheduled for October 12, 2013, defending his WBO welterweight title against Ring #3 ranked pound for pound, Ring #5 ranked junior lightweight and former WBO junior welterweight champion Juan Manuel Márquez.
Robert “Bob” Arum is the founder and CEO of Top Rank, a professional boxing promotion company based in Las Vegas. He has also worked for the US Attorney’s Office for the southern district of New York in the tax division.
Arum organized super fights like Marvin Hagler vs. Roberto Durán and Hagler vs. Thomas Hearns.
Arum mounted the Hagler-John Mugabi, Hearns-James Shuler double header in Las Vegas in April 1986. After the Hearns-Shuler fight, Shuler, who had lost by knockout in the first round, showed up at Arum’s hotel room to thank him for the opportunity to fight Hearns. Ten days later, Shuler was dead in an unfortunate motorcycle accident.
Arum kept producing big-scale undercards and super fights, including the Hagler-Sugar Ray Leonard bout, the Leonard-Hearns rematch, Evander Holyfield vs. George Foreman, and many others.
Some of Arum’s superstars from the 1990s include former world flyweight champion Michael Carbajal and six-division world champion Oscar De La Hoya and current boxing superstars, which includes eight-division world champion Manny Pacquiao and three-division world champion Erik Morales. Arum promoted the legendary champion Julio Cesar Chavez in his late years of boxing.
Manny Pacquiao is a Filipino professional boxer and politician. He is the first eight-division world champion, in which he has won ten world titles, as well as the first to win the lineal championship in four different weight classes. He is also the second highest paid athlete in the world.
He was named “Fighter of the Decade” for the 2000s decade by the Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA), World Boxing Council (WBC) and World Boxing Organization (WBO). He is also a three-time The Ring and BWAA “Fighter of the Year,” winning the award in 2006, 2008 and 2009, and the Best Fighter ESPY Award in 2009 and 2011.
Pacquiao met Juan Manuel Márquez on December 8, 2012, for a fourth time, in a non-title bout at welterweight. Pacquiao was knocked out with one second left in the sixth round by a right to the jaw, giving Marquez the KO win.
Pacquiao is scheduled for a non-title bout at welterweight on November 23, 2013, at the Venetian Macao Resort & Hotel in Macau of the special administrative regions in China against The Ring ranked #6 Junior Welterweight Brandon Ríos. This will be Pacquiao’s first fight to be held in China.
On February 5, Bob Arum announced Timothy Bradley as Pacquiao’s next opponent on June 9 for his WBO Welterweight title, after another failed negotiation attempt with Floyd Mayweather Jr. on Cinco De Mayo. During the final press conference, WBO President Francisco “Paco” Valcarcel awarded Pacquiao with WBO Diamond Ring in recognition of Pacquiao as the WBO Best Pound-for-Pound Fighter of the Decade.
Pacquiao lost the bout in a controversial split decision, scoring 115-113, 113-115 and 113-115 from the three judges. The decision was booed by the crowd and criticized by many news outlets who were independently scoring the fight. However, Pacquiao was gracious in defeat and Bradley called for a rematch. Following the decision, many analysts called the decision a corruption of the sport. ESPN.com scored the fight 119-109 for Pacquiao. HBO’s unofficial judge, Harold Lederman, also had it 119-109 for Pacquiao. Most ring side media also scored the fight in favor of Pacquiao.
Four days after the fight, Valcarcel said in a statement on June 13, 2012 that although the WBO did not doubt the ability of the scoring judges, the WBO’s Championship Committee would review the video of the fight with five independent, competent, and recognized international judges and make a recommendation. On June 21, 2012, the five WBO Championship Committee judges on the review panel announced that Pacquiao should have won his controversial defeat, with all scoring the fight unanimously in Pacquiao’s favor — 117-111, 117-111, 118-111.
“A lot of great champions come from Puerto Rico,” said Mayweather. “You guys have got another great champion in Miguel Cotto, tough, strong, solid 154-pounder.”
“I’m not looking to cheat, like I said before. My thing is this, I told Miguel Cotto: ‘I don’t want to fight you at a catchweight, I want to fight the best Miguel Cotto,” he continued.
Mayweather went on to say, “To be the best you’ve got to beat the best and he’s one of the best fighters out there today. I want to finish putting the rest of the pieces to the puzzle, so I can solidify myself as one of the best fighters to ever live.”
‘We appreciate the fans for supporting us, but when it comes down to it, it’s one-on-one. The trainer can’t fight for the fighters. Pacquiao’s an amazing fighter. But all I got to say is if you’ve got nothing to hide take the test.”
“At the age of 35, I’m still going strong, I’m still hungry, and I still want to give you fans nothing but excitement. I want you guys to tune in May 5, support Floyd Mayweather, support Miguel Cotto, because we’re going to give you guys a toe-to-toe battle,” Mayweather finished.
Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez have met in the ring time and time again. On December 8, the two fighters will meet one more time in an apparent effort to determine who the better boxing champion is.
The first three Pacquiao-Marquez fights were memorable. The initial meeting in 2004 ended in a draw. Take two saw Pacquiao emerge with a split-decision win, aided by a third-round knockdown. Pacquiao-Marquez III was supposed to be the “deciding” bout, but – despite Pacquiao winning on two of the three scorecards – the third part in the trilogy ended being anything but decisive.
Each fight was close enough that many boxing fans and experts can reasonably argue the outcomes. Some believe Marquez should have emerged victorious in all three. Pacquiao wants to prove the critics wrong. Marquez wants to get his win.
For boxing fans and the fighters, a knockout for either boxer would be a great way to end this historic rivalry between the two future Hall of Fame boxers.
World Liberty TV Boxing Team was on hand at the New York Manny Pacquiao vs. Juan Manuel Marquez IV Press Conference to promote their fourth fight in Las Vegas on December 8th 2012.
“Manny Pacquiao appears to be headed for a fourth showdown with rival Juan Manuel Marquez rather than a rematch with Timothy Bradley Jr.,” Top Rank promoter Bob Arum said.
Arum also pointed out to the World Liberty TV Boxing Channel that a lot of boxing fans for the third fight thought Juan Manuel Marquez was the winner. Manny wants this fight to clear up things, once and for all, and predicted a knockout in the fourth fight which will take place on Saturday, December 8, 2012 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
Our producer had the pleasure of speaking with the Hall of Fame promoter Bob Arum at the Manny Pacquiao vs. Juan Manuel Marquez IV Press Conference in New York.
