Boxing History
De Le Hoya Daze
Imagine fight night in LA twenty years ago. Girls would wear their tightest dresses and their highest heels. We’d pull up to the house that was hosting the Oscar De La Hoya fight in his […]
Boxing History
Boxing History
The Dark Corner: Jake LaMotta, Survivor
This excerpt comes from Carlos Acevedo’s first book, Sporting Blood: Tales from the Dark Side of Boxing, an expanded edition of which will be available from Hamilcar Publications September 6. Acevedo’s latest book, The Duke: […]
Boxing Books
Oscar Bonavena Implodes: How “Ringo” Ruined His Career Before His Death
The following is an excerpt from pages 74-76 of Shot at a Brothel: The Spectacular Demise of Oscar “Ringo” Bonavena, by Patrick Connor (Hamilcar Publications, August 2021) *** Bonavena botched a proposed showdown with George […]
Boxing Analysis
A History of the Pretty Boy: From Tony Janiro to Ryan Garcia
Carlos Acevedo is the author of the critically-acclaimed Sporting Blood: Tales From The Dark Side of Boxing. Read more of Acevedo’s journalism work here. *** In Raging Bull, Jake LaMotta (as played, in ferocious Method […]
Boxing History
Brief Lives: Virgil Akins
Finally, after all the hard years toiling in hothouse gyms and all the years crisscrossing the country as an itinerant journeyman—smoke-filled halls, catcalls and hisses when facing the local hero, narrow losses tallied on doubtful […]
Boxing History
El Cubano Mexicano: The Legacy of Jose Napoles
“El Cubano Mexicano.” It took a few years, but that’s what Mexican press came to call him. Before that, he was simply, “El Cubano.” José Nápoles, the celebrated former welterweight champion, died last year […]
Boxing History
A Dry Season: The Last Comeback of Joe Frazier
Somehow, they found themselves connected yet again. Years after the Thrilla in Manila, Joe Frazier and Muhammad Ali mounted quixotic, perhaps dangerous, comebacks eight days apart, and they hinted at renewing their rivalry in a […]
Boxing History
Red and Gold: The Apprenticeship of John Lepak
“THIS DOOR HAS LED MANY TO PAIN AND FAME” stenciled in yellow and blue block letters on a red door. A greeting, a warning, a bit of promotion. If you wanted pain, wanted the fame […]
Boxing History
Rat Bastards: Jack Kearns
This is the first installment in Carlos Acevedo’s Rat Bastards series, which takes a look at the fight game’s greatest miscreants. *** “Hell, winning was the big thing. I never could stand a loser.” —Doc […]
Boxing History
Shoot the Moon: The Title Reign of Larry Holmes Part VIII (Muhammad Ali)
This is the eighth installment in Carlos Acevedo’s Shoot The Moon series covering the career of Larry Holmes. *** October 2, 1980 He is having trouble sleeping. The long, long nights bleed away. From time to […]