I'm Here! I'm Here! 2022 IBHOF Trilogy Induction Weekend-Part Two

Friday June 10, 2022

Lady Tyger had a free schedule until that afternoon’s fist casting ceremony, so I let her rest and relax and took advantage of the opportunity to finally catch up with my good buddy Len after five long years. Upon further examination, the doctors opted not to go through his wife’s heart procedure after all, deciding instead on a regimen of medication which will hopefully keep her heart rate close to where it should be. She urged him to go enjoy himself, and he at least felt secure in the fact that family members would be popping in to check on her. It was so nice getting to once again reminisce and laugh with Len and his grandson Steven.

Sean O’Grady, who posted an astounding 81 wins (70 by knockout) against just five losses in an eight-year career, had the opening slot on that day’s schedule of Ringside Lectures. ‘The Bubblegum Kid’ told some fantastic, witty stories about his scraps with Danny Lopez, Jim Watt, and Hilmer Kenty, as well as his post-fight days in broadcasting. He sat down to sign autographs afterwards and could not have been more gracious with, and appreciative of, the fans.

Len had a spare O’Grady trading card that he gave me for Sean to sign, and I also had him add his name to my copy of Bert Sugar’s 100 Years of Boxing, which I have been collecting autographs in for the last fifteen years on my annual trips to Canastota. I ran into Sean later that night at the Turning Stone as we all prepared to head downstairs for that night’s dinner before the fights and thanked him again for being such a funny and humble guy.

Roy Jones Jr. wasn’t listed on the itinerary as a guest speaker that day, but surprised everyone by sitting down to deliver some off the cuff remarks about his humble beginnings, fighting days, notable opponents, and the honor of being inducted into the IBHOF. Again, I can’t say enough about what a good, decent human being Roy Jones Jr. really is.

Speaking of good dudes, I got to meet up with my West Coast boxing writer friend Chris Smith at long last on the Hall of Fame grounds. Chris authored the immense and authoritative biography of Eder Jofre titled Brazil’s First Boxing World Champion which was published to great acclaim last March. I was honored to not only serve as a proofreader for Chris’ awesome tome, but provide a testimonial about Eder included in the back of the book in addition to a blurb for the rear cover. Back in Los Angeles, Chris hosts regular get-togethers and autograph signings for great champs like Michael Nunn, Danny Lopez, Michael Spinks, Ruben Olivares, and many more.     

It was time for a coffee break, so Len, Steven, and I headed across the street to Dunkin’ Donuts for some air-conditioning and caffeine-fueled refreshment. In a display case adjacent to the cash register was a collection of coffee cups, each one decorated with the image of a current inductee from this combined class. I immediately, and erroneously, jumped to the conclusion that they were on all of the to-go cups being handed out or could at least be purchased separately. Len pointed out the sign above the case reading NOT FOR SALE which I neglected to notice in all my excitement of getting the one of Lady Tyger to give to her later.

Turns out they were custom made by a local resident especially for the event. I took a photo of Lady Tyger’s cup and texted it to her with my promise to do whatever I could to see that she went home with it. She was so tickled by it and expressed how much she wanted to have her cup. I asked the employee about coming back on Sunday to speak to someone about it, but no promises were made and it looked like a photo of the cup might have to suffice. As it would turn out, all was not lost thanks to one of the many great volunteers who assist the inductees and their families throughout the weekend. I’ll return to the coffee cup saga and its happy ending in the next installment. 

The fist casting ceremony kicked off shortly after 2:30 to immortalize each inductee’s weapon of choice, left hand or right. Lady Tyger being a southpaw, she had a permanent caster impression made of her left fist which she balled up and lowered into a bucket containing dental plaster for several minutes.

It was during this time that I first got to meet ‘Sweet Magic’ Eva Jones-Young, three-time world bantamweight champion and all-around sweetheart of a woman. She had come over to say hello to Lady Tyger and before I could even introduce myself, Eva somehow recognized me from our interactions on Facebook and greeted me like we were old friends. The boxing community is a beautiful thing to be part of because of people like her.

Lady Tyger happily obliged photo and autograph requests until the bodily crush of overeager fans became a little too intense. We were brought inside the gift shop where Tyger signed gloves featuring the autographs of all the female inductees for the Hall of Fame to auction off, and got to see the old Madison Square Garden boxing ring on display, inside of which her idol Muhammad Ali first fought Joe Frazier, among many other memorable bouts.    

I bid a temporary farewell to Len and Steven until we would reconvene at the fights that night before getting an early start over to the Turning Stone Casino to spend some time with Tyger before the pre-fight dinner for inductees. She was interviewed in her room for a TBS Argentina broadcast by a very nice man named Osvaldo who was aghast at the fact that she had received only a trophy and not a championship belt for winning the world lightweight title in 1979. Osvaldo vowed to use his connections at the WBC to personally address this injustice with Mauricio Sulaiman. He would turn out to be true to his word, and in amazingly quick fashion. Again, stay tuned.

Afterwards, Sue Fox swung by the Tyger’s lair for another awesome visit, during which I asked her to please sign my copy of Mary Ann Lurie Owen’s Extraordinary Women of the Ring, a hard-to-come-by book I was able to snag for a great price about a year and a half ago. Her inscription “To Chris, the great writer” is something I will always humbly treasure.

Another first-time meeting for me was with award-winning documentary filmmaker Georgina Cammalleri, who has been working for over two years on a feature called Right to Fight, encompassing the struggles of female boxers to obtain licenses in the 1970s. Lady Tyger is the focal point of the narrative, and getting to film her IBHOF induction made a fantastic climax for the film. I have gladly assisted Georgina here and there with research for the documentary which will hopefully be completed and released by late fall or early winter.     

On the way to dinner, we met up with Ann Wolfe and her family, who I had the pleasure of being seated beside at the fist casting earlier. Terence Crawford and Shane Mosley were nice enough to come over and pose for pictures with all of us until it was past time to head to the Events Center for fight night.  

Tyger, Carmen, and Georgina headed down to the VIP seating area, while I set off to find my friend Len who had bought tickets for me, his son Greg, and grandson Steven. Because I was late arriving, I unfortunately missed the pro debut of 2020 Olympic bronze medalist Oshae Jones, who won a six-round unanimous decision over Sonya Dreiling.

I did get to connect at long last with Eddie Montalvo, a former amateur boxer and lifelong friend of both Hector Camacho and Lady Tyger, with whom I share a commitment to advocate for female boxers. Eddie served in the capacity of Executive Director for the International Women’s Boxing Hall of Fame until he retired last August. It was so very nice to share a hug and some friendly conversation.

I took in a few of the heavyweight bouts, but had to excuse myself prematurely to give Georgina a lift back to her downtown Syracuse hotel, as Ubers were impossible for her to come by and expensive to boot. And that was a wrap on Friday.