Boxing news, insights, and opinions
Emanuel pictured with, from L to R, (Ricky Womack, Roderick Moore, and Frank Tate. 📸 via The Detroit Free Press Archive
Emanuel Steward shares his thoughts on heavyweight boxing history in this 2010 interview with Geoffery Ciani of “Rummy’s Corner”.
Muhammad Ali
WBC and WBA World Heavyweight Champion
N.A.B.F. North American Champion
Olympic Gold Medal Champion
Defended title 19 times
Wins 56 Loses 5 Draws 0
D.O.B. 1/17/1942 Country: USA
Died: 6/3/2022
What time did you get up?
Around 5:30 a.m. to run.
Did you stretch before running?
Yes, a light stretch.
How far did you run?
I ran about 6 miles, which took about 40 minutes
(I always ran in army-type boots).
What did you do after running?
Some exercises and stretching, then back home to get washed up.
What did you eat for breakfast?
All natural foods, orange juice,and water.
What did you do after breakfast?
I was always busy with public engagements and newspaper people. I loved to meet people.
What time did you go to the gym?
12:30 p.m.
What time did you leave the gym?
3:30 p.m.
What did you do after training?
I had a rub-down, then washed up. I would maybe talk with TV people, go out and enjoy myself, then eat.
What did you eat for dinner?
I always ate good: chicken, steaks, green beans, potatoes, vegetables, fruit, juice and water.
What time did you do after dinner and what time did you go to sleep?
I liked to go for a walk and watch TV after dinner. The time I went to bed depended on how I was feeling.
What was your favorite exercise?
Shadowboxing and jump rope, I loved gym work.
How many days did you train?
Six days.
Did you have a job before becoming champion?
No.
WARM UP: Side to sides, torso swivels, jumping around on toes to limber up.
(15 minutes total)
SHADOWBOXING: 5×3 minute rounds, focus on footwork and speed punching.
(30 second breaks)
HEAVYBAG: 6×3 minute rounds focusing on combinations and stamina.
(30 second breaks)
SPARRING: Built up sparring rounds as training camp progressed. Also did less heavy bag rounds the more sparring I did.
FLOOR EXERCISES: sit-ups, sit ups with medicine ball, leg raises. 100 each.
JUMP ROPE: 20 minutes, always moving around, never jumping in one place.
SHADOWBOXING: A few minutes as a cool down.
Reference:
Todd, G. (2005). Workout’s from boxing’s greatest champs. Ulysses Press.
Ricardo “Finito” Lopez
WBC, WBA, and WBO Strawweight World Champion.
Defended title 21 times
IBF Light Flyweight World Champion
Wins 51 Losses 0 Draws 1
D.O.B.: 7/25/66 Country: Mexico
(Retired undefeated in amateur and professional competition)
What time did you wake up everyday? 4:45 a.m.
Did you stretch before your morning run? Yes, a good, full body stretch.
How far did you run? 6-9 miles a day.
What did you do after your run? I stretched out and would do some floor work, such as stomach work: sit-ups, leg raises, and crunches (200 each) and push ups (50).
What did you eat for breakfast? Egg whites, a piece of toast, juice, Gatorade and some vitamins.
What time did you go to the gym? 2:00 p.m.
What time did you leave the gym? 4:00 p.m.
What did you do after training? I would replace my body fluids and have some fruit, then I would go home, rest, and relax.
What did you eat for dinner? Chicken, fish and salads (I would eat red meat once a week).
What did you do after dinner? I liked watching movies, especially old Charlie Chaplin ones, and I liked listening to music and reading.
What was your favorite exercise? I liked the speed bag. I liked to hit it so it would spin around, as I thought that was more skillful.
How many days a week did you train? Six, with Sunday off.
Did you have a job before you won a world title? No.
WARM UP: 10 minutes of full body stretching, 5 minutes of bouncing on toes while waving arms around loosely.
SHADOWBOXING: 10 minutes.
SPARRING: 10 x 3 minute rounds with 30 second break between rounds .
DOUBLE END BAG: 3 x 1 minute rounds with 30 second break between rounds.
STRETCHING: 5 minutes.
ABDOMINAL WORK: sit ups, leg raises, side to sides, crunches (125 each).
NECK EXERCISES: Neck bridges, rotating my head forward and back and side to side.
TO FINISH: Shower and rest.
Reference:
Todd,G.(2005). Workout’s from boxing’s greatest champs. Ulysses Press.
Probably one of the most used excuses for boxers and their handlers on why a fighter never gets anywhere, is because:
“You have to be signed by somebody or have big people backing you up, otherwise the big promoters will just use you as an opponent for their fighters.”
So what do they do instead?
They sell tickets for local promoters so they can fight at home against old fighters or fighters with no experience, sometimes both, old and no experience, to pick up easy wins, to build up what amounts to be a phony winning record.
Then they usually stay right there, at home, doing the same thing over and over, until they actually lose against one of those opponent types, then they usually will give up fighting and blame the boxing system on why they never accomplished anything.
Or they will actually take a chance at some point against a guy who’s an actual threat, and they end up losing because they’ve been essentially paying for easy wins and haven’t had a hard fight since the amateurs, so they aren’t ready for a guy that’s gonna actually fight back.
Now I’m not saying a guy or his team should be reckless about his career because it does help to have backing and/or be signed by a big promoter, and you do have to be careful about how you move a fighter, but being careful and being scared are two different things.
Everyone has tough fights in the amateurs because you can’t pick and choose opponents, so why decide to only fight guys with one leg and a glass eye when you turn pro?
To protect an unbeaten record?
To build a record so you can get noticed?
Because someone told you that’s the smart thing to do?
Now of course everyone needs a little time to get used to the pros and build up their record a little, but even those “easy wins” should be learning fights.
Just fighting someone that is gonna be looking for a place to fall as soon as you hit them does you absolutely no good whatsoever.
People aren’t blind, they can see if your opponents look like they have never been in a boxing ring, or have seen better days etc. And promoters, matchmakers, managers, etc, can see it as well.
So then if you’ve essentially done nothing noteworthy or genuine in the ring as a professional, how else do you expect a legitimate manager, matchmaker, promoter, or advisor to see you, other than as an opponent for a real fighter who feels he is the best, and is willing to fight the best to prove it?
And if you and your team aren’t working towards getting to the top, what are you working on?
And what have you been working on all this time you’ve been fighting, if you don’t feel you are ready to take on real challenges?
If you just fight who your team tells you to fight, then at some point you have to ask yourself if your team really believes in you and/or if they really know what they are doing, if there isn’t a plan on moving you towards a championship.
You can be successful without being signed and I’ll tell you how you do it:
You go fight that guy who is signed and you knock his ass out, then the big promoters can’t ignore you.
In an environment where help and role models are hard to come by, former professional and Olympic boxing champion Ricardo ” Rocky” Juarez, has stepped up and showed himself to also be a champion of the North Central/ Northside neighborhood he grew up in, always finding ways to build up and give back to the community and treating others in a kind way.
After his sensational amateur boxing career he became known as “The Pride of The Northside” while fighting professionally, a nickname he inherited from 1972 Olympic bronze medal champion, and arguably the best boxer amateur or professional to have ever been born and raised in Houston, Jesse Valdez.
Apparently taking his “Pride of The Northside” moniker to heart, Juarez is very active in the community and has consistently donated his own time and money to help out whenever it’s needed.
One of the ways he found to give back was by buying the boxing gym he fought out of, renovating the building and gym, and opening Rocky’s Boxing Gym, giving the community a safe place to stay healthy and learn boxing from a former Olympic and professional champion.
On any normal day he usually has a gym full of students of all ages and experience levels, but with the current coronavirus panic going on worldwide and city officials recommending all gyms close, Rocky was forced to close his doors this week.
Rocky found a way to improvise and help the community stay fit and stay positive though, going through a one hour workout/boxing lesson, on Facebook live this week.
The workout is done with very minimal equipment, (a set of dumbbells) and was designed to help all of those that have been forced to stay inside, to avoid catching and spreading the coronavirus.
I’ve posted the workout video below, it’s an intense workout but it can be broken down to suit your individual fitness levels. Enjoy!
Rocky’s Boxing Gym is located at 1524 Freeman Street, Houston, Texas, 77009 and will resume regular business hours as soon as possible. For more information call 713-538-3552
SELLING TICKETS FOR YOUR UPCOMING FIGHT?
PROTECT YOURSELF AT ALL TIMES, IN AND OUT OF THE RING.
If you are going to sell tickets for your fights protect yourself from those promoters that are running a scam to fraudulently and ILLEGALLY take your money under false pretenses.
If you are asked to fight on a card by a local promoter these are the steps to protecting yourself from bait and switch and fraudulent business practices. For example if the promoter takes ticket money when he/she knows there is no opponent. I’ve now heard about two more cases of this in Detroit.
These are some of the steps you can take to protect yourself from being a victim to this type of dishonesty and theft.
Before you sell ANY tickets:
1- Have the promoter send you a fight contract with his signature on it before you sign it. ( this way you have a contract the commission can enforce)
2- After you send the fight contract with your signature and the promoters signature on it back to the promoter request a copy of the opponent’s signed contract. Until you get this you have no proof of an actual fight.
3- Check on Boxrec to see if the fight has been APPROVED by the commission. If you are not sure if it’s just listed for approval or has actually been approved CALL THE COMMISSION and ask.
If ALL of these things are completed and check out then and ONLY then you know you have an official ENFORCEABLE contract with that promoter for the fight you are selling tickets for.
BEFORE you give the promoter ANY ticket money make sure the opponent:
1- Is actually in town
2- Is present at the OFFICAL weigh-in
3- The opponent has ALL of their medicals turned in. ( ask the commissioner who is at the weigh-ins. After all that is what they are there for)
3 - Has made weight ( or within the limits for the commission to approve the fight)
After ALL of this NOW is the proper time to hand over ticket money.
1- Write up a simple agreement that you have the promoter sign stating you gave him money and how much from the ticket sales.
2- Congratulate yourself for HANDLING YOUR BUSINESS and get ready to kick ass in that fight.
WHAT IF YOU DID ALL OF THIS OR SOME OF IT BUT GOT CON’D BY THE PROMOTER?
File an OFFICIAL complaint with the commission
WHAT IF YOU FAILED TO DO ALL OFF THIS ?
and the promoter lied to you saying the opponent is weighing in another time but you find out the promoter knew that the opponent was never even able to fight for any reason?
1- File a police report.
2- File an official complaint with the commission and put in the report that you have filed a criminal report with the local police.
Together we become a louder voice and we can clean boxing up and continue to protect the fighters.
Clare Burke is Vice President of the American Boxing Federation and a former boxing manager and advisor.
CORNER SAFETY TIP
DID YOU KNOW if your fighter has bleeding from the ear you can easily check for signs of a skull fracture and to see if there is cerebral fluid in the blood with a simple piece of gauze?
1- Put gauze on the blood if there is a brain injury cerebral fluid will form something like a different color halo ring around the blood.
Blood coming out of the ear can be a sign of a skull fracture, brain injury or a perforated eardrum.
To be crystal clear if they are bleeding from the ear it is time head to the hospital. There is never a good reason to continue fighting after that point. PERIOD.
I’M GOING TO BE A VOICE - Who stands with me?
With the death of four fighters in 2019, two of which sustained brain bleeds or kidney failure due to severe dehydration, we need to change the way fighters cut weight.
YOU CAN NOT FORCE HYDRATION INTO YOUR BODY JUST LIKE YOU CAN NOT FORCE WATER INTO A SPONGE.
I’ll keep saying this until every fighter I come into contact with understands.
For many of you that don’t know I was a neuro trauma rep for 8 years prior to getting into the boxing business. I am educated in the neurosciences and I trained neuro and orthopedic surgeons how to perform new procedures in neuro, spine and orthopedic surgeries. So what I’m about to say is based on SCIENCE not OPINION.
There needs to be a MANDATORY education of fighters and trainers on the negative effects of cutting weight and dehydration.
HERE IS WHY:
Here is an analogy for you, to explain why it’s easy to DEHYDRATE your body, but not easy REHYDRATE:
It’s easy to QUICKLY force / squeeze water OUT of a sponge, but when filling that sponge with the same amount you just squeezed out of it, the sponge will only soak it up at it’s own pace.
YOU CAN NOT FORCE HYDRATION INTO YOUR BODY JUST LIKE YOU CAN NOT FORCE WATER INTO A SPONGE!
Our bodies are made up of 60% water. Water is what gives your brain protection /cushion when you take hits to the head. When you’re not fully hydrated you have no cushion to protect your brain from slamming against the side of your skull.
Other reasons dehydration is dangerous and hurts performance of fighters;
FACT- It is not usually one hit that causes severe concussions that affect the lifetime of your brain, it is an accumulation of punches that cause minor unnoticeable concussions. Then when you don’t allow yourself to heal in between and get hit again, it causes major concussions that you may never recover from.
SPARRING SAFETY IS A MUST - Be smart and educate yourself!
We have to speak up and establish regulations to educate fighters and trainers on the dangers of undergoing such severe dehydration immediately prior to their fight.
WBC health and nutrition representative Dr. Phillip Goglia gives a short lesson on hydration and it’s importance for general health as well as maximum sports performance.