R.I.P. Vernon Forrest 02-12-1971-to- 7-25-2009

The boxing world lost another former World Champion in a senseless act of Violence in Northwest Atlanta. At the young age of 38 years old Vernon Forrest was shot to death in an attempted car jacking. The Atlanta police reported that Forest was airing a tire on his Jaguar when the attempted car jacking occurred; Forrest had a gun and was involved in a chase with the suspects. Vernon Forrest was shot between seven and eight times with a semi automatic weapon and one fatal shot to the head. Two suspects still remain at large.
The former Olympian and three time world Champion had amassed a record of 41-3-1 with 29 knockouts. In a year when we think we have seen enough tragedy in the sport of professional boxing the bad news keeps coming. We have to ask ourselves, when will the senseless violence end and the real fight against crime begin? A father, son , and former Champion was taken from this world to soon.
R.I.P. Vernon Forrest. 02-12-1971 to 7-25-2009 you will be missed.

Arturo Thunder Gatti 4-15-1972to 7-11-2009 R.I.P.

The Boxing world has lost another legend long before his time. Former World Champion Arturo Gatti was found dead in a beachfront villa while on honeymoon with his wife and son in Pernambuco Brazil. Arturo Thunder Gatti 40(31KO)+9(5KO) was one of the most entertaining fighters to watch. Gatti a former WBC Light Welterweight Champion, IBF Super Featherweight Champion, USBA Super Featherweight Champion brought excitement and charisma to the ring. His most memorable matches occurred with the heavily hyped Mickey Ward trilogies in which were great battles for both fighters.
Gatti was born in Montreal Canada, raised in Italy and resided in Jersey City, New Jersey during his boxing career. Arturo Thunder Gatti has developed a huge following in the Atlantic City area in which he fought many great fights at the Atlantic City Boardwalk. Gatti announced his retirement in 2007 after an unexpected loss to Alfonso Gomez in Atlantic City.
Gatti was a fighter who had the rare combinations of style, looks, skill and the commercial appeal to bring excitement in and out of the ring. Arturo Thunder Gatti was a one of a kind fighter and will be missed throughout the world. Our Prayers and thoughts go out to the family.

Bill Stephens

Raging Bull by Jake La Motta

My Story by Jake La Motta with Joseph Carter and Peter Savage gives the reader a look inside the mind of The Raging Bull.
The Bull takes you along the path of his life of hard knocks from Juvenile detention centers with Rocky Graziano, through his brushes with the law through the crime ridden streets of the Bronx. The street fights and survival instincts that took a young La Motta into the ring to shape his destiny. The Bull left a life of crime to rise to the top of the ranks until finally giving in to the mob to get the title shot that was long overdue. The once unstoppable and fan favorite the Raging Bull found himself standing in the middle of Madison Square Garden getting booed for the poor performance of his thrown match to Billy Fox. La Motta got his title shot and defeated Marcel Cerdan on June 16th 1949 to become the Middleweight Champion of the World.
The Bronx Bull gives you a glimpse of the life in the fast lane to losing everything he had worked so hard for. With the loss of his wife and family from divorce, to spending millions and ending up in solitary confinement and working on a chain gang. The Bull’s time in solitary confinement was a wake up call to pick himself back off of the mat and begin an attempt at an acting career.
This two hundred twenty seven page autobiography published by Decapo Press lays out the life of one of the most feared fighters of perhaps the greatest generation in the sport. Raging Bull My Story is a great read that is irresistible to put down until finished.

Alexis Arguello 1952-2009

R.I.P. Champ

Former Champion and Hall of Fame Inductee Aaron "The Hawk" Pryor pays tribute to his friend.

Dear Boxing Fans,

Alexis Arguello and I shared a bond that began with our historic fight on November 12, 1982 at the Orange Bowl in Miami , FL. That bond will never be broken. I had the honor of helping my friend campaign when he was seeking political office and I always enjoyed our many visits and phone conversations through out the years. I am deeply saddened by his passing. Boxing has lost one of the greatest champions to ever step in the ring. Alexis Arguello was a true gentleman and I was blessed to call him my friend.

Please join us at www.hawktime.com for a further tribute to The Explosive Thin Man. There is information on the home page and an additional page titled “The Great Alexis Arguello”.

Alexis, we will miss and love you always.

Aaron 'The Hawk' Pryor
1996 Int'l Boxing Hall of Fame Inductee
Website: http://www.hawktime.com/

Andy Lee moves to 18-1 13 Ko's

Andy Lee moves to 18(13ko’s)-1 after a victory over Oleg Fedetovs 10-5-0 on the undercard of last Saturdays Klitschko Chaegev fight in Germany. Lee won by unanimous decision in this 6 round matchup. The Irish Southpaw has trained under the great Emmanuel Steward from the Krunk Gym fame. Steward seems to have Lee back on track after last years devastating upset from Brian Vera. Andy Lee faced his first defeat of his professional career in a seventh round knockout at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Connecticut. Since the defeat, Lee has won the last three fights in which two were fought in Ireland, and this past weekends took place at Veltins Arena in Gelsenkirchen Germany.

Requiem for a Heavyweight

With the movie selection at the video store slim, I searched the overpriced cable channels for something of quality to watch. Stuck in reality hell, I surfed the on demand channels until I settled onto Turner Classic Movies. Requiem for a Heavyweight goes back to a time in film production when men were real men. An all star lineup with a great cast of legends including Jack Dempsey, Muhammad ALi, Willie Pep, and a cast of other great Boxers.
With Anthony Quinn as Louis “Mountain” Rivera, a one time Heavyweight Contender who is at the end of his career. Jackie Gleason plays the seedy manager Maish Rennick who is out for his own best interest instead of his boxer. Mickey Rooney plays the trainer and care taker for big Mountain Rivera. Requiem for a Heavyweight is a great classic boxing movie that set the standard for a lot of movies to follow.

R.I.P. David Carradine

Kung Fu Star David Carradine found dead in Bangkok hotel room at age 72.