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Boxing History

Fierce and flawed, Cuban Angel Robinson Garcia never turned down a fight

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Born: May 9, 1937 in Havana, Cuba

He died: June 1, 2000 in Cuba

He became a professional: July 23, 1955

Department(s): from super featherweight to super welterweight

Record: 239 fights, 138 wins (55 by KO/TKO), 80 losses, 21 draws.

Defeated: Bobby Bell, Alfredo Urbina, Tommy Tibbs (twice), Jose Stable*, Rolando Morales, Pastor Marrero, Mario Vecchiatto, Valerio Nunez, Fernand Nollet, Giordano Campari, Ray Adigun, Francois Pavilla, Rafiu King*, Joe Tetteh (twice ), Andrew Navarro, Kid Tano, LC Morgan, Paul Armstead, Bobby Arthur, Jonathan Dele, Bunny Grant*, Mark Geraldo, Perry Abner.

Lost to: Frankie Ryff, Doug Vaillant (twice)*, Vicente Rivas*, Jose Stable*, Jose Napoles (twice)**, Carlos Hernandez (twice)**, Alfredo Urbina, Bunny Grant*, Rafiu King, Jean Josselin* , Eddie Perkins ** (three times), Antonio Ortiz*, Ismael Laguna **, Conny Rudhof, Olli Maki*, Andres Navarro (twice), Maurice Cullen, Bruno Acari **, Antonio Ortiz*, Carmelo Bossi**, Borge Krogh, Paul Armstead, Ken Buchanan **, Pedro Carrasco **, Chris Fernandez, Silvano Bertini*, Jose Hernandez* (twice), Jonathan Dele (twice), Jose Duran **, Roger Menetrey*, Roberto Duran **, Esteban De Jesus* *, Saoul Mamby **, Sugar Ray Seales, Johnny Gant*, Wilfredo Benitez **, Larry Bonds*, Adriano Marrero*, Josue Marquez *, Billy Backus**, Clyde Gray*, Willie Monroe, Ralph Palladin .

Scottish legend Ken Buchanan defeated Robinson Garcia

He drew with: Carlos Hernandez **, Doug Vaillant*, Carmelo Bossi **, Andres Navarro (twice), Francois Pavilla*, LC Morgan, Paul Armstead, Miguel Velazquez **, Jose Hernandez*, Antonio Ortiz *

**Denotes a past or future holder of a version of a world title

*Denotes a contender for the world title


The Story of Angel Robinson Garcia

Unlike many boxers, Angel Garcia did not come from a hard life situation. He was one of six children, and since his father was an officer in the Cuban army, his life was good while growing up.

Garcia started boxing as a teenager, and after winning all his amateur fights and collecting several trophies, he became a professional. As a huge fan of Sugar Ray, Robinson adopted Robinson as part of his ring name.

Angel was an excellent technical boxer with great skills and, as his 55 KO/TKO wins indicate, he was a good puncher. Despite these qualities, a fighter with eighty defeats is not a candidate for boxing greatness, but Garcia boasts a top traveling journeyman and the hardest chin in boxing.

By the time he started fighting out of Cuba in 1958, he had compiled a record of 29-2. Cuba banned professional boxing in 1962, forcing him to fight outside his homeland for the rest of his career. He fought anyone and everyone – and he fought often.

He had twelve fights in one six-month period and seventeen and twenty in the other two individual years. Sometimes the breaks between essential fights were ridiculous. In one month, in October 1960, he drew with Doug Vaillant and lost twice on points to future WBA/WBC welterweight titleholder Carlos Hernandez.

Another time he fought an eight-round fight on July 9, 1967 in Italy, and nine days later, again in Italy, he faced the future WBA/WBC champion in superweight Carmelo Bossi.

He lost on points to undefeated Sugar Ray Seales on February 13, 1974, and just five days later he fought and lost on points to Josue Marquez in San Juan. This came shortly after Marquez lost a split decision to Antonio Cervantes for the WBA super lightweight title. So two massive fights in five days.

During his career, Garcia fought in nineteen different countries: Algeria, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Spain, Switzerland, Tunisia, Great Britain, USA and Venezuela .

In the US, he fought in eight different states: Arizona, Florida, Maryland, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Nevada, Up-to-date York and Texas. He faced fourteen fighters who had won or were about to win the world title, and seventeen who had challenged or were about to fight for a version of the title.

Jose Napoles

Jose Napoles: Robinson fought the legend twice

He faced Jose Napoles twice, Carlos Hernandez (who broke Davey Moore’s jaw), Eddie Perkins, Esteban De Jesus, Ken Buchanan, Ismael Laguna, Wilfredo Benitez and a juvenile Roberto Duran who was 26-0, 23 by KO/TKO ; Robinson has come a long way with all of them. After the fight with Garcia, Duran was reported to have said: “That Cuban bastard knows a lot about boxing and I want him to teach me some of what he knows.”

In 239 fights, he only failed to go the distance three times. His defeats to Carmelo Bossi and Boots Monroe were due to cuts, and only Alfredo Urbina, whom Garcia had defeated earlier, scored a true victory over Garcia in March 1961. Later that year, Urbina tied Sugar Ramos and overtook Jose Napoles in 1963. .

Garcia’s only title was the Latin American Junior Lightweight Championship, which went largely unnoticed when he appeared on the Havana show on February 26, 1958. The show was staged as part of the Grand Prix. The winner of the previous Grand Prix, Juan Fangio, was kidnapped by Fidel Castro’s movement on July 26, the day before the race.

The race continued and the car skidded and plowed into the crowd, killing seven people. There was also a boxing show attended by many celebrities, from Joe Louis to cowboy star Gene Autry.

In the fighting that night, two Cubans, Oscar Suarez and Jose Ramon Flores, suffered losses against Mexican opposition. Flores lost on points to Alvaro Gutierrez, but a more solemn problem was a cerebral hemorrhage. Fortunately, Flores survived and recovered.

A third Cuban, Orlando Echevarria, was knocked out in one round by Joe Brown. After all these incidents, Garcia’s stoppage of Panamanian Isidro Martinez in the ninth round went virtually unnoticed.

During his stays, Garcia gained a fan base in France and Spain and continued to fight the likes of Benitez, Billy Backus, Clyde Gray and Willie Monroe as he approached his forties before retiring following a 17-1 defeat of Belgian Pol Payen in Belgium in February 1978 at the age of 40.

Wilfred Benitez

With a superstar: Robinson fought Benitez (above)

Outside the ring, Garcia was not a cutthroat, but a real person with solemn flaws. He squandered all the money he earned. He was a serial philanderer, almost a sex addict, and it was alleged that he sometimes had sex before weigh-ins, after weigh-ins and after fights.

Robinson also struggled with alcohol and drugs and was often in trouble with the law. Early in his career, the Cuban Commission suspended him for living a “promiscuous” life. His affair with France ended when he abandoned his pregnant wife and spent two months in prison on pimping charges. The French Federation suspended him for seven years.

He was jailed after a brawl with several Sudanese sailors in Genoa, and militant Ferdie Pacheco said Garcia once told him he had spent six months in an Italian prison for beating a woman.

Those 2005 boxing rounds finally caught up with Garcia. After retiring, he returned to Paris. He had liver and kidney problems and was almost blind.

The road warrior slept homeless, helpless and destitute. French movie star Jean-Paul Belmondo is said to have recognized him and appealed to Fidel Castro, who allowed Garcia to return to Cuba and end his life there.

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Boxing History

Bunny Sterling’s great legacy in British boxing

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St Pancras’ BUNNY STERLING will always be remembered as the first black non-British-born player to win a British title. He was the first to benefit from rule changes introduced by the Board in 1968 and defeated one of the golden boys of British boxing, winning the title.

Mark Rowe had a very successful amateur career, culminating in winning a gold medal at the 1966 Commonwealth Games held in Perth, Australia. Representing England, Rowe overtook Scotsman Tom Imrie to win welterweight gold, sweet revenge for the Londoner after being knocked out by Imrie in the ABA final at the same weight just over three months earlier. When Rowe turned around two months later, it was in a blaze of publicity at the Royal Albert Hall.

Meanwhile, Bunny made his professional debut at the less austere Shoreditch Town Hall. Losing points over six rounds to Islington’s Joe Devitt BN stated that Sterling “was willing, threw one or two punches and always resisted. A boy from St Pancras given the chance to learn a trade would do well.”

Sterling came to the UK aged seven from Jamaica in 1955 and attended Fortescue boarding school in Twickenham, where he played rugby, football and cricket. He was also involved in boxing, and as an amateur at the BC Polytechnic University he came under the tutelage of the slow, great George Francis. Knowing a good player when he saw one, George encouraged Bunny to turn professional and stayed with him as his coach. A loss to Devitt was quickly followed by two more, but Bunny learned from those losses and quickly turned things around, winning the next seven.

By 1969, he was mixing it with artists such as Johnny Kramer, Wally Swift, Harry Scott and Dick Duffy. Despite losing to all four fighters, Sterling was selected by the management to fight in a British middleweight title eliminator against Denny Pleace and defeated him over nine rounds at the Anglo-American Sporting Club. Then came the final eliminator against Harry Scott and Sterling got his revenge by beating the Liverpool veteran of twelve years in Nottingham.

Sterling Bunny

Rowe won the British title at Wembley in May 1970, defeating fellow Liverpudlian Les McAteer in 14 rounds, and when he faced Sterling four months later in his first defense, most thought he would be able to finally defeat Sterling . BN was no exception and predicted Rowe to win after the break. The two fighters could not have had more contrasting careers, with Rowe winning his last 15 fights, mostly on major London events, and Bunny, who found it arduous to get fights, losing regularly and campaigning on the continent to find work.

Rowe’s trainer, Bill Chevalley, was already talking about pairing his boy with world champion Nino Benvenuti after he defeated Sterling, but those plans were thwarted by in-ring events at Wembley in September 1970. The Commonwealth title was also at stake, and Bunny, what was at stake BN called the “shock of the year” had nothing to do with it. He boxed on the back foot for the first two rounds, trying to avoid the powerful punches of the stalking Rowe, and then after catching Rowe’s head and causing a cut, Rowe charged at him, looking for an early stoppage.

This brought out the best in Sterling, who boxed better than ever before and managed to avoid Rowe’s desperate attacks. Rowe was then cut on the other side of his face, with blood pouring from two solemn cuts, and referee Wally Thom stopped the fight after four rounds, much to the annoyance of Rowe and his camp.

Bunny remained champion for four years, winning the Lonsdale belt outright before losing to Kevin Finnegan in February 1974. He was the first immigrant to win a British title and his place in British boxing history is assured.

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Boxing History

Leotis Martin has beaten the fearsome heavyweight beast

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Name and surname: Leotis Martin

Born: March 10, 1939 Helena, Arkansas, USA

Died: November 20, 1995

Career: 1962–1969

Record: 36 fights, 31 wins (19 by KO/TKO), 5 defeats (2 by KO/TKO).

Division: heavyweight

Attitude: orthodox

Titles: NABF Heavyweight Champion


Major competitions

Goals scored over: Allan Harmon, Sonny Banks, Von Clay, Amos Johnson, Roberto Davila, Mariano Echevarria, Billy Daniels, Karl Mildenberger*, Thad Spencer, Alvin Lewis (twice), Roger Russell, Sonny Liston **

Lost to: Floyd McCoy, Jimmy Ellis**, Roger Russell, Henry Clark, Oscar Bonavena*

**Former/future world title version holder

*Unsuccessful challenger to the world title version


The boxing story of Leotis Martin

As an amateur, Martin had an outstanding record. In March 1960 at the Golden Gloves Tournament of Champions, he defeated future foe Jimmy Ellis in the 160-pound final and a month later. At the Intercity Golden Gloves (the predecessor of the National Golden Gloves), he won the 160-pound title. He also won the U.S. title in April 1960 again at 160 pounds (newborn Cassius Clay was the 178-pound champion that year), but lost in the semifinals of the U.S. Olympic trials in May. In 1961, he repeated his victory in the Intercity Golden Gloves, but lost in the semi-final of the 1961 national finals.

He moved to Philadelphia and was trained by Yank Durham, who also trained Joe Frazier. Martin had his first professional fight in Canada on January 26, 1962, against American Bobby Warthen, whom he defeated in the final of the Intercity Golden Gloves in 1960. He then crossed the border and scored three wins in Pennsylvania in 1962. In 1963, he won 9 -1 in ten fights and lost by upset KO to 14-14-1 Floyd McCoy.

He won five in a row, but one victory went to Sonny Banks. Banks, a ponderous puncher, knocked down Cassius Clay in the first round of their 1962 fight, only to be stopped in the fourth. On May 10, 1965, Banks was winning against Martin, who was badly shaken in the ninth throw, but delivered a counter right that sent Banks down, hitting his head on the canvas. Banks was taken from the ring on a stretcher. He never recovered and died three days later.

Martin returned to the ring with a victory in October 1965 and scored victories over Von Clay, Amos Johnson, Roberto Davila and Spaniard Mariano Echevarria. Victories over several underdogs pushed his record to 23-1 by June 1967. When Muhammad Ali refused to enlist in the U.S. Army, the WBA stripped him of his title and held a tournament to determine a novel champion. Martin was selected to compete in the qualifiers, and in the quarterfinals he drew with Jimmy Ellis, his rival from his amateur days, when they lost 1-1 in two fights. It wouldn’t be a heavyweight fight at this point.

They both climbed on the weights. Martin weighed 160 pounds in his first fight and weighed 192 pounds in this fight. Ellis weighed just 157 pounds and was 194 ¼. Ellis won easily. He was too swift for Martin from the start and Martin staggered repeatedly before the fight was stopped in the ninth throw as blood poured from a cut in Martin’s mouth. Ellis defeated Oscar Bonavena in the semifinals to win the vacant WBA title by majority decision over Jerry Quarry.

Martin came close to disappearing from the heavyweight scene when he lost a split decision to Roger Russell in November 1967. The year 1968 was a period of ups and downs for Martin. In April he went to Germany, where he defeated Karl Mildenberger three times and knocked him out in the seventh round.

The rollercoaster went down when he lost a majority decision to Henry Clark just twenty-two days after the Mildenberger fight, and then it went up again in May when he stopped Thad Spencer in nine rounds in one of the greatest heavyweight fights ever seen at the British ring. It was surprising to see two Americans on top of the Albert Hall show, but the fight will forever be remembered by those who saw it. Down went down the rollercoaster again when Martin was easily beaten on points by Oscar Bonavena in Buenos Aires in September.

Martin was dismissed as unpredictable and once again on the verge of being the favorite in the heavyweight division. But it was another uptick from the rollercoaster of 1968, when he faced Alvin “Blue” Lewis 19-1 in November and stopped Lewis in the ninth round in front of Lewis’ home fans. Lewis demanded a return and in February 1969, again in Detroit, Martin won by split decision. Martin retained Wendell Newton in October and made up for his 1967 loss to Roger Russell in November.

Martin’s fate was about to change. Since losing his second fight to Ali in 1965, Sonny Liston had won 14 straight fights, 13 by KO/TKO, and Martin was selected as winner number 15. They were to meet in Las Vegas on December 6, 1969. twelve rounds, and the inaugural title of the North American Boxing Federation is at stake. Liston had a 20-pound advantage over Martin and was three inches taller. The downside for Liston is that he’s a week away from his thirty-ninth birthday.

Yet Liston was still feared. Martin helped Liston prepare for fights with Floyd Patterson and Muhammad Ali, so he knew Liston well. He decided that if he could survive the early rounds, he would face the weakening Liston and have a chance to win. It didn’t look like Martin’s plan was going to work when Liston dropped him with a left hook overdue in the fourth round.

Martin survived the remaining 30 seconds and boxed in retreat, partly as part of his plan but also because of Liston’s hammer jab. Even on the retreat, Martin was finding the mark with his own jab and using his younger legs to set a faster pace than Liston wanted. After eight rounds of chasing the retreating Martin, Liston was ahead with three points on two cards and two points on the third, but Liston was tiring.

In the eighth round, Martin shook off a huge left hook and began to push Liston away with more punches. In the ninth, Martin missed Liston and then delivered a demanding cross to the head that stunned Liston. Martin landed lefts and rights and Liston fell face first onto the canvas, not moving for the 10 second count. This rollercoaster reached novel heights, with Martin earning the best win of his career and a shot at the world title.

But this is Leotis Martin and the roller coaster has taken one last cruel turn. Martin was diagnosed with retinal detachment and forced to retire. The injury was said to be from the Liston fights, but there was a mention that he was battling an injury from before the Liston fight. Eye surgery has advanced and a detached retina would not automatically be a reason for retirement today, but for Martin in 1969 it meant the end of his career.

During his boxing career from 1964, Martin worked full-time as a mechanic for a manufacturing company and continued this work until his retirement in 1995. In November of that year, he suffered a stroke caused by high blood pressure and complications of diabetes and died at the age of only 56.

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Boxing History

Leotis Martin has beaten the fearsome heavyweight beast

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Name and surname: Leotis Martin

Born: March 10, 1939 Helena, Arkansas, USA

Died: November 20, 1995

Career: 1962–1969

Record: 36 fights, 31 wins (19 by KO/TKO), 5 defeats (2 by KO/TKO).

Division: heavyweight

Attitude: orthodox

Titles: NABF Heavyweight Champion


Major competitions

Goals scored over: Allan Harmon, Sonny Banks, Von Clay, Amos Johnson, Roberto Davila, Mariano Echevarria, Billy Daniels, Karl Mildenberger*, Thad Spencer, Alvin Lewis (twice), Roger Russell, Sonny Liston **

Lost to: Floyd McCoy, Jimmy Ellis**, Roger Russell, Henry Clark, Oscar Bonavena*

**Former/future world title version holder

*Unsuccessful challenger to the world title version


The boxing story of Leotis Martin

As an amateur, Martin had an outstanding record. In March 1960 at the Golden Gloves Tournament of Champions, he defeated future foe Jimmy Ellis in the 160-pound final and a month later. At the Intercity Golden Gloves (the predecessor of the National Golden Gloves), he won the 160-pound title. He also won the U.S. title in April 1960 again at 160 pounds (youthful Cassius Clay was the 178-pound champion that year), but lost in the semifinals of the U.S. Olympic trials in May. In 1961, he repeated his victory in the Intercity Golden Gloves, but lost in the semi-final of the 1961 national finals.

He moved to Philadelphia and was trained by Yank Durham, who also trained Joe Frazier. Martin had his first professional fight in Canada on January 26, 1962, against American Bobby Warthen, whom he defeated in the final of the Intercity Golden Gloves in 1960. He then crossed the border and scored three wins in Pennsylvania in 1962. In 1963, he won 9 -1 in ten fights and lost by upset KO to 14-14-1 Floyd McCoy.

He won five in a row, but one victory went to Sonny Banks. Banks, a ponderous puncher, knocked down Cassius Clay in the first round of their 1962 fight, only to be stopped in the fourth. On May 10, 1965, Banks was winning against Martin, who was badly shaken in the ninth throw, but delivered a counter right that sent Banks down, hitting his head on the canvas. Banks was taken from the ring on a stretcher. He never recovered and died three days later.

Martin returned to the ring with a victory in October 1965 and scored victories over Von Clay, Amos Johnson, Roberto Davila and Spaniard Mariano Echevarria. Victories over several underdogs pushed his record to 23-1 by June 1967. When Muhammad Ali refused to enlist in the U.S. Army, the WBA stripped him of his title and held a tournament to determine a fresh champion. Martin was selected to compete in the qualifiers, and in the quarterfinals he drew with Jimmy Ellis, his rival from his amateur days, when they lost 1-1 in two fights. It wouldn’t be a heavyweight fight at this point.

They both climbed on the weights. Martin weighed 160 pounds in his first fight and weighed 192 pounds in this fight. Ellis weighed just 157 pounds and was 194 ¼. Ellis won easily. He was too speedy for Martin from the start and Martin staggered repeatedly before the fight was stopped in the ninth throw as blood poured from a cut in Martin’s mouth. Ellis defeated Oscar Bonavena in the semifinals to win the vacant WBA title by majority decision over Jerry Quarry.

Martin came close to disappearing from the heavyweight scene when he lost a split decision to Roger Russell in November 1967. The year 1968 was a period of ups and downs for Martin. In April he went to Germany, where he defeated Karl Mildenberger three times and knocked him out in the seventh round.

The rollercoaster went down when he lost a majority decision to Henry Clark just twenty-two days after the Mildenberger fight, and then it went up again in May when he stopped Thad Spencer in nine rounds in one of the greatest heavyweight fights ever seen at the British ring. It was surprising to see two Americans on top of the Albert Hall show, but the fight will forever be remembered by those who saw it. Down went down the rollercoaster again when Martin was easily beaten on points by Oscar Bonavena in Buenos Aires in September.

Martin was dismissed as unpredictable and once again on the verge of being the favorite in the heavyweight division. But it was another uptick from the rollercoaster of 1968, when he faced Alvin “Blue” Lewis 19-1 in November and stopped Lewis in the ninth round in front of Lewis’ home fans. Lewis demanded a return and in February 1969, again in Detroit, Martin won by split decision. Martin retained Wendell Newton in October and made up for his 1967 loss to Roger Russell in November.

Martin’s fate was about to change. Since losing his second fight to Ali in 1965, Sonny Liston had won 14 straight fights, 13 by KO/TKO, and Martin was selected as winner number 15. They were to meet in Las Vegas on December 6, 1969. twelve rounds, and the inaugural title of the North American Boxing Federation is at stake. Liston had a 20-pound advantage over Martin and was three inches taller. The downside for Liston is that he’s a week away from his thirty-ninth birthday.

Yet Liston was still feared. Martin helped Liston prepare for fights with Floyd Patterson and Muhammad Ali, so he knew Liston well. He decided that if he could survive the early rounds, he would face the weakening Liston and have a chance to win. It didn’t look like Martin’s plan was going to work when Liston dropped him with a left hook slow in the fourth round.

Martin survived the remaining 30 seconds and boxed in retreat, partly as part of his plan but also because of Liston’s hammer jab. Even on the retreat, Martin was finding the mark with his own jab and using his younger legs to set a faster pace than Liston wanted. After eight rounds of chasing the retreating Martin, Liston was ahead with three points on two cards and two points on the third, but Liston was tiring.

In the eighth round, Martin shook off a huge left hook and began to push Liston away with more punches. In the ninth, Martin missed Liston and then delivered a demanding cross to the head that stunned Liston. Martin landed lefts and rights and Liston fell face first onto the canvas, not moving for the 10 second count. This rollercoaster reached fresh heights, with Martin earning the best win of his career and a shot at the world title.

But this is Leotis Martin and the roller coaster has taken one last cruel turn. Martin was diagnosed with retinal detachment and forced to retire. The injury was said to be from the Liston fights, but there was a mention that he was battling an injury from before the Liston fight. Eye surgery has advanced and a detached retina would not automatically be a reason for retirement today, but for Martin in 1969 it meant the end of his career.

During his boxing career from 1964, Martin worked full-time as a mechanic for a manufacturing company and continued this work until his retirement in 1995. In November of that year, he suffered a stroke caused by high blood pressure and complications of diabetes and died at the age of only 56.

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