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CONN CHRIS · 01-13-2005, 06:57 AM

This has been fun, pouring over the cards from my state in the forties. It is a little surprising to see the lack of talent in the HW division though. After Murray and Mann, the talent just isn't there. I had assumed that there would be a multitude of local heavies with 20 to 40 career bouts but those type of local fighters appear to all be at the lower weights for this decade. It may have something to do with the popularity of the featherweight division at the time, between Battalino and Pep, that was the division everyone in Hartford focused on for decades.

I am still holding out hope that Clay-Bey can revive boxing in our area. Given the state of things in the heavyweight division, it is not absurd to think that he can get a title shot with a few decent wins. Unfortunately, he has been a bit of a dissapointment to me thus far. I have enjoyed watching his career unfold, but my dissapointment is with the low (actually "no") profile that he has taken in the state. It's probably unfair, but I was hoping that he could be a little like what Pep was. Willie Pep didn't just love boxing, he loved Hartford and loved being out and about. Willie was absolutely everywhere in the late seventies and early eighties (before he started to slow down). If there was a car dealership opening or a high school sports banquet, Willie was there. It seemed like virualy any newsworthy event had a reference to Willie because he was just always there. He loved talking with people in the area and was always a gracious ambassador for boxing and Hartford. Scully was a bit like that too, but his career just didn't grab enough attention to make him the kind of public figure that Pep was. Even though Clay-Bey will never be a champion, I think he could obtain a similar level of local public interest just by taking a run at the top ten because of the interest in the heavyweight division by the general public.

Hopefully, Scully will rub off on him, although he has been Clay-Bey's trainer for quite a while now and it hasn't happened yet. Sorry for the ramble - it just is a bit sad to see the state of pro boxing in my state today, the two casinos have sucked the life out of it and running through these forties fight cards has realy driven that home.

01-13-2005, 06:57 AM	#820
CONN CHRIS Global Moderator Join Date: Oct 2004 Posts: 29,077	This has been fun, pouring over the cards from my state in the forties. It is a little surprising to see the lack of talent in the HW division though. After Murray and Mann, the talent just isn't there. I had assumed that there would be a multitude of local heavies with 20 to 40 career bouts but those type of local fighters appear to all be at the lower weights for this decade. It may have something to do with the popularity of the featherweight division at the time, between Battalino and Pep, that was the division everyone in Hartford focused on for decades. I am still holding out hope that Clay-Bey can revive boxing in our area. Given the state of things in the heavyweight division, it is not absurd to think that he can get a title shot with a few decent wins. Unfortunately, he has been a bit of a dissapointment to me thus far. I have enjoyed watching his career unfold, but my dissapointment is with the low (actually "no") profile that he has taken in the state. It's probably unfair, but I was hoping that he could be a little like what Pep was. Willie Pep didn't just love boxing, he loved Hartford and loved being out and about. Willie was absolutely everywhere in the late seventies and early eighties (before he started to slow down). If there was a car dealership opening or a high school sports banquet, Willie was there. It seemed like virualy any newsworthy event had a reference to Willie because he was just always there. He loved talking with people in the area and was always a gracious ambassador for boxing and Hartford. Scully was a bit like that too, but his career just didn't grab enough attention to make him the kind of public figure that Pep was. Even though Clay-Bey will never be a champion, I think he could obtain a similar level of local public interest just by taking a run at the top ten because of the interest in the heavyweight division by the general public. Hopefully, Scully will rub off on him, although he has been Clay-Bey's trainer for quite a while now and it hasn't happened yet. Sorry for the ramble - it just is a bit sad to see the state of pro boxing in my state today, the two casinos have sucked the life out of it and running through these forties fight cards has realy driven that home. __________________ Check Out My Cards!