Shoulda' but Didna' -- Great Fights That Never Were

[BigBoyBrackey]

Found a jr. lw gatti here: Interesting comment re: a 10 being too high. Anyone have thoughts on this?

[PWillisTheMan]

I have to agree a ten is way too high for Gatti. I have him as an 8 at Jr Light, 7 at Jr welter and a 5 at welter.

Gatti/Kosta would be a slaughter imo. I don't think he would do well with fenech either.

Gatti/Boza Edwards is more up my alley.

[BigBoyBrackey]

I'm not sure about the 10 for Gatti at 130. He never lost at the weight, and fought some pretty decent opposition, but didn't exactly slay dragons, either.

Looking at other 10s in the database, there are a few at least as questionable (I like Tim Witherspoon just fine, but ...). Also, Dean had him at 10 at that weight in the ratings of the day council, so there's a pretty legitimate division of opinion there.

In any event, the Boza-Edwards suggestion put me in something of a time-travel mindset. Which made me think of two of my favorites from my early boxing fanhood -- Bobby Chacon and Bazooka Limon. My thought is that in real life, either would have given Gatti a great fight, but that Thunder would have eventually proven too strong (unless he got cut badly).

A couple other possibilities occurred to me within his peer group, particularly Hatton. So rather than dither into perpetuity, let's get this going with a slight derivation from earlier matchups. In the interest of expediency, I'll run several Gatti fights -- as well as Brion and Caldwell -- and present the results in more of a summary form, instead of the full-blown round-by-round other fights have been getting.

First up -- Arturo Gatti vs. Bazooka Limon, live from Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City ...

[BigBoyBrackey]

Coming up, Arturo "Thunder" Gatti vs. Rafael "Bazooka" Limon, live before a sell-out crowd at Atlantic City's Convention Hall.

It's scheduled for 10 rounds, but the biggest upset might be if it goes the distance.

[BigBoyBrackey]

ROUND 1

The sound of the bell has barely faded when Arturo Gatti and Bazooka Limon collide in center ring after sprinting from their corners. Gatti misses with a right cross and Limon counters with a straight left that sends sweat spraying into the front row.

Gatti steadies himself and drives home a right to the belly, then, after Limon's hook sails wide, drives another right to the jaw, sending Limon staggering back.

Bazooka bounces off the ropes, directly into a right uppercut. Gatti flails wildly for a moment, then regains focus and delivers a hard jab-cross combo.

Clearly hurt, Limon drops his hands, but the bell rings before Gatti can take advantage.

(OK, I changed my mind about the round-by-round thing.)

[BigBoyBrackey]

ROUND 2

The southpaw Limon continually moves to his right, directly into Gatti's left hook. Such a blow to the head in the early going again sends Limon back into the ropes and another just above the belt line forces him to double over and to his right.

Gatti lands a hard jab, then misses badly with a left hook before scoring another jab. Limon lands an off-balance hook and a jab that doesn't have much on it either.

Gatti, looking much larger than Bazooka, even though each man weighed in at 130, clearly wins the round.

Ringside expert Jim Trunzo, like everyone else in the place, has Gatti up 20-18 after two rounds on his unofficial scorecard.

[BigBoyBrackey]

ROUND 3

In an apparent effort to demonstrate his fighter's versatility (or his own super-genius), Buddy McGirt orders Gatti to box from the outside in the third round, rather than continue the frontal assault that won him the first two rounds.

Limon seizes the opportunity to become the aggressor, scoring with a pair of straight lefts that pierce Gatti's rather clumsy defense and rattle his equilibrium.

Bazooka delivers a hook/uppercut that swivels Gatti's head, then drives home a straight left and a right hook to the body that have Thunder on the grudging retreat.

Limon slams home another straight left, followed by a right uppercut at the bell.

A shaken Gatti walks slowly to his corner, where cutman Joe Souza immediately goes to work on the puffs that have suddently appeared under each of his eyes ...

[BigBoyBrackey]

ROUND 4

Realizing the error of his ways, McGirt directs Gatti to return to form. Limon responds in kind, and the two spend most of the round trading shots at center ring.

Limon can't stop Gatti's left hooks upstairs or down, while Thunder looks defenseless against the southpaw's unerring left crosses. Gatti lands a few more of his shot of choice.

Jim Trunzo sees the round even and has Gatti up 39-38.

[BigBoyBrackey]

ROUND 5

The fighters again meet in the middle of the ring, with Gatti slamming home a jab and a cross that drive Limon back.

Gatti charges in, but the fighters fall into a clinch. As they break, Limon lands his best left cross yet, and now it is Thunder stumbling back across the ring.

After feinting with a right to the body, Limon redirects his hook upstairs and snaps Gatti's head to the side. As he straightens to face his attacker, the swelling under his left eye grows more pronounced.

Now Gatti hangs on, trying to clear his head. After the break, he launches a left hook that misses badly and Limon counters with a nasty uppercut worthy of his nickname.

In a delayed reaction, DOWN GOES GATTI!

[BigBoyBrackey]

ROUND 5 (continued)

Referee Lupe Garcia swoops in, pushes Limon toward a neutral corner and begins the count over Gatti, who is lying on his left side, with that arm pinned under him and the other bent at an unnatural angle above him, his eyes frozen open.

1 ...
2 ...
3 ...
4 ... (Gatti finally blinks)
5 ...
6 ...
7 ...
8 ... (Gatti flexes as if trying to do a side-crunch, and begins turning onto his back from his side)
9 ... (In a remarkable athletic display, Gatti leaps to his feet just as Garcia is about to toll 10)

After looking him over and asking a few cursory questions, Garcia nods to Gatti and steps aside, clearing the way for the fight to resume.

Limon drives home a straight left to the belly, but the bell rings before he can further batter his dazed foe.

The 10-8 round puts Limon ahead, 48-47, on Jim Trunzo's unofficial card.

[BigBoyBrackey]

ROUND 6

Rather than rush in wildly, Limon pumps several of his most effective right jabs of the fight, targeting Gatti's increasingly swelling left eye.

Limon then hooks off another right jab, landing the blow with enough force that for a moment, it looks like Thunder is again headed for the canvas.

Instead of going down, though, Gatti rights himself and lands a murderous cross, followed a left hook that lands flush.

Beginning to look a bit arm-weary, Limon lands an uppercut that has little effect, then misses with several punches.

Gatti lands a strong uppercut and, after eating several effective right jabs, connects with another that snaps Limon's head straight back.

Jim Trunzo calls the fight's best two-action round thus far even, maintaining Limon's one-point edge on his unofficial scorecard.

[BigBoyBrackey]

ROUND 7

Both fighters revert to their original game plans, with Gatti launching left hooks up and down and Limon firing straight left and after straight left.

Both land consistently, with Gatti's right eye showing the bulk of the damage.

Gatti seems to be getting the best of it until the round's last 30 seconds, when Limon changes things up a bit with a brutal right hook that puts Thunder on wobbly legs.

Still, Jim Trunzo thinks Gatti did enough to win the round, evening things up on his unofficial scorecard with three rounds to go.

[BigBoyBrackey]

ROUND 8

Joe Souza does his best to keep Gatti's swelling eyes under control, but Limon can't seem to miss with his straight lefts, then further damages his target's right eye with a hard right hook.

Gatti momentarily grabs the momentum with a hard left hook to the head, but Limon seizes it back with a jarring left uppercut.

Gatti's frustration shows late in the round, when he receives a warning from Lupe Garcia for hitting on the break.

Limon clearly wins the round, taking a 77-76 lead as Trunzo sees it at ringside.

Gatti blinks his left eye, which is quickly becoming a slit, several times as he walks to his corner.

[BigBoyBrackey]

ROUND 9

Limon comes out working the body and quickly receives a warning from Garcia after landing a right hook squarely to Gatti's cup.

Limon then keeps Gatti off balance with a series of right jabs that further swell Thunder's left eye, mixing in an occasional straight left down the middle.

Gatti keeps marching forward, though, launching several errant home-run shots.

With 10 seconds left in the round, one of those right-hand bombs lands flush, driving Limon into the ropes. But Bazooka clinches deftly, hanging on tight until the bell.

[BigBoyBrackey]

ROUND 10

That big right hand was enough to convince Jim Trunzo that Gatti deserved the ninth, leaving the fight even on his unofficial card heading into the 10th.

Buddy McGirt tells Gatti otherwise in the corner, though.

"You've got to take his &%#@-ing head off," McGirt yells in his ear. "Now. Now. Now."

Joe Souza does what he can with an Endswell for Gatti's swollen orbs during McGirt's tirade, getting Gatti's left eye half open and the right slightly moreso.

At the bell, Limon looks just as desperate as Gatti. The latter lands the first big blows, a jab-cross combo that force Limon back. Gatti lands a hard right, then a harder one that forces Bazooka into his own corner.

The crowd at Boardwalk Hall, which has roared with every punch thrown by Gatti, reaches a crescendo, anticipating a knockout by their hero.

Before Gatti can pin him in, Limon escapes to center ring, where he lands a left uppercut before absorbing another cracking right cross.

Limon clinches, then comes out of it with a sharp right hook that the nearly blinded Gatti never sees coming. After blocking Gatti's right cross, Limon lands another unseen hook that lands exactly where aimed, sending Gatti to his knees near the ropes.

Garcia moves in and begins to count.

[BigBoyBrackey]

ROUND 10 (continued)

1 ...

2 ...

3 ...

4 ...

5 ... (Gatti nearly gets himself upright, but stumbles back to his knees)

6 ...

Gatti regains an upright position, if not his footing. But he steadies himself enough for Garcia to waves the fighters together again. But as they step toward each other, the final bell rings.

Limon leaps into the air in celebration, then runs to his corner to hug trainer Billy Graham. Gatti walks more slowly to his corner, but elicits another roar from the crowd when he raises his arms, as much in defiance as in expectation of victory.

[BigBoyBrackey]

THE DECISION

Jim Trunzo gives Limon a 10-8 round in the 10th and a 96-94 win on his unofficial scorecard.

Jimmy Lennon takes the microphone to announce the official verdict.

"Judge Uriel Aguilera of Colombia scores the bout 95 to 93.

Judge Kazuo Abe of Japan scores the bout 96 to 92

Frank Adams of the United States scores the bout 96 to 93.

The winner by unanimous decision is:

Rafael 'Bazooka' Limon!"


Limon narrowly overcame Gatti's home-arena advantage. Despite landing 297 punches to Gatti's 185 and being nearly twice as accurate with his shots, Limon would have had to settle for a split draw if not for the late knockdown. Gatti was dominating the 10th and would have gotten the nod from Aguilera and been even on Adams' card had he won the round.

An argument could certainly be made that the final round should have been scored 10-9, since Limon did little before the knockdown, while absorbing several big shots, but such scoring would not have changed the final outcome.

[PWillisTheMan]

That's about exactly how I would think that fight would go.

[BigBoyBrackey]

Seemed very right to me, too. Gatti starts strong and makes it exciting, but is done in by his eyes and Limon's straight lefts.

It was fought using the Gatti from Dean's Ratings of the Day Council thread, using the prime LW version against the database's Limon, not adjusting for weight-class differences (I think Dean generally eschews the jr. and super classes in his ratings). That Gatti is a 10, taken down by an 8 Limon. Seems about right -- a lot of power giving him the higher rating, but enough flaws that he is very beatable by someone who can negate his pop with defense or chin.

[BigBoyBrackey]

And now, back to the hype for Tony Zale's defense of the world middleweight championship against Charley Burley on July 11, 1946 at Yankee Stadium.

Zale (57-16-2 with 35 knockouts) has won six straight, all non-title fights, since returning from service in World War II. While he has held the world championship since beating Georgie Abrams on Nov. 28, 1941 -- nine days before Pearl Harbor -- this will be his first defense.

The 28-year-old Burley (75-10-2, 46), who spent much of the war working at a munitions plant in San Diego, was denied a shot at Henry Armstrong's welterweight crown before hostilities commenced and has been marking time ever since, with all world titles in limbo for the duration.