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A Fighter’s Spirit: Remembering a Thunder

                   Arturo “Thunder” Gatti was once the most compelling boxer the boxing world has ever seen. The ultimate blood and guts warrior will always be remembered. He is best characterized as a modern day Rocky Balboa with his no surrender and dramatic appeal. Shortly after his retirement, boxing lost its true warrior when he tragically lost his life in a suspected suicide in Porto de Galinhas, Brazil. He was only thirty seven years of age. 

       A Jersey City native, Gatti was a true throwback fighter to the golden era of boxing. He galvanized crowds with his ferocious brawling style and untamed heart of a lion. His punch and get punched style gave audiences heart wrenching minutes of hellacious boxing.

         He did not possess the skills of Cassius Clay’s nifty foot work, didn’t have blinding hand speed of “Sugar” Ray Leonard, nor did he have the crafty defensive skills of Pernell “Sweet Pea” Whitaker. He was a just a fighter with an indomitable will and rare inner strength that the boxing world admired.

        Gatti was born in Italy on April 15, 1972, but raised in Montreal. After his fathers death at the age of 15 Gatti dedicated his father’s memory through boxing. He fought his way to six Canadian Golden glove titles but did not want to compete in the Olympics and shortly after turned pro at age 19. When he moved to Jersey City he garnished his toughness and developed his bones as a boxer. Jersey City being a tough and blue collar city symbolized his tenacity and never quit aptitude.

        Gatti’s thunderous power gave him a record of 16-1 and 14 KO’s. In 1994 he got a title shot when he challenged (25-2) Pete Taliaferro for the USBA title and won his first belt.,In 1995 he beat Tracy Harris Patterson, a two-time division world champion and current IBF 130lbs belt holder. After this he TKO’d Wilson Rodriguez in stunning fashion and the bout got Fight of the Year. His savage pugilistic style made him a rising star and fan favorite.

         After gaining fame he began to get sucked into the lavish party scene and dropped his next three bouts. His father once told him that he can’t be a fighter and a rock star; you have to be one or the other; you can’t be both. He lost to Angel Manfredy and Ivan Robinson twice which one of the fights won fight of the year for 1996. On March 24,2001, he squared off against “Golden Boy” Oscar De La Hoya. De La Hoya outclassed and knocked out Gatti in the 5th round.

        “You can do one of two things when you leave the gym, you can go to your hotel and worry about your bruises on your face or you can go and play golf cause your not getting hit in the gym” said Gatti’s newly hired head trainer and former champion James “Buddy” Mcgirt. Mcgirt started to retrain Gatti in the sweet science and began sharpening his skills. 

        His next bout was the epic trilogy between Gatti and tough journey man "Irish" Mickey Ward. According to boxing historian, Bert Sugar, these fights had the sensational drama of Ali and Frazier’s "Thrilla in Manila".

        Gatti vs Ward was an electrifying slug-fest from the opening bell that saw both fighters refusing to surrender. In the 9th round Gatti went down and got up from a pulverizing body shot. This round epitomized the will and the spirit of Gatti as both fighters traded powerful hooks. This bloody bout won Ring Magazines Fight of the Year for 2002, which Ward won in a close decision. 

         Their second fight was another spine tingling display of pugilistic fortitude. Gatti won on a unanimous decision but again both fighters needed a visit to the trauma unit. Gatti suffered a broken right hand and Ward was treated for a ruptured eardrum.

        The last and final fight was another non stopping exhilarating bout that also won Ring Magazines fight of the year for 2003. Gatti was victorious but each man left a slab of their life-force in this punishing trilogy. In a classic show of sportsmanship the two fighters shared a water bottle and were treated side by side in the Atlantic City Medical Center. Both men became close friends after their harrowing and vicious bloody fights.

Video Highlights of Gatti and Ward War

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJtd_yGRwHg

       Gatti was on his downhill portion of his career, In June 2005, Gatti had to defend his title against the rising phenom, “Pretty Boy" Floyd Mayweather. The fight was one sided as Gatti's fire power was no match for Mayweathers brisk counter punching, speed, and boxing artistry. After losses to Carlos Baldomir and Alfonso Gomez, Gatti hung up the gloves.

         “Guys like me don’t come around too often I’m different from alot of guys your not going to see someone like me in a long time, fight to the end and I can take as much as I can give” said Gatti.

         After his retirement in July 2007 he moved back to Montreal to pursue real estate. During a vacation, On July 11th 2009, the body of the former junior welterweight champ was discovered dead in his hotel room at a Brazilian tourist resort.. Police speculated his wife, Amanda Rodrigues, had strangled him with her purse strap as he drunkenly slept. The case was eventually ruled a suicide as they concluded that it would have been impossible for her to suspend and hang a man of that size. Despite the coroners finding stabs and blunt trauma to the back of his head and his ex stripper wife was cleared of all charges.

          Gatti was a two-time world champion who retired with a record of 40-9 with 31 by the way of knockout. Gatti’s rise and fame was attributed to his valiant determination to never surrender to an opponent. In 2013 he was inducted to the International Boxing Hall of Fame. He was a gladiator in the theater of modern boxing that stimulated crowds and left his legacy on the sport. 

Arturo Gatti 1972-2009

40-9 (31KO)

2013 International Boxing Hall of Famer

World Champion in two weight classes

Four time Candidate for Ring Magazines Fight of the Year 

2002 Ring Magazines Comeback Fighter of the Year

[oviouz]

The Last of the Hard Hitting Safeties

In the new millennium the NFL has become a passing league. Receivers used to think twice before running a crossing route over the middle. Now with the new concussion rules wide-outs are roaming vicariously under the teeth of the defense (don’t lead with your helmet zone), while fines are being dropped down to opposing defenders (mostly safeties) who appear to make a split second instinctive hit. Regardless of this non sense what’s football without a pulverizing momentum changing hit.

So let’s show praise to the most punishing safeties to roam their territory since 2000.

John Lynch (6’2 ft., 220 lbs.)                  

Shock and awe is the best way to describe this devastating hitter. Every offensive player who geared up against the cover two Tampa Defense had to locate number 47. He wasn’t the fastest but his angle pursuit to the ball carrier and overwhelming force is what made him one the most fearing tacklers of his generation. The gritty Lynch would launch off his feet and drive through with such brutality that the opposing player would just collapse after a cataclysmic tackle.  A true throwback to the school of hard-knocks. 

Sean Taylor (6’3 ft., 220 lb.)  

(April 1, 1983-November 27, 2007)

Let’s recognize those who have fallen and this guy definitely deserves to be on this list. Only playing 3 1/2 seasons, he garnered the nickname “Meast,” which meant “half man, half beast by his Redskin teammates. In his last season he was named the hardest hitter in the NFL by Sports Illustrated. Equipped with the speed of a cornerback and strength of a linebacker he only knew one way to tackle.  Every time he collided with someone it seemed like a ferocious hit stick from the Madden game was being dished out. His tackling power was obsolete but the rare violence he handed down on the gridiron was disheartening to opposing offenses. A Moment of Silence for one of the most punishing safeties the game of football will ever witness. 

Ed Reed (5’11 ft., 205 lbs.)

Heat seeking missiles are meant to precisely destroy a designated target and Reed seems like a human projectile on a collision course with unlucky players he has identified. Reed is perhaps the best all-around safety on this list for his interception prowess along with his tenacious tackling. A prototypical safety for his ball-hawking skills, Reed made up his size with his closing speed to the ball carrier and explosive tackles. The results were a blinding hit that left his target suspended off their feet. His pure side line to side line speed equipped with bone crushing effect made him a predator on the field. 

Brian Dawkins (6’0 ft., 210 lbs.)

The raw intensity of his tunnel exiting ceremony put a rare glimpse into a man blessed by the football gods. One of the most dominating safeties of all-time, Dawkins, is a mild mannered and humble man but come Sundays he is possessed by superhero like powers. His alter ego, Wolverine or Weapon X, is a mutant comic book hero known for his animal instincts, indestructible skeleton, super-healing abilities, and almost uncontrollable intensity. Dawkins nickname, Weapon X, is attributed to his fiery and indomitable will on the gridiron. His acrobatic flying tackles and wrecking human cannonball like hits put fear in TE and WR’s running slants in his perimeter. The combustion and flaming demeanor throughout a game seemed to increase with every bone crushing hit. The lionhearted Dawkins was named to the NFL’s 2000 all-decade team as a strong safety and clawed his way into football immortality. 

Video Highlights of Punishing Hits

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRqGWiGjnTQ

Is this your top hard hitting safeties? Feel free to share you opinion..