There was a time when the big fights thrived in Philadelphia, “The City of Brotherly Love.” Not anymore. There hasn’t been a big fight staged in Philly since the 1970s. But we could be on the verge of witnessing a comeback.
The latest fighting star to have come out of Philadelphia, Jaron “Boots” Ennis, will fight in front of 14,000 fans tonight at Wells Fargo Center in Philly and live on DAZN. Amazingly, this will be the first big boxing match to take place in Philly since the night that Marvelous Marvin Hagler slugged it out with “Bad ”Bennie Briscoe, Hagler winning a 10-round UD over Briscoe at the Philadelphia Spectrum in August of 1978.
As promoter Eddie Hearn said at the presser ahead of tonight’s fight between IBF welterweight champ Ennis and late sub-challenger David Avanesyan:
“I can’t wait for Saturday night; the entire bottom tier is now sold out; it’s the biggest fight night in Philly since Marvin Hagler versus Bennie Briscoe some 45 years ago,” Hearn said.
Back in the city’s fighting heyday, when great matchups regularly took place at legendary venues such as The Blue Horizon, The Philadelphia Spectrum, Convention Hall, and the Philadelphia Arena, the idea that big boxing nights would become a rarity in the city was utterly unthinkable. Hopefully, “Boots” can and will bring back the glory days and nights.
The great city of Philadelphia has given the sport of boxing so many great fighters throughout the years, men like Joe Frazier, Bernard Hopkins, Meldrick Taylor, Philadelphia Jack O’Brien, Matthew Saad Muhammad, Joey Giardello, Tommy Loughran, and many more. Philly fighters were a special breed, largely a result of the fine boxing gyms inside of which these fighters toiled away: be it Joe Frazier’s gym, The James Schuler Gym, Joe Hand’s gym, or many others.
There is not much left today, yet the memories will never die. Fighters like Ennis wish to try to bring them back. It’s a tough task, but it sure is an enviable task.
For now, let’s ask the question—just who is THE greatest Philly ring warrior of them all? Also a tough one, this question will likely be answered with two names standing above all other choices: either “Smokin’” Joe or “Executioner” Hopkins. Check out any list of this kind, and it’s either Joe or Nard residing at the top.
For me, I give the edge to Frazier, the man who fought wars during the heavyweight division’s golden era; Joe beat, amongst others, Muhammad Ali, Jerry Quarry, Oscar Bonavena, Jimmy Ellis, George Chuvalo, and Buster Mathis. And it was the way Frazier fought, every time, with Joe giving his all, all his smoke, all his heart, with never a thought of trying to win an easy one crossing his mind.
Frazier left his heart and his soul in the ring, especially in the epic, one could say incomparable “Fight of the Century” with Ali. Frazier also ducked no one, as this was simply not the Philly way.
As tough as Frazier was and as willing to take punishment whenever he had to as Frazier was, Hopkins instead proved he was a cerebral boxer who combined smarts with toughness. Hopkins said once that he promised his mother he wouldn’t come out of boxing like Frazier, who had been heard slurring his words during a recent interview. Hopkins was as good as his word; his superb defensive abilities combined with his uncanny way of making it his fight, taking the other guy’s best weapons away from him, and seeing “The Alien” exit the sport unscathed.
We love both fighters, and you could swap Hopkins for Frazier when it comes to who is the boxing king of Philly. It’s down to personal preference.
“Boots” Ennis aims to become the next Philly great, the next Meldrick Taylor, the next Joey Giardello, and the next Saad Muhammad. The next Hopkins or Frazier!
Tonight, we salute “Boots.”
