On This Day: Aaron "The Hawk" Pryor Remembered

By Peter Silkov

When people talk about the greatest fighters of the 1980s, the names usually mentioned are those of Marvin Hagler, Sugar Ray Leonard, Roberto Duran, or Thomas Hearns. However, there were many other great fighters who were active during what may well have been one of the last ‘golden eras’ that the sport of boxing will experience. One fighter, whose name was mentioned in the same breath as those of Leonard, Duran, and Hearns during the early 1980s, and who for a while looked as if he had the ability to eclipse the success and fame of all three previously mentioned men, was Arron “The Hawk” Pryor.

Aaron Pryor came from a difficult and often traumatic childhood, and discovered boxing as a teenager. Pryor used his talent as a boxer to achieve wealth, fame, and success, only to then self-destruct, and see everything he had built and achieve collapse around him. He ended up back on the streets of his childhood with nothing except a bad eye and a life threatening drug addiction.

Pryor was one of the most charismatic, and controversial boxers of his time. Born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on October 20, 1955, into a dysfunctional family that struggled with poverty and various abuse issues. Pryor was a fighter who seemed to have talent to burn, and burn it he did. Style-wise he was a fast, free swinging, boxer-fighter. He fought with the kind of pace and aggression which provoked comparisons with the legendary Henry Armstrong. He would come forward, throwing punches with both hands from all directions, and as a fight went on, he only seemed to get stronger and faster. In addition to this, Pryor could also box with great skill. Along with these attributes, Pryor had a swashbuckling attitude, he didn’t just want to win his fights, and he wanted to entertain. He would disdain his boxing skills and go toe-to-toe with his opponents, often taking punches he didn’t need to in order to underline his superiority. Fans quickly took up his chant, ‘Hawk Time’, at his fights, with every contest, he became more popular.

Photo: howarddavisjrfoundation.org

Some purists frowned at Pryor’s approach in the ring. The fans, however, loved it. After a great amateur career, which saw him just miss out on a place in the 1976 Olympic Games, and compile an amateur record of (204-16, Pryor turned pro in late 1976, and started demolishing opponents with impressive ease. Although he was climbing up the lightweight division with every fight, Pryor found that the top men in the 135 division were not eager to meet him in the ring. So, Pryor moved up to the light-welterweight division and on August 2, 1980, he knocked out Antonio Cervantes, who had been a great world champion in his own right in the 4^th round, to win the WBA world light-welterweight championship.

What followed would be 5 years of brilliance, chaos, and ultimately self- destruction. Pryor would never lose his world title in the ring, instead he was gradually stripped of recognition as world champion by the various world boxing bodies, as his life spiralled out of control.

In all, Pryor made 10 defences of his world title, with his crowning moment being in his 6^th defence in November 1982, when he defended the title against the legendary Alexis Arguello. In a fight that has been recognized as one of the greatest fights of that decade or any decade in fact, Pryor displayed the true extent of his ability for perhaps the first and only time of his professional career. In this fight, Pryor showed clearly that he had the possibility of greatness.

After he had bludgeoned Arguello into a 14^th round knockout defeat, the talk was of Pryor fighting the likes of Duran, or Leonard, in what would have been huge fights. Yet, just as he had truly arrived, and was at last gaining the recognition that his talent and hard work deserved, Pryor’s world started to crumble. Although he would make 4 more defences of his world title, including beating Arguello for a second time, in reality, it was all down hill for Pryor after the first fight with Alexis.

With Marshall Terrill, Pryor details his climb to the top, and then the devastating fall back down to earth. His story is an often harrowing one, which shows the true ravages and dehumanization that comes with drug addiction. But, what might have been a great tragedy, in the end, turns into an uplifting story of redemption. As Pryor shows that the strength and will power, which made him a success in the first place, could also lead to his recovery from his addictions.

Aaron Pryor is an example of the human spirit, and all the conflicting facets that make human beings so complicated. We see once more how one man can be so talented and dedicated, and yet at the same time, how that same single-mindedness that took him to success, could also undo everything he had achieved. Aaron Pryor’s final professional record is (39-1, 35koes).

During his peak years as a fighter, Pryor was often compared with one of the greatest fighters of all time, ‘Hammerin’ Henry Armstrong, due to his frenetic, nonstop, all-action aggressive fighting style. There were similarities in their lives outside of the ring as well, with Armstrong also having some hard times with addiction after his boxing career ended, but eventually finding redemption through a new faith in God.

Photo: boxingnewsonline.net

Armstrong became an ordained minister after recovering from alcoholism, and Pryor himself became an ordained deacon at the New Frendship Baptist Church, and dedicated himself to good causes and spreading the anti-drug message. Pryor also kept his ties with boxing, training both amateur and professional boxers, and touring the world giving personal appearances where he would discuss his career and life in and out of the ring. Living in his hometown of Cincinnati, Pryor made a new life with wife Frankie, and their children Aaron Jr, Antwan, Stephan, and Elizabeth. Both Stephan and Aaron Jr. have had solid professional boxing careers of their own, and were trained by their father.

Aaron Pryor died on October 9, 2016, after a brave struggle with heart disease.

The Boxing Glove book review of Aaron Pryor's authorized biography, "The Flight of the Hawk"

http://www.theboxingglove.com/2015/08/tbg-book-review-flight-of-hawk-aaron.html

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When Greatness Collides: Ruben Olivares vs. Alexis Arguello

By Peter Silkov

“I was caught cold with that first shot. No, I have no excuses. I thought I was winning the fight, but things are never over until the final bell. I don’t know what else I can say.” Ruben Olivares.

“I was fighting for my life. Olivares hurt me in the 8th, 9th and 10th rounds. I felt like I might go down in the 10th. This is a very happy and proud day for my country and myself.” Alexis Arguello.

When Alexis Arguello 35-4-0 challenged Ruben Olivares 78-4-1 for his WBA world featherweight championship on November 23, 1974, it was a clash of two boxing greats at opposite ends of their careers. Mexican Olivares at age 27 was already a legendary figure, having been an outstanding World bantamweight champion before moving up to capture the featherweight crown. The colourful Olivares lived fast, both in and outside the ring, with a rock and roll all-action fighting style, which at his best, had made him seemingly invincible for a time. Although he was the reigning WBA world featherweight champion, it was generally considered that Olivares was already a little past his best, the aura of invincibility that he had carried early on in his title reign at bantamweight, had been punctured by defeats to Chucho Castillo, Rafael Herrera and Art Hafey. The invincibility that had taken Olivares to a record of 61-0-1 before his first career defeat had become coloured by an unpredictability, which ironically, had only added to his popularity with the fans.

Despite Olivares’ vulnerability, he was still an extremely formidable fighter and his opponent, Arguello, entered the ring at the Inglewood Forum, a clear underdog. Arguello was 22 years old, and had battled his way into title contention since turning professional at the age of 16 in 1968. Arguello had the reputation of being a rangy box-puncher, and had lost a previous bid for the WBA world title when he had been out-pointed by Ernesto Marcel nine months previously. No one knew that Alexis Arguello was destined for a greatness of his own. This fight with Olivares would prove to be Arguello’s first step to ring immortality.

The match was given an extra intrigue as both men had previously sparred together in 1971. Olivares must have remembered those sparring sessions as he entered this fight in good shape and taking his young challenger very seriously.

The match started off with both men boxing cautiously, each aware of the ability of the other. Arguello shaded the first two rounds with his long left, but Olivares was boxing well himself, and showing his often underrated boxing skills as he looked for openings. In the third round, the action heated up as the champion began going for Arguello’s thin body, and the two started to engage in some thrilling punch for punch exchanges. By the middle rounds, Olivares had gained the upper hand and seemed to be in control of the action, as he used some good movement to move in and out of range, and launched two-fisted attacks at the challenger’s head and body. However, Arguello was still in the match and made every round close as he sought to counter Olivares attacks, but the Mexican’s punches seemed to be too many and too varied for the Nicaraguan challenger to overcome. Ruben had especially good rounds in the 8th to 10th rounds, as he seemed on the verge of overpowering his young challenger. Yet, in a preview of the ability that would make him a triple weight world champion over the next 6 years, Arguello kept his boxing together under Olivares’ attacks, and continued to counter with well-timed punches of his own.

By the 11th round, Olivares was displaying some signs of slowing down, wearying from his own frenetic pace and the youth and pinpoint counters of his challenger.

In the 12th round, a right hand from Olivares seemed to stagger Arguello and drive him into the ropes. The champion responded by launching a furious two-fisted assault upon Arguello, designed to end the contest then and there. Instead of finally folding up, Arguello lashed back with punches of his own, so that by the end of the round it seemed to be Olivares who was in trouble rather than Arguello.

This became clear in the 13th round. As the boxers resumed the action, Arguello dropped the champion with a left uppercut, which only traveled a short way, but had a big impact. Olivares dropped heavily to the canvas, but managed to beat the count, and after a slight delay to have his gum-shield replaced, was ready to continue. Some fighters might have sought to hold for dear life at this point, and ride out the storm until their head had cleared, and some fighters may have choose to retreat until the rescuing chimes of the bell ending the round. Not Ruben Olivares, he just headed straight back into battle with Arguello, and an explosive combination from “El Flaco Explosivo” (The Explosive Thin Man) dropped Olivares once more. This time his eyes were bleary, and he shook his head repeatedly as he got himself up to his knees, and then staggered to his feet, just after the referee had counted to ten.

It was a dramatic conclusion to what had been a tense and stirring battle from start to finish. As great fights go, this tends to be one of the more overlooked classic fights.

There were still some more nights of greatness to come for Olivares, just seven months later he would win the WBC world featherweight championship by beating Bobby Chacon in 2 rounds. For Arguello, it was the start of a long period of success that would see him reign unbeaten in three divisions, until finally Arron Pryor would beat him in 1982 when trying for a record 4th world’s championship. By then Arguello’s own greatness was already well and truly sealed.

Ruben Olivares and Alexis Arguello’s 1974 clash is a fascinating example of two great fighters meeting each other at opposing periods of their careers, and putting together a fight to remember.

Watch the fight:

Copyright © 2015 The Boxing Glove, Inc. Peter Silkov Art. All Rights Reserved. Peter Silkov contributes to www.theboxingglove.com
 

Alexis Arguello: The Explosive Thin Man Remembered

By Peter Silkov

Alexis Arguello was one of the most formidable and exciting fighters of his era.  He was also one of the most popular as well.  Arguello was known as ‘The Explosive Thin Man’ due to his wiry 5' feet 10" inch frame and the knockout punch that he carried in both fists. In addition to his punching power, Arguello was also an excellent ring technician, with a good jab, and precise punches.  Known for his coolness and patience in the ring, Arguello would take his time to work out his opponents and wear them down, before striking suddenly for the finish. 

Alexis Arguello was born in Nicaragua on April 19, 1952, and started boxing at the age of 16.  For the first six years of his career, Arguello learned his trade and began to form the technique and style that would ultimately take him to three world titles.  It wasn’t long before Arguello marked himself out as a serious contender for the world title. 

On February 16, 1974, Arguello was out-pointed by the crafty Ernesto Marcel for the WBA World Featherweight title.  Marcel then retired following his win over Arguello, and on July 9, 1974, Mexican legend Ruben Olivares won the vacant crown when he knocked out Zensuke Utagawa in 7 rounds.  Four months later on November 23, Arguello knocked out Olivares in the 13th round of a classic contest, to take the WBA World Featherweight championship.  Arguello soon showed that he was to be a formidable champion, defending his title four times in the next two years; he was also gaining popularity with the fans and media alike, for his gentlemanly demeanor out side of the ring.  In time, it was a persona that would make Arguello one of the most popular boxers of his time.

In 1977, Arguello vacated his featherweight title and moved up to the junior lightweight division; his 5' feet 10" inch frame no longer able to get him down to 126 pounds.  On January 28, 1978, Arguello won his second world championship when he traveled to Bayamon Puerto Rico and stopped Alfredo Escalera in the 13th round, and won Escalera’s WBC World Junior Lightweight championship.  For the next three years, Arguello dominated the 130-pound division, defending the title eight times against fighters such as Rafael ’Bazooka’ Limon, Bobby Chacon, Artuo Leon, Rolando Navarrate, as well scoring non-title fight wins over Cornelius Boza Edwards, and Jose Luis Ramirez.  During this time, Arguello was seen by many as one of the best fighters in the world pound for pound.  During this time, his only defeat was a point’s loss in a non-title bout to slippery Vilomar Fernandez in 1978; a reverse that Arguello would avenge some years later.

On June 20, 1981, Alexis became only the 6th man to win world titles at three different weights, when he out-pointed the skillful southpaw Jim Watt, capturing the WBC World Lightweight crown.  Now, Arguello was seen as an all-time great and his reputation was assured, but he had one more ambition for his career, to become the first man to win four world championships. The division above Arguello’s lightweight division was the light-welterweight, as this was the era in which dual world champions had unfortunately became the norm, and Arguello had his choice of champions to challenge for his historic 4th world title. 

The WBC champion was a capable, but unremarkable Leroy Haley, while the WBA champion was Arron Pryor, a mercurial box-fighter, who had become a sensation since winning his title two years before, and was widely regarded by both the fans and media as the best light welterweight in the world.  Never a man to take the easy route, or duck a challenge, Arguello chose to challenge the unbeaten, rising superstar, Arron Pryor.

The two men clashed on November 12, 1982, in what proved, to be possibly the greatest fight of the 1980’s, with its mixture of speed, science, and pure savagery.  After 14 rounds, fought at a pace that left the spectators exhausted, Pryor emerged the winner when he koed Arguello in the 14th round, with a blistering shower of punches.

It was Arguello’s first defeat in a world title fight since his debut challenge against Ernesto Marcel in 1974.

This was a controversial fight, as between the 13th and 14th rounds, with the fight still evenly poised, Pryor’s trainer Panama Lewis was overheard on TV asking to be given a specific water bottle ’the one I mixed’.  Pryor then went out in the 14th, seemingly rejuvenated and overwhelmed Arguello with a bombardment of over thirty punches.
It was never proven that anything illegal was in the bottle given to Pryor before the 14th round, but the rumours have always persisted to this day.  Some years later, Lewis was found guilty of tampering with the gloves of his fighter Luis Resto, before his fight with Billy Collins Jr., and was banned from boxing for life.

After his loss to Pryor, Arguello could still have gone on, challenged the WBC champion, and more or less guaranteed himself a 4th world title. This is the kind of route that most fighters would have taken then, and even more so today, but Alexis Arguello was not like that, either as a man or a fighter.  More than just wanting a fourth world crown, Arguello wanted to redeem himself against his conqueror Pryor.

The rematch took place ten months after their first fight, on September 9, 1983.  It was another exciting contest, but this time, Pryor was always in control and in the 10th round Arguello was knocked down, and although conscious, stayed down in a sitting position as he was counted out.

Something had gone out of Arguello with his defeats to Pryor and he announced his retirement.  Like so many others, Alexis found post-boxing life far more complicated than fighting in the ring and over the next few years suffered various problems, from divorces, depression, substance abuse, to financial problems.

By the mid-80s, Arguello was in financial difficulties and made a comeback, beating Pat Jefferson in 1985 and Billy Costello in 1986.  However, Arguello knew he was not the same and retired again. There would be two more fights, the last being in 1995, when a 43-year-old Arguello was out-pointed by Scott Walker.

Fighter’s lives often seem to get ever more darker and dangerous when they can no longer perform in the ring, but Arguello seemed to have weathered the storm and figured things out, just as he would do during his fights in the ring.  He entered politics in his native Nicaragua, and seemed to have found a purpose again in his life.  He was still popular, successful, and looked upon by many as a hero. Then, on July 1, 2009, Arguello was found dead, with a bullet wound to the heart.  Although the official cause of death was given as suicide, rumours have persisted that Arguello met his death due to foul play.

Alexis Arguello’s final record was 88(70koes)-8.  He is the only triple world champion to never lose any of his three titles in the ring.

Aaron Pryor Vs. Alexis Arguello November 12, 1982:





Copyright © 2014 The Boxing Glove, Inc. Peter Silkov Art. All Rights Reserved. Peter Silkov contributes to www.theboxingglove.com and www.theboxingtribune.com

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