THE BOXING TRUTH: Reflections of Thunder

THE BOXING TRUTH: Reflections of “Thunder”



In this edition of The Boxing Truth, Beau Denison reflects on the life and career of the late Arturo Gatti. The Great Arturo “Thunder” Gatti “The Legend”



The sport of boxing has been hit with a truly devastating blow with the news of the tragic death of Boxing legend and former two-time world champion Arturo “Thunder” Gatti. Gatti a fighter who’s contests resembled movie scripts captivated fans with a never say die attitude all action style.





Since hearing the sad news of Gatti’s death I began to reflect on what was a truly illustrious career that Gatti had. One of the things that clearly stands out in my mind in regard to Gatti was he had the look of a fighter from the 1940s and 1950s. In an era where the politics of the sport are all too often the subject of much ridicule, it was truly refreshing to see a fighter who not only had the look of a fighter from that era but also fought in a manner that resembled many bouts contested during that time.





The first opportunity that I had to see Gatti compete was when he won his first world title against then IBF Jr. Lightweight champion Tracy Harris Patterson in 1995. Gatti was known at the time as a solid boxer/puncher however it was in this bout where Gatti displayed the characteristics that would become his trademark. The ability to take a punch along with a seemingly unbreakable will. Gatti would win the championship via twelve round unanimous decision in a fight that was considered a war.





It was when he defended his world title against Wilson Rodriguez in 1996 that started to build the foundation of what made Arturo Gatti a legend. Gatti faced a crafty European boxer in Rodriguez. In the opening round of the contest Rodriguez effectively out boxed the champion causing a bad mouse over Gatti’s left eye by the end of the round. In the second round, Rodriguez seeing the damage he had inflicted on the champion’s left eye began to target it with straight right hands. The punishment that Rodriguez was able to administer began to affect Gatti’s vision in both eyes. The round was punctuated when Rodriguez knocked Gatti down with a short left hook that the champion did not see coming.





In between rounds Gatti’s cut man Joe Souza told his fighter that he had no time to waste and he needed to go for the knockout. Gatti came out of his corner throwing punches with knockout intention. Gatti landed several punishing left hooks to the head of Rodriguez in round three clearly showing his will as the crowd in Madison Square Garden began to chant Gatti’s name in unison.





It was in between rounds three and four that the fight truly became the real life depiction of a movie script. A New York State Athletic Commission physician stuck his head between the ropes in Gatti’s corner and told the battered champion to cover his left eye. Gatti did not immediately comply, after the physician instructed him to cover his eye for a second time the doctor yelled at Gatti “Cover your left eye or it’s over!” Gatti complied and was then asked as the doctor held up his fingers how many fingers he saw.





It could have merely been a case of Gatti not clearly hearing the ringside doctor’s instructions immediately due to the commotion that was going on in his corner. Perhaps it was Gatti in the heat of the moment simply ignoring the doctor. Whatever the case was it certainly provided the drama of a great movie script. The bout was allowed to continue…





In the fourth round, the two fighters engaged each other in brutal combat, Gatti’s effective aggressiveness landing solid left hooks kept him in the contest. It was Rodriguez however that battered the champion in his own corner with a flurry of punches to the head and body.



It appeared for a time that if Gatti were to lose his championship via knockout it would be from an accumulation of punches and not from a single blow.





Rodriguez simply nailed Gatti with everything but the kitchen sink, no single punch was going to break Gatti’s granite chin. At the end of the fourth round the champion was visited again by the ringside physician and was again instructed to tell the doctor how many fingers he could see.





Only adding to the dramatics of the contest Gatti was deducted a point in round five for low blows. It was just seconds later when the tide would dramatically turn in the champion’s favor when Gatti knocked Rodriguez down with a left hook to the ribcage.





As in a good movie script the momentum shift was echoed by ringside commentator Jim Lampley as he said “Tide has turned, Tide has turned… Here comes Gatti!” as Gatti pressed forward after Rodriguez got up from the knockdown. The two warriors battled into round six.





It was in round six that Gatti brought the fight to a sudden and dramatic conclusion landing a brutal left hook to the head of Rodriguez sending the challenger down flat on his back on the canvas. Rodriguez did not get back up. Arturo Gatti lived up to his nickname and brought the “Thunder” to pull off one of the great comebacks in the history of the sport and retained his world title.





As unbelievable as it may seem Gatti’s ability to come from the brink of defeat under insurmountable odds would become a consistent pattern for the remainder of his career. Gatti’s next opportunity on boxing’s biggest stage came when he defended his world championship against Gabriel Ruelas in 1997.





This bout took place as the co-main event on a pay-per-view card headlined by a Heavyweight championship bout between Lennox Lewis and Andrew Golota. The pay-per-view card as a whole did not provide much in the form of competitive competition but it was the Gatti-Ruelas fight that made this a memorable night of boxing in Atlantic City.





Gatti and Ruelas engaged in a toe to toe battle that saw several momentum shifts including Gatti surviving a brutal uppercut to the head that badly staggered the champion along the ropes. Gatti withstood the assault from Ruelas in round four.





In round five the two fighters exchanged shot for shot until Gatti once again brought the fight to a sudden and dramatic conclusion with a brutal left hook to the head sending the game Ruelas down flat on his back on the canvas. The fight was stopped.





There are many more fights that echo the familiar script of Gatti taking ungodly punishment only to make a dramatic comeback and win his fights. It is perhaps not coincidence that the Gatti-Ruelas fight took place in the legendary Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey. It was at this legendary building that the Jersey City resident Gatti more or less established his professional home having fought many of his forty nine bouts in Boardwalk Hall or in other well known Boxing establishments in the Boxing hot bed of New Jersey.







Although Gatti won two-world titles in two different weight classes; he will likely be best remembered for being one half of one of the most brutal trilogies in boxing history. The other half of this epic dual? Micky Ward…





What made the concept of these two warriors so interesting was both fighters fought in a similar style and it was one of the rare times in the sport of Boxing that you knew going into the fight that it was going to be an all out war. It was simply a can’t miss Must See TV scenario if there ever was one…





The two gladiators engaged each other in three consecutive bouts going a ten round distance in each contest for a total of thirty rounds. Ward winning the epic first fight via majority decision only to have Gatti come back to win the final two bouts, ironically rivaling the incredibly violent first encounter. Coincidently it was these three brutal fights that signaled the end of Ward’s career.





Speaking from personal experience, it is the Gatti-Ward Trilogy that I consider an honor to have seen and simply put the most violent series of fights I have ever had the privilege to cover in my career. Frankly the written word does not do these three wars justice.





It is perhaps not so ironic that it was this epic trilogy filled with nearly non-stop violence that Gatti and Ward forged a close bond and after spilling each other’s blood in the ring embraced each other as blood brothers with an ultimate respect for each other.





The story between these two men did not end with their friendship after their three brutal fights. In an ironic twist that resembled the movie Rocky III, Ward became Gatti’s trainer toward the end of his career.





Unlike the movie however, the professional relationship of Ward the trainer and Gatti the boxer did not have a happy ending. Gatti suffered a brutal knockout loss at the hands of top contender Alfonso Gomez in the summer of 2007 bringing the illustrious sixteen year career of the great Gatti to an end. The blood and guts warrior announcing his retirement in his dressing room after the fight saying he was finished as a fighter in a colorful way by simply saying “H`Asta La Vista Baby!”





If one were to ask me where Arturo “Thunder” Gatti ranks in the annals of Boxing history I would say that he was clearly not the most polished, clearly not the most talented fighter but he gave you everything he had every single time he stepped into the ring. It is not his record of 40-9, 31 Knockouts that makes Arturo Gatti a Hall Of Fame fighter. It is the fights themselves that stand out putting Gatti in a class by himself.





In comparison to the great fighters of the 1940s and 1950s that Gatti emulated, two fighters come to mind as being very similar to Gatti in the way that they fought. The legendary Middleweight champions Jake LaMotta and Rocky Graziano. Both men processed chins of granite and seemingly unbreakable wills as did Gatti.





Both of those fighters inspired movies based on their lives… Will the life of Arturo Gatti inspire a movie based on his life and career? It will surely be a challenge for any film maker to try to duplicate the real life drama that Gatti brought to the Boxing ring…





There will never be another Arturo “Thunder” Gatti… As a Boxing fan, you knew no matter what the outcome of his fights; whether he won or lost you got your money’s worth and memories that will stick with you forever.





As a fighter who was and will always be a personal favorite of mine the news of his tragic death is a truly devastating blow and is a major loss for the entire Boxing community and a truly sad and dark moment in the history of the sport.





We are all fortunate to live in a time where many fights involving many fighters are archived and available for future generations of Boxing fans to see. It is a sad time for the sport of boxing but the great fighter Arturo Gatti was will live on… Gatti may no longer be with us but for the boxing fans young and old Gatti left us hours and hours of video.





For the younger Boxing fans who may not have had the opportunity to see Arturo Gatti in action and are fortunate to obtain some footage of Gatti’s classic fights and are looking for a suggestion as for what to watch out for I can only offer this simple observation. Just sit back and feel the “Thunder!”





And That’s The Boxing Truth.