A Moment of Great Pride: The Induction of Johnny Lewis into the IBHOF

[vc_row][vc_column offset=”vc_hidden-lg vc_hidden-md”][vc_raw_html el_class=”centreadd”]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[/vc_raw_html][/vc_column][/vc_row]

AUSTRALIA’s boxing community is well aware that a moment of great pride for our nation passed us by this past weekend on the other side of the world. 

To let it slip quietly and unheralded into the back pages of sporting history would be a very comfortable fit with the dignified and humble character of the man involved.

But when boxing trainer Johnny Lewis was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota, upstate New York, he took his place amongst the legends of the sport. 

Along with fellow non-participant inductees, Jerry Roth, Steve Farhood, Barry Tompkins and the late Jimmy Lennon Snr, Lewis joined warriors Evander Holyfield and Marco Antonio Barrera, as well as the late Johnny Tapia and Eddie Booker as the class of 2017. Our nation should acknowledge and celebrate the occasion of one good man’s legacy taking its rightful place in the history books of world boxing.

The picture card pretty village of Canastota lies just off the New York Thruway about a half hour’s drive east from Syracuse. Drive down the main street of Canastota and it’s easy to imagine you’ve gone back in time, maybe Joe Louis is still the heavyweight king, such is the charming old world feel to the scene.  The street is lined with maple and oak trees, heavy in foliage and generous in the shade they cast.  

It seems as if every home is a 19th century two storey classic, the timber board meticulously painted and cared for. The Stars and Stripes flutter gently in the breeze from almost every front yard.  And to complete the scene, there is scarcely a fence to be seen.

It is down this street that the ‘Parade of Champions’ was cheered on by the hordes of boxing fans on the Sunday. The motorcade made its way slowly, with the crowd acknowledging the heroes of the sport with fervour. Sitting in the open cars were this year’s inductees, present members of the Hall of Fame, retired world champions by the score and boxers still in the prime of their careers.

And all of them soaked up the moment, smiling and waving back enthusiastically, and their genuine reaction is at the heart of this great occasion – the Hall of Fame Convention is an event for the fans, a time when their sport basks in the spotlight and its true champions are lauded. Taking his well-deserved place in that motorcade this year as one of those ‘champions’ was our own Johnny Lewis.

The grounds of the Hall of Fame consist of two buildings, the Museum itself, a true treasure trove of boxing memorabilia and sacred items and the larger main centre building, fronted by a huge outdoor area and an overhead awning. Inside that building is something quite special. The ring from Madison Square Garden first used on December 11, 1925 has been reconstructed within those walls. 

It is the same ring last used in 2007 when Miguel Cotto fought Zab Judah. In between, amongst many other legends, Muhammad Ali fought on that canvas eight times, James Braddock fifteen times, Smokin’ Joe Frazier ten times, Jake LaMotta seventeen times and, topping the list numerically, Tony Canzeroni with 29 fights. Any boxing fan would get a shiver up the spine upon seeing that ring.

It was upon these museum grounds that a bell was rung at 1pm on the Thursday to open the event and the 2017 inductees were introduced to the gathering crowd. But come Friday, the convention gathered real steam. Everywhere a fight fan cared to look, a champion or legend could be spotted. 

Evander Holyfield, Marvelous Marvin Hagler, Riddick Bowe, Michael and Leon Spinks, James Toney, Marco Antonio Barrera, James Leija, Fernando Vargas, John H Stracey – and the man who broke Australian hearts – Ruben Olivares were just some of the great fighters rubbing shoulders with fans, signing autographs and visiting the local hospital.

And modern day fighters, Shawn Porter, Daniel Jacobs and Jessie Vargas were in amongst it all. WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder mingled with the crowd, happily posing for photos and shaking hands. Look away from a fighter and you would see Jerry Roth, Stanley Christodoulou, Kenny Bayliss, Robert Byrd, Don Majeski, Steve Farhood, Barry Tompkins or, of course, Johnny Lewis.

They all gathered that evening, the boxing elite, their families and the fans at the appropriately named Rusty Rail Party House to celebrate the amazing tradition of Latino boxers. 

The common theme in the many tributes that were paid that evening was the shared pride in those fighters from south of the USA border, their absolute determination to never let their country and its heritage down.  Speaker after speaker, Barrera, Leija, Olivares, Vargas, Pipino Cuevas all referred to that special take no prisoners, go forward style that these great boxers are renowned for.

[vc_row][vc_column offset=”vc_hidden-lg vc_hidden-md”][vc_raw_html el_class=”centreadd”]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[/vc_raw_html][/vc_column][/vc_row]

British world welterweight champion John Stracey referred to the other side of the coin: what it’s like to fight a great Mexican champion in Mexico City. Stracey said he could hear ‘the fifteen British fans’ amongst the cacophony of noise as he took on Jose Napoles and take his WBC title.  That fight was refereed by Octavio Meyran who, many years later, would officiate the upset of the century, Buster Douglas’s defeat of Mike Tyson.

Stan Christodoulou, who has officiated in a record 235 world title bouts, spoke about one of his favourite ever bouts, where Victor Galindez prevailed by knocking out Richie Kates with one second to go in the blood soaked bout.

One other theme wound its way through all the Latino boxers’ speeches, fraternity and humility. The respect that all of the boxers paid to each other and to the sport itself was impressive. 

Typical of that fierce rivalry that ripens to deep respect and friendship in retirement were ‘Little Hands of Stone’ Michael Carbajal and ‘Chiquita’ Gonzalez, both of whom referred to the mutual respect that now binds them together.

Jessie Vargas spoke of his heroes and how he felt humbled to be where he was, surrounded by legends.  It made you feel that the sport is in good hands.

The focal event of Saturday was the formal Banquet of Champions in Syracuse that evening. Before that, attendees could play in the Golf Tournament of Champions, join in a fun run, soak up the Ringside Lectures or snap up autographs at a signing show.

But it was the events of Sunday that everyone, boxers, officials, trainers and fans, had gathered in Canastota for.

There is something quintessentially American about a parade: marching bands, flag bearers, dancing girls, cheer squads, a celebration of patriotic pride. And then came the motorcade, Australia’s own Johnny Lewis sitting with his proud family waving to the fans that lined the street.

The inductees and present Hall of Fame members made their way to the museum grounds for the climatic event, the induction ceremony of 2017. Each inductee was introduced, a summary of his career detailed and he then took to the microphone for his acknowledgement speech. The magnitude of the honour was obvious: a veteran of the fight game for decades, judge Jerry Roth choked back tears.

Evander Holyfield spoke of the Boys Club where his love of boxing began and of his trainer there in his early days. It was way back then that he was told that if he worked at it, he would be the heavyweight champion of the world one day.  He related that, when older, he wanted to go to a Prom with a girl instead of a fight commitment in Canada. 

That was until his ‘mama’ demanded “how is that girl and that Prom going to make you heavyweight champ?” He went to Canada.

Then, Johnny Lewis took to the stage as a member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame.  His Australian accent somehow captured the unobtrusive and humble nature of the man, one who prefers to let the attention fall on others.

But the truth is that he has shaped so many young lives for the better, through his passion for boxing, his compassion and through his working class wisdoms, that now was his time.

Typically, his speech focused on others. He spoke of all the fighters, both famous and anonymous, that have made his career and his life so rich, making particular mention of the fighting spirit and courage of the incomparable Jeff Fenech.

And before he left the microphone, he turned to ‘Jesse’ James Leija and praised the character of this former opponent of our own Kostya Tszyu. Johnny’s acknowledgement of Leija’s integrity and noble spirit says just as much about the man who spoke the words.

Here is a man that Australian sport must hold dear, a down to earth man of character and principle, a man who now joins his former charges, Jeff Fenech, Kostya Tszyu and Virgil Hill as a member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

Congratulations Johnny, there is not a person who knows you that would dispute this great honour. You will now forever be Johnny Lewis, 2017 member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

Graham Clark authored ‘The World Champion That Never Was: The Story of Lucas Browne’, which is available in all good bookstores.

Words: Graham Clark
Photo: Milos Lekovic/Southside Studios

[vc_row][vc_column offset=”vc_hidden-lg vc_hidden-md”][vc_raw_html el_class=”centreadd”]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[/vc_raw_html][/vc_column][/vc_row]