First-time fighters, a 350-plus pound heavyweight and a boxing Hall of Famer are just three of several sights to see at tonight's Showdown in Watertown III.
The Watertown Boxing Club is hosting the boxing event at 6 p.m. on the baseball field at the Alex T. Duffy Fairgrounds. Club president John Pepe expects between 12 to 14 fights on the card boasting a combination of new and veteran boxers in a myriad of weight classes. Eight boxing clubs from Utica to Canada will be represented.
Pepe said Philadelphia, Pa., native Joltin' Jeff Chandler will make a guest appearance. While Chandler's pugilist days are behind him, he built a noteworthy résumé in the ring, claiming the World Boxing Council bantamweight title in 1980 and successfully defended the crown nine times. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2000.
Pepe and fellow club trainer, Kevin Oliver, attended the Hall of Fame's induction ceremony this past June. When they met Chandler, he left a lasting impression.
"When we met him in Canastota during the hall-of-fame weekend, he really struck me and Kevin as being a true champion," Pepe said. "He took time to read Kevin's biography on being a golden gloves champion. He's just a down-to-earth person."
Chandler's achievements, however, may not outweigh the individual accomplishment of Jeff Kloos. Kloos was over 400 pounds when he started training in Watertown. Now weighing approximately 375 pounds, he'll face off with a fighter from Cornwall, Ontario, in his first amateur bout.
"Jeff has got a special place with me because he tries so hard," Pepe said. "He trains very hard. He's got a lot of determination. A guy to be that big and compete at his age, with those odds, he deserves a shot."
Jamie Marquette, the club's vice president, has seen the evolution of the first-time fighters. Even in their current embryonic state, the boxers slated to compete have come a long way in three months.
"When they started, they were really timid, always running away and covering up," Marquette said. "Now, there's more fight in them."
Constant fighting didn't always work for Brandon Knight. Growing up in Clovis, N.M., Knight dealt with racial tension when he was in grade school. He cultivated a street-fighting mentality and began talking with his fists.
"I had the thought process like I had something to prove," said Knight, a 10th Mountain Division soldier at Fort Drum. "So, I was going out and trying to prove to other people who I was. Really, I had nothing to prove. It took a while to figure it out."
Knight's mother, Triva, channeled her son's frustration into a boxing ring when he was 12 years old. Knight said he became more disciplined and competed in a few matches. But once he moved to Fort Drum, the New Mexico club lost his boxing card with all the information from his fights.
So, Knight's boxing career starts anew tonight, and he's been struggling to contain his enthusiasm.
"I can't wait," Knight said. "Originally, it was my passion. Something I really wanted to do was be a boxer."
NOTES:Pepe said one fighter to watch will beJennifer Egan, the No. 3-ranked amateur female boxer in the country. Egan won a gold medal at the Empire State Games in 2006. ... Ringside seats for the event are $25 and general admission is $19. Limited VIP passes are priced at $35.
