Futch, Edward

Futch, Edward
▪ 2002
“Eddie” 
      American boxing trainer (b. Aug. 9, 1911, Hillsboro, Miss.— d. Oct. 10, 2001, Las Vegas, Nev.), was dubbed “the professor of pugilism” for the sharp observation, compassion, and determination that he used to coach more than 20 world champions, including heavyweights Joe Frazier, Ken Norton, Trevor Berbick, Larry Holmes, Michael Spinks, and Riddick Bowe; light heavyweights Bob Foster and Montell Griffin; and welterweights Don Jordan and Marion Starling. Futch's observation that heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali was vulnerable to left-handed punches helped Frazier become the first boxer to defeat Ali, in 1971; two years later Futch trained Norton, only the second to defeat Ali. Futch became controversial in 1975 while handling Frazier in the boxer's historic 15-round Manila bout with Ali (“the Thrilla in Manila”). Blinded and wounded after 14 three-minute rounds of Ali's brutal blows, Frazier wanted to continue, but, Futch said, “I thought about Joe's kids, how much he loved them, how much they loved him,” and withdrew his man from the match. Futch later defended his decision by saying, “Only three more minutes. I'm not a timekeeper, I'm a handler of fighters.” He grew up in Detroit, where he won a local Golden Gloves lightweight title in 1933; altogether he won 37 fights and lost 3 before a heart murmur finished him as an amateur boxer. For a time he was Joe Louis's sparring partner; Futch went on to work for four decades in factories, in a post office, in a restaurant, and as a labourer while training boxers in Detroit and Los Angeles. The first boxer whom he transformed into a world champion was welterweight Jordan in 1958, but Futch did not become a major figure in boxing until he began training Frazier in 1971. Sometimes he had to train under difficult conditions, notably when he was hired in 1981 to train Michael Spinks just two hours before the boxer won an important light heavyweight bout. Often he had to train difficult-to-handle fighters such as Bowe, his last heavyweight champion (1992–93). Futch entered boxing's International Hall of Fame in 1994.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужен реферат?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Eddy Raven — Infobox Musical artist Name = Eddy Raven Img capt = Img size = Landscape = Background = solo singer Birth name = Edward Garvin Futch Born = birth date and age|1945|08|19 Origin = Lafayette, Louisiana, USA Instrument = Vocals Genre = Country… …   Wikipedia

  • USFA Division I National Championship — List of USFA Division I National ChampionsMen s Epee * 1888 Eugene Higgins * 1889 Graeme Monroe Hammond * 1890 Alexander Greger * 1891 Graeme Monroe Hammond * 1892 Bernard Francis O Connor * 1893 Graeme Monroe Hammond * 1894 Rudolph O. Haubold *… …   Wikipedia

  • List of people from Michigan — A list of notable people from the U.S. state of Michigan. Bolding indicates places in Michigan. People from Michigan are sometimes referred to as Michiganders, Michiganians, or more rarely as Michiganites. Actors, entertainers and… …   Wikipedia

  • Appalachian dulcimer — Other names Mountain dulcimer, lap dulcimer, fretted dulcimer, Classification Plucked string instrument Relate …   Wikipedia

  • Joe Frazier — (Mitte), April 2011 …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • National Register of Historic Places listings in Hinds County, Mississippi — Location of Hinds County in Mississippi This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Hinds County, Mississippi. This is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic… …   Wikipedia

  • 1960s — 60s redirects here. For decades comprising years 60–69 of other centuries, see List of decades. From left, clockwise: A soldier lays on the ground during the Vietnam War; The Beatles, part of the British Invasion, change music in America and… …   Wikipedia

  • ASU Baseball All-Time Letterman List — Infobox College baseball team name = Arizona State Sun Devils logo size = university = Arizona State University conference = Pacific 10 conference short = Pac 10 division = city = Tempe stateabb = AZ state = Arizona coach = Pat Murphy tenure =… …   Wikipedia

  • Cassius Clay — Dieser Artikel handelt von dem Boxer Muhammad Ali, Angaben zum gleichnamigen ägyptischen Herrscher siehe Muhammad Ali Pascha, zum gleichnamigen Jazzschlagzeuger siehe Muhammad Ali (Schlagzeuger), zum pakistanischen Schauspieler siehe Mohammad Ali …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr. — Dieser Artikel handelt von dem Boxer Muhammad Ali, Angaben zum gleichnamigen ägyptischen Herrscher siehe Muhammad Ali Pascha, zum gleichnamigen Jazzschlagzeuger siehe Muhammad Ali (Schlagzeuger), zum pakistanischen Schauspieler siehe Mohammad Ali …   Deutsch Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”