Livingstone Bramble vs. Ray Mancini (1st meeting)

From BoxRec
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Bramble (left) and Mancini trade punches

Livingstone Bramble 134 lbs beat Ray Mancini 135 lbs by TKO at 0:53 in round 14 of 15

  • Date: 1984-06-01
  • Location: Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York, USA
  • Referee: Marty Denkin
  • Judge: Stanley Berg 122-125
    1
     9
    10
    		 2
     9
    10
    		 3
    10
    9 
    		 4
     9
    10
    		 5
     9
    10
    		 6
     9
    10
    		 7
    10
    9 
    		 8
    10
    9 
    		 9
    10
    9 
    		 10
     9
    10
    		 11
     9
    10
    		 12
    10
    9 
    		 13
     9
    10
     
  • Judge: Mike Glienna 126-121
    1
    10
    9 
    		 2
    10
    9 
    		 3
     9
    10
    		 4
    10
    9 
    		 5
     9
    10
    		 6
    10
    9 
    		 7
    10
    9 
    		 8
    10
    9 
    		 9
    10
    9 
    		 10
    10
    9 
    		 11
     9
    10
    		 12
     9
    10
    		 13
    10
    9 
     
  • Judge: Lou Moret 123-124
    1
     9
    10
    		 2
     9
    10
    		 3
     9
    10
    		 4
    10
    9 
    		 5
     9
    10
    		 6
     9
    10
    		 7
    10
    9 
    		 8
    10
    9 
    		 9
    10
    9 
    		 10
    10
    9 
    		 11
     9
    10
    		 12
     9
    10
    		 13
    10
    9 
     

Notes

  • Mancini's purse was $1 million, and Bramble's was $150,000.
  • Mancini went to the hospital after the fight and got eight stitches in one eyelid and six stitches in the other.


BRAMBLE TAKES MANCINI'S TITLE
By Michael Katz, New York Times, June 2, 1984

BUFFALO, June 1— At the end, he was standing helpless, his hands at his side, his nearly closed eyes seemingly looking for help. But not even his big heart or the judges' benevolent scoring could save Ray (Boom Boom) Mancini tonight.

Livingstone Bramble, who raises fighting pit bull terriers, fought like one and scored a dramatic 14th-round knockout of Mancini to win the World Boxing Association lightweight championship.

The 14,500 stunned spectators at Buffalo Memorial Auditorium had already seen another 4-1 underdog, Gene Hatcher, win the W.B.A. junior welterweight title by stopping previously undefeated Johnny Bumphus in the 11th round.

Now Referee Marty Denkin watched Bramble land about two dozen unanswered punches to the champion's head, then stopped the bout at 53 seconds of the round. Mancini was on his feet throughout, but collapsed in his corner afterward and was taken to Millard Fillmore Hospital for X-rays of his nose and jaw and patchwork round the eyes.

But even at the end, with his manager, Dave Wolf, slowly climbing the stairs and with one of the ringside physicians, Dr. Armand Sincotta, about to rush into the ring, Mancini tried to punch back. Mancini, who had become one of boxing's biggest stars, suffered only his second loss in 31 fights. He sent Wolf to the postfight news conference where the manager, his voice breaking occasionally, said, "The first thing he was pushing me to do was try to make the rematch. One thing he wanted to make very clear was tonight the better man won."

The 23-year-old Mancini was a terribly beaten man, although two of the three judges assigned by the W.B.A. did not think so. Louis Morett and Stanley Berg had Mancini ahead by 124-123 and 125-122. Only Judge Mike Gliena had Bramble ahead, 126-121 on the 10-point scoring system.

Bramble, who said he had "a coconut head" and was never hurt by the perpetual-motion Mancini, did not dispute the scoring.

"He was the champion and he threw more punches," said Bramble. "I thought I was landing the better punches."

Quickly, Mancini knew he was in for a fight. Bramble, who was often wild with his words - this morning threatening to bite Mancini ("His left ear is mine") - calmly and coolly picked apart Mancini. He did not need help from his "voodoo doctor," whom he called Dr. Doo and who, he revealed after the bout, was "my basketball coach for 13 years" back in their native Virgin Islands.

Mancini suffered a bad cut on his right eyelid in the first, apparently from a solid left hook. But Denkin ruled the cut was caused by a butt.

Bramble, 23 years old, who entered with a 20-1-1 record and the No. 1 W.B.A. rating, did not use his 9-inch reach advantage, but instead beat Mancini at the champion's game inside. Bramble's arms blocked many of Mancini's body blows, and then the challenger would counter with combinations led by right uppercuts.

He slipped naturally from his orthodox stance to southpaw, cut Mancini's nose in the sixth round and opened a cut over the left eye in the ninth. Mancini had trouble breathing because of blood in his mouth and nose. By the 10th, both eyes were closing and Mancini's punches were weak.

"Ray was punching very soft," said Bramble. "Then I'd see his legs buckle and I didn't hit him that hard."

The battering started in the seventh. A right hand buckled the champion's right knee that round and only Mancini's great condition and great fighting heart kept him upright through the following rounds.

In the eighth, Bramble was loading up on his punches and repeatedly wobbling Mancini. The champion was forced to hold on after a lead left, from the southpaw stance, wobbled him backward. Bramble retained the advantage through the ninth and 10th.

But in the 11th, Bramble stopped throwing punches. Mancini gradually worked his way back into the fight. His punches were not hurting Bramble except on the scorecards.

The challenger, who came to this country exactly five years ago tonight and settled in Passaic, N.J., resumed his attack in the 13th and by round's end had Mancini wobbly again. The end was clear: One of boxing's major attractions was an ex-champion, and at least two men in the crowd were disappointed. Aaron Pryor and Hector (Macho) Camacho were each hoping for multimillion-dollar paydays against Mancini this fall.

Retrieved from "https://boxrec.com/wiki/index.php?title=Livingstone_Bramble_vs._Ray_Mancini_(1st_meeting)&oldid=551256"