By Sean Reed

Once upon a time, former amateur standout Charles Hatley was known as the "Bodysnatcher", aptly describing the level of torso terror he inflicts.

The 2008 US Olympic alternate has since adopted a new b/k/a, one he finds more befitting. 

"Muhammad Ali and Roy Jones are boxing legends from the past; Floyd Mayweather is the man today and I'm the boxer of the future so I'm changing my nickname to 'The Future’.”  

The future certainly looks bright for the 23-year old Hatley, based out of Dallas, Texas. Now two fights deep into his professional career (2-0, 2KO), he has yet to see the second round.

The Latest Performance

The latest trip to the ring came last Friday in the main event of Black Gloves Promotions' inaugural event at the Dallas Convention Center. His pro debut (last November) was against your garden-variety opponent, but scrappy veteran Willie Diamond was a major step up in competition for anyone at the newcomer level.

Obviously, Diamond's winning percentage leaves a lot to be desired (now 8-12-1, 4 KO's), but he’s a regional titleholder in the state of Arkansas. It's rare for a young fighter to choose such an experienced dance partner for just his second disco, decorated amateur or not.

Even with the ringside presence of former two-time world champion, Donald Curry, NFL legend, Deion Sanders, college football stud Michael Crabtree and an adoring hometown crowd, Hatley had his game face on. He couldn't have been more business oriented if he'd entered the ring to EPMD. 

As the opening bell rang, Hatley, 151½ lb, looked to cautiously close the gap and formally introduced himself to Diamond, 150¼, with a left hookercut. The difference in hand speed was glaring as Charles landed left jabs and hooks, then an orthodox 1-2 violently knocked the luster off of Diamond, dropping him hard.

The journeyman bravely rose, but was bounced off of the canvas twice more, each time courtesy of Hatley right hands. The third knockdown was enough cause for referee intervention, coming at 2:46 of the 1st round. 

Sadly, it would be several minutes before Diamond rose from his final fall and he was taken to a Dallas hospital for precautionary measures.

Afterwards, Hatley paid respects to his opponent and spoke of the seriousness of being in the "hurt" business. 

I probably made it look easy, but he was a strong and experienced opponent,” insisted Hatley. “This ain't the amateurs, this is the pro's. There's no headgear and those smaller gloves ain't no joke. 

“I'm taking the pro's much more seriously because one loss can be it for your career. In the amateurs, if you lose you can fight the next day, but in the pro's you don't want that loss. I'm trying to be a legend; I don't just wanna to be another boxer, I wanna be a legend."

For as long as pro and amateur boxing fans in Dallas/Ft. Worth can recall, Charles Hatley has been a legend, a fistic prodigy referenced in reverential tones. The mere mention of the Hatley surname resonates in boxing circles across the United States, particularly with the likes of renowned trainers Barry Hunter, Kevin Cunningham and Gary Russell, Sr.

Promising young prospects like Marcus "Too Much" Johnson, Hylon Williams and Mark "Too Sharp" Davis are big fans. And in his hometown of Oak Cliff, Texas, the 23 year old Charlie (as he's called by most) is already a street celebrity; the hood's hero. 

My First Encounter

Being a boxing nerd who collects programs and old bout sheets, February 21, 1998 is a day that will always be special to me.  It was my first time attending the Dallas Golden Gloves and I had the pleasure of personally being introduced to Dallas' equivalent of pugilistic royalty; former undisputed welterweight champion and Hall of Famer Curtis Cokes, and former WBC middleweight champion, Quincy Taylor.

I also briefly met a self-assured 12 year-old with braids that had just won the junior open division in the 80 lb weight class. This kid possessed the largest pair of hands I'd ever seen on someone so small, incredible hand speed and an extra dose of swagger.

His name was Charlie Hatley and he already had the "it" factor with a capital I-T.

This chance encounter was forever embedded in my brain so I went out of my way to keep up with Charlie and his older brother, Greg Hatley, Jr., as they barnstormed thru Dallas area tournaments, collecting one title after another.

Along with numerous Dallas Golden Gloves championships, Charlie accumulated four State Golden Gloves crowns, eight National Black Gloves laurels and a Junior Olympic Silver Gloves title.  He won the American Boxing Classic twice, was a runner-up at the 2007 National Golden Gloves and won the 2007 U.S. Men's National title at 152 lbs.

This designation is of particular importance because Donald Curry, Mike McCallum, Mark Breland and David Reid all won the same title, in the same weight class. Curry qualified for the 1980 Olympics and won two world titles as a pro; McCallum is a Hall of Famer and former three-division world champion; and Breland and Reid won Olympic gold medals as well as world title belts in the pro ranks.

To say the least, Charlie Hatley is in good company. 

Early Fame

Hatley was ranked number one in the country heading into the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials, where he lost to eventual representative, Demetrius Andrade. He also qualified for the 2004 U.S. Olympic Trials (ranked number two in the nation at 141 lbs at the time), where he fought the likes of Devon Alexander, Karl Dargan and Rock Allen.

All told, Charlie finished with an amateur record of 250 wins and 12 losses with 50 of his last 100 wins coming by way of stoppage.  Boxing has taken him to places like Puerto Rico, Korea, Russia and Azerbaijan.

Back in 2005, Charlie was offered a spot on the inaugural season of the boxing reality series "The Contender", hosted by Sylvester Stallone and "Sugar" Ray Leonard. The Dallas/Ft. Worth auditions were held at the Hatley's Oak Cliff Boxing Club and Charlie thoroughly impressed the powers that be in sparring.

Unfortunately, Hatley would've had to forego the remainder of his amateur career, had he signed on with the show.

One of the participants on that first season of "The Contender" was a fighter by the name of Juan De La Rosa, who has three amateur losses to Hatley.

Interestingly, a filmmaker named Chris Howell and his company (Studio C Films) catalogued Hatley’s career. Howell is piecing together a motion picture called "The Sweet Science: A Boxing documentary", which is in the final editing stages and set for release later this year.

Turning Pro

After failing to make the 2008 U.S. Olympic team, Hatley began negotiating with all of the major promoters, but couldn't broker a deal.

On November 6th, 2008, Charlie made his professional debut at the Dallas Petroleum Club in downtown Dallas; an upscale, black-tie event that sadly wasn't open to the public. You normally don't judge a book by its cover, but as Hatley and his opponent, Larry "The Assassin" Upchurch, entered the ring, it was obvious Upchurch had a thrashing in his immediate future.

Hatley wore an immaculate pair of red trunks, black striping, with matching black shoes. Upchurch’s ring attire consisted of store-bought trunks and K-Swiss athletic shoes, looking better suited for a rec league pick-up game than a prizefight with a former world-class amateur.  If ever the writing was on the wall for a first-round knockout, this was it.

The first landed punch of Hatley's pro career was a left jab, which snapped back the head of Upchurch, followed by a right hand that forced him to the ropes, where he clinched. Charlie then began feinting, eliciting panicked flinches of terror from Upchurch.  Another jab nearly turned Upchurch into a human bobble-head doll and a jab-right-left hook combination convinced the hapless "Assassin" to find a soft spot on the canvas.

Upchurch beat the count, though he’d have been better served to remain on the deck. Instead he elected to absorb more punishment; "The Bodysnatcher" obliged, jumping on him with a right to the torso and a grazing hook. A left jab-right hand landed, then a left hook high to the head buckled Upchurch.

Smelling blood, Hatley flurried and landed a right to the temple that appeared to drop Upchurch a second time, though referee, Laurence Cole, incorrectly ruled it a slip. Sensing his opponent was on the brink of being finished, Charlie smartly switched to the southpaw stance and unloaded a straight left hand and a brutal, fight ending right hook, leaving the now assassinated Larry Upchurch flat on his face.          

Not one to rest on his laurels or rely on anyone for opportunities, Charlie's father, Greg Hatley, Sr., has formed Black Gloves Promotions. They didn’t like the offers they were getting, so the Hatley's formulated their own company.

Their first show came last Friday, with Charlie serving as the headlining act. By most accounts, it was a rousing success. A rosy future is in the forecast so long as it continues to follow the lead of The Future.