By Per Ake Persson
Universum´s unbeaten super middleweight Juergen Braehmer takes on South African veteran Andre Thysse on February 4 in Duesseldorf for the vacant WBC Int´l title. In the chief support welterweights Michele Orlando and Michel Trabant clash for the EU crown.
Swedish trade paper "Boxning" has a great interview with Bertil Knutsson, who along with Ingemar Johansson and Mogens Palle, was the last active promoter before pro boxing was prohibited in 1970. Among the fighters they promoted were Sonny Liston, and Knutsson sheds some light on his Swedish visits - a subject many of Liston´s biographers have mentioned but never really looked into.
In 1966, Liston had his license pulled in the States and was looking elsewhere to get back in action. Knutsson tells of a quiet man, who arrived in pretty bad shape and worked his way back to top condition. With Sonny was his wife Geraldine and advisor/trainer Joe Paulino.
Geraldine and Sonny also on occasion baby sat Knutsson´s son Michael and lived a quiet life. Knutsson describes Liston´s performance against Amos Johnson August 19, 1966, as championsip calibre. Topping the bill with Sonny was another fearsome character in Bo Hogberg and they did well at the gate.
Liston returned home to the States after getting injured after in his win against Elmer Rush in the spring of 67 and was looking to get back into the title picture. He never returned.
Hungarian promoter Felix Racz is now calling out for purse bids to finally get a date for WBO 130 lb champ Jorge Barrios´ mandatory defense against Janos Nagy, after negotiations to make the bout failed.
Super middleweight Kimfuta Makussu, a tough journeyman, born in Kongo but formerly fighting out of France, is now residing in Brussels and has signed with Emmanuel Demanet.
