By Thomas Gerbasi
Just like one of his rapier-like jabs or quickfire combinations can momentarily stun opponents, Ivan Calderon shocked me the last time we spoke, days before his 2008 rematch with Hugo Cazares.
“I’ll tell you the truth – I never liked boxing,” he said. “I don’t know how I’m boxing. (Laughs) I used to fight in school a lot, but the first time I saw boxing on TV was when Mike Tyson lost (to Buster Douglas in 1990). Then I started watching it, and when people started talking to me about boxing, they talked about Wilfredo Gomez and started giving me tape on him. I saw how he fought, how he moved, and they told me that he was the best in the world.”
20 years, 34 wins, one draw, and no losses later, Calderon is the best in the world. You won’t see him on the top of the various pound-for-pound lists, but when it comes to pure boxing, there is none finer than the southpaw from Guyanabo, Puerto Rico.
Unfortunately, here in the United States, there is little appreciation for the finer things in sports. It’s all about the home run, the 80 yard touchdown, the slam dunk, and the knockout. It’s why soccer has never blown up here, and why Ivan Calderon will never receive the attention afforded to Manny Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather Jr., the Klitschko brothers. That’s not to knock the aforementioned fighters, but casual fans love knockouts, love the big men of the sport, and they love flash, occasionally with a little trash talk thrown in for good measure.
Calderon can’t deliver on any of those counts. Only six of his 34 wins are by knockout, he will weigh in for Saturday’s junior flyweight unification bout against Giovanni Segura at 108 pounds, and while he can whip off some dazzling defensive moves, he will rarely get an entire arena full of fans up on their feet by making an opponent miss and pay. And blistering volleys of trash talk? Not this guy.
Even in his home of Puerto Rico, Calderon was a hard sell in the first couple years after he turned pro following his appearance in the 2000 Olympics, not surprising considering that recent heroes like Felix Trinidad and his Olympic teammate Miguel Cotto were knockout artists with typically crowd pleasing styles.
“I believe that when I started, the people in Puerto Rico didn’t really like my style – they liked the knockouts,” Calderon told me. “But then they started watching my boxing, how I proved it was a science, and how I was never boring because I was always in action. People who really know boxing understand and they give me the credit because I’m in that ring the whole 12 rounds without getting hit by that lucky punch. And in Puerto Rico now, they’re used to my style, and every time they talk to me they say ‘I don’t want you to fight with this guy – I want you to box. Don’t be stupid and stop and fight with him.’”
And if you watch Calderon enough, even the most diehard Arturo Gatti, Diego Corrales or Micky Ward fan will have to appreciate the stylings of the man dubbed “Iron Boy”. And while a first glance at that moniker brings to mind steel-chinned warriors walking through fire to secure a victory, Calderon is the rightful owner of that nickname simply because he has proven himself in fights that would have crumbled lesser men. Why? Because he’s done it with brains, not brawn, and skill, not blunt force.
I remember Uncle Mike Katz, the dean of American boxing writers, telling me once that former heavyweight champion Chris Byrd was the bravest fighter in the game. A funny look from me followed before he explained, saying that Byrd went into every fight knowing that he couldn’t hurt his opponent.
He was right, and Calderon falls into the same category, though, as a fighter, he would probably disagree and say that his lack of knockouts come from bad timing or running into tough guys at their best. But the point is that Calderon simply doesn’t have the type of concussive power to gain the respect of his opponents or take them out. His last knockout win came in 2006 over Miguel Tellez, who went on to lose six of eight fights following the bout, four by KO.
Since then, “Iron Boy” has gone the 12 round distance six times, with three bouts going to the scorecards early due to headbutt-induced cuts suffered by Calderon. And when you consider the focus necessary to go round after round against world-class opposition with pea-shooters in your gloves while avoiding knockout blows, annnnd being outweighed sometimes 10 or more pounds (Calderon generally walks around at 115), it’s hard not to be amazed at what Calderon has done in the ring over the course of two reigns as champion at 105 pounds (from 2003 to 2007) and 108 pounds (from 2007 to the present). Add in the fact that he’s doing it at an age (35) that might as well be 50 years old in lighter weight class years, and his stock rises even higher.
Of course, like anyone in the game for as long as he’s been in it, Calderon is slowing down a bit, getting hit a little more, and his skin is starting to betray him when it comes to cuts. It happens to everyone, and when a lot of your game is built around speed and reflexes, the slightest dip in those attributes could be disastrous. So Saturday at the Coliseo Mario 'Quijote' Morales in Guaynabo could be Calderon’s Waterloo, or maybe he will just continue the longest running string of excellence in the fight game today.
If he does, I will continue putting the five foot wonder’s name on my pound-for-pound list for the monthly Yahoo Sports poll, and will do so with no hesitation. In musical terms, call it a vote for The Hold Steady over Lady GaGa, and if you don’t know who The Hold Steady are, that’s precisely my point. In a GaGa world, you should know, just like you should know Ivan Calderon.
As for his own ambitions, Calderon told me a couple years back that he keeps it simple, and most of the time, simple is best.
“I want people to say that I was always there for the fans,” he said, “that the money or fame never changed me and that I was always the same Ivan I was before I was a champ, and that I was a good boxer. The best Puerto Rican small boxer that they had – hit and don’t get hit.”