Flashback....

In 1989 I was scheduled to be the co-feature at the Springfield Civic Center against Bailey to the fight that pitted Brown defending the title against Santana and that fight was significant in more ways than one because Simon's chief rival at that weight was Hartford's own 147 pound Champion (WBC) Marlon Starling and, in fact, the two of them were on course to what would have been a lucrative showdown. They were widely regarded as the two best welterweights in the world at the time and Brown had made a strong case for himself being inserted into the top spot with his knockout over Tyrone Trice in a brutal fight about one year earlier. When I was an amateur I was friendly with Marlon. He used to come by my job at K-Mart (store security) sometimes and talk boxing with me, stuff like that. Now, in 2005, up until very recently, we were boxing buddies. (That's another story for the Diary). He was helping me out in my gym in Windsor sometimes working with the amateur kids and we have even sparred several times in the last couple of years. Not that long ago I put him on the phone with two old friends of his, (from the 1970's) Lindell Holmes and Alex Ramos because I considered Marlon (up until recently, that's another story) more of a friend over the last couple of years than I ever would have back in the late 80's. Back then in 1989 we were on opposite teams so to speak. He used to be managed by my current manager (in 1989) F. Mac Buckley. Their breakup in 1986 was not exactly amicable and it had resulted with some bad blood still there bubbling slightly below the surface. Troy and I were the two main boxers in Mac's stable and Moochie had several times taken shots at us in the press. I never really got the chance to say much in return because back then I wasn't established enough as a professional anyway to even try to verbally retaliate. But there were other ways for me to strike back. When Simon was in town training for the mid-November fight it was no accident that he ended up sparring and training at the gym run by Johnny Duke that was our home gym in the Bellevue Square Housing projects. Simon sparred with Troy there and the press was often there filming him and doing pre-fight stories. It was significant because Johnny Duke was Marlon's first trainer and that gym, The Bellevue Square Boys Club, was his first training place as a kid. He grew up in an apartment just fifty yards from where Simon Brown was now training for his fight. For a few weeks anyway, Marlon Starling wasn't the only world welterweight champion in town. One day we went up to Springfield, Massachusetts to do some training at a gym there for the benefit of the local press that would be covering the fight. I was on my way back to Hartford afterwards and I had Simon, his trainer Teddy Atlas and Kip Elbaum (son of promoter Don Elbaum) in the car with me. It occurred to me on that twenty-five minute drive that Marlon Starling only lived two towns over from me. I thought back to my man Cassius Clay in 1964 going to Liston's house in the middle of the night and "calling out the big ugly bear." I was on the upcoming card with Simon and I wanted it to be BIG. USA-TV Tuesday Night Fights was going to be broadcasting the fight so I knew that any stories connected to the fight would be mentioned. I had a plan. I told Don Elbaum that it would be great if Simon Brown went to Marlon's house looking for him. If Moochie was home then it could be really great. Imagine Marlon coming outside with Simon in the driveway talking to the TV cameras how he is going to run Marlon out of the neighborhood? Or, if Marlon wasn't home, Simon could go to each neighbors house and tell them to "give Moochie a message from Simon Brown. I'm taking over the block." I thought it was a great idea and I wanted to be there to see the look on Moochie's face!! To me, it would have been all in fun. Like Ali and Liston. Elbaum thought it was a great idea, too. I think everybody did. And if they didn't at the time I think they would have after it happened. As long as nobody got hurt or hit with a rock or something I figured it would be great for the fight. I pictured the TV cameras being there and the local reporters being made aware of it. The neighbors coming outside to see what all the commotion was. People yelling "Come on, Moochie. Don't take that! Fight him." This event, this stunt, could make this fight in Springfield bigger than it already was and it could serve to set up the rematch with Moochie and make it even more interesting. (To be fair -in their first meeting- Marlon won a clear, although split, decision in Atlantic City when Simon was undefeated and on the way up the ranks. If they did fight again I would still pick Moochie to beat him but it was a big fight regardless. Two world champions uniting a couple titles.) So Don Elbaum loved the idea, like I said, and approached Simon about it. No dice. Simon, as I should have realized in the car on the ride from Springfield, was a quiet type of guy. You never saw him with big entourages and sequined trunks walking to the ring with rappers leading the way and his boys by his side talking trash. Some guys let their actions in the ring sell them and their careers and that was pretty much Simon Brown's method, too, so my idea for an invasion never got off the ground.