Does Arturo Gatti belong in the International Boxing Hall of Fame?‏

[EMSLDB]

If you put Arturo Gatti you have to put Fernando Vargas in him beating Ike Quartey & Winky Wright is better than anyone Gatti beat

[McGoorty]

Gatti gave us so much amazing fights, and he was certinaly a warrior.

But, no, he doesn't. He simply did not do close to enough.

There are many legit, great fighters who are still waiting to be inducted.

I agree with you AGAIN Dan, but it would be nice to have a place dedicated to all pro boxers, where fans can nominate their own fighters. Arturo Gatti will be remembered for years and years. He was a bit like Graziano (not in power) in terms of value for money.

[McGoorty]

If you put Arturo Gatti you have to put Fernando Vargas in him beating Ike Quartey & Winky Wright is better than anyone Gatti beat

Too Right,,,, and another 500 too

[alza1988]

Yep they said Gatti was the most Rocky like fighter in the sport and had the biggest heart .I think he deserves a place .Especially the Ward fight's .They will go down in history for a long time. Also Rocky got in man for the movies.

[Scott9945]

Yep they said Gatti was the most Rocky like fighter in the sport and had the biggest heart .I think he deserves a place .Especially the Ward fight's .They will go down in history for a long time. Also Rocky got in man for the movies.

Stallone didn't get in as a boxer, and didn't take away any votes for deserving fighters. If they were to add a category for exciting performers then Gatti would be a unanimous choice.

[fitefanSHO]

If they were to add a category for exciting performers then Gatti would be a unanimous choice.

Only a select few in boxing history can really be compared to Arturo Gatti in terms of that do-or-die approach: Rocky Graziano, Matthew Saad Muhammad, and Bobby Chacon - all three are in the IBHOF by the way.

[IronDanHamza]

The difference between Rocky Graziano is Rocky had a trilogy with a great fighter in Tony Zale, 2 of which were competitive wars. Put Arturo Gatti in the ring with anyone as good as Tony Zale he will get slaughtered.

Graziano dropped Ray Robinson for crying out loud.

Matthew Saad Muhammad beat very good fighters mutliple times in a lengthy title reign. Again vastly more than Arturo Gatti.

Bobby Chacon was a good fighter and is greater than Gatti but I don't really think he is HOF quality either so that one is a good comparison.

Either way, Gatti shouldn't be in the HOF. IMO.

[fitefanSHO]

Gatti won world titles at two weights and defended those titles 5 times.

Just sayin...

Still, it's not about traditional accomplishment for Gatti IMO, it's about the intangibles, and when it comes to those, I don't think anyone in boxing history can compete with what Gatti brought to the ring fight after fight.

[Thread Stealer]

Stallone didn't get in as a boxer, and didn't take away any votes for deserving fighters. If they were to add a category for exciting performers then Gatti would be a unanimous choice.

Never really understood why ppl made such a big deal of Sly getting into the HOF.

He made it as a non-participant/screenwriter. Budd Schulberg was a boxing writer, but I suspect he got in largely because of the works of fiction he wrote.

What made more people want to box: Rocky or On the Waterfront?

[VERILY]

My fav Gatti moment of all is the poignantly awkward Ali-shuffle he performed with a grin through swelling features in his final fight when Gomez was starting to beat the tar out of him. I guess he realized he was bowing out that night, because that moment was so classically knowing, a wonderful, self-effacing inverse reference to, and epitomization of, the raw stripe of drama and simple showmanship he'd brought to the ring over the preceding decade and a half - not for him the virtuoso showboating and the flash associated with Greater talents, but just two loaded fists and a King-size heart, 3 chords and the truth.

When a fighter can light up the fan's heart without even throwing a punch, with only an incidental gesture of playful, spirited irony and theatre in the midst of what should be his nadir, you know he's special. If you were watching and you were a fan of Gatti, though his performance was so game and devoid of self-pity or discouragement throughout, it had become a dark night by the mid-rounds - but when that moment came in the 6th, it woke you up and made you curse yourself for daring to mourn him. Something I found edifying and which defined him as clearly as any left-hook he ever threw for me


The *******ial thunderstorm of blows he unleashed on poor Richard DeJesus in his third pro fight, too - his opponent was a long way from special, ofc, but a decent one for his third bout, and that nascent display of finishing fury and passion has always abided with me.