January 16, 2025
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SSTN: Today we are here with legendary, Hall-of-Fame boxing promoter Joe DeGuardia.
Joe, it is great to have this discussion with you.
To begin, please tell us how you became a sports fan.
I grew up playing all sports on the streets in my neighborhood (in the Morris Park section of the Bronx) and always loved sports. It’s what we did everyday—softball, stickball, baseball, basketball, football—all on the street or schoolyard (no grass lol)….and of course boxing as I was born to a boxing family and it was always my love.
What is your first great sports memory?
I have so many memories in sports that a bunch jump out at me right away and I just can’t separate which was my first great sports memory….although as a fan, I do remember when the Yankees finally got that World Series championship again in 1977 and all of us cheering the Reggie Jackson homers to beat the Dodgers
You have been surrounded by boxing your whole life - you were a NY Golden Gloves Champion, your father was a professional boxer, and now you are a famous promoter. How has boxing changed in the decades that you have been associated with the sport?
Boxing has changed in many ways and yet remained the same….it is still a wonderful sport of that mirrors the challenges of life—determination, hard work, discipline and dedication play itself out in the drama of a square ring. At its best, there is nothing like boxing..it is the true personification of the struggles pain and yet beauty of life itself.
As a kid from the Bronx, tell us about your relationship with the Yankees.
The Yankees are the Bronx… my neighborhood was full of Yankees fans! I have many fond memories –taking the subway to Yankee Stadium as a kid with my friends…..We suffered when I was a kid growing up, clinging to the past glory that we only heard about, Ruth, Gehrig, DiMaggio, etc… but finally in 1977 we got it back and loved the new years of championships …. But we were diehard Yankee fans even in the early 70’s when the A’s, Red Machine were winning—and in 1976 we may have went down to the Reds but couldn’t wait till the next year!
As a kid, did you collect baseball cards, play baseball, etc?
Yes, collected, tossed and flipped –matching etc…. winner gets the card… do you remember those games?
What is more exciting, a Heavyweight Championship bout or Game Seven of the World Series?
Ha! Well, Game Seven of the World Series is certainly special but NOTHING in the world stacks up against a real Heavyweight Championship fight. For examples, how can anything compare to Ali-Frazier, or Louis-Schmeling etc.
But bottom of the ninth—down to the last pitch with winning run on base—in Game Seven of the World Series—is pretty darn exciting as well.
Why, do you believe, are people so drawn to baseball and its stories, legends, and people?[
It is America’s Pastime – it is apple pie and Chevrolet ---takes us to the young boy in all of us--and the years past –‘back in the day’--- there is nothing like memories
I am a big fan of the Rocky movie franchise. I know that Star boxing promoted Anthonio Tarver. Were you part of the negotiations that brought Tarver, as Mason Dixon, to the movie Rocky Balboa?
in some context some may say that but that didn’t require any real work on my behalf—that ‘just happened’
What are your favorite boxing movies? If you're a big Rocky fan, which of the Rocky films are your favorites?
Gotta love the Rocky films…. The original Rocky is the one closest in my heart –I remember when it first came out and it was captivating, especially since I was a boxer. Both Rocky and Rocky II truly provide a heartwarming feeling even to this day when I watch them as they bring back so many memories…. And on top of that, those Rocky years brought so many teenagers to the gym in those days that I had a lot of sparring available (even though most would be in and out in one round..lol)
In the book and the movie The Natural, the main character wants nothing more than to walk down the street and have people say, "There goes Roy Hobbs, the best there ever was." Who was the best baseball player you ever saw?\
I never saw him live but always grew up with the notion that Joe DiMaggio was the best ever.
Who were the best boxers you have ever seen?
So many great fighters… I have watched tapes on all the old-timers and then have been watching the sport since I was 5 years old. The ones that I saw that come to mind are : Willie Pep (for pure boxing ability), Sugar Ray Leonard (watched so many fights of his live and watched him from Olympics on), Oscar DeLaHoya (great to see someone captivate audiences when everyone thought we’d never have another ‘star’ in the game again) just to name a few…
Our final question is really just a collection of short answers...
What is your most prized collectible?
So many hold places in my heart, but those of my kids accomplishments are hard to beat.
Who is your favorite musical group or artist?
Similarly to boxing, there are so many great groups, Credence Clearwater Revival and Rolling Stones come to mind
What is your favorite food (if it is pizza, what is your favorite pizza restaurant)?
Eggplant Parmigiana
Joe, this was great! Thanks for spending this time with me.
On an unrelated note, Bob Uecker passed away.
ate my fair share of eggplant parm
and listened to more than one nonna try to explain how she was able to tell which eggplants were "male" and therefore less full of seeds.