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09/27/2005 Archived Entry: "Duddy Shows Heart"
Duddy Shows Heart
By J.D. Vena
Photos by Emily Harney
Early into a boxer’s career, you can never know too much about them. You often wonder if they can absorb a good shot to the chin, snarl at late round fatigue or if they are susceptible to southpaws. Early in a boxer’s career, you’re not really supposed to know about these hopeful qualities. They slowly unfold after each and every fight.
So far, “Ireland’s” John Duddy, a fast-rising middleweight prospect originally from Derry City, Northern Ireland, has shown the tenacity of Stevie Collins and the explosiveness of Nigel Benn. Those are fan-friendly qualities, but it’s the other intangibles you wonder about when the pressures inside and outside the ring began to heap on a young pug. One often wonders how they will adapt.
Whether he can go a hard 12 rounds or absorb a Jermain Taylor right hand or not, on Saturday night, some onlookers learned a little about Duddy’s heart. No, Duddy didn’t need to “dig deep,” as they say, during his one minute annihilation of the overmatched Joseph Brady on September 17th. But afterwards, at least a few, learned about his appreciation for fanfare and his compassion.
Duddy Presses Brady
As the ring announcer of “Mayhem in Mansfield,” a 6-bout show promoted by New England Ringside at the Dana Barros Sports Complex in Mansfield, MA, your writer felt comfortable asking the company’s president, Rick Brutti if I could bring an enthused guest with me. Billy Cathelwood, of Tewksbury, MA, is an aspiring 13-year old boxer, trained by the famed Micky Ward. Recently, he learned that as a result of his parents’ impending divorce, he’d be moving to San Diego with his mother in the upcoming weeks. Obviously upset, I thought I could cheer him up and ask Brutti if he could tag along with me and watch his favorite ring idol, John Duddy, in action.
Young Billy was ecstatic to find out that Brutti welcomed the idea, but it would come at a small cost. Publicist Bob Trieger of NER thought it would be productive to have Billy direct the boxers to their dressing rooms. Billy was certainly pleased with the task because he would have the chance to meet his idol.
As the show got underway, Billy had found his seat and like the many eager Irish fans in attendance, waited patiently for his charge to improve his mark to an impressive 12-0 with 11 KO’s.
Shortly before 11:00 PM, Duddy fulfilled his duty with an awesome display of well-placed shots to his opponent’s midsection. The bout was nearly over by the time I had found my seat after introducing both fighters to the stirred crowd. The screaming fans made you feel as if you were at a soccer game in Ireland and though it was a quick knockout, none seemed disappointed by the bout’s abrupt end. In fact, they seemed to look forward to it.
Not long after referee Mike Ryan counted Brady out and the chorus of cheers continued to resonate in the metallic gymnasium, Billy approached me with a pair of boxing gloves hanging around his neck. The black gloves clearly looked as if they were just used on someone. As it turns out, they were used to put Brady on the canvas.
When I asked to whom they belonged, he replied, “They're Duddy’s,” as if they belonged to some chum from school. Before I asked if he had stolen them, he explained that Duddy had actually given them to him. Oddly enough, while everyone was getting their Irish up, Duddy was shouting down to Billy from the ring with a thumb’s up.
Whether Billy had explained his troubling situation or not, Duddy had taken a fondness to Billy before the night of boxing began and afterwards, personally signed the gloves for him. Ironically, it was Duddy’s fans that seemed to want to reward him. In fact, one fan removed his soccer styled jersey and gave it to Duddy because it had Duddy’s crest on it.
Duddy was thoroughly appreciated and he was more than obliged to acknowledge any of his fans, most of which made the trek from New York City. After the hoopla, Duddy exchanged e-mails with Billy and chatted with any other fan that wanted to cast their praise or just rap about anything. It was as if being considerate was his business just as it was his duty to pound Brady with murderous body shots moments before.
On the drive home, Billy Cathelwood, a boy whose parents are divorcing and will look to a new beginning in San Diego, proclaimed that the night’s experience made it the best day of his life. On a night when Duddy improved his record with relative ease, the beloved star in the making did a little more that night than just win a prize fight.
