Rosie Perez and Al Bernstein host tonight’s Third Annual Nevada Boxing Hall of Fame Gala at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada.
I asked Al Bernstein about the Nevada Boxing Hall of Fame and his co-host Rosie Perez.
“We’ve crossed paths on several occasions,” he said. “I sat with her at one of the events at the Hall of Fame in Canastota. I also bumped into her at a couple of fights. We’ve often texted and tweeted each other and exchanged our books and all the rest. So I know her and found her to be a delightful lady. She’s out there as a fan, but there are so many celebrities and entertainment people that love the sport. She has just been much more active in terms of social media and other things, and now of course she’s doing some things for ESPN. But Rosie’s a huge fan, that’s for sure.”
The International Boxing Hall of Fame is the top of the hit parade, but it’s located in Canastota, New York, which, whatever the town’s virtues, is something of a backwater. The Nevada Boxing Hall of Fame, by contrast, is in Las Vegas, about which little more needs to be said.
“Obviously the International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota draws an amazing group of people,” Bernstein said, “and it’s regarded as the Boxing Hall of Fame. But the thing that makes the Nevada Boxing Hall of Fame kind of special is that so much of boxing’s history had something to do with the state and because of what Rich and all his people have done with this event and this organization. From the very first one, this event has taken on mythic proportions. You’re rarely going to be in a room where you see Marvin Hagler, Lennox Lewis, Sugar Ray Leonard, Mike Tyson, Floyd Mayweather—the list goes on and on. It’s an amazing group of people to have in one room and this event is really extraordinary.”
Bernstein isn’t just name-dropping. He’s knows these guys personally. In addition to the aforementioned legends, the inductees of the Class of 2015 in attendance will be Felix Trinidad, Marco Antonio Barrera, Roger Mayweather, and Eddie Mustafa Muhammad.
“I’m lucky enough to be able to present the award to Hagler. I have a long history announcing the Hagler fights in the ‘80s. I was also privileged to spend a lot of time with him. But it was a little different back then. You would see the fighters in a slightly different setting. We’d all be out on the town. We used to go to a club called Botany’s. It was off The Strip and there were no ‘clubs’ back then, so it was a gathering place. In one corner you’d see Sugar Ray Leonard, and in another corner you’d see Hagler, and in another corner you’d see Tommy Hearns. It was a more freewheeling, interactive time. You got to be around them more. The situation wasn’t so antiseptic.”
I asked Bernstein to describe Marvin Hagler.
“The words I use to describe Marvin Hagler are straight up. He’s just a really solid guy. You can count him to do what he said he was going to do, to be where he said he was going to be, and to talk to you honestly.”
And what are his impressions of Lennox Lewis?
“Lennox to me is a very special guy in boxing, because I think he is someone who elevated the heavyweight crown. He comported himself in a way that was extremely admirable and gave class to the heavyweight championship.”
Felix Trinidad will be at tonight’s award ceremony.
“Felix Trinidad embodies—and in fact I think Rosie is presenting the award to him—he embodies the greatness of Puerto Rican champions. He was a brilliant fighter. I don’t know him as well personally, but the way he represents the sport, he’s an amazing character.”
I asked Bernstein about Marco Antonio Barrera.
“Marco Antonio Barrera helped the smaller weight fighters gain a foothold in the consciousness of American sports fans. That is one thing, and there are many more, about his legacy that is very special. His fights with Erik Morales were one of the best trilogies in the sport of boxing. It rivals Ali-Frazier in my opinion in terms of its level of boxing, even if it wasn’t as big on a global scale. But I always said that Barrera, Morales, Pacquiao and Marquez created fights that rivaled what the Four Kings did.”
Eddie Mustafa Muhammad will be inducted tonight.
“I love Eddie. Eddie Mustafa Muhammad was a terrific light heavyweight at a time when the light heavyweight division was as good as it has ever been in boxing. There were tremendous fighters during that period. He was also of course a world-class trainer.”
Speaking of world-class trainers, Roger Mayweather will be inducted into the Nevada Boxing Hall of Fame.
“We all acknowledge that Floyd Mayweather is one of the best pound-for-pound fighters of the decade and one of the best pound-for-pound fighters of his era, and some of the credit has to go to Roger Mayweather. For so long he was involved in Mayweather’s training. He was involved with other fighters as well. And he’s a Las Vegas fixture too. There’s a sense of community here.”
This article was penned by the author who is not related to the WBA and the statements, expressions or opinions referenced herein are that of the author alone and not the WBA.
