11/18/2024
The Golden Boy era of Ring Magazine has officially come to an end. Long live The Ring. Oscar De La Hoya has sold The Ring to a Saudi Arabian consortium fronted by Turki Alalshikh. While the boxing world wonders what the future holds for the publication,
Brunch Boxing looks back at the history of The Ring in our Brunch Boxing Remembers series. In this edition, we look back at the Ring Magazine scandal that rocked the sport of boxing to its core.
Brunch Boxing Remembers: The Ring Magazine Scandal of 1977
The 1977 United States Boxing Championships, orchestrated by flamboyant promoter Don King, was a monumental attempt to capitalize on patriotism and boxing’s Olympic success. Yet, the event would crumble under the weight of fraud, corruption, and investigative journalism, leaving an indelible stain on the sport. Known as The Ring Magazine Scandal of 1977, it exposed systemic corruption and reshaped professional boxing’s governance.
Photo Credit: Getty Image
The year 1976 was one of national pride in the United States, as the country celebrated its bicentennial with parades, festivities, and a surge of patriotism. Amid this atmosphere, five American amateur boxers—Sugar Ray Leonard, Leon and Michael Spinks, Howard Davis, and Leo Randolph—brought home gold medals from the Montreal Summer Olympics. Don King, a shrewd Cleveland-born boxing promoter, sought to leverage this nationalistic fervor. He envisioned a professional boxing tournament that would crown U.S. champions in eight weight divisions, showcasing American talent while drawing television ratings and lucrative sponsorships.
King sold the concept to ABC Sports, securing a $1.5 million investment and 23 hours of national broadcast time. To add legitimacy, King enlisted The Ring magazine to provide rankings exclusively for U.S. fighters. The magazine received $70,000 to create these rankings, which would determine tournament participants.
However, cracks began to form almost immediately. What should have been a triumphant series became a breeding ground for corruption, with fixed rankings, fabricated fight records, and rigged outcomes orchestrated by King’s network of insiders.
Photo Credit: Getty Image
The tournament began in January 1977, drawing attention to unusual fight locations, including a U.S. aircraft carrier, the U.S. Naval Academy, and Marion Correctional Institution in Ohio. These venues conveniently lay outside the jurisdiction of state boxing commissions, minimizing oversight.
The event’s integrity was further compromised by inflated fighter rankings. The Ring’s assistant editor, Johnny Ort, accepted bribes to falsify records in the 1977 edition of The Ring Boxing Encyclopedia and Record Book, fabricating fights and enhancing the profiles of at least 11 boxers. Among these fighters were individuals like Donald “Biff” Cline, whose 13-1 record was built on non-existent knockouts, and Ike Fluellen, who had two fictitious wins in Mexico added to his résumé. Fighters like Mike Colbert, Anthony House, and Vonzell Johnson also benefited from phantom victories.
The corruption extended beyond rankings. Fighters were forced to sign contracts giving King an option on three future fights if they won. Managers alleged they were coerced into paying kickbacks, with one manager claiming he surrendered 40% of his boxer’s purse to secure participation. Even celebrated middleweight Marvin Hagler was allegedly blacklisted for refusing to hire King associates Paddy Flood and Al Braverman as his managers.
The tournament’s tipping point came on February 13, 1977, at Halsey Field House in Annapolis, Maryland. Minnesota heavyweight Scott LeDoux faced Johnny Boudreaux, a fighter managed by King’s associates. Despite knocking Boudreaux down in the third round, LeDoux lost via unanimous decision. Following the announcement, a furious LeDoux punched Boudreaux on live television, and broadcaster Howard Cosell’s hairpiece famously slipped off during the melee.
Video Credit: ABC
LeDoux later claimed he had been informed of the outcome before the fight, accusing King’s team of fixing results. The incident drew the attention of the FBI and a grand jury investigation, marking the beginning of the scandal’s unraveling.
Malcolm “Flash” Gordon, a boxing journalist from Queens, New York, had long been a watchdog for the sport. Publishing Tonight’s Boxing Program and Weekly Newsletter from his apartment, Gordon gained respect for his dogged investigative work. He noticed an alarming trend: unknown fighters associated with King’s managers were climbing the ranks of The Ring. Separately, ABC’s Alex Wallau began questioning the quality of boxers provided for televised matches.
Gordon and Wallau pursued parallel investigations, uncovering evidence of falsified rankings and fraudulent fight records. They discovered that Ort had fabricated bouts to enhance fighters’ records and rankings. Fighters like Cline, Colbert, and Fluellen were falsely credited with victories, while established contenders like Hagler were excluded. When the evidence reached ABC Sports head Roone Arledge, the network acted decisively.
On April 10, 1977, ABC suspended all broadcasts of the tournament, citing mounting allegations of corruption. Four days later, the network formally canceled the event. The scandal also led to the resignation of New York State Boxing Commissioner James A. Farley Jr., who claims to have only lent his name to the tournament.
Photo Credit: Getty Image
Although The Ring purged its staff, including Ort, the magazine’s reputation suffered irreparable damage. Television networks abandoned The Ring’s rankings, shifting reliance to sanctioning bodies like the WBA and WBC, whose influence grew in the scandal’s wake. This change arguably paved the way for the fragmented, alphabet-soup era of boxing governance, with the later addition of the IBF and WBO.
Some participants, like Saoul Mamby and Floyd Mayweather Sr., went on to respectable careers. Others, such as Cline and Fluellen, faded into obscurity. Malcolm Gordon continued publishing his newsletter until the mid-1980s, but he became reclusive and passed away around 2017. Alex Wallau achieved great success at ABC, earning two Emmy Awards and recognition as a leading boxing analyst.
Photo Credit: Floyd Mayweather
Meanwhile, Don King remained a towering figure in boxing, his career largely unscathed by the scandal. In his 90s, King continues to promote fights, a testament to his resilience and the sport’s tolerance for controversy.
Though the sport has evolved, the scandal’s echoes persist, reminding fans and fighters alike of the delicate balance between competition and integrity.
The Ring Magazine Scandal of 1977 remains a cautionary tale of unchecked ambition and corruption. While it exposed flaws in boxing’s infrastructure, it also underscored the importance of investigative journalism in holding powerful entities accountable.
The Ring Magazine Scandal of 1977 at a Glance:
The Perpetrators:
Don King: Promoter
Nat Loubet: Owner of The Ring
Johnny Ort: Managing Editor, The Ring
Paddy Flood: Boxing Manager
Al Braverman: Boxing Manager
James A. Farley Jr.: New York State Boxing Commissioner
The Boxers Involved:
Donald “Biff” Cline (12-4-1, 12 KOs) was given five first-round knockouts in 1976
Mike Colbert (32-5-1, 9 KOs) was given three wins in 1976
Paddy Dolan (18-5-1, 8 KOs) was given four wins in 1975
Ike Fluellen (11-4-1, 8 KOs) was given two wins in 1976
Anthony House (11-13, 5 KOs) was given seven wins and a draw with Stevenson in 1975 and 1976
Hilbert Stevenson (29-12-1, 18 KOs) was given five wins and a draw with House in 1976
Greg Coverson (30-2, 18 KOs) was given three wins in 1975 and 1976
Vonzell Johnson (22-3, 11 KOs) was given three wins in 1975 and 1976
Floyd Mayweather Sr. (28-6-1, 17 KOs) was given three wins in 1975 and 1976
Richard Rozelle (15-8, 7 KOs) was given two wins in 1975 and 1976
The Whistleblowers:
Scott LeDoux (33-13-4, 22 KOs): Professional boxer
Alex Wallau: American Broadcasting Company executive
Malcolm “Flash” Gordon: Boxing journalist, Publishing Tonight’s Boxing Program and Weekly Newsletter founder
Subscribe to the Brunch Boxing website, Twitter and Podcast for more updates and in-depth coverage of the world of boxing in and out of the ring.
Brunch Boxing Support Links:
Comments