Ring Observer Boxing by Scoop Malinowski
By Scoop Malinowski
Status: WBA, IBF and WBC Light Heavyweight champ.
Ht: 5-11 Wt: 175
DOB: January 16, 1969 In: Pensacola, FL
Childhood Heroes: “Sugar Ray Robinson and Salvador Sanchez. To me, those are the two best boxers there ever was. I know a lot of people won’t agree but I put Sanchez in the same league as Robinson.”
Hobbies/Interests: “Playing basketball. Fishing. Raising game chickens. Rap music.”
Nicknames: Psycho, Little Sugar, Number One, Little Roy.
Childhood Dream: “Go to the Olympics. And be like Tarzan [smiles]. I thought he was the greatest. I liked how he got along with the animals, helped people when they came to the jungle.”
Early Boxing Memory: “Winning Alabama Golden Gloves. I was 11-years old and state champion. Stopped a kid with a body shot. He went down. I got a trophy and thought it was the biggest thing in the world. Then I came back and won the title five straight times.”
Favorite Movies: “Harlem Nights, Scarface.”
Musical Tastes: “DMX, Public Enemy, Slick Rick.”
Favorite TV Show: “Blackbelt Theatre.”
Pre-Fight Feeling: “Happy. About to be showtime. I love to entertain. Makes me feel good. I make every fight a challenge for me. Anyone can bring you your lunch on any given day. I cannot stand to lose. When I go in there, I am going to make sure that I am 100% right. I am dead serious. I don’t care how good or bad my opponent is. But watch how focused, sharp and on-point Roy Jones Jr. is. (Do you visualize?) Yep…victory in some form or another. Either knocking him out or executing whatever my strategy has been with my trainer (Alton Merkerson). When I go out there, I have the same purpose in mind…to knock him out. Nothing can stop me. The only thing that is going to stop me is God.”
Greatest Sports Moment: “Winning the last decision over Frankie Liles to make the Olympic team in 1988. In Las Vegas. I felt like I had just defeated the world. It was an honor to represent my country in the Olympics. Thanked the Lord. I did it with a fractured hand.”
Most Painful Moment: “When I hurt my right hand against Glenn Wolfe (’92). In the first round. I was out for five months. The same injury still lives with me today.”
Favorite Meal: “Fried chicken, black-eyed peas, candy yams, chicken pot pie, with a root beer or Diet Coke.”
Favorite Breakfast Cereal: “Apple Jacks.”
Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: “Vanilla.”
Favorite Boxers To Watch: “Pernell Whitaker. Defensive. Very defensive. But he had a winning attitude. Smoke Gainer – like a left-handed version of me. Marco Antonio Barrera. One of the best pound-for-pound right now. I love what Barrera does. He is a phenomenal champion and I think he is doing a great job doing what he’s doing. Kostya Tszyu. Great fighter. Ice Cole – a friend. Evander Holyfield. The heart of a warrior. The biggest heart I’ve seen. I like to see that. Larry Holmes. Roberto Duran. Salvador Sanchez. Ray Robinson. Mike Tyson.”
Favorite Fight: “Holmes-Norton.”
People Most Admired: “Michael Jordan. Magic Johnson. Marvin Hagler. A great middleweight champion. Ruled the division for many years. Never tried to be anyone else. Evander Holyfield. Emmitt Smith.”
Favorite Athletes To Watch: “Shaq. Emmitt Smith. Ken Griffey Jr. Marion Jones. Andre Agassi. Pete Sampras. I like the speed of their serves. The way they come back every time. One wins, then the other wins. True competitors.”
Future Ambition: “My career has been what I always wanted it to be. I have won, won, won. And that is what I always intended to do. Taking a chance at the Heavyweight title would put me at a status with no other.”
