Handled 19 boxing champs’ careers
Lou Duva, the Boxing Hall of Famer who handled the careers of 19 champions including heavyweight Evander Holyfield, died Wednesday. He was 94.
The colorful Mr. Duva died of natural causes at a hospital in Paterson, N.J., where he lived, his son, Dino, said in a statement.
A gruff, down-to-earth manager and trainer who was generous with his pupils, Mr. Duva had a career that spanned seven decades. Besides Mr. Holyfield, he also handled fellow 1984 Olympians Pernell Whitaker and Meldrick Taylor. His first titlist was middleweight Joey Giardiello, who won his crown in 1963.
The son of Italian immigrants, Mr. Duva and his family built the promotional company Main Events (founded in 1978) into one of boxing’s powerhouses.
Mr. Duva was voted “Manager of the Year” in 1985 by the Boxing Writers Association of America. In 1987, the World Boxing Association chose Mr. Duva as “Trainer of the Year.”
Among casual boxing fans, Mr. Duva was best known for his role in the March 1990 fight between Julio Cesar Chavez and Mr. Taylor.
Mr. Taylor had dominated the fight with speed and accuracy, but Mr. Chavez came on strong in the late rounds and hit Mr. Taylor with a right hand with 26 seconds left that hurt him. He tried to trade punches, only to be dropped by Mr. Chavez.
Mr. Taylor used the ropes to pull himself up at the count of six, but sagged back into the corner post. Referee Richard Steele asked him at the count of eight if he was OK and Mr. Taylor did not respond but instead looked at his corner where Mr. Duva was climbing into the ring.
Mr. Steele waved the fight to a close with Mr. Chavez a TKO winner with 2 seconds left in a fight. Mr. Taylor would have won had he finished it.
Mr. Steele was widely criticized for years for stopping the fight, but Mr. Duva stepping into the ring may have played a pivotal role.
It’s a hell of a way to lose a fight,” Mr. Duva said later. “We were winning the fight for 11 rounds, two minutes and 58 seconds. Then the referee took it away from us.”
Mr. Duva was enshrined in the International Boxing Hall of Fame (1998), as well as the New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame and the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame.
The Canastota, New Yorkbased boxing Hall of Fame announced its flags will fly at half-staff in memory of Mr. Duva.
“Lou Duva was fiercely devoted to his fighters and to the sport that he dedicated his life to,” Hall of Fame executive director Edward Brophy said. “Everyone at the Hall of Fame joins the boxing community in mourning his passing.”