The International Boxing Hall of Fame and Museum, which will be celebrating its 35th Anniversary in 2024, has announced the newest class of inductees to be honored during the Hall of Fame Induction Weekend June 6-9, 2024.
The Class of 2024 includes Ricky “The Hitman” Hatton, Michael “Double M” Moorer, Ivan “Iron Boy” Calderon and Diego “Chico” Corrales (posthumous) in the men’s Modern category; Jane “The Fleetwood Assassin” Couch and “La Guerrera” Ana Maria Torres in the Women’s modern category; trainer Kenny Adams, manager Jackie Kallen and publicist Fred Sternburg in the Non-Participant category; journalist Wallace Matthews and broadcaster Nick Charles (posthumous) in the Observer category; Luis Angel Firpo (posthumous) in the Old Timer category and Theresa Kibby (posthumous) in the women’s Trailblazer category.
The 2024 Hall of Fame Induction Weekend is scheduled for June 6-9. Events will take place in Canastota and nearby Turning Stone Resort Casino throughout the four-day celebration including ringside talks, fist casting, fight night, 5K race / fun run, boxing autograph card show, banquet, parade and induction ceremony.
I figured Hatton would get in eventually. Good for Corrales and Moorer (always wonder what may’ve happened had Moorer stayed at 175 until Roy Jones got there) and Calderon probably has a pretty legit shout for being the second best straw weight ever and he did end up making a nice run at 108 as well.
But JACKIE KALLEN! Great news!
You know I thought Kallen was already in. Perhaps she got into one of the others. I like your point about Moorer. You know…I was a big Roy Jones fan….but the way Moorer knocked people out at light heavy and being a south paw on top of that…hmmm…makes for a heck of debate doesn’t it?
It does! Great athlete like that and a big puncher against Roy at 175. Roy’s one of my favorite fighters ever and I’d pick him, but Moorer winning that fight wouldn’t have been the greatest of upsets imo.
I’m surprised Jackie was not in yet. Big player for many years. Well deserved for her long time involvement in the sport. She even had a movie based on her life.
Moorer was just nasty at light heavy. Tough fight that most likely would have happened. In today’s financial availability, Michael would have stayed at light heavy as he was chasing his future’s security.
Hatton, Calderon and Corrales we’re obvious choices and again, well deserved. I bring up your question of what of for these fighters as well if they stayed at their natural weight division. What ifs are always a great topic of conversation in boxing.
Luis Firpo was a long time coming. He fought everyone at a time where heavyweights had a crazy schedule.
Pete, I beg to differ with you on Firpo. He never beat a single top heavyweight who was in their prime when he fought them.
Calderon was special at 105. Had he stayed there he would have either retired undefeated or with just one loss.
this list almost for me seems more of a popularity contest. And in recent years, this has been the case. Far more deserving for me, than Hatton would be Henry Maske, the German Light heavy weight world champ, who when he lost his first and last fight as champ, came back 8 yrs later just to fight Virgil Hill again, and won a decision. A record at that time in avenging a loss, only topped later by Bernard Hopkins over Roy Jones. Also Maske was a gold medalist in the Olympics. I would also put in Daris M of Poland, can’t spell his last name, also a victor over Virgil Hill, who still had a career afterwards. MIchael Nunn also comes to mind. Older boxers who deserve to be there are Harry Jeffra, a Batam weight champ back in the 40’s, who beat Sixto Escobar 3 of 4 times, and Escobar is in the hall. Also a champ in a higher weight class. Though only the WBA champ, Jimmy Elllis defeated far more quality opposition than did Hatton, and even Jerry Quarry. I would even put those two men ahead of Michael Moorer. Now they are in a different era group. But really far more deserving. Also coming to my mind, Victor Darchinyan. I think some of the boxers fighting today, I can almost think of 10, one who may have just retired, who are more deserving in the future of being in the hall than the boxers named here. And no, one of them is not Tyson Fury.
Gatti,Hatton,Corrales? Whos next Mickey ward might as well throw in vargas and mayorga far more deserving fighters
I think when it comes into who gets in….it is how one looks at it. On one hand I understand why people complain. Fighters are getting in like Gatti, Mancini, and now Hatton and if we are to look at it honestly, we could probably make a list of fighters who could beat them who will never even be considered. Fair enough. However there is another way to look at it….it is called the Hall of Fame….not the Hall of Accomplished great fighters. Gatti and Mancini captivated the public’s attention. So we then can ask ourselves…did these fighters on our list that would likely beat them…captivate the attention of the public in the same way? Were they as famous? Boxing is a business and so is the Hall of Fame. I think that is what is comes down to. I understand the complaints but I just wanted to give another perspective.
I completely agree, Pete. When they put Gatti in, at least for me, it really changed things because now I find myself in the back of my head thinking when someone’s name comes up ‘were they better than Gatti?’ and if they were then, they’re at least borderline. And that’s probably unfair for me because you know why Gatti’s in there and it isn’t because he was this super great fighter, it’s because he was so exciting to watch like you said; but you think of guys like Benn & Eubank, JL Castillo, personal favorite of mine Stevie Johnston, Yuri Arbachakov, Michael Nunn, Genaro Hernandez, Vernon Forest etc. I don’t really have a problem with any of them not being in there, BUT were they better fighters than Arturo Gatti, in a vacuum…. yeah they were.
I admit you stumped me on Yuri Arbachakov, (had to look him up). LOL!!! That though is my point. Still thinking of that match with Jones vs Moorer at Light heavy. It moved the needle..lol! Probably not a mythical match that people think about much.
Arbachakov was probably the best flyweight in the world for a minute until Too Sharp showed up. He was also, I think, pretty popular in Japan.
His last fight at lhw was in 1990 and Roy didn’t get there until ’96 so it was probably pretty unrealistic but, virtually every time Moorer’s name comes up – that’s what I’m thinking. What a fight that could have been.
Interesting points, but I still have to disagree. The HALL OF FAME is there to also educate people I would hope. Of all the boxers that were inducted, Ivan Calderon probably was the most deserving, but was he famous among many boxing fans? I think it also goes to show that many boxing writers today really have no sense of history of the sport. I guess that next should be Butterbean, and of course in the future the PAUL BROTHERS.
WILFREDO VÁZQUEZ
Not impressed except for the brave Diego RIP!!
Diego corrales had bubble gum chin but he also had a lion heart
Corrales never gave up
I mean to be fair about Gatti, he was a two time world champion and throughout his 16 year career, competed in 4 different ring magazine fight of the year bouts. He may not have been the most accomplished boxer that ever competed, but he certainly was a big part of boxing history. Numbers may not tell the whole story about him, but he was a part of big moments in boxing history.
If you think of the HOF as being a place for ‘the best of the best’, then Gatti doesn’t belong there. Good fighter, had some really nice wins – Patterson twice, Ruelas, Leija, Dorin, Millet, Gamache – all world champions; but he wasn’t a great fighter.
However, if it is your goal in the HOF to tell the story of boxing, especially in the modern era, and you do not include Gatti then you’re doing a really bad job of it. So, in that respect, it’s no surprise that he’s in there.
.. and why are Gatti and Hatton in but no Marlon Starling?! Starling was excellent in his prime, fought everyone, and was widely avoided. He also has no losses to chumps except the infamous after the bell punch loss that Larry Hazzard screwed up.
A lot of people say tim Bradley didn’t deserve the nod either. He was a two time champ in 140 and 147. Did his win against Pacquiao push him over even though it was highly contested?
You all guys don’t drawn in a glass of water
Hall fame of boxing is the worst of the sports
Is not like base ball
Take it easy guys even Francis nganou will be boxing hall of famer some day
Remember my words
I think this is a weak group. I was not surprised that Calderon got inducted, but once again Wilfredo Vasquez gets passed over again and he is overdue.