JOHN SCULLY: BOXING IS IN HIS BLOOD
By Leon Cowan

Boxingtalk: You were recently inducted into Connecticut’s boxing hall of fame. How does it feel to be recognized among such great fighters as Willie Pep and Gene Tunney?

John Scully: Being inducted into the Connecticut Hall of Fame is very special to me. When I first started boxing as a kid I always looked at Connecticut as the whole world.  I looked up to guys like Ray Bright from New Haven, Troy Wortham, Cuda Leaks, Marlon Starling and Tyrone Booze from Hartford and Mike Costello from Bridgeport.

BT: What made you get into boxing?

JS: I got interested in boxing originally because my father had always been a big boxing fan and he used to have a bunch of books on boxing in his closet and when I would stay with him on the weekends I would read through them over and over. I read the autobiographies of Willie Pep, Sugar Ray Robinson and Muhammad Ali by the time I was twelve and the images those books put into my head have stayed with me to this very day.  The sights and sounds and excitement that came along with their careers stuck in my head and I almost immediately asked my father to buy me a pair of boxing gloves and I used to put those gloves on every Friday and Saturday night and act out all the fights I read about in the books. I used to have a timer and a scorecard and I would do post fight interviews in the bathroom mirror. I was really caught up in it all and once I found out there were televised fights on TV every weekend, that was it. The first fight I remember watching was back in 1979 when Sugar Ray Leonard stopped Andy Prince on national TV. I was hooked after that.

BT: What is your fondest memory from your boxing career?

JS: I have too many fond memories from my twenty-seven years in the game to mention here but several come to mind immediately.  Meeting Ali three times was big for me. Becoming friends with Willie Pep and Archie Moore as a kid. Fighting Michael Nunn and Henry Maske. Qualifying for the 1988 U.S. Olympic Trials. Winning a few fights on national TV. Sparring with Roy Jones and James Toney. There were many great moments for me.

BT: Can you tell me what it was like calling the classic fights with Joe Tessitore on ESPN?
 
JS: That really was a great experience for me to sit there next to Joe and break those fights down piece by piece. My job was to tell what each guy should or could do to win the fight so even though the fight had already taken place it didn't really matter because even though I knew who was eventually going to win, I could still very accurately tell what the eventual loser should do to try and win the fight. It also helped a great deal that most of the fights I did were ones that I had never seen before so the actual action that took place was as new to me as if I had been there when it actually happened.  I've gotten a ton of great feedback over the last couple of years, especially from other fighters, and have even been approached at least three times about the possibility of doing some work with other networks and outlets that show professional fights. Nothing has come to fruition yet but I would jump on an opportunity like that in a second!

BT: Since retiring from boxing in 2001, how have you spent most or your time? Do you miss the big stage?
 
JS: Well, the great thing for me is that I have been able to continue boxing even without having it as a career. I’ve always loved to box, and still do. I just don't do it to make money any longer. I have probably sparred with almost as many guys in the years since my last fight as I ever did during the span of my career, including tonight-- I did five rounds at the gym in Middletown, Connecticut.  I have also been busy training amateur and professional boxers and I also organize and promote amateur boxing cards throughout the year, including one I did this past Saturday. I actually ran the amateur show during the day and then was part of a professional show that same night where my top amateur, Joseph Perez, made a successful pro debut.

BT: Iceman, thank you for your time. Anything you'd like to say in closing?

JS: Just that I am really having a good time right now with the boxing game. I have some pros and some amateurs that are boxing regularly. I'm still able to spar, still able to travel with my fighters to fights and tournaments. We're in the gym every day; we've got a bunch of new guys looking to enter the local Golden Gloves here in January. I have some amateur shows planned before the end of the year, I have the induction ceremony coming up for the Connecticut Hall of Fame and on top of that I am still working on my book every day and expect it to be finished around New Year’s Day. So everything is going great and I appreciate you giving me the opportunity to let you know all about it.

Send questions and comments to: cowlanln@yahoo.com