2010
BWAA AWARDS

     NEW YORK -- Who says there's no smokin' in New York City hotel ballrooms?  Smokin' Joe Frazier joined a cavalcade of boxing stars for the 85th BWAA awards dinner on June 4 at New York's Roosevelt Hotel. Frazier helped present the newly renamed "Sugar Ray Robinson Fighter of the Year" award to Manny Pacquiao, who also was honored as "Fighter of the Decade." It is Pacquiao's third BWAA "Fighter of the Year" award, tying him with Muhammad Ali and Evander Holyfield for the most in the history of the organization.

     "Tonight I overflow with joy and gratitude," Pacquiao said."It is great to be living in the 21st century.  We come from different backgrounds to represent different races, but we are all connected.  We all desire to have a sense of meaning, a sense of purpose, a sense of contribution.  We all desire to be both great and good.  We all desire to leave a legacy....And I want to remind all of you tonight, we are all destined for greatness."

     Pacquiao's trainer Freddie Roach won a record-setting fourth "Eddie Futch Trainer of the Year" award.

    "A prospect came into my gym one day," Roach said. "After one round with Manny Pacquiao, I knew that he was special. Now he's Fighter of the Decade"

    Golden Boy's Dave Itskowitz accepted the newly re-named "Muhammad Ali - Joe Frazier Fight of the Year" on behalf of Juan Manuel Marquez and Juan Diaz for their exciting bout in early 2009, a tremendous brawl that saw Marquez endure early punishment to defeat Diaz by a Round 9 stoppage.

     The John F.X. Condon award for "Long and Meritorious Service" was won by veteran sportswriter Jerry Izenberg.  A former BWAA Fleischer award winner (1978) for "Excellence in Boxing Journalism," Izenberg covered the boxing beat for decades for the Newark Star Ledger.  Since he's relocated to Nevada, Izenberg's pace has not slowed. Jerry still writes about the sport he loves, giving his readers an inside perspective as only he can.

     The late, great junior welterweight champ Alexis Arguello was honored with the "Marvin Kohn Good Guy" award, and his son Alexis Arguello Jr. said he would have been honored to receive it.

      Former heavyweight contender George Chuvalo and broadcaster Nick Charles were recognized by the BWAA with the "Bill Crawford Perseverance in Overcoming Adversity" award. TheBWAA's Tom Hauser pointed out that Chuvalo during his carreer fought against champions Ali, Frazier, George Foreman and, Floyd Patterson and many tough contenders. "In America, we say George Chuvalo was part of the Ali-Frazier-Foreman legend, but in Canada they say Ali, Frazier and Foreman were part of the George Chuvalo legend," Hauser said. Chuvalo's toughest fight has been outside the ring, losing three sons to drug addiction, a tragedy that his beloved wife Lynne chose not to live to bear, but Chuvalo has stayed strong. Showtime's Charles, battling bladder cancer, was unable to attend the dinner, and his colleague Steve Farhood accepted his award for him.

      Joe Tessitore has been the lead blow-by-blow announcer at ESPN for 10 years, and his passionate work behind the microphone earned him this year's Sam Taub award as "Broadcaster of the Year."

   Mills Lane was homnored with the "James A. Farley Honesty and Integrity in Boxing" award, which his sons Terrance and Tommy Lane accepted. The Farley award was first given in 1977 and has been awarded periodically since. Lane was an amateur boxer of note and a solid professional for the brief time his career lasted, but his true calling came inside the ring as a referee. Lane refereed some of the biggest fights in boxing history, including the rematch between Evander Holyfield and Mike Tyson, when he had to disqualify Tyson for biting the champion's ear.

    Erin Boyd, daughter of the late F.X. Toole, accepted her father's A.J. Liebling award for Outstanding Boxing Writing.

   Winners of the Barneys awards for boxing journalism and pohotography, also went to many deservibg recipients. A complete list of Barmeys winners can be found here.