Over the past three years, 12th & Park product Ty Chatman’s name has appeared numerous times in this column as he’s built an impressive amateur resume, composing a hit parade of wins in local and national tournaments.
With numerous championship titles at the Diamond, Silver and Golden Gloves, as well as the Missouri Black Expo and Ringside events, Chatman was the subject of one of my earliest stories.
It was a glowing piece that prompted his long-time trainer Kenny Loehr to joke, “When Ty saw his picture in the paper, his head blew up so big his headgear wouldn’t fit.”
The legendary coach and his 19-year-old charge have been a team since Chatman first walked into Loehr’s gym at age five, and the bond that has seen them through more than two hundred amateur bouts will continue on January 11, when Chatman makes his pro debut at the Viking Hotel.
My first attempt last week at tracking the hot prospect down was unsuccessful, even with the help of one of his crew leading me on foot from the gym through a neighborhood nearby towards a townhouse where Chatman was hanging.
Over the distance of several blocks, we dodged traffic and the icy crossfire of a snowball fight as a group of stragglers filed out of the Peabody Elementary School.
I would eventually find my target back in his familiar element of the rec center boxing room, smack in the middle of a line-up of new arrivals skipping rope and gritting their teeth as they crunched through extended sets of leg lifts.
Clad in a Vashon basketball t-shirt and black shorts with long john’s underneath, Chatman would move from a heavy bag to take vicious cuts at an uppercut bag suspended directly across from the boarded up windows along the far wall.
I asked him about the timing of his decision to begin his professional campaign. He said, “There’s nothing left for me to accomplish in the amateurs. I’ve got to start making money to support my family and this is what I do.”
I also encouraged him to describe his style to the fans that will be in attendance on opening night. “Most people say I’ve got a pro style,” he said, adding, “I’m a boxer-puncher and I take my time picking my shots.”
And as one of his frequent sparring partners, the accomplished featherweight Leon Bobo once told me, “Ty isn’t afraid of anyone.”
With the year drawing to a close, I wanted to know what the slick southpaw sees on the horizon in 2008. He replied, “I want to be at least 9-0 and building towards getting in line for a big fight.”
The ring experience gained over the years of countless rounds battling the best boxers in his division has produced a smooth style that features an airtight defense and sharp, economical combinations.
As Ty Chatman prepares to pen a new chapter in his career, there’s no doubt that fresh fans are about to be introduced to an elite boxer who is truly home grown.
The main event at the “Mobil on the Run Fight Night” at the Viking Hotel on January 11 will be a ten round title match between flyweight world champion Hollie “Hot Stuff” Dunaway and Las Vegas’ Sharon Gaines. The dynamic welterweight duo of Chris Tyler and Chris Sharp will also showcase their skills. Tickets and sponsorship information are available at www.rumbletimepromotions.com or by contacting Steve Smith at (314) 757-6451.