Having attended numerous boxing bouts over the last decade, I reminisce on what made Andrzej Fonfara vs. Nathan Cleverly a special event.
Once upon a time long ago throughout the early to mid 20th century, Chicago was a great boxing town. Unfortunately, the sport’s momentum has significantly waned in the windy city ever since. Chicago’s fight scene has dwindled considerably, but on Oct. 16, 2015, light heavyweights Andrzej Fonfara and Nathan Cleverly engaged in a throwback performance that would have made their predecessors proud.
Ask any big-name pundit about Chicago’s value as a boxing city, and they will call it minor league, but its pugilistic past, at least during the height of the sport, saw tremendous moments that are forever etched in history.
On average, there’s about one yearly major boxing promotion that takes place in Chicago. The second city has all the features you could want in a big fight town. However, its citizens have forgotten the majesty present within a great boxing contest.
In the 1920s, Chicago hosted the rematch between heavyweight champion Gene Tunney and Jack Dempsey in what produced arguably the most controversial event in boxing known as “the long count.” It also proved to be Dempsey’s last time in the ring.
The legendary Sugar Ray Robinson graced the ring 13 times in the city split between appearances at the Chicago Stadium and Comiskey Park against the likes of fellow legends Gene Fullmer, Bobo Olson, Carmen Basilio, Rocky Graziano, and twice against Jake LaMotta. The most notable of his fights with the latter was the 1951 “St. Valentine’s Day Massacre,” where the Raging Bull was horrifically battered for 13 rounds but never hit the canvas.
At the end of the fight, LaMotta looked through two severely swollen and blood-soaked eyes and famously muttered to Robinson, “You never got me down, Ray.”
Flashforward more than 50 years and boxing is an afterthought in Chicago. Still, on that October day in 2015, Fonfara and Cleverly treated approximately 3,000 fans, according to BoxingWales.com, at the UIC Pavillion to the kind of war that would have made past boxing heroes nod in approval.
Cleverly was a two-time light heavyweight titlist who had a nice championship run between 2010 and 2013, but his best years were behind him when he met the hometown favorite Fonfara.
Fonfara was a talented title challenger but never won a major championship. Still, the Polish-born power-punching Fonfara was loved by the city of Chicago. It was a beautiful fall day with the sun shining, leading up to their matchup. By the time the main event was set to go off, it was surprising to see that the venue was less than half full.
Despite the undersold crowd, Fonfara’s Polish fans cheered loud enough to create the illusion that he had a voluminous legion supporting him. They became especially loud during his ring entrance when they saw him dressed as a 16th-century winged hussar warrior.
While interviewing Fonfara weeks before the fight, his demeanor was calm and level, but on this night, his face was as intense and his entrance ornate. He lived up to his nickname of “The Polish Prince.” The crowd honored him like royalty.
Both men were desperate for a win. Fonfara nearly dethroned longtime WBC champion, Adonis Stevenson, one year prior and needed a win to near a title shot. The same was true for Cleverly.
Cleverly reigned as the WBO champion for three years, but lost twice in two different divisions and was trying to prove to fans and himself that he still could regain what he once possessed.
The desire for victory was present in both men’s eyes as they intensely stared each other down before the opening bell. The start of round 1 established a blistering marathoner’s pace that was omnipresent from start to finish.
Cleverly flashed his championship pedigree throughout the first four rounds. He pushed the stronger Fonfara around the ring and closed the distance. He made Fonfara fight his fight at close quarters and used his greater hand speed to his advantage.
Neither man displayed much defense or head movement. They were both confident that they could dispatch the other with the power residing in their fists. On the rare occasion that Fonfara could find some space, he was able to unleash his straight right hand to Cleverly’s face, but the Welshman closed quickly and always returned with a barrage of punches.
Fonfara found himself in a precarious position in round 3. Cleverly slipped in a left hook that made Fonfara march backward into the ropes while wearing a smile on his face that almost screamed, “you’ve got me hurt.”
Round 4 didn’t go much better for the hometown fighter, and the crowd emanated worrisome nervous energy. They were quickly losing confidence that Fonfara owned the ability to conquer the former champion, and they wore their fears on their faces.
Between rounds, Fonfara’s trainer Sam Colonna frantically massaged his fighter’s neck and face. He pleaded with Fonfara to create distance and let his hands go. Colonna shared the audience’s apprehension. World-class boxers are a rarity, and Colonna sensed that his was losing the fight.
When it looked like Fonfara didn’t belong in the same league with Cleverly, he suddenly found a way to change the tempo of the fight. He wielded a crushing left hook that made Cleverly’s output immediately dissipate.
Boxers are taught to mask their distress. If an opponent sees blood in the water, their confidence grows, and an onslaught ensues. Cleverly tried to hide his pain, but Fonfara sensed it and came on with a fury.
He found continued success in round 6, but in round 7, Fonfara appeared to crack Cleverly physically and mentally. Fonfara poured out power punches and connected with a right uppercut that flattened Cleverly’s nose breaking it instantly.
As blood leaked out of Cleverly’s nose, he doubled up in pain, and Fonfara mixed in punches to the body and head. Watching from the floor of the UIC Pavillion, it looked like Cleverly’s night was over. The crowd, which was worried earlier, now roared sensing that Fonfara might stop the former champion. We all underestimated the size of the heart beating in Cleverly’s chest.
Most men would have quit on their stools between rounds, but Cleverly fought on showing the determination, which made him a world champion in the years prior. He no longer had the belt, but he still had the spirit that came from achieving that which most dream of.
The rest of the bout was fought at a frenetic back and forth pace, but Fonfara continuously got the better of Cleverly. At the end of round 8, Cleverly attempted to showboat sticking out his tongue from a face that was caked in blood. Even though he was losing, Cleverly was defiant and still believed that he could find a way to pull out a victory. He ignored the fact that he was too damaged to change his fate.
Although Cleverly’s face was falling apart, his determination and resolve never waivered. Fonfara was gassed in round 11, and Cleverly found a second wind and outworked Fonfara, but there was nothing left on his punches. They scored but did no damage.
In round 12, Cleverly’s face was a bloody, lumpy mess. His left ear was severely swollen and lacerated, but he fought on hoping he could deflate Fonfara’s vitality. Fonfara was exhausted and couldn’t hold up his hands towards the end of the round, but he knew that he fought the best fight of his life.
When it was all over, Fonfara won by unanimous decision, but both men put on the performance of a lifetime. According to the CompuBox numbers (via Bleacher Report), Fonfara vs. Cleverly set the light heavyweight records for combined punches thrown (2,524) and connected (936). Five years later no light heavyweight contest has come close to those numbers.
Fonfara and Cleverly won’t be remembered the same way as Dempsey or Robinson, but for one night, they fought like them and gave Chicagoans another piece of boxing history. It was a great night for both men, but it also proved to be a pyrrhic victory.
The punishment and abuse that Fonfara and Cleverly dispensed undoubtedly cut their careers short. They took something out of each other that can’t be replaced or fixed. They gave this one fight their all and had little left after.
Cleverly did win a world title a year after his loss to Fonfara, but couldn’t defend it against Badou Jack and retired after losing it at the age of 30. The impact of their bout was even worse for Fonfara.
Fonfara was knocked out in the first round against Joe Smith Jr. in his next fight and later stopped in round 2 of his rematch with Stevenson. He announced his retirement in 2019 at the age of 31.
Joyce Carol Oates dubbed boxing as “the cruelest sport.” Having witnessed Fonfara vs. Cleverly live in 2015, I know what she means. Many adjectives can be used to describe their bout but “beautiful” and “torturous” simplify the dichotomy of emotions that sum up that fight.
The 3,000 fans that showed up for Fonfara vs. Cleverly were treated to two men who sacrificed completely in the ring for a shot at their dreams. That’s a rarity in sport, but when it happens, it creates a memory that can never be forgotten.