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We know we’ve been slacking on Friday Night Fights as of late. We’re done slacking. We want to get you set up for the weekend in style so between Friday Night Fights and First Cut Fridays we should be able to do that. Let’s get to it. Livingstone Bramble was a, shall we say, interesting character. Boxing’s full of ‘em but Bramble might take the cake. Hailing from Saint Croix but born in Saint Kitts and Nevis, Bramble was hounded by accusations of practicing witchcraft throughout his career. Accusations he never denied. Various rumors circulated, as they do, about cutting off the ears of dogs and rabbits for good luck or decapitating birds to offer their blood to prevent himself from shedding blood in the ring. He also had a fascination with snakes and pitbulls, often entering the ring with a snake draped across his shoulders. Ray Mancini was just about as opposite as you can get. The son of a World War II veteran, Ray’s story was an easy one for the public to get behind. His father Lenny Mancini had been a promising prospect in the Lightweight division prior to the outbreak of WWII. Injured in action he was never able to return to his pre-war heights. Ray fought for him, in the very same weight class, and took on his nickname: Boom Boom. Mancini’s style also endeared him to fans. Those type of cats who never take a step back and throw punches in bunches are always easy to like. So when Bramble and Mancini met for the second time some bad blood had brewed between the two camps. The fighters trainers, Lou Duva and Murphy Griffith respectively, nearly went at it at the press conference. The first fight had been a war and many expected the same for the second. It lived up to the expectations.
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