As of late I have had the absolute joy to interview a variety of interesting and classy fighters. Well, Dennis Allen is now added to the list. Dennis has been around the sport of boxing for the last eight years and has great insight which he was more than willing to discuss during our interview which found Dennis in Big Bear Mountain located in California. Dennis is currently a sparring partner for Oscar Delahoya and holding his own with the great champion.
Interview by: Brad Berkwitt
Bio on Dennis Allen: Dennis is born and raised in Minot, North Dakota. He
will tell you just how proud he is to be from there as well. His amateur
record was quite impressive at, 150 fights and winning an outstanding 122
bouts with several amateur titles. He currently has a professional record of
20-3 (9 KO's). Dennis is trained by Thell Torrence and managed by Jon Heggre.
Dennis Allen's top ten welterweights
1. Oscar Delahoya: Oscar is an excellent boxer with great speed and power.
2. Felix Trinidad: Felix has tremendous punching power.
3. Vernon Forrest: Vernon is big for a welterweight. He has a combination
of both speed and power.
4. James Page: James has a big left hook and a bigger heart.
5. Shane Mosley: Shane has tremendous speed. I would rank him higher but he
has not done that much yet as a welterweight.
6. Ike Quartey: Ike has a sledgehammer jab that can bust you up.
7. Shannon Taylor: I don't really know that much about him but hear great
things about his skills.
8. Oba Carr: Oba is a very good technical boxer and can beat most of the
guys in this weight class. He just can't beat the top ones.
9. Sam Garr: Sam fought James Page and gave him a great fight.
10. Kofi Janutah: I really know nothing about him but he is ranked very high
in all the sanctioning bodies.
The following is our interview:
Brad: What inspired you to get into boxing?
Dennis: Actually watching Sugar Ray Leonard on TV got me interested in it.
Than come to find out, I had a cousin that was fighting at a local club
and he brought me down there to see what it was like. I have been
fighting ever since.
Brad: What are your words of wisdom to the young fighter that is just lacing
up the gloves?
Dennis: You really have to take boxing very seriously. In fact, people call
it a game but to me, it's not really a game. You must work hard at it
and I pride myself on always going into a fight in shape.
Brad: If you could emulate any fighter who would it be and why?
Dennis: That's a good one. Sugar Ray Leonard who was my idol with the stuff
he did in the ring and his personality. He crossed over from boxing
and was able to make money in different areas. Oscar is another one
like Ray who crossed over. I would like to emulate either one of them
and have the same success.
Brad: How long have you followed boxing?
Dennis: Since the age of eight years old. So that would be 1980.
Brad: Who are you top three favorite fighters of all-time and why?
Dennis: Sugar Ray Leonard. For all the reasons I said earlier. Sugar Ray
Robinson. All around he was the greatest and had unbelievable skills.
I am going to throw you a curb ball on this one Brad, Virgil Hill.
Virgil is like my big brother. He is a great guy and to do what he did
over that long career was very special. He stayed in the light
heavyweight division for all those years and people always said he had
one hand. Well, he beat everybody up with that one hand. I owe him a
lot because he provided me lot of opportunities in boxing and I truly
thank you Virgil.
Brad: Do you favor a mandatory retirement fund for boxers?
Dennis: We need something Brad. To go along with the retirement fund we
need medical insurance. Fighters starting out can't afford the costs
of an emergency room visit. Then what happens their bills mount and
than when their fighting days are over, they are flat broke. I agree
with Bernard Hopkins about there are no promoters walking around broke
but lots of fighters. I think there should be a retirement fund just
like a 401K or social security where you pay in and get a benefit in
the end. I also agree with you that it should be from day one. (Read
this answer carefully because it's a highly intelligent and one that I
totally agree with.)
Brad: Even though you have not had the opportunity to fight in 15 round
fights, would you like to seem them reinstated?
Dennis: It's hard to say but I do think it would be good because those were
the championship rounds 13-15 and today, 11th and 12th are not
championship rounds. Bottom line: I would like to see them reinstated.
Brad: What do you think of females in boxing?
Dennis: If they can fight that's fine but fighters like Mia St. John who
can't fight is making more money than I probably ever will. That burns
me because I have been busting my butt in this sport since the day I
got into it.
Brad: Do you have a particular location that you would really want to fight
at and why?
Dennis: I would love to be a world champion and defend my title in my
hometown of Minot, North Dakota. They have followed me since my first
amateur fight and they are very special to me.
Brad: How many fights do you feel a fighter should have before he challenges
for a world title?
Dennis: I feel they should have 20 fights and depend on the level of
opposition.
Brad: How would you feel about boxing going back to the old days when there
was only one belt and one real world champion?
Dennis: It's ridiculous all these belts out there now. I could make a belt
and have it tomorrow. The three major bodies were OK for a while now
there is too many. I can deal with the three and don't really think it
will go back to the old days with one but if it did, I would like
that. It would be great for boxing and the fans because it would show
who was the best out there.
Brad: Do you feel that the ranking systems need to be revised and if so,
what changes would you personally like to see?
Dennis: I would like to see it go on abilities. Not who you know or who has
been paid to get you ranked. (I totally agree with this answer.)
Brad: In all your years of following boxing, what is the most brutal
knockout you have ever seen?
Dennis: That's a tough one. I would say when Thomas Hearns knocked out the
Hands of Stone and Chin of Stone, Roberto Duran. He laid Roberto out
flat.
Brad: After you achieved or attempted to achieve all your goals in boxing.
How do want your fans that followed you from day one to remember you?
Dennis: Well, my fans from the start are the ones in Minot, North Dakota and
I just want them to know, I am the same guy they knew when he was a
young kid. In addition, I want to be involved in my community when I
retire.
Brad: Finally, what is a saying that you try to live by?
Dennis: I really don't follow a saying in life. I am really happy with my
wife and the life we have. I really don't get into philosophy and live
life as it goes.
Dennis wants the boxing world to know that he is looking for fights and has a
goal to get a title shot in the next two years by the age of thirty. If it
doesn't come than he will retire and live out his life a happy man.
Final notes: Remember Dennis Allen because if, and when, he does get that big
fight, I feel with his attitude he would make a hell of champion
adding that special quality a champion should have.
I would like to take this opportunity to tell all my readers about a neat
boxing address book. It is helpful to writers who are trying to obtain
addresses for interviews and boxing fans that collect autographs from
fighters which I know so many of you out there do. The book is called The
Ultimate Boxing Address List. At only $15.00 for the directory or $25.00 for
an annual subscription with quarterly updates, you can't lose. For further
information on the directory you can check out their website at
http://www.BoxingHelp.com or contact them by email at info@BoxingHelp.com .
Tell them Brad sent you.
- 1992 - Nov-21-1992 KO 1 over Ray Menefee - 1993 - Jan-23-1993 KO 1 over Aaron Shockley Feb-20-1993 W 4 over Damion Sutton May-8-1993 W 6 over Pat La Crosse Aug-28-1993 KO 1 over Tony Ault Nov-9-1993 W 4 over Blaine Biers Nov-18-1993 W 6 over Walter Cowans Dec-17-1993 TKO 1 over Ryu Rodgers - 1994 - Jan-29-1994 KO 2 over Israel Muhammad Mar-6-1994 W 6 over Larry Sutton Jul-23-1994 W 4 over Tyrone Mack Sep-24-1994 TKO 1 over Ken Baldwin Oct-28-1994 W 8 over Reggie Strickland - 1995 - Apr-8-1995 W 10 over Bernard Matthews Jun-17-1995 L 8 to Carlos Miranda Nov-1-1995 L 8 to Vincent Thompson - 1996 - Feb-18-1996 TKO 1 over Jeff Mc Whorter Apr-20-1996 KO 1 over Anthony Walker Jun-22-1996 W 8 over Damone Wright Aug-24-1996 TKO 1 over Mark French - 1997 - Feb-13-1997 L 10 to Lonnie Smith - 1999 - May-9-1999 W 6 over Leroy Owens - 2000 - Feb-5-2000 W 8 over Anthony Ivory
Brad Berkwitt