The Nevada Boxing Hall of Fame on Tuesday unveiled the 2020 induction class — the Las Vegas shrine’s eighth — and it includes 10 fighters and four non-boxers, all of whom had fights in Nevada or were connected to the sport in the state during their careers.
Among the fighters to be elected are four men already enshrined in the International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota, New York: Mark “Too Sharp” Johnson, the first African-American flyweight world champion; former featherweight and junior lightweight world champion Azumah Nelson, the Ghana native considered by many to be the greatest fighter ever from Africa; former junior middleweight and middleweight world titleholder Julian Jackson, among the greatest pure punchers in boxing history; and former featherweight world champion Danny “Little Red” Lopez, the Southern California legend known for his all-action fights.
Also elected in the fighter category were Miguel Cotto, Puerto Rico’s only four-division world champion; former light heavyweight and super middleweight champion Andre Ward; former three-division champion James Toney; former two-time junior middleweight titleholder Fernando Vargas; former junior featherweight titlist and Las Vegas resident Clarence “Bones” Adams; and former two-time lightweight champion Jose Luis Castillo, whose 10th-round knockout of Diego “Chico” Corrales in their 2005 title unification fight at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas is regarded by many as the greatest action fight in boxing history.
The non-boxer category includes the late Jose Sulaiman, who was president of the WBC for more than 40 years and established the Jose Sulaiman Boxer Fund that is administered by a Nevada Community Trust that has helped hundreds of fighters financially on an annual basis; Las Vegas resident and famed referee Carlos Padilla, who was the third man in the ring for the legendary “Thrilla in Manila” — the third fight between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier — as well as fights involving Sugar Ray Leonard, Marvin Hagler, Roberto Duran, Alexis Arguello, Mike Tyson, George Foreman and Evander Holyfield, among others; Las Vegas resident Lorenzo Fertitta, who served on the Nevada State Athletic Commission from 1996 to 2000; and Sammy Macias, the former chairman of the Nevada State Athletic Commission and former president of the North American Boxing Federation.
The annual induction weekend will take place Aug. 7 and 8 at the Red Rock Casino Resort and Spa in Las Vegas.