By Daniel Cann: To many fight fans the Welsh boxer Howard Winstone holds a special place in the pantheon of great boxers past. To put his place in sporting history into context, if the 1970s were regarded as ‘the Golden age’ for Welsh rugby, then the 1960s belonged to Winstone.
Born in 1939 in Merthyr Tydfil Winstone was a fine amateur boxer winning a gold medal at the British Empire games in Cardiff in 1958. That same year he also became the ABA and Welsh Bantamweight champion. Clearly he was destined for greater things as his outstanding (83 wins from 86 contests) amateur record shows.
Winstone’s trainer in the professional ranks was the widely respected Eddie Thomas who once famously remarked that children born in the tough valleys town of Merthyr Tydfil were so angry that they came out with their fists clenched! The boxer and trainer would become a formidable team as together they scaled the heights of professional boxing.
Some may be surprised that the master boxer was in fact something of a brawler in his earlier days. It was as a result of an accident whilst working in a toy factory that the teenage Winstone lost the tips of three fingers of his right hand that forced him to reassess and change his style from brawler to boxer. Although a terrible and traumatic thing to happen, in typical Winstone fashion he turned something negative to his advantage, he made adjustments and became quite simply one of the most complete boxers Wales or Europe for that matter has ever produced.
It was at the Penydarren gym where he developed his trademark piston-like fast left jab. This was a formidable weapon that would enable the smart boxer to control and dominate most of his fights. Not only did he have natural toughness he also possessed exceptional hand speed and excellent footwork. He built up his tremendous reserves of stamina that took him to victory with punishing and gruelling runs up the Brecon Beacons.
He was the consummate professional, always prepared to learn and do things differently. He in fact sparred with boxers of all weight classes, something that many modern trainers would probably baulk at today. Winstone used the lighter boxers to assist with his speed and the heavier ones for power. Unconventional yes, but he made it all work for him.
After turning professional in 1959 it was not long before this exceptional talent was challenging the popular Terry Spinks (no slouch himself in the amateur and professional ranks) for the British Featherweight title. Winstone emerged victorious with an impressive stoppage in the tenth round. He had been a pro for just over two years.
There was an early set back against the American boxer, Leroy Jones, but once again in true Winstone fashion he used this as a learning experience and later claimed this bout helped him to gain focus. It certainly did as the next few years saw Winstone’s star rise.
In 1963 he took the European Featherweight title from Italy’s Alberto Serti with an impressive fourteenth round stoppage in front of his adoring fans in Cardiff. More wonderful evenings for Welsh fight fans were to come.
A boxer’s greatness can often be defined by a particular rivalry, for instance: Joe Louis versus Max Schmeling, Tony Zale versus Rocky Graziano and Muhammad Ali versus Joe Frazier. For Howard Winstone he will always be remembered for his three epic encounters with the Mexican great, the formidable Southpaw: Vicente Saldivar.
At the time of their first encounter at Earls Court in London, Saldivar had just won the Undisputed World Featherweight title from another great in Sugar Ramos, defending it successfully once against Raul Rojas. Saldivar’s record then was 28 fights with just one defeat, 21 of his wins coming inside the distance. It was a classic slugger versus boxer confrontation and began a series that has long stayed in the collective memories of fight fans and sports pundits.
In front of 12,000 fans Winstone put up the fight of his life in losing a razor thin decision. It gained the Welshman more adoration and more importantly respect from those in the know in the boxing world. He had arrived as a major player on the World scene. It took just under two years for the natural rematch to happen. During that time he continued to win impressively including a win over highly rated World contender Don Johnson of the USA.
The second fight with Saldivar was in June of 1967 at Cardiff. It was another case of two styles blending perfectly to produce a fantastic battle with plenty of drama. Many at ringside felt that on this occasion the Welshman had taken most of the rounds on points with his superior boxing, despite suffering a late knockdown in the fourteenth round against his Mexican opponent. Most in attendance were shocked when he was again adjudged a point’s loser.
Undeterred a third contest was arranged and four months later they faced off again for the World title in Saldivar’s back yard of Mexico City. In this cauldron-like atmosphere and in front of an initially hostile crowd, Winstone fought his heart out, winning most of the early rounds with his controlled smooth boxing. As the contest went on he began to fade and by the twelfth round Eddie Thomas was forced to throw in the towel to rescue his man. Because of his effort and bravery he won over the hearts of the Mexican fans and became firm friends with Saldivar who announced his retirement from the ring shortly after the contest.
It was still not over for the man from Merthyr. In January of 1968 he fought the experienced Japanese fighter Mitsuori Seki at the Royal Albert Hall. It was to be another masterful performance of boxing as he controlled the action and wore down his opponent who had to be pulled out with a bad cut in the ninth round with Winstone well on top.
He had achieved his dream by reaching the top and finally winning a World title. Fully deserving of this achievement he almost brought Merthyr Tydfil to a standstill by the homecoming celebrations that ensued. An exceptional talent had been rewarded after years of dedication and hard graft.
Sadly it was not to last. Winstone had many private problems behind the scenes and it was no secret that he had struggled to make the featherweight limit in recent years. Six months after winning his beloved title he lost it to former opponent, the young Cuban, Jose Legra by a stoppage in the fifth round in front of his fans at Porthcawl. It was the end of an exemplary career. He retired with a record of 61 wins and only 6 defeats in 67 contests competing at the very highest level.
Winstone was awarded the MBE in 1968 and continued to be a respected and well-loved member of his local community as well as the boxing world at large. He passed away in 2000 at the age of 61.
Former British, Commonwealth and European Welterweight Champion Colin Jones said of him: ‘I think he was the last of the elite Welsh Champions…he was the last of the greats.’ He went on further to say ‘When Howard held the British, European and World titles they really meant something.’ From one professional to another that is heady praise indeed.
Esteemed writers such as former editor of Boxing News Harry Mullan and Hugh McIlvaney the award winning sports writer both sang Winstone’s praises. He is rightly remembered as an all time great and it was wonderful to see that he has recently been inducted into the WBC’s Hall of Fame (only the second British boxer after former Welterweight Champion John H Stracey achieved the accolade).
A fighter and figure like Howard Winstone deserves to stay in the public’s consciousness for his achievements as well as what he stood for. That he achieved so much out of adversity is a tribute and testament to his greatness. There have been many great Welsh boxers: Jim Driscoll, Freddie Welsh, Jimmy Wilde, Frank Moody, Tommy Farr, Johnny Owen, Colin Jones, Joe Calzaghe and countless others. But Howard Winstone’s story is a poignant and heroic one, an old theme of overcoming adversity and never giving up.
His life and career is the subject of a forthcoming biopic from Burn Hand Film Productions: ‘Risen.’ It stars Stuart Brennan (as Winstone), John Noble, Brian Blessed, Helen Griffin and with a plethora of cameos from famous boxers past and present. I cannot think of a boxer more deserving of a biopic and this one looks to be worthy of its subject. It is due for a spring 2010 release. A new generation of sport fans and cinema goers will learn about the ‘Welsh Wizard’ who enthralled everyone so much all those years ago.
www.danielcann.com
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