Carl Daniels
Built St. Louis Tough!
Photos by Ray Bailey
(908) 753-9534
 Carl Daniels grew up on the tough streets of
East St. Louis with the dream of someday
becoming a world champion. He achieved that
dream at the age of 25 when he captured the
World Boxing Association Junior Middleweight
title.
Daniels spent most of his childhood days
hanging out in the neighborhood with his
friends, fantasizing about one day becoming
a successful professional athlete. One
activity that he enjoyed was basketball,
choosing to play in pick-up games at a local
gym not far from his house. After playing
hoops with his friends, Daniels went over to
the other side of the gym to watch some
fighters train. He became captivated with
the sport and decided that boxing would be
his future career.
“We used to play these pick-up basketball
games at a neighborhood gym where some local
fighters also trained,” Daniels recalled.
“After a game one day, we went over and
started to mess around with the boxing
equipment, and the gym owner came over to us
and said, ‘This isn't a play gym. If you
guys want to be serious, come back tomorrow,
and I'll show you how this stuff is used.’
That's how I got my start in boxing.”
Daniels emerged as a top-notch amateur
fighter, considered to be one of the
country's best young prospects. In 1984, at
the age of 14, Daniels earned gold medal
honors at the Junior Olympics in the
90-pound weight division and became the
Junior Olympic champion in the 100-pound
weight class the following year.
In 1987, he won the National Golden Gloves.
He then set his sights on the 1988 United
States Olympic Team. He won the silver
medal at the U.S. Olympic Trials as a
featherweight, and it looked like Daniels
would be heading to Seoul, Korea. The
25-year-old boxer traveled to the Olympic
training camp in Phoenix where he moved up
to junior lightweight only to lose a
split-decision, which relegated him to an
alternate position.
Daniels decided to turn pro after compiling
a sparkling amateur record of 170 wins
against just 8 losses.
He made his professional debut on Nov. 1,
1988, scoring a four-round decision over
Terry Parham in Chicago. Daniels then won
four straight decisions. Daniels was bent
on scoring a knockout to prove he could
punch as well as box. The St. Louis native
went into the ring against Tim Peyton on
June 5, 1989. Daniels crushed Peyton with a
first-round technical knockout that was the
first in what was to become a 13-fight
knockout streak-eight of which came inside
the first four rounds.
After running his record to 26-0, Daniels
got the first world title shot of his career
when he faced World Boxing Council
middleweight champion “Terrible” Terry
Norris in Norris's hometown of San Diego,
Calif., on Feb. 22, 1992. Daniels battled
Norris fiercely for eight grueling rounds,
but the champion eventually stopped Daniels
in the ninth, giving him his first
professional loss.
“The fight with Norris taught me a lot of
about boxing and about myself,” Daniels
said. “I took that fight way too early in my
career. The heart was there but the
experience wasn't. “
Daniels got his second world championship
opportunity when he squared off against
Julio Cesar Green for the vacant WBA junior
middleweight title on June 16, 1995, in
Lyon, France. Daniels and Green came out
banging for the first three rounds, but, in
the fourth, Daniels established his jab and
Green’s face began to swell. Daniels
knocked Green down in the 10th round,
cruising to a landslide unanimous decision,
leaving no doubt as to who was the new
champion of the world.
“It was a great showdown between the two
top-ranked fighters in the division-I was
No. 1, he was No. 2,” Daniels said about his
brawl with Green. “It was a very difficult
fight, but I went in there with the game
plan that I would do what I do best: use
the jab effectively, continue to move, and
stick him with some shots when he was open.
By following the plan and exploiting his
weaknesses, I was able to knock him to the
canvas in the 10th to get the decision and
the title.”
In his first defense, Daniels faced Julio
Cesar Vasquez in Philadelphia on Dec. 16,
1995, on the undercard of Tyson-Mathis.
Daniels was in control throughout, using his
jab to confuse and dominate the challenger.
In the 11th round, clearly behind on points,
Vasquez landed a left hand that sent Daniels
to the canvas. He beat the 10-count but was
noticeably dazed and unable to defend
himself against Vasquez’s attack. The
referee stopped the contest.
Daniels rebounded by recording three
straight knockouts that set him up for
another shot at the WBA junior middleweight
title against Laurent Boudouani, from
Sallanchez, France. The two met in Las
Vegas on March 29, 1997. Boudouani scored
an eighth-round flash knockdown and
benefited when Daniels was docked a point
for losing his mouthpiece in the final
round; eventually winning by decision.
Daniels moved up to 160 pounds in 1998 and
hadn’t lost a fight in 10 matches (making
him the International Boxing Federation
160-pound No. 1 contender), until he was
stopped in the tenth round during a brave
challenge for Bernard “The Executioner”
Hopkins middleweight championship.
Daniels continues to reside in St. Louis and
is managed by Nick Garone. When not in the
ring, he enjoys shooting pool, playing
dominos, and hanging out with his friends.
“It's really important for me, when I'm not
focusing on boxing, to step away for a while
and just relax. It helps me maintain the
intensity and desire that a lot of fighters
tend to lose in their careers. Most of the
time, I will go out with my friends, or just
spend time with my girlfriend. It really
doesn't matter what I do. Just being away
from the sport for a brief time relaxes me
and keeps me fresh for my next bout.”
Daniels also enjoys going to the movies and
watching sports on television, especially
tennis. “You'd be surprised of the
similarities between boxing and tennis,”
Daniels explained. “Like boxing, tennis is
an individual sport, but yet, you're going
head-to-head with an opponent. You also need
extreme conditioning, quick movement, and
good footwork, just like in boxing. That's
why I really enjoy watching Andre Agassi and
Pete Sampras because of their mastery of the
game.”
Daniels has been inspired by “Sugar” Ray
Leonard and feels that his focus on boxing
has helped him avoid the trouble that so
many of his friends in St. Louis have become
involved in. A crusader for children to get
involved in sports and get off the streets,
Daniels has also been influenced in his
boxing career by Roberto “Manos de Piedra”
Duran and Pernell “Sweet Pea” Whitaker,
whose style and ability he greatly admires. |
