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 Closet Classic: Bobby Czyz vs. Tim Broady
By Lee Groves (May 2, 2006)
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When Bobby Czyz turned pro in 1980 at age 18, he seemed to have it all. He was part of NBC’s "Tomorrow’s Champions" along with Tony Ayala Jr., Johnny Bumphus and Alex Ramos. His telegenic visage and well-spoken intelligence inspired others to describe him as "The Matinee Idol" and "white, bright and polite." But most importantly Czyz backed up the hype by winning his first 20 fights while scoring 15 knockouts. The quality of opposition was pretty good as his victims included former champions (Elisha Obed and Oscar Albarado) as well as solid pros and fellow prospects (Teddy Mann, Robbie Sims, Bobby Coolidge and Bruce "The Mouse" Strauss).
But by age 20, the troubles began for Czyz. On November 20, 1982 before a prime-time NBC audience, a weight-drained Czyz lost a lopsided decision to perennial contender Mustafa Hamsho and suffered greatly for it. He fought listlessly throughout the bout, and a broken right hand just added to his woes. Losing the perfect record in that fashion also inflicted great harm to his marketability.
But the problems were only starting.
The injury kept Czyz on the shelf for 10 months, and shortly after the Hamsho loss he was dealt a crushing blow: His father committed suicide. But Czyz had to fight on to support his family and he was successful, beating Bert Lee (KO 3) and Bill Medei (KO 4) in 1983 and Jimmy Baker (KO 1), Mark Frazie (W 10) and Marvin Mack (W 10) in 1984. But the agony continued as Czyz contracted mononucleosis when he was scheduled to fight for a title. Czyz and Main Events parted ways and NBC no longer wanted to showcase him, so his post-Hamsho fights were shown on small cable TV outlets. If that wasn’t enough, Czyz also had several legal issues to address in his personal life that were eventually resolved in the courts.
It was a lot for a 23-year-old to take, but as Czyz entered 1985 he was ready to make another run at the top, this time as a light heavyweight. The victories over Frazie and Mack helped Czyz (25-1, 18 KOs) vault to the number two slot in the IBF and he looked to solidify his championship credentials by taking on the sixth-ranked Tim "TNT" Broady, whose 17 wins in 19 fights were all by knockout. The fight took place January 18, 1985 at The Summit in Houston, and the winner was scheduled to fight Willie "Sandman" Edwards for the NABF title. But the real prize for Czyz and Broady (who turned 26 eight days earlier) was a potential world title shot against the dominant Michael Spinks, who was scheduled to defend against David Sears the following month.
Broady’s most significant win to date took place June 27, 1984 when he scored a ninth round TKO over Charles Singleton, who was ranked third in the world at the time, and the Tacoma, Wash., native was known for his powerful left hook. However, Broady’s last fight was a 10-round draw to Tyrone Booze just seven weeks before. Also, Broady was a notoriously slow starter while Czyz had no problems unleashing his blows early and often. Against Hamsho, Czyz showed a great chin but his ability to absorb an above-average 175-pounder’s punch was still unknown. The styles suggested an action-packed fight, and no one would be disappointed.
Czyz came out jabbing at the opening bell while a wide-eyed Broady swayed his upper body quickly from side to side in search of openings. Czyz’s jabs were sharp, accurate and diversified as he occasionally doubled it up. Broady landed his own jab and missed a right to the jaw. Czyz countered a Broady right with a one-two to the jaw that backed the Washingtonian to the ropes and a hair-trigger right landed well following a Broady jab.
The fight’s pattern was established quickly: Czyz was clearly in counterpunching mode as he used his superior hand speed and punching technique to pounce on every opening Broady’s slower, wider blows presented. Broady, for his part, was taking a wait-and-see attitude as he gauged Czyz’s speed and sought to overcome yet another slow start.
With 1:18 remaining in the opening stanza, Czyz bulled Broady to the ropes with his most impressive string of punches yet: A jab, a right to the body, a hook, an overhand right to the head and a digging right to the ribs. Another overhand right caromed off Broady’s head and a left hook-right hand combo tore through his defense. Broady wasn’t hurt by any means, but he was in danger of digging too deep of a hole for himself. Late in the round, "TNT’s" fuse finally sparked as he snapped jabs to Czyz’s face and connected with a right to the body. But Czyz was still winning every mini-battle. Czyz ended a dominant first round by snapping a right-left-right to the body and a hook-left uppercut-right salvo.
Not only was Czyz out-quicking Broady, he was doing so with style. His pedigree shone through as he unleashed precise, calculated combinations in unpredictable patterns. Though Czyz was still in his early 20s, he fought like a seasoned pro whose mind and body was in perfect symmetry. Despite losing the first round badly, Broady didn’t panic because he knew it was just a matter of time before he would get the chance to test Czyz’s chin – and courage.
Broady opened the second round with a crisp jab that brought a nod of acknowledgement from Czyz, but "Chappie" retaliated with two strong jabs that snapped Broady’s head back. Broady cranked up a hook to the ribs and Czyz answered with a strong hook to the jaw. The fight quickly shifted out of feeling-out mode as both men planted their feet and mixed powerful hooks and crosses to the head and body in an early test of strength. The fight resembled a particularly violent form of chess in which they spent the first round moving out their pawns to establish position before introducing the rooks, knights and bishops.
Let the real games begin.
A terrific Czyz right caught Broady coming out and a right-left to the body caused Broady to cover up. Broady connected with a crunching hook to the ribs, but Czyz landed an excellent counter hook to the chin. Two stinging jabs snapped Broady’s head and another double jab caused him to wince. A 45-degree hook rotated Broady’s head violently and Czyz leaped in with both hands blazing, convinced Broady was hurt. Broady convinced Czyz otherwise as a heavy hook and an overhand right drove the former Matinee Idol to the ropes. Off the break, Broady strung together a six-punch flurry that was answered with a swift Czyz combination.
The naturally bigger Broady was losing the fight on points, but he had Czyz exactly where he wanted him – exchanging power shots at close range – and he sought to take advantage by investing his full strength into every blow. Sooner or later, he thought, one of those blows would turn the momentum in his favor.
With 25 seconds to go in the round, Broady was proven right.
A tremendous overhand right-left hook combo caught Czyz flush in the face and his tree-trunk legs went numb as he stumbled toward the neutral corner to buy time. Fueled by a fresh wave of killer instinct, Broady chased after Czyz and unloaded bomb after bomb. Though hurt badly, Czyz demonstrated his resourcefulness as he ducked under most of Broady’s blows and even stunned him with a wide hook to the face. But "TNT" was determined to detonate and as the round ended, he buried Czyz under artillery that was long on power but short on accuracy.
Broady flew out of the corner at the start of round three and blasted Czyz with a left-right to the body and an overhand right to the ear. Broady was single-minded in his pursuit to take Czyz out; his eyes were wide open and his hands were firing like destructive pistons. But Broady still couldn’t line up the equalizer, and Czyz seized on every opening with sharp jabs and body volleys. "Chappie’s" underrated defensive skills saw him through. In one sequence, he deftly avoided a six-punch combo by keeping his hands high and bending slightly at the knees at the appropriate moment. As good as Czyz’s defense was, his offense was even better as he cracked a double jab-right hand combo as well as a rifle shot right that spun Broady’s head. Czyz was recovering nicely from his second-round difficulties due to his devotion to fundamentals. It was beautiful, textbook boxing but the pulsating toe-to-toe action was enough to satisfy any fan’s "sweat" tooth.
But the danger for Czyz had not yet passed as Broady snapped a jab and connected well with an overhand right that twisted Czyz’s neck. Another right-left glanced off Czyz’s head, but Czyz ducked under a winging right and sprang up behind a hook and overhand right before darting away.
Midway through the round, Czyz stunned Broady with a huge right, and as Broady retreated to the ropes, Czyz worked the body with a pair of rights. However, Broady stayed persistent and whaled away when Czyz found himself near the corner pad. Broady exploded a brutal left uppercut-right cross combo off Czyz’s jaw, and Czyz fired back an equally huge hook to the face.
The fight was no longer a showcase for Czyz’s skills against a perfect foil; it turned into what it really was – a crossroads fight between two highly-rated contenders that carried real danger for both men.
Broady slammed a right-left-right to the body and a hook to the jaw drove Czyz to the turnbuckle. An overhand right caused Czyz’s knees to dip toward the floor. With 30 seconds remaining, the boxers were locked in the most extended toe-to-toe exchange of the bout, and it was about to get wilder. After being stunned by Broady’s right, Czyz roared out of the corner and drove Broady back to ring center behind a sizzling right-left-right. An overhand right to the head and a hook to the solar plexus had Broady holding on, but Broady ended a tremendous third round by cranking a hook to the hip, a right to the body and a right hook to the ear.
The Summit crowd was on its feet and roaring with appreciation. The winner might have been scheduled to fight Willie Edwards next, but at this pace there might not have been enough of the winner left for "The Sandman" to fight.
The breathtaking end to the third led to a quieter beginning in the fourth as both men exchanged jabs. As was the case in everything else in this fight, even the jabbing contest was intense as both connected flush. Another constant was Czyz’s decided edges in hand and foot speed, illustrated by a triple jab that knocked Broady a step back. Still, Broady remained devoted to a body attack that created occasional openings for power blows to the head.
Czyz wanted to use this fight to prove he was a serious threat to capture light heavyweight world honors – and he was about to make his case in a most emphatic way.
As Broady set himself to throw his next volley, Czyz dipped slightly to his left and uncorked a short, explosive hook to the jaw that sent Broady crashing to the floor. Broady rolled onto all fours with his right arm bent awkwardly behind him, but as he arose at five he bounced on his toes well enough to allow the fight to continue. Czyz, tasting victory, leaped in with a huge right, a left uppercut to the jaw, a crunching hook and a monstrous right that left Broady’s head and neck draped over the top rope. Czyz landed two more punches to Broady’s unprotected jaw before referee Chris Jordan was able to leap in and stop the carnage.
At the 1:41 mark of round four, Bobby Czyz had taken a huge step toward fulfilling the promise expected of him, and he knew it. After Jordan stopped the fight, Czyz stood over the unconscious Broady and raised his arms in a gesture of primal triumph. After absorbing several frightening shots from Broady – and in his life outside the ring – Czyz was as close to his championship dreams as he had ever been.
"As far as I’m concerned, it’s the best fight I’ve ever had," Czyz said in the August 1985 issue of KO. "I matched Broady punch for punch, strength for strength, and took him right out. It’s the best I’ve ever looked."
But Czyz knew he was in a battle, saying of Broady "I had never been hit that hard before. When he hit me, my left leg was kind of uncontrollable. I still had my mental faculties, I could think, but when your legs aren’t cooperating with your mind, you’ve got problems. So I backed into the ropes because I knew another shot was coming, so the first thing I did was duck. The stuff started coming, I put my hands up, and tried to minimize the amount of space he could hit. I started moving to minimize the ease with which he could hit me. I threw a few punches back, tried to work the ropes the best I could, and eventually got out of trouble. I’ve got great recuperative powers. Then I saw he was missing a lot that round too, except for the last 30 seconds. He didn’t land anything but that one clean shot. You know, I had been training with cruiserweights. I was hit by cruiserweights in the gym, but my body never quite responded like that."
Still, Czyz weathered all the blows and came out on top, and his real-life events, awful as they were, gave him the iron will to do so.
"The Matinee Idol" was ready to become a star.
Epilogue: After Spinks polished off Sears (KO 3) and "Diamond" Jim MacDonald (KO 8), he vacated the world light heavyweight title to pursue a shot against IBF heavyweight champion Larry Holmes, which led to the three major belts being splintered. Slobodan Kacar captured the IBF strap by decisioning Eddie Mustafa Muhammad. Meanwhile, Czyz earned a shot at Kacar by decisioning Mike Fisher and Murray Sutherland over 10 rounds.
Czyz was out of the ring another 14 months before finally fighting Kacar, and on September 6, 1986 "Tomorrow’s Champion" became today’s champion by blitzing the Yugoslavian in five rounds. Czyz defended the title three times against good opposition and looked impressive each time – David Sears (KO 1), Willie Edwards (KO 2) and MacDonald (KO 6). Czyz’s stock was rising, and his next defense against Prince Charles Williams was the main supporting bout of the Thomas Hearns-Juan Roldan pay-per-view telecast. Czyz started well, knocking Williams down multiple times in the early rounds. But Williams rallied strongly behind a seemingly endless stream of uppercuts that raised a massive swelling over Czyz’s eye, a swelling that led to the fight being stopped in the ninth.
For the next two years, Czyz’s career raced wildly between victory and defeat. He lost a majority decision to Dennis Andries but notched solid wins over Leslie Stewart (W 10) and Mike DeVito (KO 7). Then he lost back-to-back title shots to Williams (KO by 10) and Virgil Hill (L 12). Czyz then won three fights against Uriah Grant (W 10), Andrew Maynard (KO 7) and Horacio Brandan (KO 6) to earn an unexpected title shot against WBA cruiserweight champion Robert Daniels. "Chappie" captured his second divisional belt via split decision and defended it twice against Bash Ali (W 12) and Donny Lalonde (W 12).
After winning a 10-rounder over George O’Mara, Czyz shockingly lost to undefeated Nigerian David Izeqwire due to complications from a back injury. He then moved up to heavyweight, where he beat Tim Tomashek (KO 4), Jeff Williams (W 10) and Richard Jackson (KO 6) before losing to Evander Holyfield (KO by 5). On June 12, 1998, the 36-year-old Czyz ended his career with a two-round stoppage loss to Corrie Sanders. His final record stands at 44-8 (28 KOs).
Broady maintained an incredibly busy schedule following the Czyz bout as he fought seven times in the next 12 months. Less than two months after the Czyz loss, Broady rebounded with a two-round KO over David Todt, but was stopped in five rounds by Andries. Two solid wins over Darryl Spain (KO 5) and Jerome Clouden (KO 2) was followed by a loss to Marvin Mack (L 8) and a victory over Tim Williams (KO 10) to finish 1985. But TKO losses to Jeff Lampkin and Grover Robinson prompted Broady to take six years off. The comeback started well as he dusted Bernard Boyce (KO 1) and Bernard Littman (KO 2), but the 34-year-old Broady couldn’t sustain the momentum as on June 11, 1993 he suffered a fourth round TKO to Ray Alberts. His final record was 21-7-1 (20 KOs).
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