Evening star., 1948-06-17
Bright Ring Career
Seen for DC. Youth,
Olympic Candidate
By Bill Fuchs

The 1858 fans who attended last
night Navy Olympic boxing show
at Ullne Area may have witnessed
a preveW of a professional cham
pionship bout when they saw Leon
Daughtry, local amateur civilian.
win unanimous decision over Ham,
mering Hank Herring, welterweight
king of the Navy.
The two Negroes, who traded
punches in the best fight on the
l6-bout program, intend to turn
professional near the end of this
wear. The 23-year-old Herring, vet
eran of the North African cam
paign. will enter the flght-for-pay
game after his naval discharge in
November, while Daughtry hopes
to get billing in Madison Square
Garden after the Golden Gloves
tournament in December. =
Herring, who resembles Henry
Armstrong in style, and who, ac-
cording to Navy Coach Spike Webb,
is pro championship material, got
into the boxing game quite by acci-
dent.
My buddies in North Africa all
were BOXERS" he explained last
night. They got me interested and
then when I won few bouts I
was encouraged. I didn't do much
fighting, though, until 1945, when
the war was over"
Webb Is High on Hank.
Webb, who has been boxing coach
at the academy since 1919, claims
Hank is the greatest amateur fight
er he ever has trained.
In spite of his IT years, Daughtry
is no stranger to the squared circle
either. Herring opened the fight
with a barrage of rights and lefts
and it looked as if it would be All
early exit for the Washington boy.
He rallied however, to take the
next two rounds and the verdict.
Daughtry's manager and trainer,
Herbert Harris. said he recognized
a natural ability for body punch
Ing in the District AAU champ when
he was only 13.
He was one of the few. boys
who knocked Sonny Boy West to-
the floor when both fought for
boys clubs" he said.
Following last nights show Webb
picked the following men to repre-
sent the Navy in the Olympic trials
at Boston later this month: Fly
weight Jimmy Quinn. Bantam
weight Bill Bossio, Featherweight
Johnny Kamber, Lightweight Ed
mund Mullen, Welterweight Hank
Herring, Middleweight Sam Will
liams, Light Heavyweight James De
Pena and Heavyweight Charley
Norkus.
Stellato Barely Misses.
Frankie Stellato, District Golden
Gloves featherweight champ, was
rot impressive enough in edging
Haywood tRed) Williams of the
USS Sperry to win Webb's ap-
proval The Quantico Marine found
Williams style hard to solve and had
to be content with close decision.
Bob Weaver of the Anacostia Re-
ceiving Station, runnerup for the
District AAU light t-heavyWeight title,
uTOppSu d ulldIlIllUuS uSClSlOll W
Eddie Hardy of the Air Force. At
lantic Fleet. Keith King, District
Golden Gloves heavyweight titlist
and Quantico Marine, dropped a
unanimous decision to Charley
Norkus of the Naval Shipyard in
Brooklyn.
Dignitaries who attended the show
included Vice Admiral A. w. Rad
ford, vice chief of naval operations;
Rear Admiral Glenn Davis, Rear
Admiral T. L. Sprague, Rear Admiral
E. A. Cruise. Admiral Emory Land,
retired; Capt, Tom Hamilton, ath-
letic director of the Naval Academy,
and Representative Won zandt of
Pennsylvania.
The show which, surprisingly
enough, produced no knockouts,
brought gross gate Of S4,03247 and
a net of S3,O3O06, which will go to
the Navy Relief Society and the
Olympic fund,
CENTRAL LEAGUE.
Fort WAYNE. Il; Saginaw, !.