He goes by the alias 'Sugar Ray Clay Jones Jr.' (SRCJJ), in homage to Sugar Ray Robinson, Sugar Ray Leonard, Cassius Clay, and Roy Jones Jr. Small converted to Islam at the age of 24 and is now known as Abdul-Haqq.
Perhaps the most distinctive place in the history of boxing the boxing Moyer boys from Portland will hold is that all three boxed the famous Sugar Ray Robinson.
He fought a young Sugar Ray Robinson before making the switch to a full-time musician.
The show boasted many famous guest stars including Vincent Price, Ed Asner, Sammy Davis Jr., Andy Griffith, Richard Pryor, Lee Grant, Richard Dreyfuss, Tom Bosley, Danny Thomas, Tyne Daly, Martin Sheen, Louis Gosset, Jr., and Sugar Ray Robinson.
Ray Charles | Ray Bradbury | X-ray | Man Ray | Robinson Crusoe | Edward G. Robinson | Jackie Robinson | Satyajit Ray | Stevie Ray Vaughan | Sugar Bowl | Sugar | Mary Robinson | sugar | Ray Milland | Smokey Robinson | Ray Liotta | Ray Davies | Tom Robinson | Sugar Ray Leonard | Billy Ray Cyrus | Ray Stevens | Blu-ray Disc | Ray Winstone | Ray Kurzweil | X-ray crystallography | Ray Brown (musician) | Ray Bolger | Ray Mears | Tony Robinson | Sugar Ray Robinson |
Among the fighters who "ducked" Burley were Hall of Famers Billy Conn (who fought Joe Louis for the heavyweight title), Frenchman Marcel Cerdan (who was supposed to face Burley in his American debut), Jake LaMotta (who had fought the likes of powerpuncher Bob Satterfield, Sugar Ray Robinson, and Holman Williams, who was Burley's greatest rival), and even Sugar Ray Robinson, considered by many boxing historians as the best pound-for-pound fighter of all time.
He lost a one-sided decision to defending welterweight champion Sugar Ray Robinson on August 9, 1950 and lost a split decision to Johnny Bratton for the vacant National Boxing Association World welterweight title on March 14, 1951 after Robinson had relinquished the title upon winning the world middleweight title from Jake LaMotta a month earlier.
At the height of popularity for both American bicycle racing and boxing in the 1920s, Coney Island drome was host to regional and state championship bicycle races, and boxing heroes including Rocky Marciano, Joe Louis, Jersey Joe Walcott, and Sugar Ray Robinson.
Among the personalities the book talks about in depth are Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe Louis, Primo Carnera, Tony Canzoneri, Sugar Ray Robinson, Casey Stengel, Mickey Mantle, Joe DiMaggio, Lou Stillman, Jacob Ruppert and more.
He never challenged for a world title again, but from 1941 to 1946, he fought Sugar Ray Robinson, Lew Jenkins, Jake LaMotta, Beau Jack, Bob Montgomery, Tommy Bell, Billy Arnold and Freddie Archer.
Balboa was also inspired by other fighting legends: Joe Frazier, for his Philadelphia origin, training methods and victory against Muhammad Ali (The inspiration of Apollo Creed), and Jake LaMotta, for his Italian-inner city roots, ability to absorb many blows and his rivalry with Sugar Ray Robinson, which heavily resembled Rocky and Apollo's.