EIGHTEEN MONTHS AGO, what should have been a night of celebration for Joe Ward morphed cruelly into a night of devastation within the space of four minutes.
The Moate light-heavyweight, arguably Ireland’s most prodigious male boxing talent of his generation, was boxing the ears off a respectable opponent on his professional debut when, early in the second round, he crumpled into a heap, his pained screams reverberating around Madison Square Garden, New York.
Ward had dislocated his left kneecap. In the blink of an eye, foe Marco Delgado’s record improved to 6-1 [5KOs] on a technicality while Ward fell — literally — to 0-1.
A debut defeat is an optical setback for any boxing prospect even in such extenuating circumstances. Losses on a professional boxer’s CV read like losses; they don’t come with asterisks. But Ward was less concerned by the numbers on his record and more by the prospect of his career potentially ending before he had even had a chance to break a sweat.
He had suffered the same injury once before, in 2013, missing that year’s edition of the European Championships as a result — the only blot on his biblical run of continental domination between 2011 and 2017.
But that made the second knee dislocation harder to contend with, not easier: Ward knew full well the painstaking road ahead of him but also wondered if the injury might be a permanent flaw in his physical makeup, an accident waiting to happen during any incidental pivot or swivel in the ring. If that were to be the case, there would be no point in fighting anymore.
But he shook off those doubts and vowed to plough on, undergoing surgery in the States and an extensive rehab process back home in Westmeath. He made a remarkable recovery and was scheduled to make his comeback on 14 March last year — just over five months after being dealt his painful debut blow — only to see those plans kiboshed by the pandemic.
A full year later, having already picked up a couple of soft first-round stoppage wins in Mexico in late 2020 in order to dust himself off and put some weight on the recovered knee, Ward is confident that he’s finally ready to scale heights commensurate to his supreme pugilistic talent.
And that journey will begin in earnest — again — with a rematch against Delgado on Thursday night in which the slick Irish southpaw hopes to set the record straight.
“This was the opponent I wanted from day one,” Ward says. “I wanted to put it right. I’m 100% focused like I would be for any opponent. He has a number of wins but I took him for my debut and that says it all. I know my level of fighting is a lot higher than his and I believe that’s going to show on Thursday night, the same way it was showing for the four minutes on my debut. It’s just about me turning up.
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“I told my team I wanted this rematch because I wanted to put this right.
“It’s been a long, difficult time but I am looking forward to getting back in the ring to showcase my skills.”
Ward collapsed in pain in the second round of his pro debut in October 2019. Tom Hogan / INPHO
Tom Hogan / INPHO / INPHO
The Ward-Delgado rematch on a significant Ring City USA-promoted card in Puerto Rico will be shown live on NBC in the States and streamed on Twitch for international viewers, including those in Ireland who can catch a first glimpse of ‘Mighty Joe’, now 2-1(2KOs), in professional action on their phones or computers (coverage from 1am Irish time).
But while the 27-year-old will doubtless have some form of revenge on his mind when he squares off with a familiar face across the ring, he will equally spare a thought beforehand for a man who is no longer physically a part of his close-knit setup; a man whose loss earlier this year is still felt heavily by the thousands who either knew him or knew of him.
“It’s a massive opportunity for me on national television,” Ward says. “I’ve been working hard and staying focused, despite everything that’s been going on, so I feel ready to go out and perform.
This is bittersweet because my manager and friend, Joe Winters, passed away two months ago due to Covid-19. He was a great man who meant a great deal to me. I know how happy and proud he would have been to see me back in the ring, but losing him has just given me more drive and more purpose. He always said that I would be a world champion and I want to prove him right, for myself and for him.
Winters, the revered Long Island businessman and philanthropist, was one half of the Times Square Boxing company who signed Ward to a management deal along with friend and co-founder Adam Glenn, another New York native. Glenn has himself suffered enormous loss throughout the pandemic, not only in the shape of the irreplaceable Winters but in that of his inimitable father, Jimmy Glenn, a legendary boxing figure and owner of the synonymously famous Jimmy’s Corner bar in Midtown.
And so, for Ward and his team, Thursday night is a restart with an eye to the future but equally with one on the past.
“With the passing of Jimmy Glenn and his friend and co-manager Joe Winters from Covid-19, while recovering from knee surgery, Joe has had to endure a lot”, says Ward’s promoter, Lou DiBella of DiBella Entertainment, “but he has shown the strength of character to move forward and work toward achieving his dream.”
On Thursday night, Ward “has a chance at redemption”, adds DiBella, “facing the man who shared the ring with him on the night his knee dislocated and he lost his pro debut.
“Marco Delgado just defeated an unbeaten prospect [Burley Brooks, previously 6-0 with 5KOs] and is now 7-1 [5KOs]. This is a very significant fight and career-defining moment for both Joe and Marco.”
Ward with his late manager Joe Winters. Times Square Boxing
Times Square Boxing
“We’re incredibly excited about this opportunity,” says Times Square CEO Glenn, a corporate lawyer who now also runs his late father Jimmy’s iconic boxing-themed bar.
This has been a really tough year for Joe and the whole team, from the unfortunate knee injury to the delays and difficulties due to Covid-19, to the devastating loss of Joe Winters, my business partner and co-manager of Joe, to Covid-19. Through it all, Joe Ward has been working hard and we’re incredibly proud of his perseverance and drive. A rematch with Delgado is an opportunity to set things right and remind everyone of why Joe is one of the most exciting prospects to ever come out of Ireland.
From left to right: Adam Glenn, the late Joe Winters, Joe Ward, Jimmy Payne and Lou DiBella announcing Ward's move to the pros in Dublin in 2018. Gary Carr / INPHO
Gary Carr / INPHO / INPHO
Ward, who will continue to fight in the States and will train in New York under highly respected American and Irish duo Joey Gamache and Jimmy Payne, aims to get out six times this year, starting on Thursday.
It’s a far cry from the situation in which he found himself just 18 months ago, but he believes he’ll be all the better for it.
“It was tough not knowing where I’d be when I got back on my feet and how long it would take me to get back in the ring, in addition to what long-term damage it was going to cause. I was lucky enough that everything went well, and I got back on my feet. I had a good strong mindset that if I put the work in, I would be back fighting soon.
“It’s not so much about what I have to prove”, he says, “but it’s getting opportunities to fight in these big events that are very special to me.
“I just want to show the people why I was such a good amateur and how it transfers to being a professional.
“I want to go on to bigger and better things in the near future. I take one fight at a time, but I hope it’s a busy year. I’ll keep stepping up.”
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Ward ready to set record straight after 'long, difficult time' recovering from injury and personal loss
EIGHTEEN MONTHS AGO, what should have been a night of celebration for Joe Ward morphed cruelly into a night of devastation within the space of four minutes.
The Moate light-heavyweight, arguably Ireland’s most prodigious male boxing talent of his generation, was boxing the ears off a respectable opponent on his professional debut when, early in the second round, he crumpled into a heap, his pained screams reverberating around Madison Square Garden, New York.
Ward had dislocated his left kneecap. In the blink of an eye, foe Marco Delgado’s record improved to 6-1 [5KOs] on a technicality while Ward fell — literally — to 0-1.
A debut defeat is an optical setback for any boxing prospect even in such extenuating circumstances. Losses on a professional boxer’s CV read like losses; they don’t come with asterisks. But Ward was less concerned by the numbers on his record and more by the prospect of his career potentially ending before he had even had a chance to break a sweat.
He had suffered the same injury once before, in 2013, missing that year’s edition of the European Championships as a result — the only blot on his biblical run of continental domination between 2011 and 2017.
But that made the second knee dislocation harder to contend with, not easier: Ward knew full well the painstaking road ahead of him but also wondered if the injury might be a permanent flaw in his physical makeup, an accident waiting to happen during any incidental pivot or swivel in the ring. If that were to be the case, there would be no point in fighting anymore.
But he shook off those doubts and vowed to plough on, undergoing surgery in the States and an extensive rehab process back home in Westmeath. He made a remarkable recovery and was scheduled to make his comeback on 14 March last year — just over five months after being dealt his painful debut blow — only to see those plans kiboshed by the pandemic.
A full year later, having already picked up a couple of soft first-round stoppage wins in Mexico in late 2020 in order to dust himself off and put some weight on the recovered knee, Ward is confident that he’s finally ready to scale heights commensurate to his supreme pugilistic talent.
And that journey will begin in earnest — again — with a rematch against Delgado on Thursday night in which the slick Irish southpaw hopes to set the record straight.
“This was the opponent I wanted from day one,” Ward says. “I wanted to put it right. I’m 100% focused like I would be for any opponent. He has a number of wins but I took him for my debut and that says it all. I know my level of fighting is a lot higher than his and I believe that’s going to show on Thursday night, the same way it was showing for the four minutes on my debut. It’s just about me turning up.
“I told my team I wanted this rematch because I wanted to put this right.
“It’s been a long, difficult time but I am looking forward to getting back in the ring to showcase my skills.”
The Ward-Delgado rematch on a significant Ring City USA-promoted card in Puerto Rico will be shown live on NBC in the States and streamed on Twitch for international viewers, including those in Ireland who can catch a first glimpse of ‘Mighty Joe’, now 2-1(2KOs), in professional action on their phones or computers (coverage from 1am Irish time).
But while the 27-year-old will doubtless have some form of revenge on his mind when he squares off with a familiar face across the ring, he will equally spare a thought beforehand for a man who is no longer physically a part of his close-knit setup; a man whose loss earlier this year is still felt heavily by the thousands who either knew him or knew of him.
“It’s a massive opportunity for me on national television,” Ward says. “I’ve been working hard and staying focused, despite everything that’s been going on, so I feel ready to go out and perform.
Winters, the revered Long Island businessman and philanthropist, was one half of the Times Square Boxing company who signed Ward to a management deal along with friend and co-founder Adam Glenn, another New York native. Glenn has himself suffered enormous loss throughout the pandemic, not only in the shape of the irreplaceable Winters but in that of his inimitable father, Jimmy Glenn, a legendary boxing figure and owner of the synonymously famous Jimmy’s Corner bar in Midtown.
And so, for Ward and his team, Thursday night is a restart with an eye to the future but equally with one on the past.
“With the passing of Jimmy Glenn and his friend and co-manager Joe Winters from Covid-19, while recovering from knee surgery, Joe has had to endure a lot”, says Ward’s promoter, Lou DiBella of DiBella Entertainment, “but he has shown the strength of character to move forward and work toward achieving his dream.”
On Thursday night, Ward “has a chance at redemption”, adds DiBella, “facing the man who shared the ring with him on the night his knee dislocated and he lost his pro debut.
“Marco Delgado just defeated an unbeaten prospect [Burley Brooks, previously 6-0 with 5KOs] and is now 7-1 [5KOs]. This is a very significant fight and career-defining moment for both Joe and Marco.”
“We’re incredibly excited about this opportunity,” says Times Square CEO Glenn, a corporate lawyer who now also runs his late father Jimmy’s iconic boxing-themed bar.
Ward, who will continue to fight in the States and will train in New York under highly respected American and Irish duo Joey Gamache and Jimmy Payne, aims to get out six times this year, starting on Thursday.
It’s a far cry from the situation in which he found himself just 18 months ago, but he believes he’ll be all the better for it.
“It was tough not knowing where I’d be when I got back on my feet and how long it would take me to get back in the ring, in addition to what long-term damage it was going to cause. I was lucky enough that everything went well, and I got back on my feet. I had a good strong mindset that if I put the work in, I would be back fighting soon.
“It’s not so much about what I have to prove”, he says, “but it’s getting opportunities to fight in these big events that are very special to me.
“I just want to show the people why I was such a good amateur and how it transfers to being a professional.
“I want to go on to bigger and better things in the near future. I take one fight at a time, but I hope it’s a busy year. I’ll keep stepping up.”
Joe Ward’s rematch with Marco Delgado on Thursday will be streamed live for free on Ring City USA’s Twitch account, which you can access here. Coverage will begin at 1am Irish time on Thursday night/Friday morning.
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