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Arguello knew: Pinoy Ganigan hit harder than Pacquiao
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Ganigan punched like a mule kicks but his chin was brittle.
He was a better puncher, believe it or not, than Manny Pacquiao.
In the category of Pinoy lefthanded boxers, it can be argued that “Hawaiian Punch” Andrew Ganigan was the hardest hitter of them all.
But don’t just take my word for it, although I did watch with some shock and awe as he dismantled a decent fighter named Curtis Ramsey in two rounds one December 1980 night in Blaisdell Center in Honolulu.
I was ostensibly in Honolulu trying to interview the wife of John Lennon assassin Mark David Chapman.
I hooked up with great writer, fight fan and madman Dr. Hunter S. Thompson and wound up getting mentioned in HST's book "Curse Of Lono" but that is a weird and wonderful story for a different day. The part about throwing Heinken bottles at the dolphins in the hotel pool is cruel but true.
(Remind me to tell you of the night I got "Doctor Gonzo," the Fear & Loathing legend, introduced at the Silver Slipper as chief medical officier of the nonexistent Colorado commission. Another tale for another time.)
Ganigan was a sugarcane field worker from Waipahu and a Ring magazine poll selected him as one of the 100 Greatest Punchers.
The Filipino’s pro record of 34 victories, 30 by knockouts, against five losses bears the pollsters out.
Turning pro at age 19, Ganigan's career accelerated like a rocket as he demolioshed his first three opponents, won a six round decision and then went a 16 bout KO rampage.
And-get this—Ganigan was Number 97 on the punchers list which does not sound so impressive until you consider the “neighborhood” this placed him in.
Ganigan, whose chin was his weak point (unlike Pacquiao), was ranked ahead of recently deceased Swedish idol and heavyweight champion Ingemar Johansson.
It’s when you take a gander at the guys rated just ahead of Ganigan, that you have to be impressed.
Number 88 on the list was died too soon Mexican great Salvador Sanchez. Right behind him is certain Hall Of Famer Roy Jones.
Then came a talented trio of solid bangers, Mexico’s Rodolfo “Gato” Gonzalez, England’s Nigel Benn and American Irish Bob Murphy. (Ganigan lost a 10 round decision to rising star Gonzalez.)
Pretty fancy neighborhood.
I must admit I hadn’t thought about the fearsome Ganigan, who had the same catfish like mustache as does Pacman, in many years.
I was reminiscing about the lethal lefty some months ago and was about to do an article about him.
I got distracted, as I often do, by something else.
Then came the gunshot death (suicide?) of all time great Alexis Arguello, the big puncher from the small nation of Nicaragua.
You see Ganigan’s name is on Arguello’s glittering pro resume.
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They fought on May 22, 1982 with the WBC lightweight title at stake.
True to form, Ganigan dropped Arguello on the seat of his pants in the opening round.
And, then true to form, Ganigan’s “whiskers” combined with Arguello’s power, ended the bout in the fifth round.
It should be noted, though, that judges all had it close (37-37, 37-39 and 36-37) at the conclusion.
Ganigan was the I knock you out or you knock me out kind of fighter than fans love andthe Damon Runyon-esque promoter in Honolulu, "Sad Sam" Ichinose, had no problem selling tickets when Ganigan was the headliner.
Fans came to the arena expecting a KO, either way, and they almost always got it.
In fact, a close pal of mine can also boast that he whacked out Ganigan.
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Johnny Lira was a seasoned club fighter, almost always featured at the great old Silver Slipper Wednesday night shows in Las Vegas. A reformed street tough from Chicago, Lira also hit with authority.
Ichinose hired Lira to fight Ganigan in Honolulu, expecting Lira to get crushed by his local hero.
I lived in Vegas at the time and I remember gym owner-trainer-savant Johnny Tocco telling me Lira could win in Hawaii if he applied himself.
Tocco was another Runyonesque type who spent a lot of time with Sonny Liston before his death under suspect circumstances.
Tocco’s official motto was “It Takes Balls To Conquer The World” and he had it written on teeshirts for his Ringside Gym.
Lira showed his on August 1, 1978, knocking Ganigan out in six rounds.
Talk about being a rude guest. You might say, given the setting, that Lira “leid” Ganigan out.
There was no offer made to Lira for a rematch.
Ganigan had some notable successes including a pair of victories over Vicente Saldivar.
But the high point, other than flooring legend Arguello, came when he went to Little Rock, of all places, to fight Irish Sean O’Grady for the contrived World Athletic Association lightweight title.
The WAA was a figment of the wild imagination of O’Grady’s father, yet another straight from Runyon’s “Guys And Dolls” stage set, Pat O’Grady.
Papa O’Grady operated freely out of Oklahoma City where he either had no bothersome state commission to pester him as he built fantastic records for his fighters against gypsies, tramps, thieves and the odd busboy.
Not taking anything away from Irish Sean, who had real talent, but most of O”Grady’s fighters were inventions. Sean came into the Ganigan bout with a well-padded 76-2 record built up on such riffraff opposition.
Well, in Arkansas on Oct. 31, 1981, it was Ganigan who was the rude invited guest. He hammered Irish Sean into submission in two rounds.
He put the sham in Sean's shamrock by dropping him in the first round, then decked him twice in the second.
This was a disaster for the O'Grady clan.
It was a rare bit of bad matching by Patrick O and Sean recovered from the devastating KO to return to his winning ways.
In his last pro bout on June 6, 1983, Ganigan fought Emanuel Steward’s tough Jimmy Paul for the USBA 135 pound title.
I suppose, at this point, you can guess what the outcome was, a KO.
The future world champion from Detroit’s fabled Kronk ended it in the sixth round and the up and down career of Ganigan was over.
Ganigan was no Manny Pacquiao but he was no bum off the street either.
He was a good fighter who might've been great "if..."
He will be remembered as one of those “iffy” fighters.
As in…if he only had was able to take a punch anything like the way he could dish them out.
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