Page 12 THE MALDEN ADVOCATE–Friday, June 19, 2020 “Dangerous” times: Malden’s Dana Rosenblatt became a New England hero in the boxing ring in the 1990s, Part 2 Malden fighter helped fuel local boxing interest renaissance, became a valued benefactor By Steve Freker M uhammad Ali, “The Greatest,” a product of Louisville, Kentucky, never did it. Neither did Mike Tyson, who grew up on the “mean streets” of Brooklyn, N.Y., one of the most feared boxers of all time. Neither did Manny Pacquaio, Sugar Ray Leonard or Evander Holyfield, not a one of them. Even the most famous fictitious fighter in history, Rocky Balboa – he has a statue erected at top of 72 steps he made famous at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, he never did it either. But Malden’s Dana Rosenblatt did. He fought on a professional fight card in his hometown, right smack in the middle of Malden, Mass., at Macdonald Stadium, no less. Rosenblatt fought at Macdonald Stadium on August 11, 1994 We suppose that guys who take up residence in places like Las Vegas and New York City after they make it big in the ring could say they mixed it up in their hometown. But this was a rarity, when on August 11, 1994, “Dangerous” Dana Rosenblatt took on Canadian middleweight Jacques LeBlanc before a monster crowd of nearly 7,000 at Macdonald Stadium on Pearl Street. It was certainly a historic night on many counts. For starters, it was the first time a professional fight card was ever held outder construction, new fieldhouse at the stadium itself. For decades, generations of Malden High football players had geared for storied Golden Tornadoes football games in the far from cozy confines of a ramshackle, steel-plated Quonset Hut – a refugee from a U.S. Army base somewhere out West. THE NEIGHBORHOOD WAR: The first Dana Rosenblatt-Vinny Pazienza fight in 1996 was billed as “The Neighborhood War” for the mythical New England Championship with Rosenblatt representing Boston and Pazienza, Providence, R.I. (Courtesy Photo) doors in the city of Malden, and a first-time boxing card for the then 70-year-old football stadium. Selected evenings of multiple boxing bouts had been held in the past at the Irish American Club and they even held professional wrestling at Malden High School’s gym before that night, but nothing on this scale. The unique nature of the event did not stop there. The evening affair also was a major fundraiser for the then unMayor Ed Lucey led the push for Rosenblatt boxing fundraiser Then Mayor Ed Lucey, a lifelong fan of all sports in Malden, spearheaded the drive to hold the boxing card at the stadium, when Rosenblatt and his management team agreed to the proposal by the city. The Golden Tornado Club, the booster club for Malden High athletics, then led by the late Jerry Robbins as president, quickly got behind the idea and pledged its full support. With the backing and blessing of Rosenblatt and his manager, all proceeds from the night of boxing would go toward the Macdonald Stadium fieldhouse construction project to benefit Malden High athletes. The benevolent act of genALL SMILES: They actually took a photo, smiling, beside each other! To promote the Rematch Fight, Malden’s Dana Rosenblatt, left, took a promotional photo with archrival Vinny Pazienza, right. (Courtesy Photo) FIRST FIGHT: “Dangerous” Dana Rosenblatt, left, and Vinny “The Pazmanian Devil” Pazienza go at in the first fight of their heralded rivalry at Bally’s Casino in Atlantic City, N.J. (Courtesy Photo) erosity is believed to have funneled in the neighborhood of $100,000 toward the new fieldhouse, a remarkable display of largesse from the young boxer, as thousands descended on the Malden football field, paying $15.00 a pop for admission. After many months of planning and excitement that year, the big night arrived; the previous evening, at Anthony’s in Malden, was the official weigh-in ceremony, followed by a reception at the well-known Malden function hall. Malden’s city leaders hobnobbed with fight fans from their own community as well as plenty of others Rosenblatt had drawn from all over New England and beyond. In addition to traditional fight fans, he drew those new to the game as well. Rosenblatt also developed a whole new generation of fans from the Jewish community at large in New England, proudly wearing the Star of David, a symbol of his faith, on his trunks every fight night. GOLDEN TICKET: Here’s a look at one of the tickets for the memorable “Fight Night” featuring “Dangerous” Dana Rosenblatt and Jacques LeBlanc fighting at Macdonald Stadium in Malden. (Courtesy Photo) He came into the fight perfect at 20-0 The then 22-year-old middleweight had enjoyed nothing but success in his 2 1/2-year old career, streaking to a still unbeaten, 20-0 record to start his professional career. His most notable win to date was a firstround knockout of Sean Fitzgerald nine months earlier at Foxwoods Resort and Casino (his third fight in Connecticut) to capture his first championship belt, the USA New England Middleweight Title. His opponent, LeBlanc, was certainly no stiff. On the contrary, the native of the New Brunswick Province of Canada was the oldest and one of the most experienced fighters Rosenblatt would encounter. At 30 years old, LeBlanc came in at 23-8-2 in his career, which had begun three years earlier. After fighting most of his earlier bouts in Canada and Australia, LeBlanc had run up a 19-3 mark before he began to seriously upgrade his competition. Though he came into his matchup with Rosenblatt on the heels of four straight losses, all four of those defeats had
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