Will Hutt Honored by CBHOF – Boxing News
The late Will Hutt left a rich boxing legacy that will be celebrated November as the popular boxing judge is posthumously inducted into the Connecticut Boxing Hall of Fame (CBHOF) Saturday night, November 8 at its 10th annual Gala Induction Dinner in the Uncas Ballroom at Mohegan Sun.
Former two-time World Boxing Association (WBA) heavyweight champion John “The Quietman” Ruiz and Peter “The Pride of Providence” Manfredo, Jr. lead a six-member Class of 2014 into the Connecticut Boxing Hall of Fame (CBHOF).
The other members of the CBHOF’s Classs of 2014 are former two-time World Boxing Association (WBA) heavyweight champion John “The Quietman” Ruiz, two-time world title challenger and star of The Contender, Season reality television show, Peter “The Pride of Providence” Manfredo, Jr., referee Michael Ortega, International Boxing Federation (IBF) president Daryl Peoples, and trainer Paul Cichon.
Hutt, of Farmington, not only was considered one of the finest officials to ever judge a boxing match in Connecticut, but he also spent a lot of his free time helping to promote the sport he loved. He was a mainstay in Connecticut amateur and professional boxing. He judged fights all over the world, including 27 world title championships, featuring world champions such as Larry Holmes, Prince Naseem Hamed, James Toney, Julio Cesar Chavez, Bernard Hopkins, and Chris Byrd, as well as a pair of CBHOF past inductees, Micky Ward and Vinny Paz. The CBHOF official’s award is named after Hutt, who passed away in 2001 at the age of 49.
Will attended his first boxing match in Hartford when he was 10 years old. His father, Norman, was concerned that Will was missing, but the youngster somehow had made his way right up to the ring. His love affair with boxing started then and remained with him the rest of his life. In addition to being a boxing judge, Will also was a boxing historian, as well as a boxing memorabilia collector, and at one time or another he handled just about every other duty at a boxing event other than referee or fighter, including color commentator, timekeeper and ring announcer.
“I was a boxing wife,” Will’s widow Linda proudly admits. “We had boxing friends of Will’s from all over the world stay at our home. His Rolodex was like a Who’s Who of boxing. He fell in love with boxing and never lost it. He embraced everything about boxing. It didn’t matter if it was professional or amateur, as long as it was boxing. Everyone he met in boxing respected Will.”
Hutt also mentored many in boxing, including international boxing judge Glenn Feldman, who was a dear friend of Will’s in addition to being his protégé. Feldman is the President of the CBHOF in addition to being an inductee. “If Will had been alive 10 years ago,” Feldman firmly believes, “he would have been President of the Connecticut Boxing Hall of Fame because he was so involved in Connecticut boxing. We lost him too soon but his memory will live on forever.”
Tickets for the CBHOF 10th annual Gala Induction Dinner, reasonably priced at $90.00, are on sale now by calling Kim Baker at Mohegan Sun (1.860.862.7377) or Sherman Cain at the Manchester Journal Inquirer (1.800.237.3606 X321). Doors open at 5:30 p.m. ET, cocktails at 6 p.m. ET, followed by dinner.
Go online to www.ctboxinghof.org for additional information about the Connecticut Boxing Hall of Fame, its 10th annual Gala Inductee Dinner, or past CBHOF inductees. Like CBHOF on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/CTBHOF.
ABOUT CBHOF: The Connecticut Boxing Hall of Fame was founded in 2004 to honor and celebrate the careers of outstanding individuals involved in the sport of boxing. Its inaugural Induction Ceremony & Dinner was held in 2005. Connecticut’s rich boxing history could never have flourished if it weren’t for the achievements of those enshrined in the Hall of Fame.
As a non-profit organization, the Connecticut Boxing Hall of Fame is deeply committed to keeping the fighting spirit of Connecticut thriving through various charitable contributions.