Ringside Report Remembers Former Boxing Champion Buster Drayton (1952-2022)

By Donald “Braveheart” Stewart

Every year can be a tough one when towards the end of it, yet another fighter has lost their life. In Memoriam is a title that just now, you are likely to see at each and every end of year ceremony which is a celebration of what has been a good year for whatever industry they represent.

And then the tributes flow for people, many of whom have been part of the industry for so long and many who have been forgotten and some are even surprised that this person or that person even merits a mention.

All merit a mention in boxing.

And losing someone towards the end of the year is not any less painful than losing them at any other time but it can carry a degree of poignancy as plans for all the family to Rock Around the Christmas Tree now have to have one less sitting for family dinner.

And so, on the 20th of November 2022, Moses Buster Drayton, 40-15-1, 28 KOs, was taken from the fraternity and his family. Fighting in the middleweight and light middleweight divisions, he was active between 1978 and 1995, winning the IBF light middleweight crown in 1986.

Drayton was a distinguished member of the military, a sergeant who was honored for his service by the National Federation of Black Veterans, receiving the honor of the Victory Crown Medal. A Marine, he joined in 1972, which was just three years before the end of the Vietnam War. His boxing career started in the service of his country.

Afterwards he began his professional career, which was to lead to world title glory with a draw in Virginia Beach against Charles Carey on the 9th of September 1978. It was a start in his professional career that was partly to show us what was to come – there were many early wins, but also along the way a few losses which mounted up over time. This was a guy who chose a hard road.

It was also a time in boxing of some innovation and plenty of strange and bizarre occurrences. In 1980 it saw Drayton face Curtis Taylor in Atlantic City on the 1st of October in the semi-final of a competition which said he won, then said he drew, then it was declared a no contest and they were ordered to rematch, Taylor refused and Drayton went onto the final where he lost to Kevin Perry.

It put him in good stead as he was to fight on the road often including taking on Sumbu Kalambay in Italy on the 30th of October 1982, or in 1984, stopping Jimmy Cable and then Mark Kaylor in fights, in 1984, one after the other, in England! The English fights were particularly brutal. Cable was done in the first round; nobody had heard of Drayton in the UK! Then, on a Frank Bruno undercard, Drayton ruined Kaylor, this time with a 10th round stoppage.

His toughness was a product of his training in the Philadelphia gyms where he became Marvin Hagler’s main sparring partner.

It brought him in 1986, to Meadowland and Carlos Santos, against whom he was to take a 15-round majority decision for the IBF belt. At the time Drayton was ranked number 2 and Santos was behind him as number 3.

He then defended it twice successfully against Davey Moore on the 24th of August 1986, in Juan-les-Pins, France and then he returned to France, on the 27th of March 1987 in Cannes, to beat Said Skouma – both defenses were stopped in the 10th round.

In 1987, when up against Mathew Hilton who was 26-0, in Montreal he lost it by unanimous decision on the 27th of June. It was a short reign but a significant one.

Drayton, being a tough competitor, having lost his world title, he continued to box and did get another world title chance when in 1988 on the 30th of July in Atlantic City when he challenged for the WBA junior middleweight title against Julian Jackson. He was down in the 2nd and 3rd round of what was seen as a good old-fashioned tear up but was stopped in the 3rd round.

He then lost to another contender, Terry in Las Vegas on the 28th of March 1989, for the NABF super welterweight title. Norris who was going in the opposite direction, by now to Drayton. His final professional fight was on the 10trh of June 1995 when he lost for the IBF/USBA North Atlantic middleweight title against Derrick Rolon on points.

What is one of the most notable things that he did was to trailblaze. 10 years ago, he was fighting an exhibition bout when very few were doing it – and yet now, every other week there seems to be the suggestion of another veteran having yet another last stand! He was 57 years old and took on a Philadelphia police officer by the name of Floyd “Sugar Boy” Richards. At the time both were police officers, so it was clearly an exhibition that was to entertain rather than seriously bring Drayton back to professional boxing.

And so, at the age of 70, Drayton left us one final time. In the Rank tribute, penned by Ryan Sangalia, he quoted former IBF super middleweight titleholder Charles Brewer thus: “I remember training and sparring with this guy man times…back then it seemed as though he had one of the most unorthodox boxing styles that I had seen. Bus could knock you out with either a left hook or what I believe was his favorite shot, that damn overhand right!”

And so, with that shot being the one he loved to throw, he has thrown his last, but we should never forget those who graced the ring for our pleasure, entertainment and who put their lives on the line – especially those who did it not once, in the military, not twice, in the ring, but thrice – on the streets of Philadelphia as a police officer.

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