Charlie “Choo Choo” Brown: The Little Engine That Could

As we limp toward the end of another year, the inevitable questions will arise. Who was the fighter of 2014? What was the performance of 2014? The fight of 2014? The shock etc. I have no doubt that ‘respected’ commentators will attempt to give answers but the wonderful thing about boxing is that there are no absolutes and you, the reader, you the fight fan, you the very engine of the sport we love…your opinion should be the only one that works for you. I wouldn’t bore you with mine unless, of course, there was beer involved but I will say that Amir Khan’s performance against Devon Alexander was nothing short of spectacular.

It’s not just that he won and won so convincingly. It’s that he looked so incredibly polished and the fears I’ve had for Virgil Hunter’s proposed reformation were well and truly put to bed as Khan unleashed with jaw dropping speed and accuracy. I suspect Floyd Mayweather, JR. may rethink his next opponent. Khan is fast, powerful, exciting and super confident. Thanks to Virgil Hunter he is a more mature fighter who knows when to mix it up and when the wisest way forward is to move backwards. Boxing has always had the flamboyant and the avant garde but what becomes of these fine fighters when there isn’t a way to successfully fill the gaps. As a case in point, I am going to look at Charlie “Choo Choo” Brown.

Charlie was the son of Lloyd ‘Hurricane’ Brown who, as an amateur, won the Diamond belt on the same night as his brother Henry “Toothpick” Brown. Whereas Henry went on to a respectable pro career retiring with a record of 24-7-2, Lloyd started a family and his dreams were passed down to his son. Charlie was born on April 16th 1958 in the boxing heartland of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and began boxing at the tender age of 11.

Even as a kid, Charlie had style and panache and he carried that with him into the paid ranks. His pro debut was a stunning first round KO win over Wayne Dabney at the legendary Blue Horizon and seven months later, in November of 79, he stopped Jerry Strickland in two bringing his record to 7-0 with 6KO’s. A highly disputed points loss to Jose Gonzales didn’t dull his enthusiasm at all and he finished the year with a 3rd round KO of Elliot Freeman.

By the end of 1983, Charlie was a serious contender for a Lightweight title having won 22 of his 25 bouts with 16 of his wins coming by way of knockout. But there were warning lights that had flashed from time to time and this is where the Amir Khan comparison becomes evident. Brown scored a draw with the lightly regarded Greg Netter in February of that year but had to climb off the canvas twice in the last round. Seven months later he was stopped in four rounds by Curtis Harris, a mediocre fighter at best. Shades of Breidis Prescott in that Khan, like Brown, could throw leather as well as anyone but really needed to work on that defense. Regardless, Brown got his chance against IBF Lightweight Champ, Melvin Paul, on January 30th 1984 and he took it with both fists. In an extremely tight bout, Brown managed to out punch the champion and took the title on a split decision. Looking back on that moment many years later Charlie would say “I accomplished something not too many fighters get the chance to do. For that I am thankful”.

There was jubilation in Brewerytown but, alas, it was short lived. In his very next bout, Charlie would lose the title to the stylish Harry Arroyo in a bruising contest that would go 14 tough rounds before Brown would concede defeat. At this point, he was still a fine fighter but the weakness had been exposed. In throwing combinations and power punches, Brown would often leave himself badly exposed and that is captured perfectly in the bout with Boza-Edwards which you can find on Youtube.

As you will see, Charlie came out all guns blazing and simply left his guard down.

He retired in 1993 having lost his last 11 bouts with 8 of those by KO. Following an incredibly tight contest with the ultra tough Tyrone Crawley, where Brown lost out on a majority decision for the then vacant NABF Lightweight title, Charlie’s career just drifted into that Twilight Zone of ‘ what could have been’. Don’t let the numbers fool you, Charlie “Choo Choo” Brown was a class act who came with the kitchen sink and left with just the dishes. He was value for money every single time he laced up and he was champion of the world if only for a brief time.

On May 16th 2010, Charlie was inducted into the Pennsylvania Hall of Fame. The city, known for its fighting pedigree, paid respects to Brown with an honor he felt was overdue. “I think I should have been in earlier” he said “It’s what it is though. You take the bitter with the sweet”. Never wishing to be too far away from the game he loved, Charlie could often be found helping out young fighters at the 26th & Masters Street Gym in North Philly. “You want them to listen to you” said Brown “You don’t want a smart mouth. You want someone like me to tell you how serious you have to be if this is what you want to do”.

Looking back over his career, Charlie “Choo Choo” Brown showed that he still knew that people mattered more than money, a decency lost on many modern fighters. “I made nice money” he said “never top dollar but I did what I could. Everybody here knows me and it’s a good feeling. It’s good to say ‘people know that man did good with his life…he counted for something’. A lot of people don’t get the chance to reach their desires and, for that, I am fortunate”. On behalf of fight fans everywhere, thank you Charlie “Choo Choo” Brown.