After more than 50 years in the fight game, the final bell has sounded on Ron Rice’s boxing career.
The Sutton-based former featherweight, who enjoyed more than 50 pro fights before turning his hand to officiating and timekeeping, has called time on his ring days having been involved with the sport since he was a teenager.
Now 71, Rice is looking forward to living a quiet life away from the ring having seen boxing evolve dramatically since he made his pro debut in 1956 at the age of 18.
Having made an initial impression as an amateur at Polytechnic ABC, Rice was an energetic featherweight, a contender for the Southern Area title, though he never got to fight for it.
Hanging up his gloves in his mid-30s, he turned to refereeing, and became a prominent official on the London scene. Then, in 1975, he tried his hand at timekeeping, and eventually became a regular ringside presence at world title fights staged in England. During this time, Rice worked with British boxing greats Frank Bruno, Lennox Lewis, Chris Eubank, Nigel Benn, Joe Bugner and Alan Minter.
Having enjoyed more than 50 years on either side of the ropes, Rice’s love for the sport that gave him his livelihood is all too evident, especially as he recalls his early years.
“It all started with my uncle, really,” he said.
“His name was Ernie Rice and he was a European lightweight champion and was an inspiration to me in the early days. I got it from him. I took to it immediately and really enjoyed it and it went from there. I did lots of training, six days a week normally.
“Boxing now is without doubt a lot safer than it was back then. Now, you’ve got things like brain scans and everything’s a lot stricter. Back then, it was completely different.
“I never won any titles, but I got to fight all over the place. The Royal Albert Hall was the most famous place I boxed. Then, later, I officiated at Wembley and in world title fights, which was fantastic.”
Rice holds his years of service as a referee and timekeeper in higher regard than his career as a fighter, as he became involved in world title fights and was able to hob-nob with the best of British.
“I’d go down the gym and chat to guys involved in world title fights and train with them - working out with fighters involved in title fights was great,” he added.
“I didn’t have a favourite as such, they were all nice guys. Frank Bruno was a very nice chap, as was Joe Bugner. I liked them all.
“There were many highlights, and they are all incredible memories.
“To be honest, I liked timekeeping the most. You get the best seat in the house and you don’t have to pay for it. No one had a better seat in the house than me when I was timekeeper. You’re at the heart of the action, right in the middle of it all, and you have to keep your eyes on the fight throughout. There have been some great moments down the years - in one fight, I rang the bell and there wasn’t even a referee in the ring! That did not go down very well at the time.
“I will miss it, but I’m still involved, as my son Ray is a timekeeper, so I go along with him. He’s doing okay, and is a very good timekeeper. He’s done several world title fights. I’ve passed on advice to him from time to time.
“I won’t miss the day-to-day activity, because I’ll stay in touch with everyone. They’re all friends, and I’ll continue to see them at shows.”
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