Class of 2026 Part 2: How I voted for the International Boxing HOF
I'm a longtime elector and this year cast ballots in 5 categories: modern men, modern women, non-participants, observers and old-time
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For nearly 25 years I have had the great privilege of voting for the International Boxing Hall of Fame in various categories. I grew up about 90 minutes from Canastota, New York, the site of the HOF, and have visited the museum many times beginning when I was in high school.
When I had my first job as a sportswriter for the daily newspaper in Saratoga Spring, New York, in the early 1990s I would often have to drive to places like Syracuse or Rochester to cover a high school state playoff game in whatever sports season was going on and I would regularly build time into my travel schedule and stop at the HOF, which is right off the highway, to spend some time at the museum.
To go on to become an elector — the notion of which never crossed my mind in those days — is a tremendous honor and I look forward to receiving the ballots each fall. I also dread it.
It’s an honor because I get to be a small part of shaping the history of the great sport of boxing, to which I have dedicated almost all of my professional life, with my votes. But it is also a thankless task because there are hard choices that must be made. Often there are more worthy candidates than we are allowed to vote for and even fewer are elected.
I do the best that I can. I take it seriously. I do my homework. I review the candidates’ resumes. I sometimes seek opinions from those in the sport I respect. And I go by my own decades of experience covering boxing and knowing most of the people I vote for.
I sent my ballots back before the Oct. 31 deadline and on Thursday the results of the election for the class of 2026 will be announced. Induction weekend will take place June 11 to June 14 with the induction ceremonies scheduled for June 14 at Turning Stone Resort Casino in Verona, New York, which is about a 10-minute drive from the Hall of Fame grounds in Canastota. If you are a boxing fan, Hall of Fame weekend is a wonderful event and something that belongs on the bucket list of every fight fan.
In Part 1, I revealed my ballots and reasons for my votes in the modern men’s and modern women’s categories. Here, in Part 2, I will reveal how I voted in the three additional categories I cast ballots in: non-participants, observers and old-timers. See below for my detailed explanation of my votes and photos of my official ballots.
Non-participants
From the 29-person ballot, electors can vote for up to five candidates and the top three will be elected. This is always a tough category because it covers so many different roles in the sport, including trainers, promoters, matchmakers, referees, judges, publicists, ring announcers, cutmen, etc.
