Dicky Eklund

Dicky Eklund
Eklund in 2010
Born	Richard Eklund Jr. (1957-05-03) May 3, 1957 (age 66) Lowell, Massachusetts, U.S.
Nationality	American
Other names	Dicky The Pride of Lowell
Statistics
Weight(s)	Welterweight
Height	5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Reach	70 in (178 cm)
Stance	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	29
Wins	19
Wins by KO	4
Losses	10

Richard Eklund Jr. (born May 3, 1957) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1975 to 1985. Known as "The Pride of Lowell", he held the USA New England welterweight title twice between 1979 and 1983.^[1] He is the half-brother and former trainer of former WBU champion Micky Ward.^[2] The 2010 biopic The Fighter is based on the two brothers' fall and rise to the boxing title.

Boxing career[edit]

After an amateur boxing career of 200 bouts, winning 194, Eklund turned professional on August 26, 1975. After losing his debut by 6-round decision to Joe DeFayette, Eklund won 10 straight fights; defeating such opponents as Doug Romano, Terry Rondeau, Carlos Garcia, Randy Milton, and Mike Michaud.^[3]

He fought professionally as Dick Eklund; "Dicky" was a nickname used by his family and friends. Before his 1978 match with future world boxing champion Sugar Ray Leonard, Eklund's most impressive victory was over undefeated Rufus Miller (6–0–1) in 1976.

Eklund's most notable fight was on July 18, 1978, against Sugar Ray Leonard at the Hynes Memorial Auditorium in Boston, Massachusetts. He went the distance against Leonard, who eventually won the fight by unanimous decision. During the fight, Eklund was knocked down twice. In the ninth round, the fighters got wrapped up and Leonard tripped, which was counted as a trip by the referee. In the film The Fighter, Eklund claims to have knocked down Leonard in their match. While the film acknowledges the slip, a video of the fight shows a punch/push and Leonard falling to the canvas on his back. The official verdict by the referee Tommy Rawson was a slip. In an interview regarding the knockdown, Leonard said, "I slipped."^[4]

Eklund's fastest victory was a first-round knockout over C.J. Faison in Montreal, Canada on February 10, 1981.^[5] According to the 1983 Ring Record Book, Eklund knocked out Canada's Allan Clarke in 9 rounds on August 25, 1981. Clarke's record was listed by the Ring as 21–4–1. On October 25, 1983, Eklund defeated James Lucas to win the USA New England Welterweight Title. Following a rematch victory over Lucas in 1985, Eklund never fought again.

Eklund's fighting career spanned 10 years from 1975 to 1985, during which he compiled a professional career record of 19 wins, including four by knockout, and 10 losses.^[6]

After Eklund's fighting career ended, he became the trainer of his half-brother, noted former boxer Micky Ward. Eklund was Ward's full-time trainer for 26 fights, from Ward's professional debut in 1985 until his first retirement in 1991. Three of Ward's post-retirement fights were voted fight of the year by The Ring. Eklund served as Ward's trainer until his second retirement, after his third fight with Arturo Gatti on June 7, 2003. Ward's biography, written by Bob Halloran and titled Irish Thunder: The Hard Life and Times of Micky Ward, discusses much of Eklund's life and career.

Eklund now works as a personal trainer and boxing coach in New England. He also travels the United States with Micky Ward, giving motivational speeches to college students.

Personal life[edit]

Paramount Pictures' 2010 drama The Fighter chronicles the rise of Eklund's younger half-brother Micky Ward. Directed by David O. Russell, the film stars Christian Bale as Eklund and Mark Wahlberg as Ward. At the 2011 Screen Actors Guild Awards, Eklund made a surprise appearance on stage with Christian Bale as the latter accepted the award for Outstanding Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Eklund. Bale also won a Golden Globe and an Academy Award for his performance. During his Academy Award acceptance speech, he thanked Eklund and Ward, who were in the audience.^[7]

Eklund was also featured on the HBO documentary High on Crack Street: Lost Lives in Lowell which showed his fall from boxing grace because of his addiction to crack cocaine. In the documentary, Eklund was sentenced to a long prison term for crimes he committed to feed his crack addiction.

Professional boxing record[edit]

No.	Result	Record	Opponent	Type	Round, time	Date	Location	Notes
29	Win	19–10	James Lucas	UD	10	May 30, 1985	Cumberland County Civic Center, Portland, Maine, U.S.
28	Win	18–10	James Lucas	SD	12	October 25, 1983	Cumberland County Civic Center, Portland, Maine, U.S.	Won USA New England welterweight title
27	Loss	17–10	Reggie Miller	UD	10	September 22, 1983	Lake Charles, Louisiana, U.S.
26	Win	17–9	Terry Crawley	SD	10	August 11, 1983	Yarmouth, Massachusetts
25	Loss	16–9	Robert Sawyer	UD	12	September 16, 1982	Sands Casino Hotel, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S.	For ESPN welterweight title
24	Win	16–8	Jeff Passero	MD	8	July 31, 1982	Ballys Place Hotel Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S
23	Win	15–8	Cesar Guzman	PTS	8	July 14, 1982	Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
22	Loss	14–8	Kevin Howard	SD	10	January 7, 1982	Sands Casino Hotel, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S.
21	Loss	14–7	Chris Clarke	SD	10	October 27, 1981	Halifax Metro Center, Halifax, Canada
20	Win	14–6	Allen Clarke	KO	9 (10)	August 25, 1981	Halifax Metro Center, Halifax, Canada
19	Win	13–6	C.J. Faison	KO	1 (8), 2:58	February 10, 1981	Paul Sauvé Arena, Montreal, Canada
18	Loss	12–6	Fernando Fernandez	SD	10	June 20, 1980	Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
17	Loss	12–5	Dave Boy Green	PTS	10	December 4, 1979	Empire Pool, London, England
16	Win	12–4	Fernando Fernandez	PTS	10	August 18, 1979	Lowell, Massachusetts, U.S.	Won USA New England welterweight title
15	Loss	11–4	Sugar Ray Leonard	UD	10	July 18, 1978	Hynes Auditorium, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
14	Loss	11–3	Willie Rodriguez	SD	8	March 4, 1978	Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
13	Win	11–2	Al Cruz	KO	5 (6), 1:50	January 16, 1978	Waltham, Massachusetts, U.S.
12	Loss	10–2	Erkki Meronen	PTS	6	February 24, 1977	Østerbro Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark
11	Win	10–1	Rufus Miller	UD	8	October 30, 1976	East Hartford High School, East Hartford, U.S.
10	Win	9–1	Mike Michaud	SD	8	September 20, 1976	Golden Banana Club, Peabody, Massachusetts, U.S.
9	Win	8–1	Randy Milton	UD	6	June 24, 1976	Oakdale Theatre, Wallingford, Connecticut, U.S.
8	Win	7–1	Jose Carlos Garcia	UD	6	April 26, 1976	Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
7	Win	6–1	Charlie Benjamin	PTS	6	February 21, 1976	Waterbury, Connecticut, U.S.
6	Win	5–1	Terry Rondeau	PTS	6	January 31, 1976	State Armory, Waterbury, Connecticut, U.S.
5	Win	4–1	Jose Papo Melendez	UD	4	December 20, 1975	Hynes Auditorium, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
4	Win	3–1	Avelino Dos Reis	KO	3 (6)	November 21, 1975	Providence, Rhode Island, U.S.
3	Win	2–1	Eddie Hudson	UD	4	November 6, 1975	Portland, Maine, U.S.
2	Win	1–1	Doug Romano	UD	4	September 30, 1975	Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
1	Loss	0–1	Joe DeFayette	SD	6	August 26, 1975	Sargent Field, New Bedford, Massachusetts, U.S.

See also[edit]

• Notable boxing families

References[edit]

External links[edit]

• Dicky Eklund at IMDb
• Boxing record for Dicky Eklund from BoxRec (registration required)