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Lost champ Warrior explores the life of Marvin Camel Warrior in the Ring Brian D'Ambrosio paperback, Riverbend 248 pages, $15.95
I'm old enough to recall the excitement that buzzed around Missoula when Ronan fighter Marvin Camel became the first American Indian to hold a world title in boxing. The fight went down in Las Vegas on March 31, 1980. Camel, the No. 1 contender, squared off against second ranked Mate Parlov. It was the second try for both fighters to become the first-ever champion of the newly created cruiserweight division. The two men had battled to a draw only a few months earlier in December 1979 in Parlov's native Yugoslavia, a fight many believed Camel won handily. Though I consider myself a fan of boxing, I'm not much of a dedicated follower of the sport, and I'm certainly no scholar. But I've often wondered what became of Camel.
Sadly, as Brian D'Ambrosio points out in his new biography, Warrior in the Ring, few people remember Camel's name and what he accomplished. The cruiserweight division-slotted between the light-heavyweight and heavyweight divisions-has never had much respect as a weight class. Its most famous champion was Evander Holyfield, who won the title on his way up in weight before ultimately claiming a champion's belt (and...