YESTERDAY marked 12 years since Wayne `Big Truck’ Braithwaite pummeled Italian Vincenzo Cantatore inside ten rounds to win the vacant World Boxing Council cruiserweight title. Then a burly stone- fisted 27-year-old, Braithwaite attacked the hapless Cantatore with every punch in the book, excluding rum and fruit punch, to which referee Jose Garcia would allow no more punishment and called a halt to the fight with 54 seconds left in the 10th round.
The victory earned Guyana its second world title following Andrew `Six Head’ Lewis’ seventh round dismantling of James Page in February 2001 that earned him the right to wear the World Boxing Association welterweight belt.
Braithwaite would have three successful defence of the title before running into Frenchman Jean Marc Mormeck who proved too tough for the previously undefeated Guyanese who lost by a unanimous points decision.
That was in April 2005. Five months later Braithwaite would suffer his second lost. What was expected to be a walk in the park against opponent Guillermo Jones turned out to be an almost fatal accident on the highway.
With the Guyanese being roughed up by the Panamanian Jones, referee Jimmy Vilers was of the opinion that he saw too much and waved it off at two minutes and 26 seconds of the fourth round. From there the Guyanese would lose four of his next seven fights – one being a shocking and equally embarrassing first round knockout at the hands of Barbados’ Shawn Cox in February, 2012.
The fight was staged at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall and was his first at home since he walloped Wayne Harris in July 1998 at the same venue. However, now at the ripe age of 39 the Plaisance born is still on the hunt for glory.
He was scheduled to step back into the ring last month in the USA but plans for that fight fell through but another bout is in the making. Braithwaite is not planning to hang up his glove just yet and is hoping that his tank has enough fuel to take him to another world title.
In the strange world of boxing where Bernard Hopkins and George Foreman won titles way past age 40, Braithwaite may be still in the race.