Unlike the previous tweaks, which created the Observers category for writers, publishers, historians, artists, photographers, and screenwriters from the Non-Participant roots, this year’s changes are nothing short of cataclysmic. The modifications, according to Executive Director Ed Brophy, will result in a more modern ballot and voting process.
Before we get into the details of the revisions, here’s a quick rundown of what’s happened:
- The Pioneer category will be voted on every five years, rather than yearly, to coincide with the Hall’s anniversary years. As a result, the next Pioneer will not be inducted until June 2019, during the IBHOF’s 30th induction weekend. Only the highest vote-getter will be enshrined, as has been the practice in the past.
- The beginning year for the Modern category was shifted from 1943 to 1989, a Beamon-esque 45-year jump. Fighters on the previous Modern ballot whose last fight took place in 1988 or before were removed to create room for boxers who would not have made the ballot as swiftly under the old format. In addition, the number of nominations has been cut from 45 to 30, but there are now 20 first-timers, the most since the Hall’s inception. Finally, voters will be able to choose a maximum of five fighters, rather than the prior limit of ten, due to the narrower number of nominations. The top three vote-getters will be inducted, as in previous years.
- The Old Timers category saw the most significant adjustments. The Old-Timers’ cut-off date was extended from 1942 to 1988 to accommodate the vast movement of names formerly listed on the Modern Ballot. With nearly 80 names representing vastly different eras now in the mix, the Hall of Fame decided to divide the Old Timers into two groups: the “Early Era,” which includes fighters whose careers ended between 1893 and 1942, and the new “Late Era,” which includes fighters whose careers ended between 1943 and 1988. From year to year, the two ballots will rotate, with the 40 “Late Era” combatants getting first crack before the voters, who can choose up to five. Only the highest vote-getter will be elected, just as the Pioneers.
Note: As of today, Jimmy McLarnin, who was inducted into the Old Timer Hall of Fame in 1991 at the age of 84, is the only Old Timer honoree who has accepted his awards on stage. This new setting has the potential to raise the number of people on the list.
“This shift does three things primarily,” Brophy said. “One, it allows us to stay within the previously established time gaps (50 years for the original Old Timers ballot, 45 years for the ‘Late Era’ ballot and 26 for the new Modern Ballot, whose gap will grow with each passing year). Two, it allows the Modern category to be more contemporary and to allow more boxers who have already been retired five full years to be considered. And three, it allows us to keep the number of names on each ballot at a reasonable size. The changes are a tweaking, an adjustment of years, but the overall structure remains the same. I believe all this complements the process in a very nice way.”
If Brophy’s reasoning for the modifications could be summed up in a single sentiment, it would be that the passage of time had set the stage for the adjustments to be made.
“It’s been 25 years since the first induction class – it was felt that the ending year for the Old Timers class could be moved up,” he said. “As the years have passed it has become more evident that the changing of the years for the Old Timers and the Moderns would be a healthy adjustment to the system and to the overall election process. The year 1989 was chosen as the first year of the Modern era because it was first year that all the major sanctioning bodies shifted to 12-round championship fights.”
As in previous years, a floating pool of approximately 175 electors will vote on Modern enshrinees, which will include full members of the Boxing Writers Association of America as well as historians from Japan, England, Canada, Italy, South Africa, Germany, Mexico, Puerto Rico, and the United States.
Brophy had numerous alternatives with the extended list of Old Timers, but in the end, a divided, alternating ballot proved to be the most viable option.
“With the combination of names that were already on the Old Timers ballot and the new names moving over from the Moderns, the alternating yearly ballot made the most sense,” he said. “If we placed everyone on the same ballot, we’d have a boxer from the early 1900s competing with a boxer who last fought in the 1970s and 1980s. With the alternating ballot, it still allows the boxers to be elected in the Old Timer category but when the votes are cast they are voting on fighters who fought in the same era, which is a complement to the system.”
Despite the fact that these reforms were announced in a somewhat dramatic manner, the process that led to them was extremely deliberate.
“This adjustment of years has been talked about on a serious level for the past three years,” Brophy said. “With the 25th anniversary celebration concluding, it was felt that this would be the appropriate time to adjust the criteria, which, in the end, we felt was a natural fit. We felt very comfortable and very confident that this was the ideal time to make such adjustments. The previous voting process had worked well from 1990 until now and we feel the adjustments to the process will maintain that same level of credibility and fairness.”
While Brophy expects this new lineup to last a few years, he’s not ruling out the potential of more changes in the future, such as the Pioneers being phased out or the addition of female and amateur fighters to the category roster.
“The Pioneer category could eventually be concluded over time, but at this given time we anticipate the once-every-five-years election is appropriate and will continue for years to come,” he said. “(As for females and amateur categories) there are no changes to be made now, but all Hall of Fame criteria over the course of time always allows for consideration of amendments that would improve the process. We always welcome the opportunity to receive input and try as best we can to honor and preserve boxing’s history in the most appropriate way.”
The voting period will close on Oct. 31, and the Class of 2015 will be announced in the first week of December. The induction ceremony will take place on the grounds of the Hall of Fame in Canastota, New York, on June 14 at 2:30 p.m.
