By Jim Amato

Note: I wrote this article several years ago. Alexis was one of my all time favorites. I'm shocked and deeply sad at the news of his passing. He was a true gentleman and a credit to the sport. May he rest in peace.

(RingSports.com) - One of the best pure punchers of my generation was Alexis Arguello. He was aptly nicknamed "The Explosive Thin Man." He was tall and rail thin, but his punch could stop an opponent dead in his tracks.

It's hard to believe that Alexis was stopped in the very first round of his pro debut in his native Managua, Nicaragua. He would rally to win three straight then lose again. Hardly the makings of a legend.

Alexis would reel off twenty straight wins before his next loss. Then came thirteen more victories including knockouts over Octavio Gomez and Jose Legra. This led to a shot at the WBA featherweight title in 1974. The champion was the talented Ernesto Marcel of Panama. Alexis lost a fifteen round decision.

ASC debut show July 31 at Icenter in Salem, New Hampshire

SALEM, New Hampshire (RingSports.com) – UFC pioneer Patrick Smith was there at the beginning and 16 years later the ageless wonder is still going strong as he prepares to fight another UFC veteran, super heavyweight Kevin “The Shaman” Jordan (11-8-0), in the Super Fight on American Steel Cagefighting’s (ASC) first professional mixed martial arts show, July 31 at the Icenter in Salem, New Hampshire.

Smith (16-13-0), now fighting out of Milburn, Oklahoma, was a UFC pioneer, losing a tough fight to Ken Shamrock in UFC1. He came back strong in UFC 2, winning three fights in a row, before eventually losing in the championship match to legendary Royce Gracie. Patrick’s most notable wins have been against Rudyard Moncayo in UFC6 and last year versus Eric “Butterbean” Esch.