Ever since I was a young kid I wanted to be the Heavyweight Champion of the World. That was quite an ambition for a young kid growing up poor in Pittsburgh, PA. Times were really tough when I was growing up. My dad, Eddie, Sr., always worked hard to provide for my siblings and me, but sometimes, it seemed like the harder he worked; the more difficult things were for us financially. I'm the oldest child in my family, so I didn't have the luxury of being spoiled rotten like my younger siblings (of course, they beg to differ :-) As our family grew, so did my responsibilities, and I had to help out at a very young age, not just with household chores like most kids (washing dishes, taking out the trash, cleaning my room, etc.), but also with helping to earn money for our household.

I attended Westinghouse High School in Pittsburgh, which is one of the city's sports powerhouses. You may have heard of it because a number of NFL and NBA players are graduates of the school. I dreamed of playing football and basketball there, but because of how tough things were for my family and how badly we needed money to feed me and my hungry siblings with their bottomless-pit stomachs, I had to work various odd jobs during high school to help support our family and to help pay our rent.

The fact that I couldn't play high school football or basketball didn't upset me though, because I had boxing in my blood, and boxing was a sport that I could practice and dream about being great at no matter what else I was doing or what else was going on in my life.

You see, my dad, Eddie, Sr., had been a boxer back in the 1970's, long before I was even an idea in his head, let alone before I was born. When I was about 9 years old, my dad started teaching me how to hold my hands, how to assume a boxing stance, and how to throw punches. I only weighed about 70 lbs. then, so who could ever have imagined that I would be eventually become a heavyweight? Once he got me started, I suppose that the boxing bug bit me and never let go. I used to wake up in the morning and I would shadow box in the mirror, practicing my punches while I was brushing my teeth getting ready for school. My dad had to holler at me on so many mornings, especially during those windy, bitter cold Pittsburgh winters, to say "get downstairs to get out that door!" so I would get to school on time. I would always be upstairs in front of that mirror practicing the punches he had taught me.

As I got a little older, about 12 years old, my dad would watch a lot of old boxing films and he would teach me about all of the great old fighters - Sugar Ray Robinson, Jack Johnson, Joe Louis, Jersey Joe Walcott, Muhammad Ali, Jake Lamotta, Rocky Marciano, and so many more. When I saw how great these legendary fighters were, I fell deeper and deeper in love with the sport of boxing. I saw how they were in tremendous physical condition, how they were gentlemanly and let their fists do the talking, and how they treated each other with respect and didn't do any trash talking, except for Ali, the Greatest of All Times, of course. I learned a lot from watching those old films and I was inspired by them. At around the same time, about age 12, I started begging my dad to let me box in competition. I begged and begged and begged, but he wouldn't let me box. He would always say "I just want you to know how to defend yourself, son, I didn't plan on you getting obsessed with boxing."

Well, too bad, Pops. I did get obsessed. And all of that begging paid off! When I turned 14 years old my dad finally told me that I could box in competition, so he enrolled me in the local Pittsburgh Golden Gloves tournament and, as they say, the rest is history. I won't bore you with all of the details, but let's just say that I had an excellent amateur career and record. I'll post my amateur record on the website a bit later.

Each week we're going to try to feature something new and exciting for the kids. Sometimes it will be a brain teaser to get 'em thinking, other times it will be an interview with a superstar. Other time it will be a tip to help them establish good habits and have discipline. I'm a spokesperson for the Partnership for a Drug Free America, so this section of my website will always feature an anti-drug message to help kids steer clear of using drugs.

I'm going to be preparing to take my driver's license exam soon, too, so look for some valuable safe driving info in this section soon. I'll let you in on a secret... I might be getting my driving lessons from an Indy race car driver or a NASCAR superstar! If I do, we'll have some great videos to post or to give away at schools around the country.

Wish me luck!

Coming Soon.