John Francis Duddy (born 19 June 1979) is an Irish actor and former professional boxer who fought from 2003 to 2010. He challenged once for the vacant WBC Silver

middleweight Middleweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the middleweight division is contested above and up to . Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have be ...

title, losing in his final fight to Julio César Chávez Jr.Duddy goes down fighting
, 27 June 2010; retrieved 29 June 2010.

Amateur career

As an amateur Duddy fought 130 times, winning 100 of his bouts. Duddy won his first Irish national title at the age of 15 as a

Light Middleweight Light middleweight, also known as junior middleweight or super welterweight,PeBoxRec/ref> is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing The light middleweight division (also known as junior middleweight in the IBF or super welterweight in the WBA a ...

in the Junior Division, later winning Irish titles at the Intermediate and Elite Levels. He represented Ireland at European level and during Olympic qualifiers.

Professional career

Debut

Duddy turned professional September 2003, and his first fight as a pro was fight Tarek Rashed in the Bronx, New York. He won via first-round knockout. On 22 November, he stopped Jesse Gomez at the

Crowne Plaza hotel Crowne Plaza is a British multinational chain of full service, upscale hotels headquartered in the United Kingdom. It caters to business travelers and the meetings and conventions market. It forms part of the InterContinental Hotels Group family ...

. His next bout was also at the Crowne Plaza, where he beat Leo Laudat on 21 December but suffered his first knockdown.

Early professional fights

Duddy began 2004 by stepping up his opponent quality a notch, when he met Ken Hock on 9 January 2004 in

Uncasville, Connecticut Uncasville is an area in the town of Montville, Connecticut, United States. It is a village in southeastern Montville, at the mouth of the Oxoboxo River where it flows into the Thames River. The name is now applied more generally to all of the ...

. Hock had ten victories against four losses and one draw (tie) coming into his bout with Duddy. Hock became the first boxer to go more than one round against Duddy, but still lost by knockout to the Irish prospect in the fourth round. He then experienced his career's longest lay-off, waiting over nine months before his next bout. When he returned, he once again won by first-round knockout, defeating Victor Paz on 30 October at Middletown, New York. Duddy quickly returned to action after that fight, beating William Johnson on 18 November in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

. Duddy's last fight of 2004 came on 12 December at Brighton Beach, Brooklyn against the then undefeated Glen Dunnings. Dunnings became only the second boxer to go more than one round against Duddy, when he was knocked out in the fifth round. Duddy's first fight of 2005 came on 4 February, when he beat Chuck Orso in White Plains.

St Patrick's Day events

On 18 March, Duddy fought the undefeated prospect Leonard Pierre as part of an Irish themed "day after Saint Patrick's Day card". This undercard was televised in the United States on ESPN, with Duddy and Pierre fighting the semi-main event of the card, which was headlined by

heavyweight Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 3 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation, the W ...

Kevin McBride Kevin Martin McBride (born 10 May 1973) is an Irish former professional boxerMcB ...

, who later defeated

Mike Tyson Michael Gerard Tyson (born June 30, 1966) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1985 to 2005. Nicknamed "Iron Mike" and "Kid Dynamite" in his early career, and later known as "The Baddest Man on the Planet", Tyson is con ...

. Both the live crowd and the television announcers expected an early knockout in this fight, given that Pierre also had six first-round knockout wins. Duddy proceeded to drop Pierre twice before experienced referee Frank Cappuccino stopped the fight, giving Duddy his seventh first-round knockout, and his ninth consecutive knockout victory. On 11 June 2005, Duddy was up against Patrick Thompson in

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylv ...

. Thompson became the third boxer to last the first round, and both fighters boxed to a judge's decision. The score on all three cards was 80–72 in favor of Duddy, who extended his win streak to ten, while his knockout streak ended at nine. In his next eight fights, Duddy knocked out six opponents, including first round knock outs of both Joseph Brady (17 September 2005) and Shelby Pudwill (16 March 2006). On the undercard of 10 June 2006 Miguel Cotto– Paul Malignaggi Top Rank Pay-Per-View fight, Duddy took on the experienced fighter Alfredo Cuevas, who in 2004 went the 12 round distance with former

champion Jermain Taylor. It was Duddy's eighth fight in less than a year and his third at Madison Square Garden, but he showed no signs of fatigue, fighting Cuevas for 7 rounds before Cuevas retired on his stool with a broken nose and several deep cuts. His next fight came against Yori Boy Campas, again at Madison Square Garden. Against an opponent with ten times more professional experience, Duddy went the distance, winning in a unanimous decision after 12 rounds. On 16 March 2007, he beat Anthony Bonsante at Madison Square Garden. Duddy won with a unanimous 90–81, 89-82 and 88-83 decision when the fight was stopped after the ninth round by referee Steve Smoger, due to heavy bleeding from Bonsante's forehead caused by an earlier accidental headbutt.

Return to Ireland

On 14 July 2007, Duddy fought the first of his two scheduled fights in what has been billed as his ''"Homecoming"'' to Ireland. In his first at the National Stadium in Dublin, his opponent was Alessio Furlan. Duddy was ruled the winner by TKO with only 10 seconds to go in the 10th and final round. John then went on to defeat Prince Arron in 2 rounds on 20 October in Dublin's National Stadium. He fought Howard Eastman at the King's Hall in

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

on 8 December. The fight was expected to be his toughest to date. In front of 5,500 supporters, Duddy recorded a ten-round 96-94 points victory.

Loss to Lyell

On 24 April 2009, Duddy was beaten via ten-round split decision by Billy Lyell, a fighter with seven losses in his twenty-five fights.

Rebuilding

On 10 October 2009, Duddy made a successful return to the ring against Michi Munoz. Duddy won a unanimous decision. On 23 January 2010, he fought Juan Astorga in Madison Square Garden. He went on to win by way of TKO in the first round, giving Duddy his 18th KO. Duddy defeated Michael Medina of Monterrey, Mexico via a split decision on 13 March 2010, on the undercard of the Pacquaio/Clottey WBO Welterweight Championship. In his final fight he was unanimously outpointed by Julio César Chávez, Jr. in a fight in San Antonio on 26 June 2010.

Retirement from boxing

Duddy announced his retirement from boxing in a statement on 19 January 2011, after "a great deal of soul-searching". In the statement, Duddy cited a lack of desire, saying, "I no longer have the enthusiasm and willingness to make the sacrifices that are necessary to honor the craft of prizefighting", and stated that his decision is final, scuppering plans for an all-Irish showdown at

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against Andy Lee. Having concluded his boxing career, Duddy decided to enter the field of acting.

Acting career

Duddy pursued acting mainly in New York City, where the working class Irishman found an especially warm welcome among working class New Yorkers and Irish émigrés. Duddy landed roles in

short film A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...

web series A web series (also known as a web show) is a series of scripted or non-scripted online videos, generally in episodic form, released on the Internet, which first emerged in the late 1990s and became more prominent in the early 2000s. A single in ...

, and the

Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer th ...

stage. Duddy played the title character in the 2011 production of ''

Kid Shamrock ''Kid Shamrock'' is the Off Broadway play based on the life of former world rated boxer, "Irish" Bobby Cassidy. The story tells of Cassidy's struggle and subsequent triumph over alcohol. Cassidy lost a fight to Jorge Ahumada on the undercard o ...

'', Bobby Cassidy Jr.'s play based on the life of his father, American boxer "Irish"

Bobby Cassidy Bobby Cassidy, born April 19, 1944, is a former professional boxer who fought from 1963 to 1980. Although born and raised in New York, Cassidy is of Irish lineage and fought under the name, "Irish" Bobby Cassidy. Cassidy was a southpaw (left-hand ...

. In 2012, Duddy played the bartender in the Matt Glasson short film ''Hard Times'' and portrayed the character Mark Sullivan in the online series ''The Wronged One'' (2010-2012, 2016), a revenge-thriller based on a graphic novel. In ''The Wronged One'', Duddy's character appeared in an episode entitled "The Derry Destroyer" in honor of Duddy's boxing nickname. In January 2016, ''Latino Review'' reported ''The Wrong One'' had the attention of

IFC (U.S. TV network) IFC (formerly known as the Independent Film Channel) is an American basic cable channel owned by AMC Networks, originally launching in 1994 as a TV channel devoted to independent films. The Independent Film Channel originally operated as a com ...

, formerly the Independent Film Channel. IFC contemplated featuring the series on the channel's website. In 2013, Duddy worked in several media. Duddy played a boxer in the music video for the

Bon Jovi Bon Jovi is an American rock band formed in 1983 in Sayreville, New Jersey. It consists of singer Jon Bon Jovi, keyboardist David Bryan, drummer Tico Torres, guitarist Phil X, and bassist Hugh McDonald. Original bassist Alec John such qu ...

song " Because We Can," which debuted in January 2013. In the 2013 production o
''For Love'' by Laoisa Sexton
by Irish actress, Laoisa Sexto
Laoisa Sexton
s play about 3 single women in Dublin, Ireland and the men in their lives, Duddy portrayed all the male characters. Duddy's work in ''For Love'' won praise from ''

Backstage Backstage most commonly refers to backstage (theatre), also in motion picture and television production. Backstage may also refer to: Film and television * ''Back Stage'' (1969 film), a silent film starring Oliver Hardy * ''Back Stage'' (1942 fil ...

'' and ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

''. After the 9 March–April 5, 2013 run at New York City's

Irish Repertory Theatre The Irish Repertory Theatre is an Off Broadway theatre founded in 1988. History The Irish Repertory Theatre was founded by Ciarán O'Reilly and Charlotte Moore, which opened its doors in September 1988,http://www.nyc-arts.org/organizations/ ...

, Duddy continued with an Irish tour of ''For Love'' in Derry and Belfast in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label=Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is #Descriptions, variously described as ...

and Waterford, Dublin and Galway in the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. ...

. For the 2013 film '' Grudge Match'', Duddy helped

Robert De Niro Robert Anthony De Niro Jr. ( , ; born August 17, 1943) is an American actor. Known for his collaborations with Martin Scorsese, he is considered to be one of the best actors of his generation. De Niro is the recipient of various accolades ...

train for boxing sequences choreographed by Robert Sale, the film's boxing technical adviser. His work with Sale and De Niro on ''Grudge Match'' led to Duddy's casting in the

Roberto Durán Roberto Durán Samaniego (born June 16, 1951) is a Panamanian former professional boxer who competed from 1968 to 2001. He held world championships in four weight classes: lightweight, welterweight, light middleweight and middleweight, as ...

biopic A biographical film or biopic () is a film that dramatizes the life of a non-fictional or historically-based person or people. Such films show the life of a historical person and the central character's real name is used. They differ from docudr ...

'' Hands of Stone'' (2016). In September 2013, Sale called Duddy to suggest the actor accept the phone call he was about to get from an unfamiliar number. De Niro himself called to offer Duddy the role of legendary Scottish boxer Ken Buchanan after another actor withdrew from the part. Interviewed by American sports writer

Thomas Hauser Thomas C. Hauser (born February 27, 1946) is an American author known for his biographies and novels. Biography Hauser graduated from Columbia College in 1967 and Columbia Law School in 1970. He made his debut as a writer in 1978 with ''The ...

, Duddy recalled, "Filming ''Hands of Stone'' was an incredible experience."

Professional boxing record

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Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

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, align=left, , - align=center , Win , 27–1 , align=left, Michi Munoz , UD , , 8 , , , align=left, Madison Square Garden, New York,

, align=left, , - align=center , Loss , 26–1 , align=left,

Billy Lyell William Lyell (born August 10, 1984) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 2003 to 2013. He challenged for the IBF middleweight title in 2010. Amateur career In an interview with Peter Czymbor, Lyell stated that he had an ama ...

, SD , , 10 , , , align=left, Prudential Center, Newark,

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...

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Walid Smichet Walid Smichet (born 17 August 1979 in Tunisia) is a professional boxer based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, who is known as "''Tempete de Sable''" (''"The Sand Storm"''), Walid fought in the middleweight division and was renowned as a devasta ...

, MD , , 10 , 23 February 2008 , align=left, Madison Square Garden, New York,

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, align=left, , - align=center , Win , 22–0 , align=left, Prince Arron , TKO , , 2 , 2:33 , , , align=left, National Stadium, Dublin, Ireland , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 21–0 , align=left, Alessio Furlan , TKO , , 10 , 2:42 , , , align=left, National Stadium, Dublin, Ireland , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 20–0 , align=left, Dupre Strickland , UD, , 10 , , , align=left,

Beacon Theatre, New York The Beacon Theatre is an entertainment venue at 2124 Broadway, adjacent to the Hotel Beacon, on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1929, the Beacon Theatre was developed by Samuel "Roxy" Rothafel and built as a m ...

, align=left, , - align=center , Win , 19–0 , align=left, Anthony Bonsante , TD , , 9 , , , align=left, Madison Square Garden, New York,

, align=left, , - align=center , Win , 18–0 , align=left, Luis Ramon Campas , UD , , 12 , , , align=left, Madison Square Garden, New York,

, align=left, , - align=center , Win , 17–0 , align=left, Alfredo Cuevas , RTD , , 7 , , , , align=left, Madison Square Garden, New York,

, align=left, , - align=center , Win , 16–0 , align=left, Shelby Pudwill , TKO , , 1 , 1:51 , , , align=left, Madison Square Garden, New York,

, align=left, , - align=center , Win , 15–0 , align=left, Julio Jean , UD , , 10 , , , align=left, The Castle, Boston, Massachusetts , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 14–0 , align=left, Wilmer Mejia , TKO , , 4 , , , align=left, Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, Hollywood, Florida , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 13–0 , align=left, Bryon Mackie , TKO , , 4 , 1:32 , , , align=left, Hammerstein Ballroom, New York,

, align=left, , - align=center , Win , 12–0 , align=left, Joseph Brady , KO, , 1 , 1:01 , , , align=left, Dana Barros Sports Complex,

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, align=left, , - align=center , Win , 11–0 , align=left, Pat Coleman , TKO , , 8 , 2:30 , , , align=left,

Allstate Arena Allstate Arena is a multi-purpose arena in Rosemont, Illinois, United States. It is located near the intersection of Mannheim Road and Interstate 90, adjacent to the city limits of Chicago and O'Hare International Airport. The facility opened ...

Rosemont, Illinois Rosemont is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Located immediately northwest of Chicago, as of the 2010 census it had a population of 4,202. The village was incorporated in 1956, though it had been settled long before that. Whi ...

, align=left, , - align=center , Win , 10–0 , align=left, Patrick Thompson , UD , , 8 , , , align=left, Madison Square Garden, New York,

, align=left, , - align=center , Win , 9–0 , align=left, Lenord Pierre , TKO , , 1 , 1:23 , , , align=left, Foxwoods Resort, Mashantucket,

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the ...

, align=left, , - align=center , Win , 8–0 , align=left, Chuck Orso , KO , , 1 , 1:37 , , , align=left, Westchester County Center, White Plains,

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, align=left, , - align=center , Win , 5–0 , align=left, Victor Paz , TKO , , 1 , 2:04 , , , align=left, Orange County Fairgrounds, Middletown,

, align=left, , - align=center , Win , 4–0 , align=left, Ken Hock , TKO , , 4 , ?:?? , , , align=left, Mohegan Sun Casino, Uncasville,

, align=left, , - align=center , Win , 3–0 , align=left, Leo Laudat , TKO , , 1 , ?:?? , , , align=left, Crowne Plaza Hotel, New York,

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Personal life

Duddy married his long-time girlfriend Graínne Coll in 2009 in their native

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...

. One of Duddy's uncles, named Jackie Duddy, was one of the 14 people killed by British Army Paratroopers, during

Bloody Sunday Bloody Sunday may refer to: Historical events Canada * Bloody Sunday (1923), a day of police violence during a steelworkers' strike for union recognition in Sydney, Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia * Bloody Sunday (1938), police violence aga ...

References

External links

*
FightBeat.com
Interview with Duddy
Brickcityboxing
Interview with Duddy * {{DEFAULTSORT:Duddy, John 1979 births Living people Middleweight boxers Male boxers from Northern Ireland Sportspeople from Derry (city)