Nevada Boxing Hall of Fame returns with biggest weekend yet

The COVID-19 pandemic may have displaced the Nevada Boxing Hall of Fame’s museum from the Boulevard Mall Las Vegas — and delayed the induction of its 2020 and 2021 classes. But it didn’t deter founder Rich Marotta or president Michelle Corrales-Lewis from preparing for this particular weekend, perhaps the most important in the hall’s 10-year history.

“We postponed with the promise that we’d return this year with the biggest (weekend) ever,” Marotta said. “And that’s what it’s turned into.”

The hall is celebrating and honoring 27 former boxers and boxing contributors this weekend at Resorts World Las Vegas with its first gala since 2019. Honorees comprise the 2020, 2021 and 2022 classes and include unbeaten five-division champion and local resident Floyd Mayweather, four-weight world champion Roy Jones Jr. and unbeaten two-weight world champion Andre Ward.

Festivities include a ticketed meet-and-greet Friday and induction ceremony and dinner Saturday.

“We’re here to give these guys one more round,” said Corrales-Lewis, widow of the late two-weight world champion Diego Corrales. “In my mind, when we’re honoring these champions and they’re able to walk that red carpet and they’re able to feel like they’re at the Grammys of boxing, they’re able to get one more round.”

A veteran sportscaster, Marotta founded the Nevada Boxing Hall of Fame in 2013 as an independent, non-profit organization that commemorates the sport’s importance to the state.

Inductees ranged beyond those typically considered for induction in the International Boxing Hall of Fame and were honored annually with a dinner as Marotta and his team amassed enough donated memorabilia to open a museum inside the mall.

But the coronavirus halted some of the momentum and forced its displacement, relegating the artifacts to storage units.

The induction ceremony in 2020 was postponed — as was the one in 2021 after weeks of deliberation. Corrales-Lewis said she didn’t think at the time that it was worth the risk, shifting her focus instead to 2022 and this weekend.

Other venues besides Resorts World Las Vegas were considered, but she ultimately decided that a location on the Strip would add some pizzazz for the legends and fans commuting to Las Vegas.

Booking was finalized in April and an announcement followed in May, allowing Corrales-Lewis the summer to finalize the logistics.

“It’s perfect because it’s new,” Corrales-Lewis said. “It’s us being able to come together, honor the sport that they love, be there with the fans that love them and make this a staple so people know we exist.”

Corrales-Lewis and Marotta are both optimistic that the Nevada Boxing Hall of Fame can reboot its museum with a location on the Strip akin to the Pinball Hall of Fame.

But the gala this weekend was their first priority.

The Nevada Boxing Hall of Fame’s logo has flashed all week across the marquee outside Resorts World, serving as visual validation for their perseverance amid the pandemic.

“It’s challenging,” Corrales-Lewis said, “but it’s iconic for what we can deliver the fans.”

Contact Sam Gordon at sgordon@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BySamGordon on Twitter.