Professional sports have their obvious rewards, ranging from money to fame. But for one local fighter, the boxing ring holds sport’s richest jewel – redemption.
Amateur middleweight Dave Osticco has fought his way out of outside-the-ring trouble to post an impressive 7-1 record with five knockouts, including last week’s upset victory over Nigerian middleweight Dennis Mbaatyo at the Jim Davidson Theater of the Performing Arts in Pembroke Pines.
“He stands out like a diamond in the rough,” said Tommy Torino, a local promoter, who hopes to eventually sign Osticco to a professional contract. “He’s a very marketable fighter, a good looking Italian kid whose wade-in, rock-em-sock-em style is made for TV.”
But less than a year ago, this future “made-for-TV” star was immersed in what Osticco calls “the wrong crowd, dabbling in the wrong things.”
His troubles – which included a 30-day jail stay – culminated in his stabbing just two days before the state finals of the Golden Gloves in his native Pennsylvania.
Osticco still carries the scar – in his back and chest – from a double-edged boot knife, the 6-inch piece of steel that collapsed one of his lungs and laid him up in a hospital for nearly two weeks.
“Things happen for a reason. I want to believe that. Before all my trouble, I wasn’t really that serious, and I wasn’t dedicated,” he said. “But now I look at boxing as the best thing in my life. I know it already did me the biggest favor in the world.”
He spent three months recuperating from the April 1994 stabbing before going back to the Hollywood PAL, a thriving boxing gym in North Hollywood that he first visited in 1992.
“When I came back down to Florida, I wanted to box – that’s it,” said Osticco, who had $100 left when he made it to South Florida.
He traded in late-night partying for late-night training. He routinely runs 4-5 miles after getting off his midnight shift at the Seminole Bingo and Casino in Hollywood. And his free time consists of hitting the speed bag and sparring at the PAL.
So now, after months of hard work and clean living, Osticco enjoys his own niche in a successful gym that has produced numerous local champions, including Eugene Mack and Daryl Pinckney, and has hosted such boxing greats as Larry Holmes and Hector “Macho” Camacho.
“At the early part of his career, I think he took a lot for granted, but he’s more serious now. He’s got a good career ahead of him,” said Pinckney, one of the PAL’s premier fighters – a professional and the current National Boxing Association junior featherweight champion.
And while some will always consider boxing a brutal, crippling sport, the sport can lead kids off the street and into the gym.
“Let’s face it – I don’t get my [boxing) prospects from the priesthood,” said Torino, whose promotions include monthly fights at the Jim Davidson Theater. “But what separates David is the amount of character he’s shown in turning his life around.”
But Osticco, 24, realizes his window of opportunity will not remain open forever and that any move he makes in the sport will have to come within the next few years.
“I want to do something with my life before it gets too late. Boxing has given me that shot,” said Osticco, a native of Pittstown, a small coal mining town in northeast Pennsylvania.
His coach said his style reflects his working class background.
“He’s not real cute, he just hammers you. He’s one of our least complicated fighters in that way, a real blue-collar throwback,” said PAL coach David Marks, who has been boxing and coaching internationally since 1958.
Along with promoters and fellow fighters, Marks sees Osticco as a gutsy, strong fighter who may eventually make his mark on the professional boxing landscape.
But Osticco, a tough Italian kid whose hero is Rocky Marciano, is already happy for what boxing has given him – a fresh outlook and a new lease on life.
“Turning professional is my goal but if that doesn’t happen, I’ll still appreciate what boxing has done for me. It has taken me from where I was and opened up a lot of doors,” he said.
