Hipp Hops Back Into The Ring Thoughts Of Foreman Fuel Yakima Heavyweight’s Drive

“A titular heavyweight champ named Bruce Seldon performed surgery on the eye of one Joe Hipp, a tub of guts who allowed himself to be battered & bloodied for almost 10 rounds before being sent on his way.” - R.D. Heldenfels, Knight-Ridder

“Seldon, the WBA heavyweight champion, stopped a pathetically slow, obese Joe Hipp.” - Steve Bisheff, Orange County Register

And you thought “Cable Guy” got panned.

The reviews of Joe Hipp’s August 1995 loss to Bruce Seldon, on the undercard of the Mike Tyson-Peter McNeely fiasco, weren’t good for Joe Hipp.

Until you hear Joe Hipp’s review.

“I was in great shape, or it wouldn’t even have gone 10 rounds,” said Hipp, who returns from a seven-month ring hiatus to fight A.J. Moore on Wednesday night at 7:30 at the Coeur d’Alene Tribal Bingo/Casino in Worley.

A win Wednesday and another in early August in Sequim, Wash., will land Hipp a potential $400,000 payday against George Foreman in September in Seattle, according to Hipp’s manager, Roland Jankelson.

Poor strategy was the root cause of his loss to Seldon, not conditioning or his then-233-pound frame, said Hipp, of Yakima.

“If we ever did fight again, which is possible, I wouldn’t be backing up at all,” Hipp said. “I’d completely go after him.”

And of the harsh words of the boxing writers?

“That would bother anybody,” he said, “but I’ll just go out and prove them wrong again. I do write down the names of those guys who write bad things because when the good times come, they’re trying to be your best friend.”

The bottom line is, he gives an all-out effort every fight, he said. “And that’s why boxing people like me.”

In a sport made up of countless arrogant braggarts who use their tongues almost as much as their jabs, the 33-year-old Hipp seems different.

He’s calm, soft-spoken. The only time excitement enters his voice (outside of his response to the critical reviews) is when he details fishing ventures on the Yakima River with his wife, Barbara, or swimming with his 10-year-old twin daughters. Barbara hasn’t missed any of Hipp’s 35 pro fights.

He comes off as a normal guy, normal interests, normal life - except the boxing part, of course.

“I’m in it to make my goals and make a good life for my kids,” Hipp said.

“The only anger I get is when I go into the dressing room and get on my fight face and I think, ‘This guy has taken a couple months away from my kids and he’s going to have to pay for that.”’

Hipp and Jankelson admit changes were necessary following the Seldon fight. One of Hipp’s trainers was let go, in part because he urged a strategy to box Seldon, a suspect tactic against a fighter whose strengths are foot speed and an early-arriving jab.

And Hipp is on a low-fat diet. He has a list of foods he can consume and those he needs to stay away from.

Hipp, who weighed as much as 290 before returning to training three months ago, will be roughly 240 on Wednesday.

“Joe doesn’t have a Charles Atlas body and that’s an understatement,” Jankelson said. “He’s not a highly defined, muscular body, but he’s a very powerful man. There have always been innuendos that you can’t be a world-class heavyweight unless you have the classically defined physique. Joe could train a thousand years and not look that way.”

So maybe it’s not Hipp to be square in boxing, but it can be effective.

“I’d go to war against anybody who describes him as slow-handed or slow-footed,” Jankelson said.

Hipp’s age (33) would appear to be more of a factor than his weight.

“The layoff was good for me because my body really did heal up,” Hipp said. “I want to (box) a couple more years, max. The Foreman fight will be an excellent fight for me, then maybe one or two more and I’ll get out of this business.

“I’m coming back strong. I’m more focused. I just need to get back in and get my timing and conditioning back.”

If that happens, the reviews will take care of themselves.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: 2 Color Photos

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: FROM THE HIPP Resume of Joe Hipp (31-4): Jan. 4, 1991: KO’d Mike Cohen in 4th round to win World Boxing Federation Intercontinental title. Feb. 26, 1991: TKO’d David Bey in 7th round of TV fight. June 27, 1992: TKO’d by Tommy Morrison in 9th on ABC Wide World of Sports, despite breaking Morrison’s jaw. April 3, 1993: 10-round decision over Kevin Ford on national TV despite breaking hand in 1st round. March 1, 1994: 12-round decision over Alex Garcia for North American Boxing Federation championship. Aug. 19, 1995: TKO’d by World Boxing Association champion Bruce Seldon in 10th round.