By KEITH GRANT
A boxer in his youth, Roth was no stranger to the famous Gleason's Gym in Brooklyn. But despite its storied history, it's unlikely the gym has seen many people like Roth, who on Feb. 28 returned to the ring ... at age 66.
A half-century past his youth on the streets of the Bronx, where his mom taught him that "If anyone hits you, hit him back," Roth may have been an unlikely entry at Gleason's "White Collar Boxing" night, but he was ready for it. He was already a regular at Cannon Kickboxing on West Park Avenue. When the Long Beach man saw a special on television on Gleason's "White Collar Boxing" nights for true amateurs, he told Cannon owner Chris Wagner, himself a world kickboxing champ, that he wanted to fight again.
On Feb. 20, Wagner called Roth and told him, "Al, I booked you a fight." Roth asked him when. "Next week!" he was told.
"Once we got the call, he said 'OK!'" Wagner recalled. "I said, 'Really?' He said yeah, he was ready to go."
Roth and Wagner quickly got to work. "He hit me hard," Roth said of his sparring sessions with the kickboxing champ. "But I was ready."
On Feb. 28, Roth's friends and family packed Gleason's for the Bronx native's first entry into the ring after 40 years. There was just one glitch: Roth's opponent didn't show up. So instead he was paired against the only other fighter in his weight class -- who was 33.
"Chris told me I could back out if I wanted to," Roth said. "I said 'I've got 20 people here. Even if I get knocked out, I've got to go through with this.'"
As quick as their training for the fight had been, even quicker was how Roth and Wagner changed Roth's style for the bout. Rather than stand and fight -- which wouldn't work well against a younger, quicker boxer -- they decided that Roth would take the fight to the youngster. Sure enough, all through three exhausting two-minute rounds, Roth moved toward his opponent, backing him into a corner numerous times each round to cheers of "Come on, Al!" from the crowd.
Though Roth took a few hard punches, when the final bell sounded he was still standing toe to toe with his opponent.
"It feels terrific!" Roth said of returning to the ring. Why did he do it, he was asked? "When we get to 60, everyone wants us to go fishing," he replied. "We don't have to do those things!"
Roth suffers from sciatica and high cholesterol and is a diabetic. But he refuses to complain, and doesn't think anyone else should, either. "Don't tell me about your aches and pains," he said. "If you want to run the boardwalk, go do it. If you want to swim the English Channel ... I don't care how long it takes you, go do it. If you let your aches and pains matter, you'd better get your papers in order."
"He's a great guy," Wagner said of his elder pupil. "I wish half the guys I have had his determination."
Since his bout, Roth has gotten numerous challenges, including one from a 75-year-old judge. Roth turned him down. But he fully expects to be in the ring again. "I'd do it again," he says. "It's in me."
