Punch-Out!! The Rise of Little Mac
I know boxing like the back of my hand. I know how to throw a punch, take a punch, I know it all. Well, at least I used to. Not to say I couldn't handle myself in the ring nowadays, but the 50's were different times. I was one of the great African American heavyweight champions of my time… but age makes fools of us all. Ah, I seem to have gotten ahead of myself and you don't even know who I am. The name's Jerome Louis, better known as Doc Louis. Of course those closest to me just call me "Doc".
You may be wondering what's up with all this reminiscing. Well boxing has always been close to my heart, but after my retirement it all seemed to fade away. The cheering of the crowds and the feeling of admiration from the fans all seemed to end that day. Maybe that's why I jumped at the opportunity to hear it one more time. I thought I'd never be able to relive those glory days again because I thought nobody remembered them… until he showed up.
Part 1: Train me, Doc!
Back in the 80's I was working part-time time as a trainer to make ends meet at this old gym I fixed up in the Bronx. Times were tough back then. People could barely afford food on their tables so I don't know why I thought anyone would care about training to become a boxer. But I did manage to get a few rookies under my belt who paid up front which kept my bills paid for a while. Unfortunately none of them stuck with the program and called it quits before they even got a chance to learn the basics.
Things looked pretty hopeless. After a few weeks without any customers I was finally ready to close up shop permanently. I left the gym and padlocked the door, keeping the key in my pocket. I looked upon the outside of the old building, shook my head and sighed, "I need a drink". I stared down at the last few dollars in my hand and figured things couldn't get any worse so I started my long walk away from the gym and over to the local bar.
When I arrived at the bar everyone looked as strapped for cash as I was. I suppose they were all there to drink away their misery as well. I ordered a single beer which was all I could afford. There was sports on the small, grainy, black & white TV, and in the corner was a tiny boxing ring, probably the last thing I wanted to see. People would place bets on no-named fighters and the winner would get $200. It was a nightly thing, but I never bothered to place any bets, how could I with no cash to start with? I tried my best to ignore the upcoming fight and stared into my drink.
A man with a microphone and a small index card started to announce the next fighters. "Gentlemen," he said, seeing as how no ladies were ever present. "We've got two new boxers who are ready to prove their worth for your viewing pleasure." I turned my head to the ring as he continued. "In the red corner, weighing in at 255 lbs, give it up for Nathan "Powerhouse" Powers!!" A muscular looking man climbed into the ring and threw his arms up as if he'd already won. The crowd began to clap and holler. He had an arrogant smirk on his face as if he were the best. I couldn't stand folks like that.
"Now in the blue corner, weighing in at 98 lbs, and at only 17 he's our youngest fighter to date, let's hear it for Baby Mac!!" I was surprised to see a young boy climb into the ring. He was in good shape for his age but didn't look like he could stand up against the opponent they pitted against him. I decided to watch the fight after seeing the kid. He had a hopeful look in his eyes, a determination I hadn't seen in years. I moved closer to the ring as others crowded around to see if the underdog would pull off a win.
The bell rang and the two stood face to face. Powers was the first to throw a punch, going for a quick left jab. To everyone's surprise Mac quickly moved aside, dodging the punch and responding with his own left jab and quick right uppercut to Powers' jaw. Mac's movements were smooth as if he'd been a professional his whole life. He read every punch as if he'd known about it in advance. The fight went on for several minutes without Powers getting a single hit until the bell rang and ended the round. If Mac didn't knock him out he'd certainly win by decision if he kept this up.
As the second round started nobody could look away from the ring. Mac continued racking up hits with Powers unable to read the oncoming attacks. Unfortunately for Mac, Powers managed to determine one punch before it was thrown. He moved aside and Mac stumbled forward as Powers lowered his fist, gearing up for an uppercut. Before Mac was able to recoup from his mistake, Powers gave everything he had into one single punch that connected directly into Mac's jaw. The force of the uppercut sent Mac into a daze, leaving him against the ropes until he finally fell.
The ref began to count down as Mac struggled to get up. I even found myself cheering him on with the other bar patrons. Mac grabbed the roped with his gloves but by the time he managed to plant one foot on the ground the countdown reached zero. Just like that, it was over. Mac pulled himself up as Powers bragged to the crowd. I'd never seen anyone look so disappointed in themselves as Mac did that day. I said under my breath, "don't let it get to ya, son".
I went back to the bar to finally finish the drink I had started and head home for the night. I got ready to leave when I looked to my side only to see Mac sitting on the stool next to me. His jaw was in bad shape and he let out a sigh. The bartender asked him, "anything I can get for ya, Mac?" The kid just stared at the bar and said, "ice…". A moment passed and I couldn't decide if I should say anything to him. He looked like he had the weight of the world on his shoulders. I thought I'd at least make an effort. "Hell of a fight, kid." He looked at me for a second, then back at the bar. "Yeah…." I continued, "y'know for someone your age you sure got some moves". He stared silently without saying a word. I could see trying to make him feel better was out of the question.
As the bartender handed Mac ice for his jaw I tried one more time to cheer him up. "They say boxing is fighting backed by technique… I think you proved--" I was abruptly cut off by the sound of Mac slamming his fists down in the bar. He gritted his teeth and closed his eyes. "Damn it! That fight meant everything!"
"Well, I'm sure there'll be other fights, son."
Mac looked at me sternly, "I don't care about the match, I needed that $200!"
"I-I'm sorry."
"Now what am I going to do? I… have nowhere to live now."
It was painfully clear now that the money was for his rent. I knew that feeling too well. "Well, son" I said, "I can relate to your money trouble".
"Look I don't want any sympathy, it was my fault I lost the fight because I didn't stay focused." I looked back at him and stood up out of my seat. "Now listen here, Mac!" I said. "I've boxed for twenty long years of my life and I haven't seen focus like yours since I retired. That hit was a fluke, we both know that." The kid looked stunned, maybe because I yelled or maybe he didn't believe I used to be a boxer.
I sat back down and neither of us said anything for a moment. Mac finally asked, "why do you care so much anyway?"
"Because I was like you once. I remember how that first defeat felt.
"Yeah… This wasn't exactly my first defeat. In fact I've been trying to find a trainer for a while now but I keep getting turned down."
That last statement shocked me. Why would anyone turn the kid down, because of his age? Mac went on, "I've seen about 200 trainers now and none of them wanted to accept me," Right then and there it clicked in my head. I always believed that everything happened for a reason, but for this kid to be turned down by 200 trainers only to meet up with me in a run-down bar… That's a coincidence if I've ever heard one.
I stood up and got ready to leave but continued talking to Mac as I did. "Listen, Mac. I'll be willing to teach you everything I know if you're willing to give it everything you've got." Mac looked a little puzzled, "sure, but…".
"But what?"
"I've still got nowhere to go right now…"
I put my hand on his shoulder. "You let me worry about that. It's like I said, son, I'm in the same position you are right now. In fact I just closed up my gym permanently because I hadn't had anybody come in for some time."
"S-so you're an ACTUAL boxing trainer?"
"That's right." I smiled. "Name's Jerome Louis."
"Jerome… Louis. Wait! Former heavyweight champion Jerome Louis?"
My jaw dropped. "You remember me?"
"Of course! You were one of the greatest fighters of the 50's! The only boxer to ever last 3 rounds with Mr. Sandman!" It was unbelievable. The kid really knew who I was. It was like every memory of my past came flooding back in an instant.
As Mac and I left the bar the frosty New York winds picked up. We walked along as Mac asked, "so where do we start?" I chuckled. "You let me worry about that. We continued until we ended up back at my gym. I took the key out of my pocket and unlocked the door, happy to know I didn't have to abandon the place. I looked at Mac as I opened the door to the gym. When he walked in his eyes lit up at the sight of it. The equipment, the indoor ring I had installed. He knew he would finally get the training he needed.
I knew if I trained this kid right we'd be able to make some money winning fights. I saw this as my golden opportunity to not only relive my glory days but maybe make a new champ out of him too. He certainly had potential in the ring. After checking out all of the equipment, Mac turned to me and said the one thing that stayed with me for years, "make me the best, Mr. Louis". I smiled back at him, folded my arms and said, "call me Doc."
Author's Note: I'm baaaack! Now before anyone who's subscribed to me gets on my case about starting a new story and not finishing Super Mario Bros. Origins let me explain myself. There are many reasons as to why I haven't written another part to it yet. A lot things have been going on in my personal life and after some time I ended up forgetting that I even started it. I've also had some serious creativity blockage with the Mario series so I took a little break from it. Please be patient and I promise I'll finish it!
Now regarding this new story I have so many reasons why I started a story based on Punch-Out!! I've been a fan of the series since I was a kid, and this site barely seems to have any stories based in this universe. Most of all this story is my own little commemoration to celebrate the release of the new entry on the Wii. I plan on writing new parts every few days or maybe less and I'm tying to keep the story as true to the original (which is rather obscure to begin with) as possible. I hope I've succeeded in breathing some new life to this legendary franchise and I'm looking forward to continuing this story in the future. Thanks for reading, guys!