U.S. Coach Takes a Jab at Bray’s Technique : Boxing: Van Nuys heavyweight urged to be more aggressive in wake of his loss in quarterfinals of Goodwill Games.

SEATTLE —  The next time John Bray resorts to a duck-and-cover defense at the start of an international boxing bout, he might have to do the same in his corner between rounds.

Besides Bray’s opponent, a short, older gentleman with “USA” stitched on the back of his jacket just might take a few pokes at him too.

Joe Byrd, coach of the U. S. heavyweights in the Goodwill Games, said he considered roughing up Bray to prod a more inspired effort from the Van Nuys fighter during a quarterfinal loss Monday to West Germany’s Bert Teuchert.

“I didn’t want to embarrass myself,” Byrd said. “I should have slapped the hell out of him before the second round (to) make him mad.”

Instead, Byrd peppered Bray with verbal jabs not long after Teuchert had won the three-round bout by unanimous decision.

“I hate to say it, but we don’t have a strong heavyweight,” Byrd said late Monday night at the Seattle Center Coliseum. “The U. S. is kind of weak in that. Bray is Mr. Nice Guy. You can’t be nice in the ring.”

Earlier, Bray said his disposition had nothing to do with his loss.

Bray, 20, blamed inexperience and poor preparation. He had been ready for Teuchert’s aggressive, straight-ahead style.

But he didn’t expect it to come from a left-hander.

“I talked to guys who have been around for years who said he was right-handed,” Bray said. “(Teuchert) is no slouch. He’s been around. There’s no excuse why someone shouldn’t have told me.”

Responding to Bray’s comments Byrd, a longtime amateur trainer, unsuccessfully tried to muffle a laugh.

“You know, when a boxer loses, they’re going to have all kinds of excuses,” Byrd said. “In amateur boxing, you never know. We trained him for right- or left-handed. He might have been surprised when the bell rang and (Teuchert) came out left-handed, but he knows how to fight a left-hander.

“He just didn’t put the pressure on him. You have to make European boxers back up. They can’t box going back. He didn’t do that until the third round.”

Indeed, Bray, a notoriously slow starter, seemed content to let his 23-year-old opponent force the action in the opening two rounds.

Before the third, Byrd told Bray he was far behind and instructed him to “forget boxing and brawl.”

“I wasn’t given this information until the last round,” Bray said. “We figured that I was taller so I’d be able to use that to my advantage. But he was able to get inside of my punches so I just resorted to banging, which was a little bit better. I was starting to dominate the fight. I just wish I would have started a lot earlier.”

The result might have been the same. Even though Teuchert took an eight-count after Bray caught him with a left early in the third, the West German won every round, according to all five judges.

Bray said he didn’t think the bout was so lopsided, although he admitted he lost “to a slightly better fighter.”

“Maybe in the future, we’ll meet again,” Bray said.

Byrd didn’t sound overly optimistic about the likelihood of a next time.

“Bray has a good right hand. He can punch with the right, but he thinks too much,” Byrd said. “As long as you’re thinking about it, you’re not going to throw it. You’ll never see the opening to let it go. But he’s young. If he settles down and gets with some good coaches, he could be pretty decent.”

“Pretty decent” won’t be nearly good enough to win a gold medal in the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, a goal to which Bray aspires.

Olympic gold. Lucrative professional contract. Lifetime financial security. A boxer’s hat trick.

If only Bray could borrow a nasty streak for a couple of years.

“You can train a guy to be mean,” Byrd said. “That’s what’s got to happen to Bray. He’s got to learn that when the bell rings, you do whatever it takes to win.”

Bray lists his coach as Mike Salas of the Baldwin Park Boys’ Club, but he often has bounced around. In the spring he was training at the Ten Goose gym in Van Nuys. He also has worked with Lou Duva, another professional manager.

Some think Bray should consider beginning his professional career now.

Teuchert is a good boxer but no match for three-time world champion Felix Savon of Cuba, a clear-cut favorite for Olympic gold.

Could Bray possibly improve that much?

Byrd said the 6-foot-3, 195-pound Bray made great technical strides in the month he trained with the U. S. team at Ft. Huachuca, Ariz.

“When he first got there he was shy of getting hit; throwing his right hand too far back; feet not under his body so he can throw the right hand,” Byrd said.

After a few weeks, Byrd said, there was a marked improvement. During sparring, Bray knocked down German Williams, another touted amateur.

“You can work with him real easy. He’ll listen until he gets up here,” Byrd said. “Then he don’t listen. That’s the problem.”