NIAGARA FALLS — The sun was shining brightly, beaming through the windows and onto the face of a smiling James Ventry as he sat relaxed on a boxing stool this past week.

That kind of rosy scene, though, is a far cry from the three-plus dark years that the Niagara Falls boxer spent in federal prison after being convicted of witness tampering charges in June 2003.

Then again this is boxing, a sport that seems to forgive and forget more than any other. And Ventry has used that chance at redemption to his full advantage, restarting his climb up the ladder in the light welterweight division.

“I’m totally focused on boxing now,” Ventry said.

Still, it’s hard to forget where he’s been.



From the ring to the can

Boxing was always Ventry’s first love, from when he first dabbled with the sport in his teenage years to when he finally began to take it seriously in his late 20s. After fighting about 20 amateur fights under Niagara Falls trainer Ray Casal, the duo decided it was time to turn to the professional ranks in October 2002.

Ventry made his pro debut against Michael N’Goran at HSBC Arena on the undercard of one of many bouts that Town of Tonawanda heavyweight Baby Joe Mesi held in the Queen City. Ventry knocked his opponent out in the opening round.

A few months later Ventry got his second win, but it would be his last win for over four years. Despite being acquitted of all charges related to a 1996 robbery, Ventry was found guilty of witness tampering, thus triggering a four-year prison sentence.



Life in prison

Ventry was now situated in a remote cell in Ohio, hundreds of miles away from family, friends and his home ring in the Cataract City.

“Boxing was something that I daydreamed about daily,” Ventry confessed, while adding that he was often also bored, depressed and angry.

The only physical activity allowed was jogging, although Ventry admits that on occasion a few of the inmates would sneak some hand pads in to practice their punches.

Dave Ventry, James’ brother, said when he visited, his message to his younger sibling was simple: “Tough it out.”

Then as those remaining years turned into months, the elder Ventry, who had recently opened Thunder Boxing Club, began to conjure up big plans for his little brother.

“I told him I wanted to finish the second half of his career together,” Dave said.

But James wasn’t quite sure if, at the age of 33, he was physically and mentally prepared to enter the ring again.



Back to his true passion

It took some deep soul searching, but upon his release from prison in December 2006, James began to get that itch and eventually took his brother up on his offer — even going so far as to commit to the sport full-time.

Dave was thrilled with his brother’s decision.

“It was great knowing that I was going to get a chance to work with him and get him back into the ring,” Dave said.

At the same time, though, there was plenty of work ahead. James hadn’t fought in more than three years and had put on weight while in prison. And after the training, there was the task of finding the right fight for a guy that admittedly had “quite a bit of rust” to shake off.

Then on just over a week’s notice, James signed on to fight Rochester’s Darnell Jiles. He lost that bout and three of his first four back in the ring.

Was his career over or was it still that rust?



A ‘great opportunity’ comes along

At times, James was struggling to answer that question himself. But then almost like a sign, he received an e-mail from California boxing promoter Christian Printup, a Niagara Falls native, asking if he’d be willing to come west to fight.

“It was a great opportunity that I couldn’t pass up,” James said. “That really helped motivate me again.”

Printup put James on a card for a tryout of sorts in December 2007 and what he saw, he liked. In fact, the promoter liked it so much, he decided to sign James to a contract that calls for him to fight about once every two months.

James is 3-0-1 since signing with Printup and currently sits at a very respectable 6-4-1 for his career.

“I’m very happy with where I’m at right now,” James said.



The future is still bright

With everyone so thrilled with James’ progress, the next few bouts have become that much more important in terms of his future potential in the light welterweight division. James is scheduled to fight Octavio Navarez, one of the most accomplished opponents he’s ever met, Thursday at the Tachi Palace in California.

“The next couple fights will tell me where I’m at with boxing and what type of economics are in my future,” James said.

Dave added, “He’s got to win the next couple or nobody is ever going to take him seriously. If he does that, his record will be very respectable.”

And more importantly, James will likely be given a shot at a regional title — one of his ultimate goals, now at the age of 35.

“I don’t know how long I’ll keep doing this, so it’s kind of on a fight-by-fight basis, but … I’d like to get at least one title shot before it’s all over.”

But if that doesn’t happen, he’s not worried, because he’s already received the best gift that boxing can give — a second chance.

Contact reporter Nate Beutel at 282-2311, ext. 2262.