A Boxing Memory: Frank Bruno vs. James ‘Bonecrusher’ Smith

A Boxing Memory: Frank Bruno vs. James ‘Bonecrusher’ Smith

It was 1984, and the long dark winter months were fading away as hopes rose that we finally had a heavyweight to end a near century of abject misery and failure on the world stage. Frank Bruno was our great new hope. In truth, our best ever hope. A British heavyweight champion of the world would soon be a reality, was very much the story of the day. We hadn’t had one since Bob Fitzsimmons in 1899, even that claim was a little tenuous, to say the least. The narrative was being pushed heavily that Bruno would do what the likes of Don Cockell, Henry Cooper, Brian London, Joe Bugner, and others couldn’t do.

Bruno had the size, physique, and the punch to make everyone believe he was indeed the mould breaker. All the signs were more than promising. Bruno was unbeaten in twenty-one fights, all inside the distance, only Floyd ‘Jumbo’ Cummings threatened to expose Bruno. One big right hand from the ex-con towards the end of the opening round of their fight in 1983 froze Bruno to the spot. He fell into the arms of Terry Lawless. If Cummings had detonated that right hand any earlier, the Bruno myth would have been exposed right there and then. Make no mistake, the bell saved Bruno from certain defeat.

But as Bruno slowly recovered his senses and the Bruno chant echoed around the old arena, the stamina of the heavily muscled import rapidly dwindled. Bruno rescued his night in the 7th round. It was a warning sign, but the big man had survived his first real scare as a professional. But in May the following year, Bruno wouldn’t be so fortunate.

Another American James ‘Bonecrusher’ Smith headed to London with little fanfare, the perceived next victim for Bruno who was already on the verge of earning a shot at the heavyweight championship of the world. Smith lost his professional debut against James Broad in 1981 but had strung together thirteen wins since that underwhelming start to his professional journey. Smith had given up his job as a prison guard to focus on his boxing career. The former two-weight world champion Emile Griffith was in his corner, and ambitions were high that Smith could force his way into the world heavyweight title picture himself. Beating Bruno would do exactly that. Unlike all of Bruno’s previous opponents, Smith came over with real ambitions of his own.

The night hadn’t started well for the Lawless stable when Mark Kaylor suffered a stunning upset when another big punching American Buster Drayton stopped him. Bruno admitted post-fight that Kaylor’s defeat had affected him.

Bruno and Smith fought on a Sunday night at the Wembley Arena. The old cynic I am now is a far cry from the naivety and innocence of my youth. I was emotionally all in on the Bruno story. There was no live TV or radio coverage of the fight. As the afternoon gave way to evening, I was glued to the radio, listening to every BBC news segment, akin to the repetitive refreshing of a mobile phone in the modern era. Teletext was our Twitter. There was no news of the fight. Every half hour, I tuned in, hoping for an update and relief from my nervousness. Looking back, I probably sensed subconsciously that Smith was different from any other previous Bruno opponent. I had never done that for any previous Bruno fight. Why was this fight making me so nervous? Eventually, I would have my answer.

My heart sank as the news finally broke. Bruno had lost. A 10th and final round stoppage that shattered a dream. Bruno, a mile ahead on points, was caught by Smith, and this time, Bruno didn’t survive. ‘Bonecrusher’ did what Cummings couldn’t.

One big left hook caught Bruno, and yet again, the British heavyweight was frozen in time. All those early knockout victories hadn’t taught him the art of survival. Bruno was visibly hurt, and with the Lawless fighter now a stationary open target, hands down, propped up against the ropes, Smith unleashed an avalanche of punches that eventually resulted in Bruno crumbling to the canvas.

Harry Carpenter on BBC commentary duties declared the Bruno story was over. It wasn’t. But Carpenter could be forgiven. It looked as though it was.

“I’m not crying or making excuses – he beat me. But don’t worry, I’ll be back. Every great fighter, including Joe Frazier and even Ali, have been stopped in their time.” Bruno said after his crushing defeat. His words offered hope, but they seemed misplaced. Deluded even.

“I hit him with a hook followed by a right, and then I just kept throwing punches. I was surprised he stopped moving in the last round. I figured he would move off the ropes. It was the toughest fight I’ve ever had. I would like to meet him again – why not for the world title.” A jubilant Smith said after his career-changing come-from-behind victory.

Despite constant rumours of a return meeting, they would never meet again, Bruno never got his chance at revenge. But after multiple disappointments in attempts at winning the world heavyweight title, at the fourth time of asking, Bruno finally had his moment. Very much a story of perseverance.

Smith also needed resilience. The win over Bruno earned Smith a shot at Larry Holmes for the IBF heavyweight title. Holmes won inside the distance, but Smith more than had his moments. After the fight with Holmes, Smith suffered defeats to the likes of Tim Witherspoon, Marvis Frazier and Tony Tubbs before he came in at short notice and sensationally stopped Witherspoon inside a round to win the WBA heavyweight title. Witherspoon claimed he threw the fight. Another story for another day.