A Boxing Memory: McGuigan vs. LaPorte Is this the man to stop Barry? The Boxing News headline that highlighted just how much of a threat Juan LaPorte was perceived to be to the seemingly unstoppable rise of Barry McGuigan. The acid test, the fighter to show us just how good McGuigan was. The answer was … Continue reading A Boxing Memory: McGuigan vs. LaPorte
The Seeds of Hagler vs Leonard Sugar Ray Leonard has described the previous two years as a blur. Drugs, alcohol and infidelity were his life. He couldn't resist the trappings of his fame. Leonard in retirement once again reverted to type. He couldn't escape his alter ego, 'Sugar Ray.' The latest retirement followed a comeback … Continue reading The Seeds of Hagler vs Leonard
A Boxing Memory: Buster Drayton Buster Drayton sadly passed away on November 20th 2022 aged 70. The dangerous big punching Philadelphia fighter came to prominence to British fight fans courtesy of consecutive stoppage victories over touted British hopefuls Jimmy Cable and Mark Kaylor in 1984. Drayton stopped Cable inside a round and followed that up … Continue reading A Boxing Memory: Buster Drayton
A Boxing Memory: Tyrell Biggs When the unbeaten former Olympic gold medalist Tyrell Biggs challenged the fearsome untouched Mike Tyson in 1987 for the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world, I told everyone who would listen that Biggs would beat Tyson. After seven largely one-sided rounds, everyone stopped listening. I was in truth on a … Continue reading A Boxing Memory: Tyrell Biggs
Frank Bruno vs Chuck Gardner: A Shabby Shambles By Garry WhiteHe looked like he should have been wearing a John Deere cap atop of his closely-shaven skull. You wouldn’t have been at all surprised to see the rouge tint of a truck drivers tan on his forearms, but instead he was mostly pasty white. The … Continue reading Frank Bruno vs Chuck Gardner: A Shabby Shambles
A Boxing Memory: Ken Norton Ken Norton is remembered for many things. He broke Muhammad Ali’s jaw on his way to an upset win in 1973. The trilogy with Ali ended with many thinking Norton was robbed of a deserved victory in 1976. The fight with Larry Holmes in 1978 is widely considered one of … Continue reading A Boxing Memory: Ken Norton
A Boxing Memory: Lewis vs. Tyson Boxing history is littered with fights that didn’t happen, or when they did, they happened too late to matter. A pale imitation of what they could have been. Add Lennox Lewis and Mike Tyson to the seemingly never-ending list of stories of when boxing failed itself. Early sparring sessions … Continue reading A Boxing Memory: Lewis vs Tyson
A Boxing Memory: Don Curry Don Curry stayed at welterweight for too long. In truth, he stayed in boxing too long, way past the point of no return, and he is paying a very huge price for refusing to let go of shattered dreams. Living his days since the gloves were belatedly hung up with … Continue reading A Boxing Memory: Don Curry
A Boxing Memory: Leon Spinks The upset win over Muhammad Ali in 1978 shocked the boxing world. The reigning Olympic champion was 24 and a mere novice as a professional. Only seven fights in, Leon Spinks was the supposed soft touch, the sacrificial lamb for an Ali who at 36, was more than slowly slipping … Continue reading A Boxing Memory: Leon Spinks
In Memory Of Alan Minter By Melanie Lloyd I interviewed Alan almost 20 years ago for my first volume of Sweet Fighting Man. We had so much fun that day, and I will never forget the waiters in the restaurant closing the doors at the end of the lunchtime session and allowing us to stay and … Continue reading In Memory Of Alan Minter
