Will History Repeat, Twenty Years On?

In the early hours of June 5th, 2005, Kostya Tszyu will defend his IBF junior welterweight championship of the world against England’s Ricky Hatton at a venue yet to be determined. Three days later British boxing will mark the twentieth anniversary of one of its most memorable nights – the night at Loftus Road when a young featherweight named Barry McGuigan halted Eusebio Pedroza’s run of nineteen successful defenses to capture the WBA featherweight crown. Can Hatton match McGuigan’s feat? Aside from the significance of the dates, there is also an intriguing amount of similarities between these two match-ups.

Like Pedroza, Tszyu is a wily veteran, and has produced some of the best form of his career in recent years. Tszyu will be thirty-five when he meets Hatton; Pedroza was thirty-two when he faced McGuigan. Tszyu is riding the crest of a thirteen fight winning streak, across seven years, most of them against the cream of the 140-pound division. Pedroza, as stated, had notched up nineteen successful defenses, also across a span of seven years, since he won the title in April 1978. Both boxers, Tszyu a Russian born Australian, Pedroza a Panamanian, spent the majority of their careers fighting overseas. Both are experienced in dealing with undefeated fighters. Pedroza inflicted the first defeat on no less than six opponents, while Tszyu has done the same to five.

Perhaps the most startling similarities, however, lie between Ricky Hatton and Barry McGuigan. Stylistically, both men are swarming pressure fighters who like to hurt a man to the body. Both men have a very high punch output, and incredible stamina to maintain that volume all night. Both Hatton and McGuigan fought very rarely outside the United Kingdom, and both boasted excellent records before their title challenges. Hatton is undefeated, McGuigan had one blemish, losing his third pro contest to Peter Eubank (a defeat later avenged). Hatton is, and McGuigan was, regarded of something as a folk hero by those that pay to see him fight. It could be argued that only Frank Bruno managed to instill the same kind of fervor in the British boxing public as these two men.

McGuigan had only beaten two undefeated fighters prior to his tilt at the title, Hatton has beaten only one (Tommy Peacock – hardly a feather in his cap). McGuigan used to enter the ring to a heartfelt rendition of “Danny Boy,” sung by his father. Hatton likes to use “Blue Moon,” an ode to his favorite football team, Manchester City. Hatton will be twenty-six when he fights Tszyu, McGuigan was twenty-five when he fought Pedroza.

So what happened on the balmy London night twenty years ago?

McGuigan started slowly, but by the third round was starting to have his way with the champion. In round seven, McGuigan took a sizeable lead when he floored the Panamanian and hurt him visibly. Miraculously, Pedroza won the next round, but it was his last hurrah, as McGuigan poured on the pressure. The champion seemed to almost age before your eyes as he withstood wave after wave. In the end, it was only his heart that kept him on his feet, and McGuigan emerged victorious with a unanimous points decision after fifteen high-tempo rounds.

What will happen when the “new millennium” McGuigan-Pedroza happens?

We’ve only got six months to wait…

Greig Johnston can be reached at levibillups@yahoo.com