Boxing Bios
The camera rolls and the highlight clip begins. It shows a young, undefeated but green Marvis Frazier dancing while taunting heavyweight champion Larry Holmes. In the blink of an eye Holmes unloads a right hand sucker shot that sends Marvis backward and into a sprawled position on the canvas. Marvis showing he is a true…
It was to be the last time the incomparable Muhammad Ali would ever successfully defend the heavyweight championship. It would be held in boxing’s most famous arena, Madison Square Garden. It would also feature Ohio’s most popular heavyweight of the last quarter of a century,
What do you say about a fighter who was good enough to challenge for world title recognition in two different weight classes? What do you say about a fighter who holds knockout victories over former world champion and hall of famers Carl ‘Bobo’ Olsen and Bob Foster? In all he met six world titleholders. He…
He came from a fighting family and by the time his boxing career ended in 1971 he was the most beloved British boxer of all time. Only once did he challenge for the world’s title, but he dominated the British heavyweight scene for over fifteen years. His popularity soared even more after retirement and eventually…
In 1881, following the assassination of Czar Alexander the second, the Russian Government started an anti-Semitic drive restricting Jewish rights and sponsoring attacks on their people. This led to mass emigration to the USA, Britain and countries within the British Empire with the majority of these uneducated exiles settling close to where their ships docked….
We all know boxing is great, and one of the reasons is, it is as a sport totally unique. And for all the massive advantages this “uniqueness’ gives the sport, there are some draw backs. One of the saddest is we often see our heroes of yesteryear destroyed in front of us. Saturday night in…
The Cat Nigel Benn, Naseem Hamed, Chris Eubank?, hell you might even get a Lennox Lewis in there, all the above are plausible answers when asking who was the most exciting British fighter of the last decade? A name that wouldn’t get too many mentions (at least not amongst Joe public) would be Carl Adrian…
“There’s no way I could ever beat him. He’s just too big and too strong. I’m just glad he didn’t kill me. He’s a magnificent fighter.†The words of a drug free; free thinking; lucid speaking Mike Tyson; after the bout with Lewis. High praise indeed from a fighter who despite massive flaws; knows his…
KEN NORTON – SHOULD HE REALLY BE IN THE HALL OF FAME? Seven and a half years ago the very personable and popular Ken Norton was enshrined in Boxing’s Hall of Fame. It couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy. I met Ken a couple of years ago in Canastota. His rapport with the fans…
For most of the 1960’s and part of the early 1970’s Canadian George Chuvalo was a mainstay in the talent rich heavyweight ratings. RING Magazine founder Nat Fleischer called George on of the most durable fighters he had ever seen. In his long distinguished career the rock jawed Chuvalo was NEVER off his feet. Amazing…
30th of September 1995, as far as I’m concerned it all started to go down hill from there. Naseem Hamed had just relieved Steve Robinson of the WBO featherweight title and should have been on the road to being a boxing legend, but as we all know it didn’t work out entirely to plan. A…
THE FORGOTTEN GREAT WHITE HOPE As Muhammad Ali ruled the heavyweight division in the mid 60’s, white hope contenders came and went. Henry Cooper, George Chuvalo and Karl Mildenberger all were vanquished by the “Greatest”. When Ali was forced to relinquish his crown in 1967, the best of the white contenders was probably Jerry Quarry….