Gerald McClellan..

[Master]

It was a huge fight on mainstream TV but most people thought that GMan was going to destroy Benn. G Man was the Tyson of the division.

No body thought McClellan was damaged goods until way after the fight, mainly they thought he had no plan B.

G Man had destroyed Julian Jackson and was being set up for a serious challenge for Roy Jones further down the line.

Benn was just out of this world that day and refused to lose.

[Fenster]

It's virtually impossible to compare back then to today as things are so, so different.

13 million TV viewers and massive newspaper coverage yet there was only a fraction of boxing on TV compared to now (live undercards were NEVER shown. Imagine that when we now complain about the quality of half-a-dozen undercard fights everyweek). It only had an 11,000 gate (would easily do 50,000 by todays standards) and the purses (GMan $200,000 / Benn $800,000) are shockingly low, considering the magnitude of the fight, compared with today.

However, it was a huge deal for boxing/sport fans. Far from being a "prospect" or "damaged goods," G-Man was P4P top 10, WBC middleweight champion (at a time when the WBO was still regarded as a fake title in this country), the most fearsome sparko artist on the planet and as Master said was being setup for the Roy Jones fight (GMan beat Roy in the Golden Gloves).

Benn was a bigger underdog, for anyone that "knew" anything about boxing, than those odds suggest. He had absolutely no chance of making it past three rounds (needless to say I did me dough, even though I love(d) Benn)

Greatest atmosphere i've ever seen a fight in. And that was in a bar with a dozen or so black blokes jumping on tables helping Benn comeback.

[Memphis]

No body thought McClellan was damaged goods until way after the fight, mainly they thought he had no plan B.

A bold statement

Just to be clear, when I say damaged goods I mean there's something seriously wrong with this fucker. Not this fucker has had one too many fights, one too many beatings (although that may still be true) and he's on the down slide.

Plenty of people thought he was damaged goods. There are loads of books, documentaries, you name it, all littered with people (some good judges, some regurgitating other peoples words) who are/were convinced he was fucked before the Benn fight. Some going so far as to saying he was brought over by people who knew full well how bad he was and wanted him punished.

You can take or leave any of those accounts, soundbites, whispers etc to be honest and just go with what you see with your own eyes. McClellan was struggling the moment round one ended and Benn fought back.