The thread about Boxing

Pedro45

I had to spend my youth watching fights on Sportsnight with Coleman, a day after they actually happened! I think I always knew the result, but loved watching anyway.  Our 'Enry (who I used to see walking in Chislehurst as I came home from school on the bus),  Jack Bodell, Billy Walker and Danny Mac were the heavyweights of thee day from UK, and Cassius Clay, Frazier, Floyd Patterson, and Jimmy Ellis after Liston retired from the US. 

I continued to follow boxing through the 70's and 80's, and loved Magri, Minter, Dave "Boy" Green, McGuigan, Sibson, Chris Finnegan, Kaylor and Christie, and Lloyd Honeyghan, who all had their time in the spotlight.

Then it was Bruno, Mason, and Lewis, plus Benn, Eubank, and Watson. Something was always going on. 

I enjoyed watching the Ingle fighters like Nelson, Naseem, and Bomber Graham.  Hatton was an animal in the ring but a beer swiller out. 

I've loved the last ten years, when we've had a chance at the heavyweights - whatever you think, Tyson Fury has been great fun, and add Haye, Joshua, Dubois, Whyte, and now Wardley and Itauma and it could continue?

iaitch

Didn't Laing have two fights with Colin Jones where he was boxing Jones head off for 7/8 rounds then Jones stuck one on him and game over.

Carter

Pedro45 said:

I had to spend my youth watching fights on Sportsnight with Coleman, a day after they actually happened! I think I always knew the result, but loved watching anyway.  Our 'Enry (who I used to see walking in Chislehurst as I came home from school on the bus),  Jack Bodell, Billy Walker and Danny Mac were the heavyweights of thee day from UK, and Cassius Clay, Frazier, Floyd Patterson, and Jimmy Ellis after Liston retired from the US. 

I continued to follow boxing through the 70's and 80's, and loved Magri, Minter, Dave "Boy" Green, McGuigan, Sibson, Chris Finnegan, Kaylor and Christie, and Lloyd Honeyghan, who all had their time in the spotlight.

Then it was Bruno, Mason, and Lewis, plus Benn, Eubank, and Watson. Something was always going on. 

I enjoyed watching the Ingle fighters like Nelson, Naseem, and Bomber Graham.  Hatton was an animal in the ring but a beer swiller out. 

I've loved the last ten years, when we've had a chance at the heavyweights - whatever you think, Tyson Fury has been great fun, and add Haye, Joshua, Dubois, Whyte, and now Wardley and Itauma and it could continue?

Really nice to read that journey through boxing, boxers and time 

My gripe with the last decade has been simply the fights don't happen between the best fighters. Out of Wilder, Fury and Joshua only 2 have fought one another and that was the same 2 3 times. 

blackpool72

iaitch said:

Didn't Laing have two fights with Colin Jones where he was boxing Jones head off for 7/8 rounds then Jones stuck one on him and game over.

Jones knocked him out both times in the 9th round. 
2nd fight was a lot closer than the 1st 

bobmunro

Pedro45 said:

I had to spend my youth watching fights on Sportsnight with Coleman, a day after they actually happened! I think I always knew the result, but loved watching anyway.  Our 'Enry (who I used to see walking in Chislehurst as I came home from school on the bus),  Jack Bodell, Billy Walker and Danny Mac were the heavyweights of thee day from UK, and Cassius Clay, Frazier, Floyd Patterson, and Jimmy Ellis after Liston retired from the US. 

I continued to follow boxing through the 70's and 80's, and loved Magri, Minter, Dave "Boy" Green, McGuigan, Sibson, Chris Finnegan, Kaylor and Christie, and Lloyd Honeyghan, who all had their time in the spotlight.

Then it was Bruno, Mason, and Lewis, plus Benn, Eubank, and Watson. Something was always going on. 

I enjoyed watching the Ingle fighters like Nelson, Naseem, and Bomber Graham.  Hatton was an animal in the ring but a beer swiller out. 

I've loved the last ten years, when we've had a chance at the heavyweights - whatever you think, Tyson Fury has been great fun, and add Haye, Joshua, Dubois, Whyte, and now Wardley and Itauma and it could continue?

Great post, @Pedro45

I used to go to a lot of boxing in the 70s/80s and had some great nights. I saw Magri win his world title (and lose it!), Dave 'Boy' Green when he beat Stracey and then lost to Palomino, Sibson a few times including when he beat a by then washed up Minter for the European title, and Maurice Hope.

Talking of Minter - saw him when he defended his title against Antuofermo and then his next fight against Hagler with a very ugly crowd. We were up in the Gods and could see full glass bottles of beer flying into the ring from the crowd, spinning like Katherine wheels! It was quite scary and thankfully the security protected Marvelous Marvin. Horrible night.

Couple of stories about the Minter/Hagler fight. There was a bar at the top of Wembley Arena and Chris Finnegan was holding court in there, absolutely off his face and it didn't help that he was already punch drunk by then. Happy to talk to anyone. I think that was also the fight where I was meant to get the tickets for me and my boxing buddy but thought he had got them. So I went up to Soho one lunchtime a couple of days before the fight to Mike Barratt's office. It was closed and I hung around outside waiting for someone to come back from lunch during which time I was accosted on a number of occasions by ladies of the night, although more accurately ladies of the lunchtime! About 2.00pm I saw Mike walking towards the door and just approached him as he arrived saying I was looking for a couple of tickets. He had no idea who I was but it didn't phase him at all. "Come on up, I'm sure I can sort you out". Went into his office and he opened his desk draw, took out a couple of tickets and I paid him cash - walking off very relieved that I'd managed to get them. Life was so much simpler back then!

I stopped going for years (got married, started a family etc...) always talked about boxing with my sons and then in 2011, for my birthday, my youngest bought tickets for the Groves/DeGale fight. The three of us went (their first live boxing) and since then we have been to most big fights in the UK (and Vegas for Mayweather/Pacquiao). My youngest is far more knowledgeable than me now on current and past fights - all the way back to when I first fell in love with the sport as a boy. 

Henry Irving

Anyone know about or interested in old copies of Boxing News and various boxing programmes.

Someone is moving house and has a load that they want to move on.

McBobbin

Howard Eastman! Id forgotten about him. He was great. Wish boxing was free for all to see. Lucky you can sometimes get boxing on 5 if you don't have sky, used to love watching "the big fight" on ITV back in the day with Jim Rosenthal a d Barry McGuigan.

CAFCsayer

Would have loved to have grown up watching Ali, Lennox etc. Take Charlton and England out of the equation boxing is easily my favourite sport. 

I love football and could, and do, sit and watch some absolute crap when there is nothing else on, as long as I can have a bet on it. Even then would probably still sit there scrolling on my phone. If there's any boxing on I'll sit there and actually watch it.

The talk of the early stoppage in the parker fight made me just rewatch gatti ward 1... those days were different, could have, and probably should have,  been stopped about 10 times!

Blackheathen

I’ve so enjoyed all the boxing chat.  I’m in awe to put it mildly.

my own experiences are limited.  Dad took me to see Our ‘Enery fight Joe Erskine and the scene of Joe stretched across the bottom rope was played on telly when tv were commemorating Cooper’s career when he died.

Can remember getting up to hear Dai Dower (Welsh flyweight) getting knocked out in the opening seconds v Pascual Perez in Argentina. And hiding under the sheets at school listening to a thrilling battle between Brian London (bulldozing in and leading with his chin) and eventually losing to the feather punching Willia Pastrano.  And of course hearing on the radio Henry putting Cassius Clay down and then having to wait while they repaired Clay’s globe which his trainer later admitted was a delaying tactic.  Memories.

Blackheathen

I forgot to mention Don Cockell’s gallant but rather hopeless attempt at attempting to unsettle Rocky Marciano.  Cl
earing out stuff to come to NZ I came across all the newspaper cuttings of the fight which I’d kept ((for some reason)