Heavyweight power-puncher Gerry Cooney will release his autobiography this summer, so reports RingTV.com, and it promises to be a good, interesting read. Cooney was a megastar back in the 1980s, his fight with heavyweight king Larry Holmes being a genuinely massive deal. Seen by many as a sure-thing to become champion himself, Cooney instead fell short, then fell into a battle with drink and drugs and, after a failed comeback in 1990 – when a 33 year old Cooney was KO’d in quite brutal fashion by the Comeback King himself, George Foreman – he retired.
However, quite amazingly, Cooney is STILL getting big-money offers to fight today, at the age of 62. As per the article over at RingTV.com, Cooney was recently offered well over a million bucks to fight in a pay-per-view event, against a “280 pound biker dude from New England.” The bout would have been a charity event with the proceeds going to Wounded Warriors.
“I got offered to make between one-and-a-half and four million for Wounded Warriors,” Cooney told Michael Woods. “(against) A street fighter, a tough guy, knocks everybody out.”
Cooney got as far as talking about the offer with his wife, who pretty much talked him out of it: “She said we don’t need the money but we need you,” he revealed. It really is astonishing that any fighter is being offered such big money to fight, even in an exhibition bout, at the age of 62! Cooney still works out regularly and he also spars guys much younger than himself. Still, it’s a good thing Gerry passed on this recent, quite crazy offer (his would-have-been opponent is 65 years old).
Cooney has plenty of other things to keep himself busy these days. There is talk of a screenplay in the works, Cooney does his charity work and he hosts, along with Randy Gordon, his radio show on Sirius XM.
Cooney left the fighting alone a long time ago and, with good health and his money well invested, the towering Irish/American is living, as he puts is, “a great life.” That book/movie promises to be entertaining stuff and there is no need for a closing chapter that tells the tale of Cooney climbing back into the ring at age 62.
Cooney’s big fights:
TKO 4 Jimmy Young, 1980
KO1 Ron Lyle, 1980
KO1 Ken Norton, 1981
TKO by 13 Larry Holmes, 1982
TKO by 5 Michael Spinks, 1987
KO by 2 George Foreman 1990
Final record: 28-3(24).