Boxing History

Boxing history articles

The Comeback Kings: Seven greats who made it all the way back

The Comeback Kings: Seven greats who made it all the way back

Comeback: “a return by a well-known person, especially an entertainer or sports player, to the activity in which they had formerly been successful”

7. Sugar Ray Robinson.

Sugar Ray had more than earned the accolade as the finest boxer in history pound-for pound, as a welterweight and a middleweight. But Ray wanted more. He moved up to light heavyweight and in June of 1952 challenged Joey Maxim for his world title. Robinson was way ahead on the scorecards, but going into the latter rounds of the fight – fought under a temperature of 104 degrees – Robinson hit the wall. He was suffering from heat prostration and had to quit on his stool at the end of thirteen rounds. Sugar Ray announced his retirement afterwards. It stuck for two and a half years.

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When the “O” goes – fighters who were never the same after losing for the first time

When the “O” goes – fighters who were never the same after losing for the first time

Some fighters, be they at the start of their career, at the middle or even coming towards the end, come back stronger after suffering their very first defeat, while other fighters are never, ever the same again after tasting the pain of losing.

Great fighters such as Muhammad Ali, Sugar Ray Robinson, Thomas Hearns, Roberto Duran, Sugar Ray Leonard, Bernard Hopkins and James Toney have over the years proven how there is so much more than holding an unbeaten record in boxing; each legend returning from a loss with a vengeance. However, some fighters, a number of them closing in on greatness at the time, were all but finished, at least compared to what they had been, after losing their “O,” their prefect record.

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Happy Birthday, Evander Holyfield – “The Real Deal” hits 55 today

Happy Birthday, Evander Holyfield - “The Real Deal” hits 55 today

Today a successful, if still young promoter, all time cruiserweight and heavyweight great Evander Holyfield celebrates his 55th birthday today. Now long retired, the only four-time heavyweight ruler is busy with his new venture, even though, as good a shape as he has kept himself since retiring, Evander still looks like he could fight.

But what on earth would there be left for this living legend to achieve!

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30 years ago today: Mike Tyson KO’s Tyrell Biggs – Tyson’s peak performance?

30 years ago today: Mike Tyson KO's Tyrell Biggs - Tyson's peak performance?

Thirty long years ago today, a peak, or near-peak “Iron” Mike Tyson retained his heavyweight titles with a quite ruthless, nasty display of utter dominance. Tyson met a fighter he disliked in Tyrell Biggs and what was seen by some as a possible test for Tyson turned out to be something of a massacre.

Though Biggs, then unbeaten and having captured attention due to his winning of the 1984 Olympic gold medal up at super-heavyweight, had a decent opening round in which he used his height, his speed and his educated left jab to good effect, Biggs was doomed as soon as he signed the contract. Tyson disliked his 15-0 challenger – so jealous was he of him due to his own failure to make the team for Los Angeles in ’84 – and how it showed.

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Twenty years ago today: The great Joe Calzaghe begins his reign of dominance with tough decision win over Chris Eubank

Twenty years ago today: The great Joe Calzaghe begins his reign of dominance with tough decision win over Chris Eubank

Exactly twenty years ago today in Sheffield, England, a great fight saw a great fighter crowned as world champion for the first time. It was on October 11 in 1997 when Welsh legend Joe Calzaghe met Chris Eubank in a battle to decide the vacant WBO super-middleweight title (Steve Collins, who had dethroned Eubank to take the belt had retired, thus vacating the strap).

Eubank, a love him or hate him figure of British boxing, was coming towards the end of his own superb career, while the unbeaten “Pride of Wales,” at age 25 the younger man by seven years, was approaching his prime. What’s more, Calzaghe was approaching an absolutely stupendous run as a truly dominant word champion – one who would never, ever taste a single defeat.

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Living legend Thomas Hearns saddened to see old Kronk gym destroyed by fire

Living legend Thomas Hearns saddened to see old Kronk gym destroyed by fire

Once a cauldron of activity, a building that housed a boxing gym that saw such special talent as Thomas Hearns, Hilmer Kenty, Milton McCrory and other future world champions hone their craft under the tutelage of the late Emanuel Steward, the old Detroit Kronk gym was sadly destroyed by fire over the weekend.

Police in Detroit strongly suspect arson and the building, which closed in 2006, is now mere debris. An investigation is now underway.

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Ricky Hatton, Vitali Klitschko, Ivan Calderon, Erik Morales, Winky Wright all added to Hall Of Fame ballot for 2018

Ricky Hatton, Vitali Klitschko, Ivan Calderon, Erik Morales, Winky Wright all added to Hall Of Fame ballot for 2018

The ballot sheets are out for the 2018 Hall of Fame, with voters having to make the agonising decision of picking just five fighters from the list of 32 – with just three of these fighters going through.

This, as ESPN writer Dan Rafael explains, means two of the above new additions on the ballot – Hatton, Klitshko, Calderon, Morales, Wright – will be left out. Each of the above five fighters is absolutely deserving of being enshrined at Canastota, and as Rafael says in a tweet, it will be “brutal” making his decision this year.

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