Time Tunnel: Benn vs. McClellan - The Silenced Classic

By Kenny Giles

20.08 - Saturday, February 25, 1995 was one of those rare nights when a British fighter (not to be confused with half-Canadian heavyweights) took on the best America had to offer in his division, on home ground. In this case it was Nigel Benn (then 39-2-1) defending his WBC Super-Middleweight crown against Gerald "G-Man" McClellan (then 31-2). Although Benn was the reigning champion the bookies made him a 3/1 shot to win the fight and McClellan the 1/3 hot favourite with most of the smart money backing an early McClellan KO.

At 3/1 many punters probably thought they'd hit the jackpot with home favourite and knockout specialist Benn confident against a challenger who most fans had never even heard of. However, the bookies had done their homework. McClellan was the former WBO/WBC Middleweight champion and had voluntarily given up these belts to step up a weight, presumably chasing the prospect of more lucrative fights. Don King had already labelled his man a "miniature Mike Tyson" and it was clear to see why from some of his past performances. Benn, to his credit, knew the score. At 31 he was the older man by four years and approaching the end of his career - he was more than aware of McClellan's punching power and would later say, "they only brought him over here to bash me up." Indeed, not one British sports journalist gave Benn a chance.

The G-Man entered the ring first - immediately greeted by rapturous booing from the East London crowd. His focus appeared to be very concentrated, giving the distinct impression that he was here for business and ready to do a professional number on Benn who, according to the American's pre-fight words, "…can't box, that's for sure."

Benn's entrance was typically upbeat, fuelled by a deafening dance tune and 'gladiator' style support from the crowd. The atmosphere was beginning to boil and the sense of anticipation was overwhelming.

Once the bell sounded for round one, Benn marched forward with animated hand and upper body movement, quickly varying his leverage whilst trying to spot an opening. In contrast McClellan was ominously more composed and upright, easily brushing off Benn's opening attacks. Only 20 seconds had passed when McClellan started to unleash left/right head shot combinations that were so powerful, it made King's 'Mike Tyson' comparison highly credible. The crowd were very quickly silenced as Benn was sent crashing, literally, out of the ring following a barrage of shots to the top and side of the head. The French referee allowed generous time as TV and radio broadcasters helped to push the Englishman back into the ring. Once upright Benn was visibly shocked and bemused by what had just happened - no fighter wants the humiliation of being sent tumbling through the ropes. The remainder of the round saw McClellan trying to finish the job but the referee was frequently breaking up the fight which allowed Benn enough time to regroup and avoid further punishment.

In round two Benn had clearly responded to the wake-up call and scored first with a swinging right hook to the head. McClellan was now on the defensive but continued to look composed and smooth even when backing off. The round continued to be dictated by Benn who landed at least five more times with good head shots. By comparison McClellan's efforts were suddenly laboured and his movement had become slow - almost certainly the hangover of an unexpected Benn comeback. Wasn't this guy dumped out of the ring only a few minutes ago? Not ending the contest when he had the chance would prove desperately costly.

Early in round three Benn landed with a sweet uppercut that prompted a look of disdain from the American. It was at this point in the fight that I realised McClellan had a strong arrogant streak in his demeanour - he looked at Benn with an expression that said, "how dare you hit me with that shot!" Before the contest G-Man had claimed it was frightening how confident he was before a fight and a definite case of over-confidence was becoming apparent on this particular night. McClellan was known for been a bully in the ring but he was starting to get undone by Benn as shot after shot penetrated the now exposed defence. This time it was McClellan's turn for a wake-up call and he connected with some solid shots that hurt Benn late in the round.

Round four was all Nigel Benn. He scored freely with high left and right hooks that rocked McClellan's sloppy defence. There was no answer from the American camp to Benn's barrages and the fight was been bossed from the centre of the ring as the G-Man could not seem to get on the front foot or launch an offensive. Tiredness was evident in both men, however, notably it was McClellan who had never previously gone beyond eight rounds in a professional bout and this was turning into the kind of fight he wasn't accustomed to.

As round five got underway McClellan turned to a southpaw stance - but to little effect. Don King was pensively sunk into his ringside seat probably working out an attractive deal for Benn, should he win. For the first time in the fight McClellan began to stick out his gum shield to allow more oxygen into his airways. Benn was equally tired now as neither fighter connected with any significance.

Round six began with a more determined approach from McClellan again showing good composure with accurate, controlled punching. However, defence let him down again as Benn all too easily scored with swinging left and right hooks, one of which sent the G-Man's gum shield flying out of the ring. Sensing a breakthrough Benn rallied well at the end of the round, not hearing the bell as both fighters had to be separated by the French referee. McClellan was displaying the mannerisms of a very frustrated man, a man who knew that this fight should have been finished well within the first round.

The first shot of round seven appeared to be a low blow from McClellan but the fight did not stop, much to Benn's surprise as he held his groin. With Benn trapped against the ropes, McClellan threw some top quality head and body combinations - as in the first round he looked every part the 1/3 favourite to take this fight. Benn broke through with 30 seconds remaining, lunging forward with a right hand that connected with familiar ease.

In the eighth round all defensive tactics had been discarded and the fight was reaching a point of frenzied excitement which saw both men going for a knockout. Benn swung wildly with a shot that missed by so far, he almost toppled himself over - this was the signal for McClellan to exert some pressure. Two minutes of the round had passed and Benn was clearly looking the more tired fighter as he leaned on the ropes and held onto the G-Man at every opportunity. He then found himself trapped in the corner again following a right hook from the American who was not about to let this opening pass him by. It took a combination of several accurate and powerful head shots to finally force Benn onto his knees, his arm grabbing the ropes as he went down. A mandatory eight count was given by the referee and McClellan moved in from the neutral corner. This is where the G-Man's defensive frailties became glaringly obvious. He approached with both hands down and was hit flush on the chin with a right hook from the wounded champion. McClellan was rattled and once again the opportunity to finish the fight had escaped him.

Nine was an excellent round from Benn in response to the knockdown. McClellan landed first with a brilliant long right to the head - he was managing to maintain his composure under intense pressure and refused to be drawn into a brawl. This though was difficult to avoid because Benn was simply street fighting, his boxing technique becoming more ragged and uncalculated with every passing second. The turning point of the round was a thumb in the eye for McClellan who needed to go down on one knee for a few seconds to recover. The crowd obviously felt he was playing for time and the booing rang out loudly. For the first time McClellan's body language suggested that he really didn't want to be in the fight. Things were just not going his way and he was visibly frustrated by the fact that his opponent was still around after two knockdowns. Team G-Man should have been celebrating victory long ago.

Ten was a distressing round of boxing to watch with McClellan showing signs that something was very wrong. As Benn prowled from the centre of the ring, his opponent seemed to be having trouble with his eyes - blinking uncomfortably every few seconds. After a powerful right hook from Benn connected to the side of the head, McClellan submissively sank to one knee like a US football player calmly grounding the ball. The arena erupted with noise, who could have imagined these scenes after the events of round one.

Something wasn't right. Although McClellan's poise suggested a calm eight count, the face showed a struggle occurring behind his blinking eyes. Reluctantly he rose to continue battle only to get blasted out by Benn's full artillery and without much persuasion the G-Man again fell to one knee. This time there was no effort to beat the count and the commentators could be heard screaming, "he's quit, he's had enough."

The scene that will live in my memory, over any other moment of what was a truly astonishing fight, saw Benn climb the corner ropes like a WWF wrestler to salute his devoted crowd. The TV cameraman was quickly in front of his face to record the emotion of a famous win, however, closer inspection of the footage shows the damaged figure of Gerald McClellan in the background crumple to the floor of his corner. Two minutes later the G-Man was laid on his back with the corner men slapping his face in search of a reaction. In a split second the tone in London's Dockland Arena changed to concern rather than celebration.

I respect and acknowledge the sadness of Gerald McClellan's tragedy but one thing cannot be denied - this was one hell of a fight, maybe even the best.