The War The Greatest First Round in Boxing History
This fight was huge. Everyone following the fight knew that something had to give. Marvin Hagler had the middleweight championship, and Tommy Hearns entered as the mandatory #1 challenger. Hagler had been the champion for five years when the fight took place. Tommy Hearns was long and could box, but when he needed to fight on the inside he could do that too. Boxing fans knew they were going to get something great. Not in their wildest dreams could they have imagined what they'd get.
The Tale of Hagler and Hearns
The Fight Marvin Hagler had defended the belt ten times going into the fight with Tommy Hearns. Nine of his ten defenses of the title had been knockouts. The only fighter of the ten to go the 15 round distance was Roberto Duran. Hagler had endured a tough road to obtaining the title belt, and he had no intentions of letting it go. Tommy Hearns had moved up from welterweight to junior middleweight where he'd capture the championship belt. He would go on and defend the title three times before running into Sugar Ray Leonard. Hearns would lose the belt to Leonard in his fourth defense. Marcos Geraldo had fought both men. He went the distance with Hagler, but Hearns had knocked him out in the first round.
The fight would only go three rounds. Still it's remembered for the display of brutality by both fighters. Marvin Hagler likes to feel his opponents out, but he must have wanted to catch Hearns by surprise. Hagler came out super aggressive and went right at Hearns. Tommy Hearns got a message before the fight. Trainer Emanuel Steward felt like it was going to weaken his legs over the course of the fight, so the game plan was to go right after Hagler and get on him quick.
The plan for both men was to go right after their man. Their fight plan lead to one of the best first rounds in boxing history.
As you can see from the video above the first round was absolutely brutal. They went right after each other and neither was willing to relent. They were out for blood and trying to knock each other out. It was brutally clear after the 1st round that the fight would not be going the distance. In the second round it was clear that Tommy Hearns was fighting on tired legs. He would admit after the fight that his legs were gone. He tried to box Hagler who was switching from southpaw to orthodox trying to do maximum damage. The pace of the fight had slowed down from what the first round had provided. The 3rd round would provide the end. Tommy was on weakened legs. So he did the only thing he could do and that's keep Marvin at the end of his punches. He tried to box and keep that safe distance. He managed to really open the cut up on Marvin's face. He'd been cut in the first round but the blood was really coming down his face in the 3rd. The referee had the doctor look at the cut on Hagler's face. They let him go because the blood was not affecting his sight. Marvin got worried the the cut would become an issue and maybe cause a stoppage. He opened up with a relentless attack and went after Tommy Hearns with knockout on his mind. Tommy still wanted to box at this point, but Tommy had knockout power.
Marvin hit him with several punches that had him looking for the ropes. Tommy's movements indicated he was hurt, and then just moments later he smiled at Hagler as if to say I'm not hurt. He wasn't just hurt, he was a beaten and defeated fighter. Tommy hadn't been able to keep him off of him, and Hagler landed a vicious right hand that landed on the button. Tommy Hearns looked dead as he hit the floor. Amazingly he managed to beat the count and got up. The ref grabbed him and called a halt to the bout. Tommy was basically out on his feet. The champion Marvin Hagler had a blood painted face. Both men went through hell and will always be remembered for the brutal display of boxing that took place that night. The Full Fight
As the fight opened up I thought Paulie might be in Danny Garcia's head. I had never saw Danny wear a mask and then he refused to look at Paulie. When the fight got underway I noticed that Paulie had a little footwork going. His legs looked fresh. I figured that would give him the opportunities to go in and out working the jab as he moves. Garcia looked slow and appeared to be looking to drop the power right hand on him. Paulie never got the jab working. He maintained decent footwork, and he made Garcia miss a little, but Malignaggi could get anything off himself. So he ended up being a punching bag with good footwork. The referee told Paulie before the round started that he wasn't going to allow him to take too much abuse. Paulie understood but found himself in trouble, and the ref had to stop the fight. The fight had been one sided and there was every reason in the world to stop it. Paulie hadn't been competitive since the third round and looked like he'd given up. He knew he wasn't going to win and he just wanted to survive and grab the moral victory. Garcia had no intention of letting him make it 12 rounds. Danny Garcia had won every round. Paulie said after the fight that he thought that was probably his last fight. I hope for his sake that it was his final time in the ring. Everything Paulie ever was depended on his quickness. That is gone and there is nothing else about him that makes him a threat. I thought he had a chance against Garcia because of the style match up. All signs pointed to Paulie going down, however with it being his final go at it, I just expected a little more. It just wasn't there anymore and proved that he needs to retire. Paulie is luckier than most. He's got a good job with Showtime, and he's knowledgeable and insightful. I think he adds to their broadcast. Most fighters don't have the chance to stay close to the game when they are finished. Paulie is lucky in that way. Some fighters still have something left at 34 years old, but others hit that wall sooner. The best thing a fighter can do is to know when to walk away. I hope Paulie and those around him shut it down. I truthfully thought he should have called it quits after Porter nearly killed him. The Undefeated Danny Garcia
Danny Garcia won every round against Paulie Malignaggi. He dominated Paulie the way an elite fighter has to do. Both Adrien Broner and Shawn Porter went through Paulie Malignaggi, and that ended up with them facing each other. Paulie has been the stepping stone fighter, the gateway to bigger fights. Danny went down that road tonight. Paulie is a small welterweight fighter that had moved his way up from lightweight. He was not the big true welterweights that are out there. The guys that a fight like this leads to are natural welterweights. They don't come up to 147. They come down to 147. Danny said after the fight that he felt good fighting at the heavier weight. I thought he looked slower and even though he was dominating Paulie it didn't always look good. Danny looked slow and missed bad as he tried to drop the hammer on Paulie. I couldn't help but think the top five welterweights would beat Garcia. He couldn't hit Paulie consistently and he picked his shots well before throwing. Danny didn't really have to worry about Paulie knocking him out, but he never walked him down like Porter did. Danny Garcia looked like a middle of the pack fighter at 147. He really needs another fight against a tougher opponent than Paulie Malignaggi. I'd like to see Danny fight Adrien Broner. The fight makes all the sense in the world. Both men moved up from 140. Both men won fights over Paulie Malignaggi. Most importantly they both needed it. Broner is headed down and most boxing fans think he's a joke. Danny is a fighter on the way up, and based on the fight against Malignaggi he needs another fight to see where he's at.
This is or at least should be Paulie's last fight. The people around him have probably already told him it's not there anymore, champ. Paulie didn't need them to tell him. I listen to him analyze other fighters and he's known for a while that he isn't what he once was. The qualities that made Paulie a great fighter, his hand and foot speed, are some of the first things that diminish with age. Paulie isn't going to wow you anymore, but he can still win the right kind of fight. When he almost got killed by Porter, it was clearly the wrong fight. Porter was just too strong for him. When Paulie fought Zab Judah he got the win. That was another older fighter with diminished skills, and he was able to out box him. I thought he fought a great fight with Adrien Broner, and he probably should have won that one too. There were chances in that fight for him to take over. Danny Garcia might be just the kind of opponent Paulie needs. Danny will try to out box his opponent. He likes to find the right distances and fire away from the outside. He moves just enough to set up the distances and angles he like to fight with. He doesn't really move forward unless he's shown he can.
Danny Garcia has the tools and abilities to destroy Paulie. He also fights with a style that allows Paulie the chance to upset him. He's not going come straight after Paulie, and if he does that would be Paulie getting him off his game. He's not going to do that though. He's going to let Paulie throw and he's going to hope to pound him with powerful counters.
If there is one thing that gives Paulie a shot it's the fact that his boxing IQ hasn't diminished. He's still got a few moves left in his old legs, but most importantly I think he can box with Garcia. If Danny is looking for the KO, and I believe he will be, it gives Paulie the chance to walk him right into traps. Paulie will keep him moving.
Paulie is a tested welterweight. Danny had trouble with Lamont Peterson at 143. I believe Danny was having trouble making 140, but can he really compete at 147 the same way he did at 140? I don't believe he can. If not for a couple of bad decisions there'd already be two losses on his record. His power won't be anything that Paulie hasn't taken before.
The Fight and Prediction
Paulie has been in big fights before, and this one should be the last. He hasn't really been fighting relevant fights for years. It seems he has become a stepping stone fighter. This is more than likely his last fight. I see him going out with a bang.
Danny was the champ at 140 and believes he can continue to find that success at welterweight. He plans to use the stepping stone that is Paulie Malignaggi to get atop of the division.
Danny will work early behind his jab. He'll want to find out if he can drop the hammer on Paulie. He won't find him easy to hit. Paulie can move and won't be a target. Danny will have to move in on him. He'd rather Paulie came after him, but Paulie will be moving and setting the traps he hopes to catch Danny with. I think Danny will be content boxing Paulie from the outside. It would be better for Danny if he pressured him a little. I just don't think he will.
Paulie doesn't fare to well with fighters who have real power. Danny Garcia has never proved that he has real knockout power. Paulie will be looking to set him up and outscore him. Paulie can be a sneaky fighter that racks up points. You can bet he's going to pull out every trick in the bag. Somewhere around the middle rounds Danny is going to realize that the veteran is taking him down through there.
If the fight is close Danny might turn up the pressure a little. He won't necessarily move in any more than he had been, but he will throw more punches from the outside. He'll try to improve his angles. His output after round six or seven will increase and he might even get the next two or three rounds. Paulie will find more opportunities to counter and trap Garcia. If it's close in the championship rounds 10-12 Paulie will fight like this is the last fight of his career, and as stated before it probably is. The scorecards will be close after 12 rounds of boxing.
I have Paulie outscoring him in a close fight, but Garcia being awarded the majority decision.
There are those who still don't believe that Thurman is deserving of a shot at Mayweather. Most of these people have been listening to Floyd as he says that, Thurman should fight Errol Spence. It's clear that Mayweather doesn't want to fight him and is putting him off on someone else. It became real clear when he threw his next possible opponents out there, Karim Mayfield and Andre Berto. He knows that we don't want to see him fight either name he tossed around, and unless he loaded the card up he couldn't sell it. Mayweather has one fight left on his Showwtime contract. Why is he not considering one of these fighters? 1. Keith Thurman 2. Kell Brook 3. Shawn Porter 4. Amir Khan 5. Danny Garcia There's five fighters right there that deserve a shot and that could be sold to the boxing public. There's not going to be a match up that brings Mayweather-Pacquiao money, but we are fans and don't make money from the fight. We want to see the best fight the best regardless of what's made financially. If he doesn't want to take a chance with one of the five fighters listed above, then what about one of these guys. 6. Tim Bradley 7. Devon Alexander There's a total of seven fighters that Floyd could fight, and an argument could be made for all of them. Some have stronger cases than others, but in my opinion they could all hold their own and put up a good fight.
Thurman is Ready for Mayweather
Keith Thurman is the next man up at 147. I know the Mayweather fans will go with whatever Floyd says. If Floyd wants to face Andre Berto next they're OK with that. Boxing fans deserve more than the brainwashed Mayweather fans will accept whatever King Mayweather says. There are only two fighters that I believe have a legit shot at defeating Floyd, and they are Thurman and Brook. One or the other deserves a shot and you could make a case for either that I couldn't argue with.
I would like to see Thurman get the next shot at Floyd. In terms of style I think he cuts the ring off like a fighter must do to beat Floyd. Thurman can be a pressure fighter and a counter puncher. There are some weaker areas that Thurman needs to work on. He'd get that work by not fighting Mayweather next, but he's in the spot of next man up.
I know that Thurman doesn't currently have the hand speed needed to out point Floyd. Amir Khan might have the hand speed, but he doesn't have the power or chin to really test Floyd. Thurman is a better opponent than Khan, but Mayweather continuously throws his name out there for a possible opponent. Thurman has been in the top contender spot for a while now. However, that seems to be ignored in the same way that Kell Brook is ignored. Thurman has been in the top contender spot for going on two years. The Thurman detractors keep saying he doesn't deserve the shot. Who is more deserving? These fighters were all deserving of a shot, but Thurman is not. Juan Manual Marquez, Shane Mosley, Victor Ortiz, Robert Guerrero, and Marcos Maidana twice? Are you telling me these guys were any more deserving than Keith Thurman. Mayweather has always looked for a hot young fighter that had holes he thought he could cash in on, or older over the hill fighters that no longer were the total package. A young strong fighter that cuts off the ring isn't what Floyd wants to face. Thurman doesn't have the hand speed to outbox Floyd, but he cuts the ring off and has fight changing power.
If Thurman fought Brook then there would be no question as to who the next opponent should be, but the Floyd followers would still accept someone else as the next opponent. The champion takes the next best fighter and proves to the world that he is champion. The Best Ever most definitely takes the next best fighter to prove their is no doubt as to where he stands. To pick and choose like Mayweather wants to do proves nothing. If you don't fight the top contenders that's what you're remembered for. I like watching Floyd Mayweather fight. As a boxing fan I want to know how good he really is and want the future fans to know that too. He proved against Canelo that he would face the best fighters, but he hasn't consistently done that. There have been some real good fighters in the past few years that he hasn't put in their place. Now those fighters are calling him out.
What Does the Boxing Community Think?
Thurman is not ducking Errol Spence and real boxing fans know that.
There are only two fighters at 147 that could beat Floyd Mayweather
Boxing Goes as the Heavyweight Division Goes
Throughout boxing history the heavyweights have been the attraction. The popularity has always been based on the heavyweight division. When there has been a lack of great heavyweights the sport suffered in popularity and viewership. There have been smaller weight class fighters that demanded to be seen, but the overall value of the sport drops drastically without the great heavyweight fighters. One dominate champion doesn't carry the division, and we've seen with Marciano and currently the Klitschko brothers. Tyson appeared to carry a heavyweight division that was down, but it wasn't as down as it appeared. The heavyweights of the 1980's were setting up what should have been a repeat of the 1960's. Some of the best fighters never lived up to their expectations.
The 90's got started with a blow when the PPV cash cow Mike Tyson went down in Tokyo. If he hadn't lost to Buster Douglas we'd have had Holyfield vs Tyson in their primes, although we know Mike wasn't training like he had been just a few years earlier. Tyson wasn't doomed when he lost to Douglas. It was when he separated himself from trainer Kevin Rooney. What if Tyson had continued to be the force he'd been. There was the fight with Holyfield. Then the list goes on and on. You had Bowe, Foreman, Morrison, Mercer, Grant, Tua, Moorer, Rahman and Lennox Lewis. The decade of the 90's could have been one of the best ever, but it never materialized and the public viewed the sport of boxing as going down.
The best fights never happened. Lennox Lewis went after and destroyed as many of the greats as he could get his hands on. He's without a doubt the best heavyweight of the 90's. To clean out the division in the 90's puts him high on the all time list. It took him into the next decade to finish them off but he did it. Lennox went down as the best fighter. History could have been different with all that boxing talent, but it didn't. Whether or not they were in their prime Lewis hunted them down. Lennox had every intention of cleaning out the division and he did.
There was a fighter that would have been among the greatest of all time if not for prison. No I'm not talking about Mike Tyson. I'm talking about Ike Ibeabuchi. I honestly feel like he could have dominated the sport in a way that few had done. He could have carried the sport solidly into the 2000's. When you talk about the best that never was Ike was #1. He was big and strong, be could take a hit, but he also had power that could kill a man. The 1990's should have been different and Ike should have been a part of that.
When Did Boxing Die?
If the sport of boxing died there had to be a time of death. I don't think you can tell me when that was, because the truth is that it never happened.The great sport has taken some hits, but like its competitors it keeps coming back. Boxing never died and it never will.
The golden age of boxing is often referred to as the 1960's through the 1970's. During this time you had some serious talent in the sport. Journeyman fighters of that era could have been great champions in other eras. Boxing had seen rough stretches before that time and would see some after that. The bottom line is that the sport has always survived even when people weren't looking.
There are some who believe that boxing died the day that Mike Tyson went down. Ninety years before Tyson was dropped boxing was arguably the best sport in the world. At the beginning of the 1900's guys like Jack Johnson and Jack Dempsey carried the sport. Those times gave way to one of the greatest champions of all time. The Brown Bomber Joe Louis. Boxing was set for years behind Joe Louis and I think the people of that time appreciated the greatness he provided. Joe set a standard of what greatness looked like. The fighters in the future would continue to shoot for that level of greatness, and there were few that found it. Joe Louis is arguably the best heavyweight in the history of boxing.
The great fighters that followed Joe Louis were not exactly what he'd been. Some considered that a down time in boxing. The sport wasn't down. The best fighters just weren't heavyweights. The heavyweight champion and one man wrecking crew was Rocky Marciano. He was a smaller fighter that knocked his opponents out. He finished his career unbeaten, but most boxing experts agree that Rocky wouldn't have done as well in another time frame. He was a smaller heavyweight fighter that wouldn't have even be in the heavyweight division today. Joe Louis came out of retirement to challenge Rocky, but his skills were too far gone and Rocky knocked him out in the 8th round. If Rocky had stayed a little longer or came out of retirement he could have challenged a better class of fighter than his career provided.
What is Rocky had stayed around to face Floyd Patterson or even Sonny Liston. It's my opinion that he'd have experienced what Joe Louis did at his hands. I believe both Patterson and Liston would have beat him. Rocky goes down as a great champion. History remembers him favorably. He fought the men in front of him and defeated them all. With a granite chin and a powerful right hand he was unstoppable.
Sonny and Floyd were the next big thing after Marciano. They carried the heavyweight division that was getting stronger. The 1950 were setting up what was going to be considered the Golden Age of boxing. Both of those men would be defeated by the next big thing, Cassius Clay. The self proclaimed greatest lived up to his mouth, which had been nicknamed the Louisville Lip. He told anyone that would listen how he was going to be the greatest of all time, and he lived up to his words. He'd go down in history with Joe Louis as the best ever.
The Golden Age of Boxing
The greatest champions have to be fortunate to have other greats to challenge them. The fighters in the late 1960's on through the late 1970's had that. If you were a great heavyweight it was Muhammad Ali you were compared to. Formerly known as Cassius Clay, Muhammad Ali became the fighter to beat in the heavyweight division. In the end he'd stay too long, but he took on all comers from day one and established himself as the best heavyweight champion ever. Most boxing experts have Muhammad Ali or Joe Louis number one all time.
Muhammad Ali could have gone on to dominate the division, but his refusal to be drafted into the Vietnam War got him put out of boxing. During that time the emergence of Smokin' Joe Frazier took place. Eventually Ali would be reinstated and he and Frazier would meet in the Super Fight. Joe would beat him in that fight, but when he hit Ali with that "Left Hook From Hell" he got up off the canvas. They'd fight two more times with Ali taking the victory in both bouts. Ali didn't win the first fight, but he took the best out of three. Those three fights were classics and clearly goes down as the best rivalry ever.
Both Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier found levels of greatness, but soon both of them would be faced with Big George Foreman. In the 1968 Olympics George Foreman brought home the gold. His style couldn't be considered point friendly, but his power was something legends are built on. Big George had a amateur record of 22-4. Once he turned turned professional he assaulted the competition. He threw a lot of punches and they packed tremendous amounts of power. George Foreman did enough in the first of a two part career to go into the hall of fame. He beat Gregorio Peralta twice. Once by decision and then by tenth round KO. He also knocked out a hall of fame fighter in George Chuvalo. This all led him to the undisputed heavyweight champion Joe Frazier.
Joe Frazier had never been beat and his win over Muhammad Ali was still fresh on people's minds. Frazier entered the fight with a 29-0 (25 KO) and Big George had a unbeaten record of 37-0 (34-KO), and the fight promised to be a good one. Big George knocked Joe Frazier down six times in two rounds. Frazier got to his feet all six times but the fight was stopped when Joe was clearly finished. Big George had destroyed him. If he could do that to Frazier then he could do it to anybody. Boxing fans didn't see any way that Foreman could lose. He would defend the belt two successful times with the second being against Ken Norton who'd given Ali his second loss. The win over Norton set up a fight with Muhammad Ali.
The Rumble in the Jungle: A Championship Fight in Zaire
Nobody could have possibly given Muhammad Ali a chance of victory. Big George had destroyed some fighters that Ali had beaten. He blasted them out of there in a way the Ali hadn't done. If Frazier was so easily beaten then nobody stood a snowball's chance in hell of beating Foreman. Ali believed differently. He told everyone that would listen that he would beat Big George and that he didn't stand a chance.
Early in the fight Muhammad Ali boxed and moved a little, but for the next seven rounds he stayed on the ropes and let Big George pound on him like a heavy bag. It would become known as the rope-a-dope. When he saw that George had worn himself out he went in for the kill and knocked out George Foreman in the 8th round. Ali had improved his record to 45-2 and was recognized as the Greatest of All Time. Muhammad Ali had talked the talk, and he walked the walk. The boxing writers and historians agreed that Ali must have be best.
Big George never got over the loss to Muhammad Ali. He fought an all out war and fight of the year with Ron Lyle, and then he beat Joe Frazier in a rematch. He appeared to be back to his old form winning five in a row following the loss to Ali, but then Jimmy Young beat him by decision. George left the ring in 1977 and didn't come back for an entire decade.
Muhammad Ali continued to win the next ten fights following the fight with Foreman. That 10 fight defense of the title included wins over, Chuck Wepner, Ron Lyle, Joe Bugner, Joe Frazier, Jimmy Young, Ken Norton and tough as hell Ernie Shavers. Ali was then upset by Leon Spinx. Ali rematched him a regained the championship.
Muhammad Ali stayed around too long. That win over Spinx should have been the end, although many of his handlers said it should have been sooner than the Spinx rematch. Ali took on legend to be, Larry Holmes and was completely dominated. He then lost to an eventual champion in Trevor Berbick, but Berbick was never more than a journeyman that won the belt.
The End of an Era
The end of Muhammad Ali was the end of something great. It was somewhat of a down time in the sport of boxing. You still had some quality fighters, but they were not great fighters. Larry Holmes stood alone as the best fighter of the early 1980's. He'd come up one fight short of Marciano's 49-0 record. After that he made a statement that killed Holmes in the eyes of the boxing public. "Rocky couldn't hold my jockstrap."
Larry Holmes hadn't been able to capture the interest of the boxing public, but the up and coming Iron Mike Tyson would. While Holmes was on his long defense of the title, Tyson was knocking out a long list of journeyman fighters. Mike wasn't beating all world talent, but he was blowing the guys out in a way the shocked the boxing public. He was suppose to beat the guys he was knocking out, but he made them look incredibly inferior.
Trevor Berbick had won the heavyweight title from Pinklon Thomas in a unanimous 12 round decision. His first defense of the title was against Mike Tyson. Berbick had been on a winning streak that included wins over David Bey and Mich Green, and champion Thomas. Mike Tyson knew what he'd done five years earlier to Ali, and later admitted that he wanted to pay him back for beating the G.O.A.T.
Mike Tyson was everything the boxing public wanted to see. When they sat down to watch Tyson fight you'd better be there when the opening bell rang. He didn't plan on keeping the fight fans too long as he often beat his opponents quickly and brutally. His combination of power and speed was like nothing the sport had ever seen. His two hundred and twenty pound body was on a five-eleven frame and he was like a wrecking ball.
Tyson took the WBC belt away from Berbick, and then he went after the WBA belt held by James Smith. That gave him two of the three major belts. He defended against Pinklon Thomas and then he went after the unified heavyweight championship and Tony Tucker's IBF world title. Tyson beat Tucker in a 12 round decision to unify the championship belts. Tyson defended all three belts against Tyrell Biggs. He knocked him out in the 7th round to retain his belts.
The unification brought Larry Holmes out of retirement. Larry Holmes had been a great champion, but he'd been away from the game. Tyson remembered the beating he'd put on Muhammad Ali, and just as he wanted revenge like he'd gotten against Berbick. Mike Tyson poured it on Holmes and in the fourth round he knocked him out. From 1987 until 1990 Mike defended the unified heavyweight championship. Mike returned to the Tokyo Dome. His last trip there was a 2nd round KO of Tony Tubbs.
His return to Tokyo was suppose to be the easy contest he'd encountered there before. Journeyman Buster Douglas had other things in mind. Mike's next fight was to be with undefeated Holyfield, but he overlooked a hungry and determined fighter in Buster Douglas. Buster had just lost his mother and dedicated the fight to his late mother. That was the determination it would take to defeat Mike Tyson. When Mike couldn't blast him out early it frustrated the great champion. Once he realized he could take Mike's best the fight took a turn.
James Buster Douglas knocked Mike Tyson out. The fighter that had brought in the money and had created Pay-Per-View was knocked out on the floor. The most dangerous man on the planet was no longer viewed as invincible. Without his cape Superman is just a man. Buster didn't only prove that Mike wasn't unbeatable; he also proved that Mike could be beat by the same kind of journeyman fighters he'd been beating.
Evander Holyfield was the next man up and would have been Mike Tyson's next opponent. Instead he got Buster Douglas who ended up being an easy path to the championship belts. Buster had won the belts on 2-11- 1990 and lost them to Holyfield on 10-25-1990. Evander Holyfield would defend against three worthy and tough opponents. First he took on Bert Cooper who he TKO'd in the 7th round. Followed by decision wins over Big George Foreman and Larry Holmes. It appeared he beat a journeyman in Cooper and two over the hill fighters in Foreman and Holmes. That was not the case though. Cooper was tough as hell and hit hard. Foreman had resurrected a career that had had a decade of inactivity. Holmes was no spring chicken, but had competitive fight after the Holyfield fight.
Riddick Bowe would beat Holyfield for the undisputed championship. Bowe ma have beat Holyfield for the belts, but he wasn't the champion that Holyfield had been. The fans still hadn't seen anything like Mike Tyson. The Holyfield-Bowe match up would go on to be a trilogy. Bowe won two out of three, but his career fell short of the greatness Evander would experience. Bowe refused to fight Lennox Lewis and then entered the Marine Corps before eating himself out of boxing. He ruined his own promising career, and he did it so much more differently than all the others that had done the same. Bowe could have been one of the best ever. He just didn't have the mental constitution to use his size and gifts.
Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield
These two men capitalized the most from the 90's. They fought each other twice and the first fight was a draw, but most people believe that Holyfield won. Lennox clearly beat him in the second fight. From there it could have been over for Holyfield. His career would have been complete, but he went 1-1-1 against John Ruiz in another trilogy. That should have been the end of Evander Holyfield. When you cannot get the best of John Ruiz in a best of three it's all over. Holyfield didn't see it that way. He continued to fight. He beat Hasim Rahman, and then lost three in a row to Chris Byrd, James Toney, and unknown Larry Donald. He stayed too long, but hadn't made a complete mess of his legacy. He didn't retire after losing three in a row. That was 2004 and he would quit until 2011 when he defeated Brian Nielson. Evander retired with a record of 44-10-2.
Lennox Lewis owned the late 90's and early 2000's. He defeated everyone he fought, and when he didn't beat them the first time he defeated them in a rematch. Holyfield a draw and Rahman a knockout in the first fights. He came back and beat Evander by UD, and then he knocked Rahman out. Lennox went through the best fighters the division had to offer. Riddick Bowe had refused to fight him and never did, but you name another great champion and Lennox defeated them. His domination of the division should have him in anyone's top 5. Starting in the early 90's he went looking for the best and never ducked anyone. He beat the journeyman that every great heavyweight went through late 80's and early 90's. In 1991 he beat British Champion Gary Mason 35-0 by knockout in the seventh round. He went through Mike Weaver and Tyrell Biggs.Tyson had fought these same fighters and there were more common opponents. Lewis beat Ruddock, Tucker, and Bruno. He was upset by Oliver McCall, but would later make him quit and start crying in the ring. He beat Ray Mercer and Tommy Morrison. Andrew Golota, Shannon Briggs, Evander Holyfield, Michael Grant, David Tua, Hasim Rahman,and Mike Tyson, all fell victim to The Lion.
The Klitschko Brothers
Lennox Lewis ended his career against Vatali Klitschko in 2003. Klitschko might have been ahead on the score cards. Many feel his was but I had it closer to even. Both fighters had taken some brutal shots, but Lennox cut Vitali's face and the fight ended with a 6th round stoppage.
The brothers started dominating in the early 2000's after Lennox Lewis retired. The Klitschkos have dominated the sport, but their get-the-job-done style isn't fan friendly. Boxing didn't die with these two guys. They just dominated the division like nobody had. The supporting cast of fighters were missing but they cleaned up everything that was there. The only fighters they didn't beat were the ones that wouldn't fight them. They didn't have greats like Holmes, Tyson, Bowe, or any elite heavyweights. The brothers could only fight what was available, and they did whether it was action packed or not.
There had been some promising heavyweight contenders to challenge the brothers, Chris Byrd, Corrie Sanders, Samual Peter, Chris Arreola, Shannon Briggs, Tomasz Adamek, Dereck Chisora. They were all beaten by Vitaly. Wladimir found the most success. He beat Chris Byrd, Ray Mercer, Jameel McCline, Corrie Sanders, Lamon Brewster, Sam Peter, Calvin Brock, Ray Austin, Sultan Ibragimov, Hasim Rahman, Eddie Chambers, David Haye, and recently Bryant Jennings.
The Klistchko brothers have dominate a weak heavyweight division, but we've given other fighters the benefit of the doubt when the division was weak. Remember Rocky Marciano or Mike Tyson? You can only fight what's there and the Klitschkos did that.
The Current State of the Heavyweight Division
There have been ongoing talks between Wladimir Klitschko and Tyson Fury. Undefeated knockout artist Deontay Wilder says he'll fight Wlad, but he wants another fight to tune up with first. Bryant Jennings was a hopeful in the heavyweight division, but it's not clear how he'll bounce back from the decision loss to Wladimir. Bermaine Stiverene will bounce back from his decision loss to Wilder.
Deontay Wilder appears to be the next best thing. He's the WBC heavyweight champion and has an undefeated record of 34-0 with 33 of those wins coming by knockout.
Does The Heavyweight Division Dictate Boxing's Success?
Since Lennox Lewis retired in 2003 the Klitchkos took over the heavyweight division. Wladimir still holds claim on it today. The best boxing hasn't been in the heavyweight division. The welterweight division has been where the most talent has been since the 2000's began. Floyd Mayweather has gone undefeated an made more money than both Klitschkos combined. Mayweather has found ways to make money despite not being in the heavyweight division. The best money and most popular fighters have always been heavyweights. History had shown that the best boxing matches aren't always the heavyweights though.
The Gatti-Ward Trilogy was some of the best boxing that a fan could ever hope for. They were both good but not great fighters, but when they hooked up the result was something that legend is made of. The two of them went to war.
With the heavyweight division trying to make a comeback. The focus never shifted to the welterweights or the super lightweights that were both loaded divisions. The middleweight division was strong and the light heavyweights were too. There were good fights in just about every division. The heavyweights were undecided with the departure of Lennox Lewis, and some fans didn't hang around to see where it would go from there.
Oscar De La Hoya fought Mayweather and Pacquiao, and then the showdown between Mayweather and Pacquiao came into sight. Some boxing fans started to make a comeback. The Manny Pacquiao groups and the Floyd Mayweather groups started to form and there was some real interest in boxing.
The mega fight took too long to happen, but it kept the fringe boxing fan hanging on. The fight didn't live up to the hype, but I think some of the fans that came back have stayed. The real boxing fans know it's not all about the heavyweights, and now the fringe fans know it too.
Boxing isn't Back - It Never Died in the First Place
The heavyweights are the most interesting when the talent is there, but when it hasn't been throughout history the smaller fighters filled the seats. In the early 1980's when Larry Holmes was the only thing going the welterweight division was thriving and getting stronger. It demanded attention during Mike Tyson's run, but Hearns, Hagler, Leonard, and other non heavyweights were not captivating the fans like Tyson did in the mid to late 80's.
There have always been great non heavyweight fighters, from Ray Robinson and Willie Pep to Roberto Duran. The 90's were a strong time in the heavyweight division, but Roy Jones Jr often stole the spotlight. The fight between Roy Jones Jr and James Toney at middleweight was an all time classic.
Boxing has not survived on the heavyweights alone. Most experts consider Sugar Ray Robinson the best pure boxer that the sport has ever seen. Some of the most interesting fights, like Gatti and Ward weren't heavyweights. The richest boxer in the sports history Floyd Mayweather wasn't a heavyweight. The overall popularity of the sport does seem to hang on the success of the heavyweights.
The fans are coming back. Boxing is back on regular broadcast television and more cable channels are picking up fights. Somewhere along the way the MMA fans realized it was alright to like boxing too. You don't have to pick between the two sports you can watch and enjoy both. Sure they'll like one more than the other, but boxing is the part of MMA fighting that the fans like most - the hand to hand striking. There's a better grade of athlete entering boxing today.
If boxing did away with pay-per-view fights and structured the rankings were the best had to fight the best, then the sport would rebound in popularity to heights it had never seen. The fighters are there and the competition is constantly getting better. The trainers are turning out good fighter after good fighter. Boxing has to find a way to make the best fights and abandon the pay-per-view concept. Most of all people just want to see the best fight the best.
I remember watching this fight as a teenager. There is one thing about this fight that I've never forgotten. The amount of punishment that these two men inflicted on each other was like something from a Rocky movie. Holyfield later said, "It felt like I was being hit by railroad ties." The fight went the 12 round distance and incredibly neither man ever went down. Even as a youngster I knew I was watching greatness. It was everything you could hope for when watching a fight for the heavyweight title.
Foreman was considerably slower than Holyfield, but when Big George hit him the effects were undeniable. The two men continued round after round to rock each other. Normal fighters would have gone down, but these two guys and this fight, was far from normal. Fights such as this one can take years off of a fighter's career. Both Foreman and Holyfield would go on to rewrite the record books.
The Fight
Evander Holyfield
This was Holyfield's first defense of the heavyweight championship. Holyfield had taken Mike Tyson's belts away from Buster Douglas. Holyfield didn't have to take on Big George, but I think he wanted to take on a big heavyweight to prove all doubters wrong. Holyfield had moved up to heavyweight and he was legit. Michael Dokes had hit him with some hard shots in their fight, but it was nothing compared to the punches he'd take against Foreman. There were some good possible heavyweight matches that weren't being made. Holyfield wanted to be a great champion that took on all comers. He always fought the next man up and took on the toughest opponents. Most fighters would not have taken Big George as their first title defense, but Evander did and gave us one of the best fights in boxing history
George Foreman
Big George was never going to get his title shot as long as Mike Tyson was champion. Tyson was not going to fight Foreman. His handlers had been told upon George's comeback not to fight him. It was a horrible match up for Tyson. It wasn't just Mike Tyson. Big George had trouble getting guys to fight him. At one point a decade earlier George was thought to be unbeatable. He'd find out against Muhammad Ali that he was invincible. That did something to him at that point in his career, but it made him what he'd become in the second part. Holyfield was giving him what he wanted. He had another shot to become heavyweight champion again. George had beaten everyone he'd faced, and that list of names wasn't all-world-beaters. None of them were on the same level with undefeated Evander Holyfield. Finally Foreman had a quality opponent in front of him. That made for one helluva fight.
Floyd Mayweather wants Broner vs Porter 2 on his September card. He also wants Keith Thurman to take on Errol Spence on it too. Broner went to Twitter and Instagram saying the fight was on. According to Ken Porter there is not going to be a rematch. Shawn Porter just beat Adrien Broner and Team Porter wants Floyd Mayweather. Marcos Maidana beat Broner and got his shot. Beating Broner isn't an automatic bid for Mayweather, but I think Porter has done enough for a shot. It appears that Floyd will be fighting either Andre Berto or Karim Mayfield in the main event. Floyd has two guys in Thurman and Porter that want to fight him. Yet he wants them to fight on his September card. The card would be a great one, but the best card would be him fighting Thurman or Porter in the main event. Both men have earned a shot and so has undefeated Kell Brook, but that fight is not going to happen.
There is no doubt that Floyd will get it his way, or so close it will be considered his way. He has won every fight he's been in and has punched his own ticket. He can fight whoever he wants, and if it's a loaded card and people buy it he can brag about how he sold a fight against Andre Berto or Karim Mayfield. History won't necessarily point out that the viewers wanted to see the under card fights. Mayweather fights, who he wants, when he wants, and how he wants. I know Floyd fans will be happy with whoever he fights. Boxing fans in general want more. The people who've paid for his fights deserve to see him fight someone who can at least challenge him. I truly believe that both Shawn Porter and Keith Thurman could both give him a fight that fans could appreciate. There is no reason to fight the two irrelevant fighters that Floyd has his sights on. He needs to fulfill the Showtime contract with a bang.
