“It was something you will never forget. You know what I mean? It’s just something special, and what makes it even greater is the intensity of the crowd. And then Michael Buffer makes the announcement. You can’t really explain it.”

The saying “they don’t make them like that anymore” can certainly be applied to both Arturo Gatti and Micky Ward, both fighters who threw everything in the ring a combined 100 times, including three times against each other. James Lupton revisits the pair’s notable trilogy with Hall of Famer Buddy McGirt, who coached Gatti while working on the trilogy.

The fights between the two fighters will last forever, with many considering the first fight to be the best fight ever. However, as the pair headed to the ring, no one could have expected the action that was about to unfold.

McGirt recalls standing in the corner and realizing this fight was going to be special; “[Arturo] he hit Micky Ward with that combination and Micky slammed his glove and said, “Fuck.” And I said, “It’s going to be a long night.”

Perhaps the only thing more memorable than the fights themselves are the photos and memories of Arturo lying in a hospital bed and “The Irishman” Micky Ward next to him – an iconic moment captured, frozen in time.

The pair exchanged blows, giving them a bond that remained forceful until Gatti’s death.

“I think each fight brought them closer together, not only as fighters but also as friends. And the funniest thing is that he had his last fight and Micky was training him for that last fight. McGirt told proboxing-fans.com.

When I asked Buddy why he thought these fights were fan favorites, his answer was straightforward; “because there were two guys there who were really trying… I won’t say they killed each other, but just two guys who didn’t operate anything scientific, they just go to war.”

During these fights, Gatti was part of a gym that housed substantial names such as McGirt himself, Laila Ali and Vernon Forrest within its four walls, but Arturo was a reserved figure until he gained his trust.

“Well, he didn’t trust a lot of people, but if he trusted you and liked you, he was a great guy. He was energetic and worked very demanding.”

Arturo was a fighter who liked to get into a shootout sometimes, sometimes a little too often, in Ward’s case it was often a shootout. Intrigued by the opportunity to get inside the coach’s mind, I asked McGirt if the game plan was to fight fire with fire?

“Okay, okay. I wanted him to do the same thing he did in the second fight and just blow him away. But in the third fight he broke his arm, so we had to do something different.”

“And when he got knocked down, he got up and felt it, he had to get it back. So it was quite intense.”

I immediately took a shot at Buddy and counterattacked, remembering that Gatti also broke his arm in Ward’s second fight, to which McGirt blocked me and hit me with “yeah, but he didn’t say anything in the second fight. The third fight he had.”

So now the coach found himself in a hard situation, his player reported that he had lost one of his weapons, and his hand was only fully functional. What’s next?

“Honestly, when we talked about the second fight, he said the adrenaline was flowing so much that he didn’t think about the pain.

“So I thought if in a fight I could take his mind off the hand and the way the fight was going, the intensity of the fight, the adrenaline would start flowing and he would start using it. And he did.

“The key was not to ask about his arm again after he told me it was broken.”

While McGirt believes we will soon see more trilogies in boxing “because we have a lot of good teenage fighters now”, the 57-year-old admits we won’t see anyone like Gatti-Ward again.

Buddy continues by emphasizing the importance of rematches and trilogies, recalling three trilogy contests from the past; “You have to have it because every fight should be better than the last one.

“I mean the Ali-Frazier trilogy, the first fight was the most vital because Ali was coming back.

“In the second fight, both of them were not champions. Then there was the third fight which was supposed to be over the hill but in the third fight they both put it all on the line which in my opinion was better than the first two because of the intensity and determination they both showed in the fight. this third fight at Thrilla in Manila.

“We will never see anything like this, ever.

– Not Gatti-Ward, Tarver-Jones. These two and Thrilla in Manila – you will never see such intensity and determination in a fight. Because it was a 15-round match and they put it all on the line for 15 or 14 rounds.

To end the conversation with McGirt, I asked him why don’t we see more of these types of fights, what has changed in the last 20 years?

“I think the mindset is different. I think everything is different. These were two men, Ali-Frazier, who had something extra.

“They have champions and then you have some champions who have that extra something. They had this little extra, you know what I mean? I can’t explain it, but if you watch the fight, you’ll see it.”

In a night that featured Jake Paul fighting a retired MMA fighter in Ben Askren, Snoop Dogg on commentary, and the debut of another former UFC fighter and Colombian reggaeton artist, it was surprisingly the Regis Prograis vs. Ivan Redkach clash that produced the most drama on a dramatic night in Atlanta last Saturday.

The fight between the former 140-pound champion Progress and experienced fighter Redkach was a fight on the card that was liked by die-hard boxing fans, but ended in bizarre circumstances.

“Rougarou” dominated the proceedings and after hitting the Ukrainian in the head with his left hand, Prograis fired a body shot that sent the 35-year-old to the canvas, claiming he was hit with a low blow.

Referee Jim Korb ruled that the shot was clearly above the belt line and that the low arc gave the American a technical decision victory, with “El Terrible” removed from the ring after receiving medical attention.

Understandably, a furious Prograis vented his post-fight frustration, but he got justice on Monday when the Georgia Sports and Entertainment Commission overturned the referee’s decision, giving him a sixth-round TKO victory, his second stoppage victory since his only loss to Josh Taylor by majority decision of October 2019

Reflecting on the fight, the 32-year-old believes his opponent was looking for a way out of the fight, but was pleased to have the decision overturned.

“In the last two rounds I started hitting him tough and catching him,” Prograis said proboxing-fans.com.

“I just think he wanted a way out, that’s the most significant thing. I just think he wanted to get out, he didn’t want to fight anymore and he was faking it.

“He would have won a massive Oscar for this because he was a good faker!

“He definitely wasn’t low. Even when I hit him, I knew it wasn’t low. I really never low blow anyone, even if I’m fighting an orthodox fighter or a southpaw fighter.

I just want to thank everyone who joined the fight on Saturday. It was a weird ending, but overall it was a good experience. Who do you want to see me fight next? @triller #ThrillerFightClub #rougarou 👊🏽🥊#wolfpack 🐺 pic.twitter.com/I92XNJ49UZ

— Rougarou (@RProgais) April 20, 2021

“Of course anyone can make mistakes, but I just don’t and I knew it didn’t hit him, I knew it was bullshit.”

“It was the most significant thing I wanted [the decision changing to a TKO]”

Prograis revealed that Redkach and his wife offered an apology, although the trio did not communicate in person after the fight.

This was Triller’s second gala since their inaugural exhibition between Mike Tyson and Roy Jones Jr in November, which featured performances by Diplo, The Black Keys and Saweetie, and was won by 44-year-old former cruiserweight world champion Steve Cunningham, who came retires to defeat former UFC heavyweight Frank Mir.

During the unique and unconventional broadcast, which was met with mixed reactions online, Oscar De La Hoya made a surprise appearance and later apologized for making some bizarre comments, and Prograis stated that at times he felt the event was a bit over the top.

“I think it was too much, I won’t lie. They could do it, but not by much.

“I had to be at the arena at 6 p.m. and then I didn’t start walking [to the ring] until 11:40 p.m. or so, so I literally sit in the locker room for almost six hours, waiting and waiting and waiting.

“We saw all these bands, all these performers doing all this stuff and it was pretty loose.

“Another thing people don’t know is that Ivan’s wife kept coming into our dressing room and offering us things.

“She offered us sandwiches, food, bananas and coffee!

“She was really nice. I think this was her first time being involved in something like this and I think she worked as his assistant or something.

“But she would come and offer us things. She replied, “Yes, you know, they say you keep your friends close and your enemies closer.”

“She was joking, she really enjoyed it, but it was just a different kind of experience.”

Prograis’ fight was followed by Justin Bieber’s performance, before Jake Paul stopped Ben Askren in the first round, securing his third professional victory.

Paul, who has amassed more than 20 million subscribers on YouTube, has faced widespread criticism in the boxing community, raising eyebrows during his fight week press conference when he described himself as an “elite boxer” even though his other two victories were against another sensation website at AnEsonGib in his debut before stopping former NBA star Nate Robinson.

However, the “Problem Child” with whom there is a future clash Tommy Fury attracts huge attention and fresh audiences to sports, claims on his YouTube channel that the fight generated over 1.5 million pay-per-view buys, and Prograis, who has named Adrien Broner as a potential opponent for his next fight, believes that the 24-year-old will benefit from knowing that he is having a positive impact on the sport that brings

“Even before the fight, that’s why I agreed to be on the card, because they asked: ‘Do you want to fight further?’ [the] Jake Paul [undercard]?

“Of course I will fight, he brings a different perspective to the sport. If I’m not mistaken they said the pay-per-view numbers are crazy, they’re massive numbers right now and I don’t even think they’ve tallied them all yet.

“My opinion of him hasn’t changed at all. He brings a different perspective to the sport and hey, if they can do it through a boxing match, let them do it.”

Watch the full interview below, in which Prograis reflects on his fight with Redkach, and read what he had to say about his future on our Youtube channel.

Boxing is a sport that can harm a person in many ways. Often, when a warrior becomes a parent, they beg and pray that their child will not follow in their footsteps.

The current British fighter lineup includes the second generation of Benn, Eubank and, most recently, Hatton. Campbell Hatton decided to lace up the gloves and continue his career in the same way as his father, Ricky.

The aforementioned Nigel, Chris and Ricky have cemented their legacy in the sport of boxing, financially securing their and their children’s futures, and yet they all still witnessed their offspring climbing the ropes, but why?

“Just because if you look at the highs, how good they are,” Campbell told proboxing-fans.com.

“Like any sport, if you succeed in it, it will be a great feeling. But I think boxing or any other combat sport where it’s just one-on-one has to be times 100 because you know that when you get them and you win and you succeed, you’re the only one who’s done it.

“That’s why I think in boxing there are the highest highs but also the lowest lows because it’s the same when you lose. I think the ups definitely outweigh the downs. I just can’t wait to see where things go.”

Ricky Hatton is part of his son’s management team and as a man who has not only been there and done it all, he will naturally have his son’s best interests at heart.

“I actually benefited from his experience and advice, which is the one thing he didn’t have.

“It puts me in a great position because not only did I get advice on what to do in the ring, but also advice on what to do at home and how to deal with all the other things around it. So I’m really joyful.”

This is often the case in the British mainstream media, where sports superstars are shamed and put on the front pages whenever they make a mistake. Ricky was no exception, he was nicknamed “Ricky Fatton” after he yo-yoed with his weight during his absence from training camp.

Ricky has overcome all these shadowy life experiences and believes that Campbell will stand him in good stead because there is no one better to advise him on this shitty issue.

“I think he will be the first to say there are a lot of things he could have done differently and he won’t let me make the same mistakes.

“I’m a lot like my dad, both in and out of the ring, but luckily I have his knowledge that allows me to see what can happen if you don’t behave like that between fights as well.

“I know the impact it can have, and I know I won’t make the same mistakes.”

Campbell made his debut in front of 500 fans in Gibraltar in March during the Dillian Whyte vs. Alexander Povetkin match. It was an opportunity to showcase his skills, excite fans about his modern breed of Hatton, and start being Campbell Hatton and not just Ricky’s son.

Social media was in full swing throughout fight week, but as we’ve become accustomed to, social media is fickle, and keyboards across the country were frantically typing out words of dismay and negativity following Campbell’s performance.

“I don’t pay much attention to social media,” said the 20-year-old.

“Of course the opponent was narrow in terms of skill and didn’t offer much to put pressure on me, but he wasn’t stopped.

“The people who say, ‘Oh, we have to get him out of there,’ are people who don’t really know boxing and don’t know what these journeymen are about.

“I didn’t underestimate his ability because he didn’t offer much offensively, but I don’t think I was mentally prepared for how tough these journeymen were.

“Going forward, it’s just another experience and another piece of knowledge that I’ve gained, but you can’t just roll it over. So moving forward, I’ll have a little more patience. I know you can’t just raze them to the ground, they’re there to do their job, right? And then that’s exactly what he did.”

Hatton admitted he felt like he wasn’t even using half of his abilities in the ring, but he can’t wait for May 1, when he will show how much he knows he can perform in his hometown of Manchester.

Thinking back to his debut, the super featherweight fighter recalled how emotional his entire family was. Father, Ricky was caught on camera shedding a proud tear as the blue moon poured out of the speakers.

“It was a great night for the whole family, not just me, dad, Matthew and I. Everyone at home was a nervous wreck watching it too.

“Everyone has been through it, me, dad and Matt, and I think during the ring walk even Adam Smith said on commentary how it brought him back.

“From what everyone told me, they said it was terrifying, like I had gone back in time all these years. This is what he wants. Not only success in the ring, I want people to treat me like they loved me, my dad. My dad said it was his greatest achievement. To be loved by fans in the same way, that would be my dream.”

Campbell recognized his flaws on his debut, the pressure was contributed to by his extensive media work, interestingly Hatton said “I’ve always dealt with name pressure quite well” and without the weight of his debut on his shoulders he looks forward to a long and fruitful career.

Hatton’s fighter before him, Ricky, advised his son that there were only positives to take from the professional bow.

“One thing my dad told me was, ‘If you want to be a champion, you have to deal with it. So you’re in a good position and you’ve already had a taste of it early on, so it won’t be as gigantic of a shock to you in the future.”

Looking ahead now, one thing is certain, Campbell Hatton is ready. A player like his father only comes along every once in a while and if he achieves half of what Ricky has achieved, he too will be a fan favorite.

Watch the full, uncut interview in the video below: