How great and unique was heavyweight contender Ron Lyle?

How gigantic?

I would go so far as to say that ex-con turned all-around good guy Lyle deserves to be remembered as the best heavyweight of the 1970s who never managed to become world champion. And yes, that’s saying something – especially when you look at how exceptional fighters like Jerry Quarry, Jimmy Teenage, Oscar Bonavena, Earnie Shavers and others were never able to capture the gigantic one during that golden decade.

Lyle has earned everything that has happened to him.

Born in February 1941, Lyle was the third of 19—yes, 19—children. Things were always tough. Supposedly a member of a street gang (Lyle insisted he was never in a gang, but only hung out with his best friends, or “brothers”), the teenage Lyle ran afoul of the law, serving a sentence of 15 to 20 years for second-degree murder. At 20, Lyle’s life seemed over, but it was just getting started.

After another, more hellish stretch of bad blood—Lyle was stabbed by a fellow inmate shortly before his sentence was served, and Ron’s life, lying on a table, was saved only by 36 blood transfusions—the 6-foot-10 specimen born in Denver, Colorado, was even more determined to do something about himself.

And boy, did Ron Lyle do just that.

Locked in solitary confinement after cheating death, Lyle began a regimen that involved hundreds of squats, push-ups, and sit-ups on a bowl of spinach a day. Lyle wasn’t like other men. He was incredibly powerful and determined. Lyle gritted his teeth.

After his release from prison, Lyle had about 25 amateur fights, reportedly losing only one. After receiving a full pardon in overdue 1969 and early 1970, Lyle made astonishing progress. Lyle, the 1970 AAU national champion, had an unpaid career that is worthy of an article in itself.

Brisk forward to April 1971 and Lyle was finally a paid professional. A professional athlete who would reach the top. Remember, Ron was determined. He bit. That brought 19 straight wins, most of them by KO, before Lyle was picked by Jerry Quarry in February 1973.

Here, Lyle tells the story of his career in his own words, words that we so kindly shared with this writer just before Ron’s death in November 2011.

“I owe a lot to boxing,” Ron said in the summer of 2010. “It helped me change my whole life. I love helping and inspiring other people, little kids. It’s good to aid people. That’s what it’s all about. I come from a gigantic family, 19 brothers and sisters. I know how to work with a team.”

Lyle played his part in simply epic fights with George Foreman, Earnie Shavers and Muhammad Ali.

“The Foreman fight didn’t go my way, but I’ll never forget it,” Ron said long ago. “I gave it my all that night. The [Earnie] The Shavers fight was another good one, it was the first time I had to get up after being knocked down to win the fight, so I passed that test. Shavers had a very keen punch. When he hit you, the lights went out! When he knocked me down, the ground came up to meet me.

“Foreman’s punch was more like, ‘Boom!’ George really came in with his left jab, too.

While the snail fests of Shavers (Lyle won) and Foreman (Ron lost) are exceptional, it is the Ali fight that is best remembered. Lyle has always cherished the memories of the world title fight in the film The Greatest in May 1975.

“First of all, Ali was a great fighter,” Ron told me. “No disrespect to Ali. [But] skill-wise, I think I fit in well with him. I had become a very well-rounded fighter myself and I was at my best when I fought Ali. I had to be. I was the underdog and did I rise above that? I think I did. I saw all his punches coming and I could move around them. I will always have fond memories of that fight.

Maybe the judge helped me in some way [when he stopped the fight; Ali behind in the 11th round]. I can move. I am in good shape. I can talk. Maybe it is [the ref] saved me from further punishment. But Ali was THE man back then and we all tried to keep up with him.

Lyle never won the most significant one; the Ali fight on May 16, 1975, his only chance at a world title. But boy, what a mark Lyle made in the heavyweight division. And what a disservice Ron Lyle would have done to today’s heavyweight division if he were here today.

Talk about a highly hyped fighter who was completely and ruthlessly exposed. On this day in 1977, 26-year-old “Great White Hope” Duane Bobick, trained by the great Eddie Futch, put his storied 38-0(32) professional record on the line in the face of the fearsome more experienced (and simply much bigger) fighter, period) Ken Norton.

The two heavyweights met in Up-to-date York City at Madison Square Garden, and it was announced before the fight that the winner would sign a contract to fight current heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali. Norton, 32, with a record of 37-4 (31), was coming off a close, controversial and widely discussed decision loss to Ali – a September 1976 fight in which Ali retained his crown with the aid of all three judges.

Norton, who had a win over Ali and worked with top fighters like George Foreman (lost) and Jerry Quarry (won), proved to be lithe years ahead of Bobick in every way. Bobick, from Minnesota, had a great amateur career, defeating two true champions in Teofilo Stevenson and Larry Holmes. As a professional, however, Bobick was not as exceptional.

That said, before the Norton fight/blowout, Bobick had good wins over Manuel Ramos, Mike Weaver, Scott LeDoux, Bunny Johnson, and Chuck Wepner. However, against the former San Diego Marine, Bobick completely lost his balance, and it showed. In just: 58 seconds.

Throughout his career, Norton had been a fighter who could be caught quickly and taken down with a powerful punch. Kenny was the main puncher that night. Both men came out aggressively, but it was Norton who landed first. A challenging right hand hurt Bobick, his legs were shaking, and Norton was already running for the finish line. Bobick tried to fight back, but Norton punched him over and over, over and over. More rights hit Bobick in the head, then a crushing right hand to the jaw sent Bobick crashing down. Bobick tried to beat the count, but briefly fell flat on his face before getting counted on his feet. There was confusion as the referee initially allowed the fight to continue before realizing his mistake and diving in to stop the proceedings before Norton could land another punch. This was obviously good news for a severely dazed Bobick.

Norton returned, and his brutal KO victory allowed him to at least partially shake off the bad taste left by his controversial loss to Ali. But there was no rematch with Ali for Norton, no fourth fight. Instead, Norton was declared WBC heavyweight champion after a points victory over Jimmy Teenage later that year. Norton then played his part in a heavyweight classic in the form of a losing fight to Holmes.

As for Bobick, he fought for another two years after the Norton blow, winning ten and losing three. After back-to-back KO losses at the hands of John Tate and George Chaplin, Bobick retired with a final record of 48-4(42).

Boxing is all about levels, and on this day in 1977, two heavyweights who were at completely different levels met in a fight that turned out to be tiny and painful.

One of the sport’s truly good guys, former two-time WBA welterweight champion Mark Breland, turns 60 today. One of the greatest American amateur boxers in history – Breland, from Brooklyn, who compiled a remarkable amateur record of 110-1(73), won Olympic gold in 1984 and gold at the 1982 World Championships – the elegant fighter was widely expected to be the next superstar.

Although he had a good career, Breland ultimately suffered a setback, and his loss and draw in the fights with Marlon Starling could have been Breland’s defining fights. After hanging up his gloves in 1997, with a good record of 35-3-1(25), Breland became a trainer – a decent, truthful and caring trainer. We saw that in the work Breland did with Deontay Wilder; Breland was fired for doing the right thing and saving Wilder from further punishment in his second fight with Tyson Fury.

Breland was indeed unceremoniously fired by Wilder for saving his career, if not his life. Always an elegant man, Breland had almost nothing bad to say about Wilder. In a press release a while back, this writer was fortunate to have the affable and incredibly well-spoken Breland for a miniature interview.

Here’s what Breland had to say about the key moments of his ring career:

On his best night in the ring:

“The biggest thing for me is winning the Golden Gloves in 1980. When I was seven years elderly, I went to see Muhammad Ali-Joe Frazier fight, and ever since then, it’s been my dream to fight in Madison Square Garden. When Ali and Frazier came out, a beam of airy followed them all the way to the ring, and that’s what happened to me in the Golden Gloves. I don’t even remember the name of the guy I beat that night.

On two tough fights with Marlon Starling:

“Before the first fight with Starling, I injured my ribs in training and I wanted to pull out – Starling was very good at hitting the body. But I was winning the first fight before I got so tired. In the second fight, the rematch, he was very defensive, but he still threw a lot of punches. I think I had the advantage then, but they called it a draw. It was a bad night for me because I think I won. When the scores were read out, I was like, ‘Wow.’

On Thomas Hearns’ sparring:

“Tommy Hearns is without a doubt the best fighter I’ve ever sparred with. I first sparred when I was 17 and Tommy taught me a lot about the jab and the right hand. When we first sparred I was a little embarrassed by Tommy; later on it was more technical sparring. Tommy was much more experienced than me at that time.”

On the hardest punch that ever broke the camel’s back in a ring, sparring or real fight:

“Aaron Davis was great, he was scratchy, but I was more exhausted than anything (when I was stopped in the ninth round of the war). But I think I would say Davis was the hardest puncher I’ve ever been in a fight. Marlon Starling hit difficult and had that awkward style. But I have to say the hardest puncher I’ve ever been in the ring with was Tommy Hearns. He was a killer puncher.”

On any regrets he may have about his ring career:

“I don’t regret the way my career has turned out. I wouldn’t do anything different because I’ve done everything I set out to do. I’m joyful. I’m joyful that I’m training fighters now. I left the ring at the right time and I’m joyful. I’ve seen what can happen to fighters who fight too long. I’ve done things that no one can take away from me.”