Wembley Arena, London, England – September 27, 1980.

On this day, the demanding -earned coronation of the great warrior as a world champion in medium weight was overshadowed by events that led to the fact that the fight was called “ashamed of British boxing.” Marvin HaglerThe terrifying shaved head of Southpaw from Brockton, Massachusetts, challenged the British hero Alan Minter for the world crown. Before the fight, there was controversy with Minter, who was the second defense of his belt, infamously declaring how “no black man would never accept my title.” After the fight, there was controversy in the form of wicked ugly scenes after the fight. If you could call it a fight. A bloody sculpture can be a more true description of 7 minutes and 45 seconds that lasted.

Hagler, hungry (see starving) and still smart “being robbed” in his challenge from 1979 of the then Champion Vito Antuofermo, and the fight was a draw at the end of 15 exhausting rounds, she was a petite weakness against Minter and decided to break through to the title at that time. Minter, who won the title, deciding about Vito and stopped him in the first defense of the title, had no idea what was for him against his hunger pretender.

From the very beginning, Hagler was a defender’s master, soon opening a nasty cut above Minter’s left eye. Soon blood belonged, the minister suffered a total of four cuts to the end (later needing 15 seams). Hagler was the personification of a warrior who was simply not denied. Minter was arrested on his feet, trying to fight through the blood, and then more slaughter broke out. Minter’s “fans”, most of them drunk, felt that Hagler was knocked down his hero and that his shaved dome caused terrible cuts of the face, not his fists. Soon a bottle of beer and cans was fired on the ring.

Hagler, on his knees celebrating his great win, was protected by a human shield created by his corner men. Commentator Harry Carpenter was not so lucky: “I just hit the head with a bottle,” Carpenter informed the television audience, slightly noticeable in his words. It was a ghostly scene, and later Mickey Duff, the head of Mintera, apologized to “for everyone in boxing in this country.”

Hagler was so indignant that he vowed that he would never return to Great Britain again. Minter was taken to the hospital.

Although his great moment was broken, Hagler was as determined as always, if not more, to maintain a strongly beloved world title – the one who worked so demanding and so long to earn. Indeed, there was a great reign of the title, and Hagler ruled the world for almost seven long years.

Today, looking back, Hagler has respect for Minter and Anddufermo. During a boxing dinner a few years ago, the wonderful Marvin remembered both his unsuccessful title and his successful.

“First of all, I want to talk about Vito Antuofermo,” said Hagler, when he was asked that he finally became the world champion, defeating Minter.

“I Give Antoufermo a Lot of Credit, Because He Was A Little Bull. He was Kinda Tough and at Knew It and I Trained Very Difficult for AntoFermo. And I Tell You, heery And I Had a Lot of Footwork and Movement and I Felt as Though and Beat Him, But at the end, when the smoke Cleared, I Lost and he won because he was [still] master. I thought it was unfair and I thought that a lot of policy was involved. But one thing that was very frosty was when I went down the stairs, Joe Louis, I remember, grabbed my hand and said: “Hey, kid, you won this fight, don’t give up.” I said, “Tough, no, I’m coming back to the gym.”

“So I focused on Alan Minter. At that time I never knew so much about Alan Minter, except that I knew that I should be next in the queue, a return match with Anoufermo. It caught a lot of anger in myself – and you don’t want me to go crazy (laughs). So I think that when the fire started to burn. [the title] And he didn’t deserve it. Every day I ran next to the ocean and dreamed about it by becoming the world champion. I had to go through this water to take what I wanted.

“But to this day I thank Alan Minter for giving me an opportunity. He was a respected master and showed me what a master he was, although he was a three -hand stop. He took a lot of punishment, but he showed me a lot of courage. All the things that happened after I didn’t really blind, because I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content Joyful that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content that I was so content. [policemen]. But these are just a handful of people who made the whole country look bad. “

A really unforgettable day in the British history of boxing. If not for pleasant reasons.

Boxing is a sport of a youthful man. For many years, none of the right thoughts that witnessed the parties and events of fighters, has been questioning it. It is basically recommended that every successful amateur with professional ambitions introduce this movement or risk the loss of a fragment of their unpaid ranks.

However, in recent years we have seen a lot of amateur stars oppose this rule, passing tardy, but still is a rating as professionals. In particular, Golovkin Gennades switched codes to 24, Vasiliy Lomachenko At the age of 25 and Oleksandr Usyk at the age of 26. Recently, British Joe Joyce changed at the age of 32. Some say he left him too tardy, but so far, so good. He is now undefeated in 12 paid workplaces, and in his last fight he put a slip under the rising star of Daniel Dubois. But traditionally, tardy switches were rarely apparent and rarely worked. So, in 1960, when an amateur named Johnny Cooke turned at the age of 25, this movement raised a few eyebrows.

The blonde, born in Bootle Booke’s Boyhood Idol was Merseysider Nel Tarleton, the legendary British featherweight champion, who had two close battles for the world crown. Cooke felt boxing in Robert Contemporary Secondary for the first time before boxing for ST Monica and finally maple leaf. He won the Army titles in 1953-55, reigned as a champion of northern poviats from 1957 to ’60 and boxed several times to England. He was a delicate finalist of ABA in 1958, losing to the great Dick McTaggart. The following year, Cooke reached the finals again, beating McTaggart and Maurice Cullen (later British champion as a professional). This time, Cooke was detained in a half minute cut to go against Paul Warwick from West Ham ABC. He tried again in 1960, but lost in the quarterfinals with this year’s Titlist, McTaggart. “It was such a stinking decision,” said Johnny, “that I decided to try my happiness as a professional. I also had a heart on Rome on Rome [1960] Olympics; I was bitterly disappointed when McTaggart went, not me. “In total, Johnny faced Dick six times, winning two.

Cooke became a professional from Johnny Campbell of Birkenhead in June 1960 and had 22 duels in the first two years. He overtook his cousin, Dave Coventry, to get the delicate Central Area crown in January 1962, and in July 644 in July 644 he made an offer for the British and Empire of glory. Six months later, Johnny defeated a colleague from Bootle Tony Smith at Central Area Welter Crown, and in February 1967 he faced another Merseysider, Brian McCaffrey, for titles released by Curvis.

McCAffrey and Cooke issued an amazing battle at a crazy pace. Anyone who doubted the conditioners of the boxers of that era should look at the fight on YouTube to see how both men are still going on the skin in the 15th round. Their performances both deserved recognition, but Johnny was a worthy winner. Three months later he laid the first cut -out on his lane Lonsdale, defeating Shauna Doyle Barnsley, and in August 1967 he fought for the European Crown, losing to Italy Carmelo Bossi in San Remo. Cooke lost the British titles and the Empire with Ralph Charles in 15 close rounds in February 1968, the verdict he questioned. From then on, Johnny’s ambition was the return and winning the Lonsdale belt for Keeps. It never happened, but he fought until 1971, retiring just before his 37th birthday.

Cooke packed 93 fights (52-34-7) in an 11-year professional career in which he traveled far and wide. He fought in Finland, Denmark, Sweden, France, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, South Africa, Guyana, Ghana and Canada. But as a warrior, a visitor was often a fight uphill to win a decision. No wonder that most of his failures occurred in foreign duels.

Good things come to those who wait, and Lord knows that Juan Manuel Marquez was waiting for the world.

Of course, he kept Manny Pacquiao in a draw in 2004, but then lost points two years later in Indonesia with the featherweight champion WBA Chris John.

However, his unanimous and distinguished 12-round points are won by Marco Antonio Barrera before 8127 fans at the Las Vegas Mandalay Bay hotel on March 17, 2007. They disappointed.

The victory crowned Marquez not only the master of two scales (WBA/IBF pen, and now the Super-Feather WBC), but he won the unique and unusual double, younger brother Rafael, winning the Crown Super-Bantam in WBC two weeks earlier.

Interestingly, these Mexican siblings (married to the sisters) achieved the same feat in two weeks in 2003 (though in the reverse order), when Juan Manuel won the IBF feather bar, and then Rafael Korona Bantam of the same organization, perhaps making the sedate rivals with Leon and Michael Spinsk are known.

Although Marquez was before, what he lacked was recognition. But although this triumph certainly brought him the right to seriously questioned the supremacy in the division, Juan Manuel will continue to require a few more wins of this size, if he is to join the aristocracy of Barrera and Erika Morales.

The future offers Marquez an immediate chance to return from Barrera or the competition with the WBO master Joan Guzman.

The most convincing match would be against Pacquiao, but its promotional status makes the fight less accessible, if not impossible.

However, at the age of 33 and he won 47. Victory in 51 fights, Marquez must be at the peak or outside.

So I am afraid that the possibility that he has ever joined the ranks of other Mexican great, is a bit distant, like Steve Collins, despite two wins over each of Chris Eubank and Nigel Benn, they have never received the same recognition as the men he conquered. In the worst case, Marquez will be remembered as a man who fell over and perhaps a retired Barrera.

Marquez (9. 3lbs) escaped with his decision, winning the last three rounds for all judges.

This only made sure that the result is already on the cards. Because after nine rounds, Marquez led all three judges, he helped a point deducted from Barrera in dying seconds of an amazing seventh, when after he was shocked, Marco Antonio returned to drop his pretender (although he was argued to slip), and then he hit him absurd when he was down and defense.

However, although it seemed close to the fight, there was never time when no judges had Barrera in the front.

It was an stimulating, though constantly stimulating competition, as in the case of the first and third battle Barrera with Morales or a scorching meeting of Marquez of Pacquiao. But in brief, the explosive, the dams forward and the return in almost every round, which moved enough for the crowd to be a collection and supported wildly.

Richard Schaefer and Bernard Hopkins for the Golden Boy promoters claimed that he was a powerful claimant for Fight of the Year and so it could be. But a lot of emotions appeared in the last 10 seconds of each round, when they suddenly allowed to fly with everything to keep the undecided judges.

Usually, Marquez, slightly faster, improved from these exchanges, and the results of the judges achieved in seven rounds, six of which went to Marquez, certainly the garbage of Barrera’s claim (see fight) that it was a terrible decision.

Tally Douga Tucker suggested that Marquez had a much easier time than in the case, and even 116-111 results for Patricia Morse Jarman and Paul Smith seemed generous for the modern master, whom I won 116-113.

But Barrera (9. 4 pounds) could never exert control behind her stab, as he had against the previous pretenders, although apparently this was not his only intention on this occasion.

Ricky Hatton, a friend of Barrera I, who led the master to the ring, told me that Marco Antonio decided to battle, as if it was his desire to compensate for the lack of action that he provided fans in his previous victory, over Rocky Juarez.

But Barrera tactics represented a mixture of what he is capable of: bright boxing and uneven confrontation. Perhaps this led to the confusion that Marquez was able to apply his speedy hands and flawless technique.

Barrera was always threatening with the left, whether as a hook or a great contract with the body or head. He dropped Marquez, twice at the end of the second, although until the fifth he had no more blows and “paid the price. Marquez scored a goal with the fabulous upper upper upper upper right result on the fifth, though next to the left eye looked sore.

Until then, each of them canceled the second periods, when the defensive work won the attack as one and then the other, until the end of the fireworks at the end of the round.

But the seventh turned out to be a turning point, because Barrera was seriously shaken by the law to the jaw, but she usually tried to fight, even though he sent more punishment. Then, in the fire of this pressure, Barrera defeated his opponent to hit, when he both threw the laws and putting off Juan Manuel.

He was on all fours, when, at least a second or two after he was placed, Marquez received a wave in his ear, which was as intentional as Tiger Woods, putting the golf ball on a T -shirt and swaying.

I remember how the British pretender for a welterweight title, Colin Jones, was disqualified for something similar in the 1980s, but nowadays receiving orders to march for the first crime, even if it was as glaring as Barrera.

Absurdowa was Barrera’s suggestion that Judge Jay Nady was guilty, that he did not jump quickly after the fall of Marquez. Barrera tried to justify a budget-friendly shot, saying something to which he was not there to have fun.

Barrera may have a good picture from the ring, but it can be nasty in it.

Although Nady broke, without noticing the knocking down, in defense of the official I would say that most of us did not see the replay of Migle at the end of the round on immense screens.

In fact, what happened cost Barrera three points, but fortunately it did not affect the result.

And although the Marquez floor suggested that Barrera was above the rocky moments he had experienced earlier in the round, the master never seemed so commanding again, even if he caused the pretender’s nose bleeding and the left eye to start closing in the ninth place when both of them allowed the blows to fly.

Marquez’s face was now a mess – a stout lip and swollen eyes – but his obvious hunger and drive turned out to be decisive. He broke Barrera’s powerful right in 10th place, threw the left eye of the master and chased victory in the 11th, producing more solid work.

And in the last Marquez he ignored a sedate cut in the right eye to punish Barrera, 63-5 1ND (42), as if he still had everything to fight. Two shocking hooks to the head forced the tired master to hold to the last 10 seconds when they went to it wild.

Everyone was outstanding, cheering and clapping. Hopkins said: “These guys have worn out for entertainment. Even the winner’s career when it comes to longevity in boxing is shortened [in fights such as these]. “

In the case of a risk that spoke like a man addicted to a thrill, despite the risk, the 42-year-old added: “Now you know why I’m coming back because you can’t watch such a fight and not get itching.”