Every solemn boxing ephemeral collector has repeatedly seen the name Mike Milligan on British programs and hands in the 1930s to the 1960s. At various times he was a professional boxer, trainer, second, whip and matchmaker. Although his own rings career was miniature and unusual, he was present in other roles for many vast British fights.

Born in London East End in 1908, his Boxing news The obituary states that his real name is Mark Vezan. However, I cannot find a list of this name in official birth or death indexes, so it’s probably wrong. At the age of 15, Milligan joined the Victoria Working Boys boys club in Whitechapel, where the British and European master Harry Mason had his first boxing lessons. At the age of 16, Mike changed his professional, debuting in the notable Premierland, where he won the prince’s sum of 17s 6d (88 pence) for six -handed. He had a few more fights before he turned to the training and made contact with Kingpin Emerging End End Kingpin, Johnny Sharpe. Johnny set Mike for his gym “45” on Mile End Road. Two early Milligan students are Moe Moss and Kid Farlo, both of which he gave Sharpe to manage and became leading professionals. Others Mike trained at 45 gyms, to Jack Hyams, Archie Sexton, Laurie and Sid Raiteri and Billy Mack.

After a few years with Sharpe Milligan, he went to work for Joe Morris, a manager of such stars as Teddy Baldock and Dick Corbett. Mike still worked for Morris in 1934, when Joe, supported by a petite syndicate, bought the lease of an vintage church on Devonshire, Hackney Street, transforming him into a boxing room. The Devonshire club, as it was called, coped with us, prompting Morris and other investors to sell his future promotional Supremo (but then little known) Jacek Solomon. Milligan stopped at Devonshire and worked as an assistant to “home” and Jacek until 1940, when this place was blurred by the Luftwaffe bomb.

In this miniature time, Devonshire became the leading petite hall of the eastern London. It was during this spell that Mike, who had a gift to detect talent, discovered his greatest discovery of his fists. Milligan took the future British featherlight champion Eric Boon [pictured above right with Milligan] Under his wing after he saw him as a 15-year-old on the account of the Devonshire club. Mike trained Eric and was a key impact in the early years, traveling with him wherever he fought.

In 1940, Milligan joined the army as a shooter in Ra, and also served as an instructor entitled He was annulled from the army after an injury at the site of the weapon and spent six months in the hospital. From there, he returned to work as a whip for Salomons and many other promoters, and became a lasting element of what is on a wonderful pregnancy on the shelf, a place outside, located in a crumbling brick and wavy iron walls. From 1951, Mike worked as a match in places such as Mil End Arena and Epsom Baths, and for many years he was a member of the South Council of the region.

“A lively personality with a pleasant way and enthusiasm for boxing, which radiates positively from him,” was like one newspaper described him in 1940. And this enthusiasm for the game has never decreased. “Mike worked as a bookmaker, but boxing was his life,” noted the obituary in boxes in 1964. “He ate, drank and slept boxing … he rarely left the program, vast or petite.”

The sudden death of Milligan, at the age of 56, shocked the British brotherhood of the fight. Many leading boxing characters – among them Salomons, Sharpe and Benny Huntman – were at his funeral in Rainham in Essex to respect a man who left his marks behind the scenes in one of the most colorful eras of British boxing.

Axis Kalambay at PTS 15 Iran Barkley
Octabar 23 1987; Palazzo dello Sport, Livorno, Italy
Kalambay’s Sumbay is often overlooked when historians call the best medium weights in the era of post-Marvin Hagler. But when someone thinks that Kalambay defeated Herola Graham (twice), Mike McCallum, Steve Collins and Iran Barkley, it is clear that he should not. The Italian silky idol was Muhammad Ali and against the free, gritty and strenuous (and let’s not forget, very good) Barkley, Kalambay showed his extensive repertoire in the last fight for the title WBA Middle Wweight to plan 15 rounds. More educational than exhilarating, Kalambay shows exactly why it was very arduous to beat to raise a free belt.

Do you know? The title of WBA was deprived of Hagler after he signed a contract for the fight with Sugar Ray Leonard instead of a compulsory pretender, Herol Graham. Kalambay upset Graham in the fight for the title of EBU – which was a crazy fight for a “bomber”, in retrospect – to get a shot in a free crown.

Watch out for: The operate of a left stabbaya is arduous to determine. At the end of the fight, Barkley is bruised, bloody and well beaten.

Boxing weight classes – except for natural growth – is rarely a recipe for success, as the aged maxim was revealed, “good” UN always beats a good diminutive “Un”. In October 1937, a 21-year-old warrior from Deptford mentioned Tommy Martin He decided to overthrow the general principle.

Less than two years earlier, Tommy was a welterweight. But now he was tailored to a heavyweight with Jim Wilde of Swansea, who weighed as much as 15. 5 pounds. According to press reports, Martin was two lighter, but his actual weight could be even lighter. “In the best part of my career I have never been more than in medium weight,” he said later. “I used to wear a belt around the waist equipped with lead weights to look heavier.”

Even more surprising is that Tommy was successful as a ponderous weight, winning the nickname “Great Britain Brown Bomber”, of course, a great bow to Joe Louis. Jim Wilde was heavily outlined by 10 rounds in Empress Hall to give Martin the first of many wins in ponderous weight. Tommy would prove that he is one of the best in the country in delicate and ponderous weight, but unfortunately as a man with a mixed race he could not box the British title due to the absurd “colorful bar” BBBOFC, which required the players from the players born in Great Britain with two white parents.

Born in reading in January 1916 in the White English Mother and Jamaican Father, Tommy moved with his family to Deptford in South London in 1917. At the age of 14 he escaped from home and got a job as a boy from boxing Billy Stewart, ultimately becoming a fighter. This and later experience at the Billy Wood stand gave Martin precise knowledge about boxing.

He had his first official professional in 1933, at the age of 17 and quickly developed a great CV won, from time to time a failure. His scalps in Welter and Middle Weighing included high -quality men, such as Harry Mason, Jack Lewis, Paul Schaeffer, Bill Hardy and Moe Moss. Until 1938 and 1939, Tommy’s Fighting Wage oscillated between a delicate and ponderous weight when he gathered a 15-handing series of wins with wins on how Frank Hough, Jack Hyams, Tino Rolando, Al Robinson and the future British heavyweight champion Jack London (to whom he gave the third Stone).

At the beginning of 1940, Tommy went to America for a campaign organized by manager Harry Levene. He made his debut in Los Angeles in April against the highly rated Bob Nestelle, who stopped Lee Ramage and King Levinsky. Martin shook his knee in the fight and lost points, but a month later Ko’dell in return. Another noteworthy victory from Tommy’s brief spell in the USA was Pat Valentino, who later challenged Ezzard Charles about the world -heavy crown. However, Martin’s most impressive victory was above Buddy Knox (then 102-11-8), who defeated the former world king Bob Olin. Tommy developed Knox in September 1940, but was overtaken in return.

Martin’s career seemed to sail on her American route. He had only three fights and lost them all: a point defeat in returning with Jacek London, stopping Freddie Mills and KO in the first round at the hands of the previous victim of Al Robinson. Tommy’s concentration turned to the war service. He served with RAF and then to a sales jacket, but was wounded by a torpedo explosion and hospitalized in Montreal. He lost, and then, after two operations, he regained his sight before he joined American maritime infantry soldiers. After leaving the services, Tommy moved to Hollywood and founded the gym, but later qualified as a physiotherapist and opened his practice in Novel York. After the wedding, he settled on the Virgin Islands, where he worked as a prison governor until his retirement. He died in 1987.