The middleweight division has always been a favorite on these shore, and at the beginning to the mid -1990s, three men were fascinated and entertained masses. Chris Eubank originally led, but Nigel Benn and eventually Steve Collins He took over, and Collins held two wins over both his rivals, and on November 9, 1996, Collins recorded a second victory over Bennem; The last time we saw the “Gloomy Destroyer” in the ring.

Two men returned to the place of their first fight, then named Nyx Arena in Manchester, where Collins initially defeated Benna in four rounds, when Leniewicz went to the stool because of ankle injury.

Four months later we returned to Manchester with Benne, looking for a redemption, and Collins is looking for a final and more clear victory. Once again, Super Middle WBO was on the line and once again Benn retired on the stool, although this time there was no injury.

Collins has always been relentless in his attacks, but Benn wore knockout power, which made him one of the most observed and exhilarating fighters that Great Britain has ever produced.

Many fans counted on another outstanding performance by Benn, but his heart did not seem to be in him at night and took a systematic beating from the hands of “Celtic Warrior”.

The “Gloomy Destroyer” may have had to give up earlier, but he was never a man who withdrew from the challenge. Benn tried to exchange Collins, but he tried nothing, and at the end of the sixth round he signaled that he no longer wanted to referee Paul Thomas.

Benn retired after the fight, although there were rumors about returning, the “Gloomy Destroyer” never returned between the ropes, despite the assumption of Collins after the fight that he would come back.

Collins fought twice as much in 1997, defending his title against Frederic Seillier and Craig Cummings, but the injury in training caused the fight against Joe Calzaghe in Sheffield this year. Instead, Eubank took up a fight, where the beginning of the legendary career at the level of the world title was present.

But the fights between Collins and Bennem, although not expected buffers, are huge in the history of British boxing and both remain cult in the middleweight department.

Since on November 11 was the day of Bystice this week, he is the right time to reflect on the career of a very good professional who gave his life for his country. Many boxers who died during the two world wars were often dismissed in the BN in the last 50 years, including several excellent fighters, including masters. The death of Ernie Vickers of Middlesbrough during the Falklands war is much less known. November 11 is a time to remember the members of the armed forces who served and died, but Ernie was different because he was a merchant sailor. The Navy commemorates their dead on September 3, the anniversary of the outbreak of World War II, but as Ernie is, if I can determine, the last person died in action that had a professional career. When he died at the Atlantic conveyor, next to men from the Royal Auxiliary Fleet and the Royal Navy, I will remember him today.

Ernie comes from a sports family. His father was a champion of the army sprint in 1910, and his brother became the Yorkshire champion in a quarter mile. Another brother, Jack, professionally in 1951–1956. Born in 1924, Ernie served in Royal Navy as a newborn man, serving in HMS Ganges in the last years of World War II, and won 11 out of 12 amateur competitions. In 1949 he changed his professional, working with manager Eric Munro, who was a very good boxer before the war, replacing gloves with such as Bobby Magee, Len Beynon and George Marsden. “Pan Boxing” Middlesbrough led his newborn accusation to 26 wins from the first 27 competitions, when Vickers fought through a series of four and six runes at shows in his native northeast and around him. He regularly played at the West Hartlepool engineers club, at Groundon Hendon Cricket, Sunderland, and of course he was a great favorite in his hometown at the Farre Street stadium.

Collecting such a long winning series was quite unusual in the tardy 1940s and 1950s, and Ernie looked like a pretty perspective and was a known blow, and many opponents were broken. Kelly’s manchester cyclone escaped, ahead of Ernie in Nowy ST James Hall in Newcastle in November 1950. Kelly was at the moment for Donkey’s years, he began his professional career at the end of the 1920s and knew every trick in the book.

Another veteran for almost 20 years, Ginger Roberts from Whitley Bay, was an opponent of Ernie in Ernie’s largest career competition. Two men met at Northern Area North Half’s weight, in over 12 rounds, in December 1951 at the local Vickers stadium at Farrer Street. For Roberts it was the last competition in his career 154 and gave everything. He was the prevailing owner of the title, after winning the title last year, developing Billy Exley, and was his favorite in battle. He could not compete with the youth of his opponent, or with uneven, vivid and energetic attacks, which Vickers produced during 12 rounds, and Ernie became a clear margin at the end of the competition. Within a week of the fight, his manager advertised Vickers as available to fight with any welterweight in Europe. When Ernie left the game in 1956, he won 39 of his 58 competitions in his long career.

It is not surprising that at the age of 57 he was ready to go in the middle of the world in the last war effort of Great Britain, almost 40 years after he did it, and it was a tragedy that he died so far from home.

Everyone at the eastern end knew him, but he was far from the advertisement of his previous profession. To fight students, too juvenile, to know him as a boxer, it was challenging to reconcile the figure that they now saw with the figure of the one -time King of Great Britain and Europe, a man who fought Freddie Welsh, Georges Carpentier and Harry Lewis.

Partly paralyzed and consisting of pairs of sticks to support, his body was leaning, his gait was painful shuffling, the contrast between this and now was Stark. Although boxing may not cause the state of juvenile Joseph, his name became recognition for the inseparable risk of this sport.

Joseph Aschel-Je’s real name-he was born for Jewish parents’ immigrants in 1885. He lived at Cutler Street in Aldgate, near Wonderland on Whitechapel Road, East End boxing house. Joseph won his first chance during a trial in 1900, and from 1903 he was a regular land of spells, winning most of his fights and impresses these competent crowds with his skills. Over the next few years, his fame increased exponentially. He appeared several times at the British Boxing headquarters, the National Sporting Club (NSC), but remained true in the land of spells despite low bags.

In 1908, Joseph defeated the Baker’s Corporal in NSC for the British Crown of Code, and in March 1910 he met with the former lithe champion of Jacek Goldswain from Bermondsey in the match for the first half -two lane. Józef dominated the destitute fight, broke from the unspecified Goldswain, which was disqualified in 12th place to hold. According to the terms of his agreement, NSC suspended the purse and the costs of training Goldswain, and Goldswain sued them. In a strange accent Joseph, who belonged to the Novel Boxers Union, testified against NSC. The Westminster Court told that in his opinion Goldswain did everything he could to win and should not be fined. Goldswain lost the case and then an appeal.

Three months after winning the belt, Joseph faced Harry Lewis from Philadelphia in the Wonderland in the title of World Champion, but the great American stopped him in seven. In November, Joseph developed the French Lacroix fight in Paris for the European Crown. But in January 1911 he lost the fight for his British belt, Arthur Evernden to disqualification. Since the fight was not kept in NSC, Joseph insisted that he would still be a champion, while Evernden made an unofficial claim to the title.

In October, Joseph defended his European crown against Georges’ juvenile carpentry. The French teenager proved his revelation, winning when BN said that “almost as he liked it.” But Joseph deserved the crowd’s respect for his display, which he is never able to. Although it was obstructed by a training injury to the right fist, it was obvious that Aldgate man could not win on his best night. In retrospect, lasting 10 rounds with a legendary Frenchman, just like before pulling him out of the corner, was an achievement in itself.

There was one more match for Joseph, when in April 1912 he lost his British title from Johnny Summers. He fought for several years, but was forced to leave the ring by bad health. The exact nature of his condition and whether it results from boxing is unclear. Press reports from 1915, when Joseph was only 30 years venerable, describe him as “disabled” and “affected by a stern illness.”

After leaving the box, he had a clothing store at the eastern end, but when his health deteriorated, he was forced to give up. BN noticed in 1937, when Joseph was 52 years venerable that “he almost completely lost the apply of limbs” and considered challenging speech. It was a tragic and unthinkable PostScript for a widely respected sports hero – a man who inspired great Ted Kid Lewis. Joseph died on October 23, 1952 at the age of 67.