On May 4, 1973, Frankie Lucas from Sir Philip Game from Croydon ABC defeated Carla Speare from Liverpool in this year’s final ABA Middle Wweight at Empire Pool in Wembley. This was the second victory in Aba Lucas’s championships, after defeating another Liverpudlian, Tony Byrne, in 1972. During his triumph over Spear, he seemed to be intended for great things.

The well -known great puncher, Lucas was also inclined to cut, and when he went to Belgrade next month to take part in the European Championships, BN was a bit guarded in predicting that he could do it well, “Lucas is particularly effective with a enormous right right, but I would feel a little more hopeful about his opportunities, if he returns to his elderly style of natural aggression, because these time seems to that he is so concentrated by his defense. ” Lucas lost in the quarter -finals with the final winner, Russian, Vyacheslavem Lemechev. His great form saw that he took position number one throughout the year in Amateur BN ratings and seemed to be a shoe in the Games of the Nations Community in 1974, in which he hoped to win gold for England.

Aba dropped the bomb in October 1973, when they chose Speare for the game team, and the man Croydon was understandable, enraged. In Article BN, headed by “Lucas Hopping Mad Over Games Snub” Frankie said: “I’m just too handed to think about what to do in the future. I had my heart to win the golden medal in Christchurch. I had offers to change the professional, but I stopped because I wanted to win the title of the community. Olympic team.

He decided soon. When he was born in ST Vincent, he contacted this federation to ask if he could box them at the games and they jumped him. Thus, the medium weight tournament of the community of the Nations Community in 1974 would have some skin and the needle and was observed with considerable interest. Speare is still impressive in England. This season, he won three of the four international competitions for England and was part of the very robust team of England, which also included Billy Knight, Robbie Davies, Mickey Abrams and Pat Cowdell.

Both boys won two open competitions at matches, and then were tailored to each other in the semi -final, and the loser won the bronze medal. I remember the emotions generated by this scrap because the games were well television. Lucas and Speare fought with another arduous, close competition, and the national coach Kevin Hickey said that “their finale ABA was close, the decision to choose Speare instead of Lucas was close, and the semi -final could go both ways and Frank got it.” Lucas had to feel a great sense of satisfaction, because although he did not feel hostile to his opponent, he had a great result to settle with the authorities.

Now he just had to win the final. He fell against Zambia, Julius Liuipa, who performed extremely well and was a miniature favorite. None of this was significant for Frankie, who after cutting out in the first round took the initiative in the second and downed his rival, then blew him up for good with a enormous right hook.

Both Lucas and Speare turned to their professionalism in 1974 and although their paths never exceeded in paid ranks, each of them had a respected career. Lucas has twice questioned the British medium weight title with the two best, Kevin Finnegan and Alan Minter.

Muhammad Ali vs Joe Frazier (1971-1975)

Certainly the biggest sports competition of them all. Two great massive scales, two very different characters. Ali was bold and swift, raging quietly and proud. They were also very different in the ring.

“The problem with you, Joe, is that you can’t

“But I can fight,” answered Frazier. And the boy could fight.

Their first meeting, in Madison Square Garden in March 1971, was the biggest event in the history of boxing, displayed in 35 foreign countries and had similarities with the first fight between Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury, because he directed the prevailing master (phrase) against the line master (Ali).

Both were unbeatable-Frazier won all 26, Ali had 31-0-and the competition became personal with Ali Dramting Frazier, calling him “ugly” and “stupid” and worse. The phrase replied with his fists, dropping Ali in the last to make sure that winning unanimously points.

The bad feeling between Ali and the Frazier spilled in the days before the rematch, both were fined in the amount of $ 5,000 after the clash, when they watched the repetition of the first joint fight.

Ali provided less drama in the ring, clearly winning points. Next was “Trełka in Manila”.

“It’s a real hatred,” said the phrase in gathering. “I want to hurt him.”

Ali seemed less motivated, probably dispersed by the company of his mistress in the Philippines.

“[Frazier] He looked like Ali wanted to hit during the instructions, “Ferdie Paczeco, Ali, remembered.” Ali looked as if he expected a tennis playing. ” During the fight, Jerry Izenberg, a well -known sports writer, sensed that Ali and Frazier “fought for the championship”, and after 14 rounds of action in heating heat could not.

According to Wali Muhammad, “Cut ‘Em Off” was an instructions for Ali. “He was tired,” Muhammad remembered. “He wanted us to cut the gloves. [Trainer] Angelo [Dundee] He ignored him. “

Dundee was saved before making a decision because he called the judge by Eddie Futch. The phrase said: “It’s over. The world will never forget what you have done here today.”

Dundee later said: “Both guys lacked gas, only my guy had an additional tank.”

Floyd Patterson vs Ingemar Johansson (’59 -’61)

The only case of the Swedish Playboy Johansson, who defeated the favorite 1/5, seemed to be if he could land with his right hand.

Johansson boasted: “No man can get up” Tooner “(Grzmot)”, and when he landed on Patterson’s chin in the third round, he landed on his back. Patterson was still Groggy and looked at his corner to get advice when the fight resumed, and Johansson did not show him mercy, smashing him to the floor, smashing him to the floor.

In the third round there was a total of seven knocking before the judge announced Johansson with a fresh champion. The story was in the corner of Johansson, when they met in a rematch 12 months later. No massive weight has previously regained the title. Patterson was determined to become the first. He was faster to stab, and his left hook kept Johansson’s right hand glued to the chin.

He couldn’t stop Patterson’s left hook in the third round. Johansson fell, and Patterson’s strength on the left hook later in the round made him unconscious. 10 minutes passed before Johansson could leave the ring.

They were both in a dramatic opening round in a rubber match. Patterson first fell on his right hand. The same blow forced him again, and Johansson went to the finish. He fell into the left hook and was on the floor.

Of these two Patterson, he seemed more shocked, but at the end of the third, Johansson cut both eyes and hurt him with body shots. Johansson responded to the edema under the left eye of Patterson, but to the sixth Swede disappeared, and Patterson chopped him to the floor with the laws.

Riddick Bowe vs Evander Holyfield (’92 -’95)

From 32 rounds Bowe and Holyfield fought, we will always be remembered.

Bowe was the first to break down in the 10th round of his first fight, in Las Vegas in November 1992. Holyfield remembered: “Bowe hit me more than ever I was hit in my life, a substantial blow to the chin. I saw the stars … They danced around my head, like in one of these senior cartoons.”

For about the next minute, Bowe threw everything at Holyfield, firing 40 full -blooded blows at him. Somehow the champion remained on his feet, and Holyfield gathered, pushing the heavier Bowy and hitting with mighty beard blows.

Bowe answered and bombs threw herself at each other as the bell rang. Bowe has remained more in the tank over the last two rounds, dropping Holyfield on the 11th place on the way to a unanimous victory.

In the seventh round of the rematch there was a drama when Bowe, Holyfield and Judge Mills Lane almost joined in the ring by parachutist James Miller. In one of the most strange incidents in heavyweight history, he hit the ring lights in the Caesar Palace, causing a delay in over 20 minutes. After the resumption of Holyfield, he adhered to his game plan and went to most of the victory.

Then he lost to Michael Moorer, and Holyfield retired after diagnosing a heart defect.

He returned to overtake Ray Mercer and configured a rubber match with Bowe, who used the satisfactory knockout of the former amateur winner Jorge Luis González.

After five rounds, Bowe looked close to victory against Holyfield.

The judge and doctor were so worried, they went to check Holyfield in his corner. They decided that he could continue, and Holyfield met Bowe in the middle of the ring at the beginning of the sixth, forced him to replace him and dropped him with his left hook, pointing to the amazing return.

Each left hook Holdfield aimed at Waltny Bowe for the next few seconds, and when they replaced the blows again in eighth place, Holyfield was on canvas.

There was nothing left in “Nine”, and Bowe only needed two more shots to end the electrifying trilogy.

The best of the rest
Looking back at other heavyweight competitions, which gave birth to three matches

Muhammad Ali vs Ken Norton

Only the phrase previously defeated Ali, and Norton shared the coach Eddie Futch with him. The senior wise man suspected of Norton’s style was enraged for Ali and so he proved. Ali’s jaw was broken before the last round of Norton sealed nervousness.

Ali would win an immediate return, almost about moving with the moving effort during the closing session. A rubber match, the only of three for the world title, was noted there and back, which again decided on the last round. Two judges had their level of 14 rounds, judge Arthur Mercante had rounded ali.

Dundee said Ali: “Fight like hell, we need this round,” while through the ring the instruction for Norton was: “You don’t risk it. You have a fight.”

Both forbidden orders and Ali, more and more oriented, won unanimously on the results cards.

Danny Williams vs Michael Sprott

Sprott entered to challenge Williams for his British and community stripes of only five -day notification in February 2002, and was dropped and detained in seven rounds.

The rematch continued reading, the hometown of Sprott, 19 months later and ended in controversial. Sprott turned to the judge to complain about the low blow in seventh place and although he did not look, Williams flattened him with his left hook.

The management ordered to fight again, and Sprott won one point, a decision that stunned many in the ring.
Williams complained about the management, but they did not take any action.

Jack Gardner vs Johnny Williams

The first struggle between these rivals from Midlands in the eliminator of the British and British Empire (community of nations) was so exhausting, both later they ended up in the hospital.

Gardner won this fight for points, Williams reversed the result of the rematch, and the decision -maker went to Gardner, a chicken breeder from Market Harborough, LeiceStershire. He dropped Williams four times in five -time demolition.

In my last column, I mistakenly stated that Frankie Lucas failed to twice the boxing to the British medium title. I said he lost to both Kevin Finnegan and Alan Minter. It was of course Tony Sibson, not Minter, who defeated Lucas in his second attempt in the title in 1979. This error will now be repaired by recognizing the meteor’s growth of juvenile Sibson in the ranks at the beginning of his career. Tony’s five -time victory over Lucas was for a free British title, because Minter actually slowed him down. Sibson also maintained the titles of the Nations Community, as well as European ones at a time when these titles meant something and he boxed three times to the world belts, both in medium weight and in hefty weight.

Ecdicted by the notable “Sibbo army”, Tony had an extremely scarce attribute, which makes the warrior so observed because he could take his man at any time with one blow. His contemporaries, Dave Green and Jimmy Flint, were similar types. Each of them brought drama and strict energy to their competitions, and fans loved them.

Sibson was not the best amateur. In 1975 he reported to Adolescent England against the Irish team, but he was not a fertile winner of the title with a vest. However, he came from struggle wrestling, because his relationship Wally Sibson won 19 of 30 competitions at the beginning of the 1920s. Tony became a professional in 1976 and was managed by Carl Gunns, who then developed a fairly useful stable of Leicester fighters, including Mick Bell, Romal Ambrose, Adey Allen, Tony Hague, Carl North and Larry Richards. Carl was Tony’s coach in Belgrave ABC and he understood the potential of a juvenile boy and Sibson did not last long to become a star of his stable.

The first victory of Sibbo took place on his 18th birthday and after winning the next 12 convincing, the last of them was the 59-second Gareth lightning “Tasha” Jones, he was ready to debut in his hometown in Dave Roden’s show at De Montfort Hall in Leicester.

This aged room was first used for boxing during World War II, when Jack London and Bruce Woodcock, both masters of British heavyweight, fought there. The place was also used in the 1960s, when Bill-Toppers included Mick Greaves, Rocky Campbell and Jack Bodell. Leicester has not seen a professional boxing for nine years, and Sibbo was just a man who managed his awakening.

Bonny McKenzie from Cardiff took the fight at 16:00 the same day after Paddy Doherty from Belfast left his flight, and the Welsh gave Tony a fight before he stopped in cuts in seven rounds, after he was in the competition twice as aged. This victory anticipated Tony in the top ten British, and during the next competition in Hall Sonny Kamunga was easily overtaken.

After completing a series of six straight at the distance of victory, Sibson was tailored to Zambia, Lottie Mwala, during his third competition in a local hall and it was generally expected that Sibson would win, boxing messages correctly predicted that it would not be basic, “gold medalist from the Games of the Community of nations was recognized in six fights.” This opinion turned out to be extremely prophetic when he pulled out Sibson with the law measured, which meant that Leicester was unconscious before he hit the floor.

Sibson returned with revenge, learned from his defeat and became one of the best fighters of Great Britain by the rest of his career and the way the American destroyed the American, John Collins in two rounds in Atlantic City in 1983, is a lesson in the object on the employ of raw, controlled power. The fight is on YouTube, look at it.