WHEN last weekend’s Canelo-Crawford superfight was just days away, boxing writer and lifelong fan Alex Springer took a step back to mull over some of the most meaningful fights he has encountered during his decades following the sport as a fan and covering as a writer.
As the opening bell for Canelo v Crawford draws near, there’s a familiar stir within. That bubbling anticipation that only comes when a truly big fight is imminent. There’s so much intrigue surrounding this match-up. Ultimately, the question is whether Crawford can move up two weight classes and defeat another pound-for-pound fighter in Canelo.
It’s a bit of a throwback. Roberto Duran moved up in weight to fight some of the best in history, helping to create the legendary Four Kings. Sugar Ray Leonard was part of that historic group and stepped up in weight to face the feared Marvin Hagler.
We often give props to fighters once their careers are over, but are we witnessing a great, a legend, right now in Terence Crawford? The fight is on Netflix at no additional cost. There will be kids watching tonight who may carry the memories of this bout with them for the rest of their lives.
We’ll wait to see if Crawford can pull off what would be a career-defining victory, but it made me reflect on the fights over the years that truly left a mark on me.
I was born in the late ’70s, but I’m an ’80s kid.
There were plenty of sports I enjoyed watching back then, but growing up in a West Indian household in the 1980s UK, cricket was a given.
B.A. Baracus was the toughest man in the world, Mr Miyagi was the wisest man in the world, and the West Indies were the greatest team in the world.
Football, athletics, F1, I’d watch anything that was on TV. With only three and then four channels to choose from, any sport would do. I’d even convince myself that indoor bowls was half-decent on a rainy day during the school holidays.
I have plenty of memories: Tony Daley rampaging down the wing for Aston Villa, Steve Cram breaking world records every week, Viv Richards and Gordon Greenidge smashing England all over the grounds on hot summer days, and Jocky Wilson with a pint on the floor, cigarette in one hand, dart in the other.
Ultimately, it’s boxing memories that have stuck with me the most.
Funnily enough, my first boxing memories weren’t actual fights, but fighters in TV adverts. Muhammad Ali being told by his mum to eat his burger and Henry Cooper splashing his Brut aftershave ‘all over’.
But anyway, to the fighting. There are a host of bouts I’ve watched back over time, but the fights listed below are ones I remember watching for the first time, either live on TV or on delay, that made an imprint.
Mike Tyson vs Trevor Berbick
WBC Heavyweight Title
22 November 1986, Hilton Hotel, Las Vegas
I was first introduced to Mike Tyson by the suave Dickie Davies on World of Sport. He told us about this new heavyweight terror, followed by a montage of Tyson wreaking havoc across America.
At 20 years old, Tyson beat Jamaica’s Trevor Berbick, knocking him down three times with one punch in round two. It’s an image that has been played over and over again.
Tyson became the youngest heavyweight champion in history. Who knows if or when that record will ever be broken?
Marvin Hagler vs Sugar Ray Leonard
WBC Middleweight Title
6 April 1987, Caesars Palace, Outdoor Arena, Las Vegas
I remember my uncle coming around to watch this fight, and he wasn’t really a boxing fan. From memory, it was shown in the early evening on a weekday. The fight would’ve taken place the night before or a couple of nights earlier in the States.
Leonard was mesmerising. The showboating, the tassels, I loved it.
Leonard won on points. Hagler was disgusted with the decision and never fought again.
It’s a decision that is still debated to this day.
Two legends of the sport.
Hagler is no longer with us; he passed away in 2021 after experiencing chest pains and difficulty breathing. Rest in peace.
Michael Watson vs Nigel Benn
Commonwealth Middleweight Title
21 May 1989, Supertent, Finsbury Park, London
One of my favourite fights. The Dark Destroyer, Nigel Benn, was en route to take out all of his domestic rivals before stepping up to bigger and better things.
The Force, Michael Watson, had other ideas. Watson took everything Benn had, stayed calm and broke him down before Benn slumped to the canvas, exhausted, from a Watson jab in round six.
Chris Eubank vs Nigel Benn I
WBO Middleweight Title
18 November 1990, NEC, Birmingham
Arguably the best fight in a British ring. It took place at the NEC in Birmingham, down the road from where I lived. 18 million viewers tuned in to watch an absolute barnstormer that has gone down in British history. I was 14 at the time.
Eubank emerged victorious. Benn was brutally stopped in round nine.
Lennox Lewis vs Gary Mason
British and European Heavyweight Titles
6 March 1991, Wembley Arena, London
My mom used to work a night shift at the local hospital, so if she was working on a Wednesday, it meant Dad would let me stay up to watch Sportsnight on BBC One.
Lewis was the young pretender, and Mason was the guy who was going to stop him in his tracks. A great effort from Mason, but Lewis was too much on the night. Mason’s eye was grotesquely swollen and the fight got stopped in the 7th round.
Mason died in 2011 after a cycling crash; colliding with a van. Rest in peace.
Chris Eubank vs Michael Watson II
WBO Super Middleweight Title
21 September 1991, White Hart Lane, London
A tragic end to a monumental tussle. After losing to Eubank only three months earlier, controversially, Watson was determined not to let it go to points this time around.
In an absolute war, Watson had Eubank down in the 11th round. Eubank got to his feet, and as the ref called them back into action, unleashed a hellacious uppercut to floor Watson. Watson’s head bounced off the bottom rope. He was gone, but still got up and came out for the 12th before the fight was stopped soon after.
Watson was in a coma for 40 days.
Watson’s story is one of tragedy and a long, torturous road to recovery. He was never the same after that night, but he is a real symbol of heart and determination, something he showed inside the ring, and even more so outside of it.
Nigel Benn vs Gerald McClellan
WBC Super Middleweight Title
25 February 1995, London Docklands Arena
As I’m writing this, there is a lot of sadness involved in the list, but I will continue. Benn was once again involved in another classic fight on these shores. It’s no wonder that he is in the hearts and minds of most boxing fans from that era.
McClellan was the mini-Mike Tyson sent to seek, destroy and take the silverware back to the States. Benn was reaching the twilight of his career.
What played out was savage. Benn was knocked out of the ring in the first round, and down again in the eighth.
But Benn bit down on his gumshield and wouldn’t be denied.
McClellan looked tired early and started blinking concerningly mid-way through the fight. He went down on one knee in round 10; counted out by the referee.
What followed, like Michael Watson years before, was more heartache.
McClellan was in a coma for 11 days, lost his sight, the ability to walk and most of his hearing.
To this day, he needs around-the-clock care.
Mike Tyson vs Evander Holyfield I
WBA Heavyweight Title
9 November 1996, MGM Grand, Las Vegas
Pre-fight, I thought Holyfield would get destroyed. Evander Holyfield, the man who had three epic fights with Riddick ‘Big Daddy’ Bowe, who was cruiserweight champ and moved up to become heavyweight champ, the man with the heart of a lion. The ‘Real Deal’… destroyed?
It sounds ridiculous, but it was Iron Mike in the other corner. Mike was back. The rampaging phenomenon of the ’80s was back, and he was going to wreck everything in his path.
Holyfield’s odds were as high as 25-1 at one point.
He dominated and bullied Tyson to a memorable 11th-round stoppage victory.
Erik Morales vs Marco Antonio Barrera I
WBC and WBO Super Bantamweight Titles
19 February 2000, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas
I’d moved out of my folks’ house by this time, but I was back there watching this fight in the middle of the morning. I think it was because they had Sky Sports.
What a way to start the new millennium. A modern-day classic between two fighters who have become Mexican legends.
The back and forth of round five goes down as one of the best rounds this century.
David Haye vs Carl Thompson
Cruiserweight Bout
10 September 2004, Wembley Arena, London
From memory, the fight was on terrestrial TV, BBC One, shown on a Saturday afternoon, I think.
The looks, the swag and the punch. Haye seemingly had the world at his feet as he continued to make his way in the professional ranks.
This, his 11th fight, saw him up against the tough, wily veteran Carl ‘The Cat’ Thompson.
Haye came out like he was parked on double yellows, intent on getting in and out as fast as possible. Thompson didn’t read the script.
Thompson absorbed the Hayemaker’s bombs and came through to stop Haye in round five. Haye’s tank had emptied after a couple of rounds.
It was a humbling lesson for young Haye.
Matty Clarkson vs Travis Dickinson
English Light Heavyweight Title
17 May 2014, Town Hall, Leeds
Blood, guts and glory. They may not be household names like the others listed, but the heart shown in the six rounds that the fight lasted was commendable. Each fighter was down three times. Dickinson couldn’t hide the pain of the sickening body shots he was taking, but he refused to give up.
In the end, the fight was stopped because of huge swelling on the side of Clarkson’s face, which turned out to be a broken jaw.
A mini-classic. I’ve never managed to watch this fight back. I can’t find it anywhere. If anyone has a link to it, let me know!
Honourable mentions to Marvin Hagler vs Alan Minter, Lennox Lewis vs Frank Bruno, Naseem Hamed vs Kevin Kelley and Tyson Fury vs Wilder III, amongst many, many other memorable fights over the years.
Which fights stick in your memory? Let me know over here.
