20 AUGUST, 2022 - SHANK MEDIA, BY MATT HOOPER: AS THE WORLD OF SPORT GETS READY FOR THE LATEST MEGA EVENT IN JEDDAH, SAUDI ARABIA, AND THE REMATCH BETWEEN ANTHONY JOSHUA AND OLEKSANDR USYK FOR THE WBA, WBO, IBF, IBO AND RING MAGAZINE HEAVYWEIGHT TITLES, I WAS LISTENING TO TALKSPORT'S BUILD UP TO THE FIGHT ON FRIDAY NIGHT, AND A QUESTION WAS ASKED: WHICH 3 BOXERS SPARKED YOUR INTEREST IN BOXING?
SO HERE ARE MY ANSWERS.
I FIRST BECAME AWARE OF BOXING, AS MOST SPORT, IN THE EARLY 1990'S AND AT THAT TIME BY FAR THE MOST FAMOUS BOXER IN THE UK WAS FRANK BRUNO.
BRUNO WAS A FINELY TUNED ATHLETE AND A BIG PUNCHER, DEMOLISHING MOST OF HIS OPPONENTS IN THE EARLY PART OF HIS CAREER, BUT WHEN IT CAME TO THE CRUNCH HE COULD NOT LIVE WITH THE LIKES OF LENNOX LEWIS AND MIKE TYSON. HIS PERSONALITY, EARLY SUCCESS, HEARTBREAKING DEFEATS AND PRESENCE ON NATIONAL TELEVISION AND IN THE THEATRE MADE BRUNO ARGUABLY THE MOST FAMOUS SPORTSMAN IN THE UK IN THE LATE 80'S AND EARLY 90'S. HIS FIRST FIGHT FOR THE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP CAME IN A LONG-AWAITED FIGHT AGAINST MIKE TYSON IN 1989, FOR THE UNDISPUTED HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP OF THE WORLD.
THE FIGHT WAS ORIGINALLY DUE TO BE STAGED AT WEMBLEY, BUT DUE TO A SERIES OF ISSUES FOR MIKE TYSON THE FIGHT TOOK PLACE AT THE HILTON HOTEL IN LAS VEGAS. BRUNO ALMOST KNOCKED THE INTIMIDATING UNDISPUTED CHAMPION DOWN EARLY ON, BUT TYSON EVENTUALLY TOOK OVER AND BATTERED BRUNO IN ROUNDS 3, 4 AND 5 BEFORE THE REFEREE STOPPED THE FIGHT IN THE FIFTH. BRUNO WOULD GO ON TO FIGHT LENNOX LEWIS FOR THE WBC HEAVYWEIGHT WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP IN CARDIFF AT THE OLD CARDIFF ARMS PARK IN OCTOBER 1993, ONCE AGAIN FRANK WAS THE FAN FAVOURITE, BUT HE WAS DOMINATED BY LEWIS, WHO FORCED A STOPPAGE IN THE 7TH ROUND.
3 YEARS LATER BRUNO WOULD FIGHT FOR THE WBC CHAMPIONSHIP ONCE MORE, AT WEMBLEY STADIUM AGAINST OLIVER MCCALL, AND THIS TIME BRITAIN'S FAVOURITE BOXER WOULD FINALLY CLINCH THE TITLE. BRUNO WON ON POINTS IN FRONT OF 23,000 FANS AT WEMBLEY STADIUM IN SEPTEMBER 1995, AND THE SEE-SAW BATTLE BETWEEN THE TWO WENT ALL 12 ROUNDS. BRUNO WAS THEN URGED BY MANY TO RETIRE, BUT MIKE TYSON LAY IN WAIT FOR THE WBC TITLE HOLDER, AND IN 1996 FRANK AND MIKE WOULD FACE OFF FOR ONE FINAL TIME. TYSON WOULD DESTROY BRUNO IN 3 ROUNDS TO WIN BACK THE TITLE, AND END BRUNO'S CAREER.
PRINCE NASEEM HAMED EMERGED AS A STAR IN THE WAKE OF BRUNO'S RETIREMENT, AND HIS FLAMBOYANT STYLE AND EXTROVERT PERSONALITY ELECTRIFIED THE CROWD AT EVERY EVENT HE FOUGHT AT. FROM HIS SPECTACULAR RING ENTRANCE, WHERE HE SOMERSAULTED THE ROPES, TO HIS RAPID PUNCHING AND SPEED AROUND THE RING, HAMED WAS THE NUMBER ONE PERSONALITY IN BRITISH BOXING. HE WON THE WBO, WBC AND IBF WORLD FEATHERWEIGHT TITLES, AND IN ALL WAS A 2-TIME WORLD CHAMPION, WITH ONLY ONE LOSS. HIS STAR ROSE EVEN FURTHER WHEN HE FOUGHT IN AMERICA FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 1997, KNOCKING OUT KEVIN KELLEY AT MADISON SQUARE GARDEN IN NEW YORK.
LENNOX LEWIS, SIMPLY PUT, IS THE GREATEST BRITISH HEAVYWEIGHT BOXER OF ALL-TIME. AS I BECAME A TEENAGER AND A YOUNG ADULT HE WAS THE SUPERSTAR, FACING BRUNO IN 1993, HOLYFIELD TWICE IN 1999 AND MIKE TYSON IN 2002. HE BECAME THE FIRST BRITISH BOXER TO BE UNDISPUTED HEAVYWEIGHT WORLD CHAMPION IN A CENTURY WHEN HE DEFEATED HOLYFIELD ON POINTS IN THEIR REMATCH IN 1999, AND HE FOUGHT AND BEAT ALMOST EVERY ICONIC FIGHTER OF HIS ERA. HE WON 14 FIGHTS AGAINST PAST, CURRENT OR FUTURE WORLD CHAMPIONS, AND WITH WINS IN REMATCHES HE DEFEATED EVERY FIGHTER HE EVER FACED. HIS FIGHT AGAINST TYSON IN MEMPHIS 20 YEARS AGO IS STILL ONLY SURPASSED BY THE RUMBLE IN THE JUNGLE AND THE THRILLA IN MANILA IN TERMS OF PAY-PER-VIEW BUYS WORLDWIDE.
COUNTDOWN TO JOSHUA V USYK 2, RAGE ON THE RED SEA
SHANK SUPER SATURDAY: www.shankmedia.co.uk/worldsport
One of the biggest sporting events in the world - the World Heavyweight Championship fight between Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr Usyk in Saudi Arabia - is set to take place this evening and as part of SHANK's coverage of the sport, from grassroots across North East Fife and Tayside, to the elite we'll have content throughout the day. Here's what's coming up:
11.30am 3 BOXERS WHO SPARKED MY INTEREST IN BOXING on shankmedia.co.uk/worldsport
2pm 1986-2002 THE GREATEST ERA OF HEAVYWEIGHT BOXING on shankmedia.co.uk/worldsport
4pm IT'S BOX OFFICE! THE BIGGEST PAY-PER-VIEW FIGHTS EVER AND A HISTORY OF PAY-PER-VIEW on shankmedia.co.uk/worldsport
8pm COUNTDOWN TO FIGHT TIME - Live blog on shankmedia.co.uk/worldsport
Approx 1am POST FIGHT REFLECTIONS - Live blog on shankmedia.co.uk/worldsport
HOW YOU CAN LISTEN TO THE FIGHT FOR FREE - talkSPORT have Live exclusive radio coverage of the event from 8pm
HOW YOU CAN ORDER THE FIGHT via Sky Sports Box Office, as a Sky or Non-Sky customer, head to www.skysports.com/boxing
