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 THEY WERE DISCUSSING WHERE THE LIKES OF JOSHUA, USYK AND FURY STAND IN THE PANTHEON OF GREAT FIGHTERS. FOR MANY THE GREATEST ERA OF BOXING IS THE 60'S AND 70'S WITH MUHAMMAD ALI, SONNY LISTON, JOE FRAZIER AND GEORGE FOREMAN. FOR OTHERS IT IS THE ERA OF THE FOUR KINGS - HEARNS, HAGLER, DURAN AND LEONARD, BUT FOR ME THE GREATEST ERA OF BOXING WAS BETWEEN 1986 AND 2002, AN ERA CONTAINING MORE MEGA FIGHTS THAN AT ANY TIME IN HISTORY, ALL OVER THE PLANET, AND A COLLECTION OF PERSONALITIES UNLIKE ANY ERA IN SPORT.
THIS ERA HAD UNBELIEVABLE RIVALRIES, CONTROVERSY AND HISTORY. FROM THE BOWE-HOLYFIELD TRILOGY TO THE TYSON-BRUNO BATTLES, FROM THE HOLYFIELD-TYSON BRAWLS AND THE BITE TO THE CONTROVERSIAL DRAW AND HISTORIC REMATCH BETWEEN LEWIS AND HOLYFIELD, AND THEN THE SHOWDOWN BETWEEN LEWIS AND TYSON. AND THE DRAMA AND PERSONALITY WASN'T JUST CONTAINED TO THE HEAVYWEIGHT DIVISION, WITH CHRIS EUBANK AND NIGEL BENN SQUARING OFF AT EARLS COURT AND OLD TRAFFORD IN TWO NEVER-TO-BE-FORGOTTEN BOUTS IN THE EARLY 1990'S. EUBANK WAS ONE OF THE SPORTS MOST ECCENTRIC PERSONALITIES, AND HE WOULD GO UP AGAINST IRISHMAN STEVE COLLINS IN TWO DRAMATIC 12-ROUND ENCOUNTERS, AND THE IRISHMAN WOULD GO ON TO HAVE HIS OWN DUELS WITH NIGEL BENN IN A MEMORABLE ERA OF MIDDLEWEIGHT BOXING. PRINCE NASEEM HAMED LIT UP THE FEATHERWEIGHT DIVISION WITH HIS UNIQUE STYLE AND PERSONALITY, ADDING AN ERA FOR THE SPORT WHICH WAS TRULY UNFORGETTABLE.
HERE ARE SOME OF THE MOST EPIC CONTESTS IN ARGUABLY THE GREATEST ERA OF BOXING IN HISTORY.
TYSON V BRUNO 1, 1989
BRUNO V LEWIS, 1993
BRUNO V MCCALL, 1995
TYSON V BRUNO 2, 1996
BOWE V HOLYFIELD TRILOGY
HOLYFIELD V TYSON 1, 1997
HOLYFIELD V TYSON 2, 1997
LEWIS V HOLYFIELD 1, 1999
LEWIS V HOLYFIELD 2, 1999
LEWIS V TYSON, 2002
EUBANK V BENN 1, 1990
EUBANK V BENN 2, 1993
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:
8pm IT'S BOX OFFICE! THE BIGGEST PAY-PER-VIEW FIGHTS EVER AND A HISTORY OF PAY-PER-VIEW on shankmedia.co.uk/worldsport
10pm 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
