Spinks, who spent much of his career in the light heavyweight division, also came in undefeated with a 31-0 record, 21 victories coming by way of knockout. His parents had told him on many occasions that he would be well-suited as psychiatrist or attorney. He wound up getting cursed out by his boss, who didn’t give a damn that he was a boxer, much less the winner of Olympic gold. Through lots of reading and candid discussions with his former trainer Larry Berrien, he went about changing the mindset that made him so comfortable with losing. St. Pierre is now promised a fight against the current UFC welterweight champion Matt Serra, who pulled out of the fight with Hughes because of injury. ... Spinks was the first light heavyweight champ to take the heavyweight crown ... Now Playing. “I told myself that one thing I was really good at was not letting someone else get the best of me, so I was determined that Larry wasn’t going to do that.”. Ali and Louis were never more determined. Tyson had that look in his eye that he was ready to kill somebody and the fight was over before it started. “Gerry had never been in the ring with someone like me,” said Spinks. The tall and lanky Michael could not have been more different than his brother Leon, who also won Olympic gold the … After defeating Holmes in a rematch and defeating Steffen Tangstad in 1986, Spinks was stripped of the IBF title for refusing to fight the number one contender, Tony Tucker, who was given the title. His final ring ledger was 31-1 (21 KOS). Michael didn’t have the personality to come out. Resigned to the fact that he was just fighting for money, he didn’t train hard, if at all. “I’m so sorry for you man,” said Gamburyan who suspects he broke Mohr’s leg. It was a gratifying feeling to beat him, to not have gotten my ass whooped. He is also recognized … Before that, though, let’s start with that fateful June night. LAS VEGAS-A reinvented Georges St. Pierre proved he’s ready for the true Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight title with a dominating win over Matt Hughes and Chuck Liddell returned to the win column in his big showdown on Saturday. They agreed to get along to get money, and they relegated the sanctioning bodies, with those moronic mandatories, and instead listened to you, the consumer, and booked the fights that made sense. In that tournament he lost to Williamson and Lamon Brewster. He had planned on hanging up the gloves for good and took a job as a graveyard shift janitor at a local factory. He didn’t get the best of me, and when I saw him up close I wasn’t afraid of him.”. It was called “Nemesis” and St. Pierre conquered his nemesis. That sort of drama, as manufactured by the late Diego Corrales, is the variety that the sweet science can deliver like no other sport. He would go on to make 10 defenses, and along the way also picked up the WBC and IBF crowns from Dwight Muhammad Qawi and Eddie Davis respectively. He and Lewis attended a WBCares event in New York last month. “A lot of people go down the same route I did and destroy themselves completely,” he said. Spinks’ manager, Butch Lewis, believed in his fighter but was still looking for a psychological edge on Iron Mike. Thanks, Dana White, aka the big black bear. “Just the opposite,” said Spinks. When Harold Sconiers of Tampa, Florida, looks in the mirror these days he doesn’t see the journeyman heavyweight with a 15-17-2 (10 KOs) record that most other people do. In no way was he destined to become a boxer. Hughes, known for his wrestling skills, just couldn’t solve St. Pierre’s quickness. After a quick warning from the referee, Tyson went back to work, cutting off every escape route that Spinks tried to find and trapped him in the ropes. Now there’s Mike Tyson, Oscar De La Hoya, and Floyd Mayweather…. “I was close to that point around the time of the Kirkland fight, but managed to survive another four years. The tall and lanky Michael could not have been more different than his brother Leon, who also won Olympic gold the same year, in the light heavyweight division. “And he beat that tough dude, (Ricardo) Mayorga. Sorry, Money, it’s possible you are being penalized for just being too damned good. The judges scored it 29-28, 30-27 twice for Liddell who won his first bout after back-to-back losses. “I was up all night using drugs and alcohol and just didn’t care about anything.”. Mayweather, a savvy marketer who has outgrown his periodic outbreaks of youthful indiscretions, is a superstar that fits our age to a T. He knows exactly what buttons to push to keep his name in the papers-—or, more accurately today, on computer screens—and feeds us rabid presshounds of negativity and turmoil red meat, with his intra-familial beefs and 50 Cent-inspired rants proclaiming his peerlessness. “If it wasn’t for my wrestling training I wouldn’t have been able to adjust,” said St. Pierre who had been preparing to represent Canada’s Olympic wrestling team. There’s no way I should have lost to Etienne, but all I did was show up. We may be prone to be too hesitant to bestow praise on Floyd, because he makes it look too easy. Tyson was 34-0 with 30 knockouts coming into the bout and held the WBA, WBC, and IBF heavyweight crowns. Roy discussed the heavyweight division, promoting boxing, UFC who he feels is the top fighter today and so much more. Tapping deep into his own psyche, Sconiers came to realize that much of his lack of self worth was rooted in childhood issues. It wouldn’t take long for Michael Spinks’ worst fears to come true. As Sconiers lost interest and motivation, he also began dabbling in drugs and alcohol. Though the fight was definitively over, Guillard attempted to assault Clementi but referee Herb Dean grabbed the fighter. During Sconiers’ amateur career, which consisted of 77 fights, of which he lost 9, his mother continuously reminded him that, in her opinion, “boxing was for dummies.”. It seems many fight fans view Michael Spinks that way. “I knew I had my hands full with him. More times than not, he would take fights on short notice. “I don’t think anybody could throw a better left hook. He (Mayorga) is a tiger.”. Sweat glistened on his cheeks and forehead. Manager Dave Selwyn can be contacted at: Boxingkid@aol.com or 845-893-2829. “I had a lot of different problems, but my biggest problems were self doubt and self sabotage. Lewis became adamant that Tyson’s hands be re-wrapped, causing quite a scene in the process and even refused to let the fight happen until things were resolved. After winning a gold medal in the middleweight division at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal, Michael Spinks returned to the housing project from whence he came in St. Louis, Missouri. It wasn’t until Spinks’ trainer, Eddie Futch, got involved that things calmed down. Futch said that the glove was fine but the damage had been done. By fight night, Spinks had more confidence than he could have ever imagined. If he got up from that, then I would have quit.”. All of us could apply his tenacity in staying on his feet, and roaring back to topple Taylor with a furious flurry in the seventh round of their Sept. 29 battle, in our own lives. The light heavyweight showdown between Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell and Brazil’s Wanderlei “The Axe Murderer” Silva was a three-round punch out between two famous sluggers. It was Tyson’s night, the absolute zenith of his career. Rather than just dwell on the losses, Sconiers lauded himself for beating six previously unbeaten or once beaten fighters. He entered the ring in a gleaming white robe as Kenny Loggins and Michael McDonald sang “This Is It” through the PA speakers. Now aligned with a new manager, David Selwyn of New York, he plans on utilizing that newfound knowledge to embark on what he believes will be the comeback story of 2008. A heavyweight bout featured two Southern Californians eager to punch out. He put on a masterful performance, outhustled Holmes, and denied him the tie with Marciano’s record by winning a unanimous decision. Many of those fighters, as well as their trainers, told Sconiers to snap out of his trance because he was a lot better fighter than he gave himself credit for. “He was out of gas,” said Sanchez (10-1). His one-punch knockout of former champion Marvin Johnson was one of the best of the past few decades. When I fought Mike, I think he was at his best.”. “He had beaten my brother and he had beaten Ali. But San Diego’s Eddie “Manic Hispanic” Sanchez’s experience proved decisive in beating Temecula’s Soa Palelei (8-2) with uppercuts for three rounds. He had the look of a rabbit that had just spotted a hunter’s rifle.”. Former Ultimate Fighter participant Manny Gamburyan (6-3) quickly took his fight to the ground with former boxer Nate Mohr (6-5). If he won, which was generally regarded as a given, he would have tied Rocky Marciano’s monumental record of 49-0. It is so obvious to me now that I was trying to destroy myself.”. After thrashing Tyrell Biggs, Larry Holmes, and Tony Tubbs, the fight with Spinks was set.

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