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Friday, June 22, 2018

Miguel Cotto's Jab Scores A World Class Knockdown: GIF Spotlight

 

Miguel Cotto has scored a knockdown a few times in his career with his left-hand-dominant jabbing capacity. But it was particularly special to see him in a major world title fight with a rock-chinned, championship level fighter with a world class defense, planting his opponent on the canvas in the first round with that jab. That night, Joshua Clottey's risk aversion instincts were as much his opponent as Cotto, but the decision victory for Cotto was still so well contested that it went to a controversial split decision. There were many heated exchanges, some of which made Cotto look like he was on the way to being stopped.

This 2009 welterweight battle was one for the books as part of the long story of the rich division. "Grand Master" Clottey possibly earned as many fans as he frustrated that night, coming so close but stepping back at times when it looked like he could've possibly ended it. It all depends on how you see it. A jab knockdown in the first for Cotto, a throw-down in the fifth against Clottey, a hellacious headbutt cut against Cotto, a controversial decision-this fight had so much going for it. I applauded both fighters for getting through a very grueling match that tested their chins, their skin, their wits and their will, in the way championship boxing is supposed to be. Their match turned nine-years-old this month.


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Cotto dodges punches and lifts opponent Oktay Urkal over his shoulder

Cotto surprises Brendan Shaub

Bute watched Edison Miranda mug then knocks him out with an uppercut
 
Hector in headdress boogies before the Pazienza match begins

Wednesday, June 20, 2018

Muhammad Ali and Freddie Starr Share A Wonderfully Campy Moment: GIF Spotlight



In the most GIFable interview ever, Freddie Starr talked Muhammad Ali's ear off on Parkinson after a comedic singing performance. With a snowy-looking energy, he tells Muhammad Ali if he weren't a man he'd kiss him. Ali's reaction is aflame. I don't know if he had any idea what to make of this man.


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Muhammad Ali has a tense moment with George Chuvalo

Muhammad Ali surprises Sylvester Stallone

Liston menacingly wags his finger at the police

Ricardo Lopez's uppercut KO of Ala Villamor

An animated Lomachenko and Guillermo Rigondeaux star in The Matrix

Tuesday, June 12, 2018

Faux Dempsey Beats The Snot Out Of Faux Willard! (GIF Spotlight)

In 1983, there was a Jack Dempsey biopic, made for TV, simply entitled Dempsey. With Sam Waterston as Doc Kearns, Sally Kellerman as Maxine Cates, Peter Mark Richman as Tex Rickard and Treat Williams as Dempsey, it had a lot of character. It was understated throughout and rarely ham-handed, which is a pleasant surprise for a sports movie about an iconic figure like Dempsey. Even the music lacked the overbearing "treatment" we'd normally get, fully recognized from half a dozen other treatments. Waterston's infectious joyfulness as Kearns is a perfect counter to Treat's fittingly stern demeanor. These GIF's are from Dempsey:







Side note: Peter Mark Richman, a man you'd probably recognize, even if you didn't know from where, is now 91-years-old. He will not be limited to twelve rounds. And why should he be?

Side side note: This is Clay Hodges as Faux Willard.



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Jack Dempsey and Jess Willard dance together as older gents

Frazier licks his chops

Marvin Hagler Combs His Bald Head

As Tommy Hearns talks about fighting Ray Leonard again, Ray Leonard rests his head gently on Tommy's shoulder

Conan O'Brien Could Get Mike & Don To Bury The Hatchet: GIF Spotlight



Dark lord of the comic underworld, Robert Smigel, often showed up as a moving mouth on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, the moving mouth belonging to him and the rest of the head belonging to Don King, Arnold Schwarzenegger and whoever else. I find it mesmerizing. I believe Conan could bring the real men together with the power of his comedy. But maybe not. It's just a random thought.


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Kenny Norton knocks out Gary Coleman

Paul Williams and Kermit Cintron have one of boxing's weirdest moments

Deontay makes a Godzilla effigy

Andre Ward batters Edwin Rodriguez with a power jab  

Tyson Fury Randomly Kisses Opponent - Opponent Kisses Back (GIF Spotlight)



Tyson Fury is rusty. He telegraphed his kiss. Sefer Seferi countered. This is not the sport I grew up watching. It's much, much sexier. Incidentally, I feel like we just did a Tyson Fury GIF.


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Tex Cobb licking a poor bride on TV series Highlander
 
Muhammad Ali and Liston try to psych each other out at weigh-in

Referee Marcus McConnell shh's Tyson Fury

Wladimir Klitschko smashes Tyson Fury's eye with headbutt foul

Monday, June 11, 2018

What Was The Single Greatest Event In Boxing History? It's In This GIF, In Its Totality



At the grand 2018 IBHOF event, Don King ballsily moves to give Tyson a pat on the shoulder and Mike Tyson goes Mike Tyson on him in the finest way he could have done. He throws water on him and tells him something that probably isn't loving. I doubt it bothers Don. He's already got the money. Mr. Tyson, I salute you. Lovely young woman pointing, I salute you. Person taking the footage, I salute you. I can't peg who you are, but if anyone knows the source of this, please let me know, to give credit. I don't have it. Also, pardon the hyperbole of the title but I love what I love.


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Evander Holyfield KO's Don King on Conan O'Brien

Mike Tyson Bullies Norm Macdonald

Mike Tyson fights Jean-Claude Van Damme

Mike Tyson impersonated on In Living Color by Keenen Ivory WayansAlex Wallau On Young Mike Tyson & His Era: Quote Spotlight

Friday, June 8, 2018

Tyson Fury & Sefer Seferi Lift Each Other's Souls & Things Up: GIF Spotlight




I can honestly say, Tyson Fury and Billy Joe Saunders are directly or indirectly responsible for more presser and weigh-in firsts for me than any two other men, off the top of my head. It must be a cultural creativity unknown to the laws of science. These men are blessed with intangibles of the mind and spirit which the likes of me are destined never to quite grasp.


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Eddie Chambers and Tyson Fury fist bump 

Tyson and David Haye laugh together. Well, sort of together.

Tyson and Hughie Fury play Batman and the Joker for Wladimir Klitschko

Referee Marcus McConnell shh's Tyson Fury

Wladimir Klitschko smashes Tyson Fury's eye with headbutt foul

Monday, June 4, 2018

Put Up Your Dukes. . .Or Not. I Love You. (GIF Spotlight)



Top shelf middleweight Billy Joe Saunders has a priceless moment during a presser with Avtandil Khurtsidze. He tries to get his opponent to put up his dukes, which provokes a calm battle of wills, with Khurtsidze refusing to obey. The psychological combat was broken only by Saunders humourously hugging him for taking his stand. Frank Warren gets a grand chuckle out of it, as does Andre Rozier, off camera, who was going to be in Khurtsidze's corner. Saunders was slated to fight this rough customer in 2017.

The fight was scuttled because Khurtsidze (of Georgia) is such a rough customer that before the fight could happen, he and 32 other members and associates of a Russian crime syndicate, allegedly, were arrested for racketeering, extortion, robbery, murder-for-hire conspiracy, fraud, narcotics and firearm offenses. He faces 40 years for being something of an enforcer, if they convict him. He isn't a tall man, but he decides exactly when and where to put up his own dukes, and that makes any man dangerous.



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Billy Joe decides to flash the weigh-in audience for his Lemieux fight

Billy Joe Saunders' son punches and kicks at opponent Willie Monroe Junior's groin

Mike Tyson Bullies Norm Macdonald

Tyson and Hughie Fury play Batman and the Joker for Wladimir Klitschko 

Sunday, June 3, 2018

When You Realize One Of You Is Feather-Fisted: GIF Spotlight



Jaleel White on the sitcom Family Matters gives school bully Willie Fuffner (Larenz Tate) a pleasant surprise. In the 1990 episode entitled Requiem for an Urkel, Urkel takes his best shot and shows Willie he's got nothin'. Willie is pleased. But he is less pleased when he finds out how slick Urkel is. And even less pleased when he finds out there's a hostile crowd later. Let's not get into it. Fuffner was, once again, robbed. I have to say it again.



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Jaleel White as Steve Urkel on Family Matters has a little grade school boxing match, very slick

(3 GIF's) A Chimpanzee Boxing Circus Show From The Fifties

Blind Ugandan boxer hits referee. From a real news story

James Toney Has Strange Stare down/Jaw Down Encounter

Freddie Starr Tells Muhammad Ali A Joke: GIF Spotlight


In the legendary Parkinson interview where Freddie Starr out-talked The Louisville Lip himself, Michael Parkinson and Muhammad Ali laugh at a Starr punchline. He says everyone in his family is a boxer except for his father. "What was he?" asks Parkinson. "A Cocker Spaniel." replied Starr.


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A very young Muhammad Ali points with a false caption to call BS  

Muhammad gets the phone hung up on him in promo with Joe Frazier

Muhammad pats his hair and thanks you with a real caption

Muhammad Ali kisses Olympic medals

Thursday, May 31, 2018

Teofimo Lopez Junior Does Something Interesting With His Victory: GIF Spotlight



I confess, I don't know anything about Fortnite, and I had no idea what this young man was doing. I thought maybe it was a strange fit. I worried for his health. Teofimo Lopez Junior recently went from a strange, cuffing, abrupt knockout victory over Vitor Jones Freitas, to this "L" dance from a video game, followed by a far more studly gymnastic gesture. One of the funnier wins I've seen in boxing. I can't wait for his next win!




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Adrien Broner Dances With Marcos Rene Maidana

Golovkin dances "Mexican Style"

Bob Foster knocks Mike Quarry out cold

Hector in headdress boogies before the Pazienza match begins

Wednesday, May 30, 2018

Mike Tyson Murders Brave Bronx Comic: GIF Spotlight




From Jimmy Kimmel Live's specialty films, Tracy Morgan finds his papa, Mike Tyson, with Ray Leonard in awe of the destructive and dysfunctional outcome.





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Vic Darchinyan dethrones Cristian Mijares

Young Juan Manuel Marquez's vicious uppercut

Ricky Hatton fixes Larry Merchant's hair

Greg Jackson gets hit with tremendous knockdown punch in winning effort 

Jimmy Kimmel Loves Tracy Morgan: GIF Spotlight






From Jimmy Kimmel Live's specialty films, Jimmy Kimmel is a grizzled, old, but extremely supportive and nurturing boxing trainer with his pupil, Tracy Morgan.




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Muhammad Ali kisses Olympic medals

Tex Cobb with amazing rabbit punch combination, referee doesn't care

Terence Crawford as a prospect annihilating opponent with a massive right hand

Tyson and Hughie Fury play Batman and the Joker for Wladimir Klitschko 

Angry Gloves Is A Universal Gesture: GIF Spotlight




From Jimmy Kimmel Live's specialty films, Tracy Morgan gives us a nice angry gloves display.




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(3 GIF's) A Chimpanzee Boxing Circus Show From The Fifties

J. B. Smoove imitates Muhammad Ali, a bit

Rock The Musical opened Klitschko VS Wach

Leonard Nimoy in bizarre choreography knockout

Saturday, May 26, 2018

Monday, April 9, 2018

Evander Holyfield's Incredible Combination Against Michael Dokes: GIF Spotlight




It was the eleventh of March, 1989. Evander Holyfield had unified the cruiserweight division and moved up to heavyweight, to prove his case as a challenger to the division's king. He was matched against Michael Dokes, following his win over Pinklon Thomas. The fight was an action-packed Las Vegas night displaying the skills and guts of both fighters. But whoever started it, it got dirty, and Evander Holyfield knew how to win when things got dirty.

Here we have a beautiful, ugly, completely illegal, very damaging combination. It's the dirty 1-2 (headbutt, low blow). Holyfield, later on, with a much more legal maneuver, would score a TKO over Dokes. He'd splatter Buster Douglas for the heavyweight title the following calendar year. Unlike a typical fighter today, he didn't go from Dokes to a title shot. In the brief time between Dokes and Douglas, he'd knockout all three of Adilson Rodrigues, Alex Stewart and Seamus McDonagh. You don't see schedules like this for heavyweight contenders anymore. That was a risky, grueling trip to the top for Evander Holyfield, especially considering most champions from lower divisions can piggyback on their lower division accomplishments when they move up in weight.


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Evander Holyfield KO's Don King on Conan O'Brien

Evander Holyfield's Terry Mims KO GIF

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Ezzard Charles eats a nice headbutt by Rocky Marciano

Sunday, April 8, 2018

Analyzing A Great Boxing Character With Rob Ager


1994's iconic Pulp Fiction saw the least pugilistic boxing film in the consciousness of the general public that I can remember. The defiant fighter Butch Coolidge (Bruce Willis) and his match are a major driving force for everything in the movie. [anachronistic spoiler alert text] Maybe I'm biased but any fighter who gets the same proposal is totally justified in a double-cross. [/anachronistic spoiler alert text]

Rob Ager (Collative Learning) recently caught my eye with a shareable analysis I thought you might enjoy of Butch, the watch and the fighting spirit in his life. I loved it and I hope you will too.






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Mike Tyson fights Jean-Claude Van Damme

George Foreman threatens Bill Cosby and takes his shirt off.
 
Leonard Nimoy in bizarre choreography knockout

Evander Holyfield KO's Don King on Conan O'Brien

Tuesday, February 27, 2018

Darryl Pinckney Sends Us A Major Knee-Bender: GIF Spotlight


Undefeated prospect Luis Leija, cousin of Jesse James Leija, was 14-0 going into his featherweight match with Darryl "The Nightmare" Pinckney. Pinckney was deceptively 19-19-2. It was 1995 and the year before this Darryl had stopped Junior Jones in three rounds. This man was one dangerous 50/50 fighter and "The Nightmare" was not an ironic nickname. He would reaffirm this point with Leija.



Pinckney KO1 Leija. If you ever wake up in life and you're staring at the full sole of one of your shoes. . . there's a good chance something went wrong for you. Leija would go on to rumble with several names but most notably he was stopped in two against Floyd Mayweather Junior. Pinckney was quite a story before and after, and he'd still go on to fight major titlists Oscar Larios, Jesus Chavez, Mauricio Pastrana, Freddie Norwood, Robert Garcia, Guty Espadas Junior and Juan Manuel Marquez. He would knockout Espadas Junior while Junior was still undefeated in 1996. He even gave Juan Manuel Marquez a scare that year.


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Darryl Pinckney Shocks Junior Jones With His Power

Ricky Hatton fixes Larry Merchant's hair

Ricardo Lopez flattens Rocky Lin with left hook

Ricardo Lopez's uppercut KO of Ala Villamor

Young Juan Manuel Marquez's vicious uppercut

Serious Journeymen Are A Nightmare: GIF Spotlight

Journeyman Darryl "The Nightmare" Pinckney was a thunder-fisted seek-and-destroy man who either destroyed or got stuck seeking until the end of the fight. In October of 1994, Pinckney would take on Junior Jones with less than a week's notice, in typical journeyman fashion. Darryl was 18-18-2, while Jones was a sterling 33-1-0. It couldn't have been more obvious who would win this bout. Through round one and two it still could not have been more obvious. Until Pinckney kindly clarified the situation by abruptly one-punching Junior Jones all over the canvas.



As you can see, Jones got up and tried to play it off like nothing, but his legs were gone when the fight resumed and he tackled his opponent to the canvas, while trying to hold on until he recovered. Referee Earl Morton made the call after the tackle. Pinckney TKO3 Jones. Jones would go on to take the 0 of Mexican great Marco Antonio Barrera and beat him in a rematch. Pinckney wasn't done pulling upsets in his career and, though losing, he also dealt Juan Manuel Marquez his first surprise knockdown, if I'm not mistaken. Pinckney would finish his career at 24-42-3 and Jones at 50-6-0. The life of a journeyman is not easy. But you can still raise a ruckus while you're living it. Darryl Pinckney raised multiple ruckuses. Cheers to The Nightmare.


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Chris Arreola kisses his opponent after stopping him

Andre Ward batters Edwin Rodriguez with a power jab 

Ann Wolfe levels the huge Vonda Ward

Jersey Joe Walcott Shuffles for Joe Louis

Brandon Rios Gets Down: GIF Spotlight



Brandon Rios did an interview for Fight Hub TV while training for his match with Manny Pacquiao in 2013. Being known as a gym clown, he began to dance for the camera, then segued into a demonstration on what a Zumba class is like. Brandon Rios is pure entertainment, in and out of the ring.



Fight Hub TV Link Here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cgNkg7VpeM


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Brand Rios' Cringeworthy Spot on Margarito/Pacquiao 24/7

Arturo jumping for Doctor Margaret Goodman after stoppage loss

Manny Pacquiao is held hostage at scissorpoint on sitcom.

Manny Pacquiao practices his fake punching for Funny or Die

Friday, February 23, 2018

The Dangerous Art Of Circus Boxing: GIF Spotlight



British Pathé, a treasure trove archive of everything, issued a video for these brave chimpanzees boxing from 1955. This is coverage of the Bertram Mills Circus. Obviously, these fellas ain't hurtin' each other. It's probably fixed. The mafia got into everything in the fifties.

The full video clip is here:




God bless British Pathé.



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Count out GIF, woman celebrates and counts along

The Three Stooges Video Game Clip

The Three Stooges' Curly Gets Punched after the old 'look over there' trick.

Leonard Nimoy Gets Pounded by jab

Thursday, February 22, 2018

Larry Merchant Is Having None Of Your BS! (GIF Spotlight)

In January of 1997, Daniel Zaragoza defended his super bantamweight title against Wayne McCoullough in a match that left Zaragoza to say McCullough had the best chin he ever came up against and McCullough saying Zaragoza was the smartest fighter he'd ever been up against. Zaragoza took a split decision over the undefeated young challenger but a McCullough fan decided to crash Larry Merchant's interview with the old champion by yelling "He was robbed!" So, Larry Merchant...



Larry apologized (not to the fan) but to his interviewees, claiming he wasn't used to using "strong-arm tactics" to conduct his interviews. It's really too bad Ricky Hatton wasn't there to fix his hair up properly.


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Ricky Hatton fixes Larry Merchant's hair

Naseem Hamed flattens Tom Johnson with an awesome uppercut

Lennox Lewis teaches Deontay Wilder how to jab

Lennox Lewis in an HBO promo playing chess with Kevin Kelley 

Wednesday, February 21, 2018

What Does Valium Do For You? (GIF Spotlight)



In an incredible meeting of the minds, Freddie Starr and Muhammad Ali met each other on Parkinson. English comic Freddie Starr actually out-talked Muhammad Ali. Oh, the moxie, I tell ya! With Michael Parkinson barely getting a word in, and Muhammad Ali barely getting a sentence in, Freddie Starr went bananas and monopolized the conversation, though what he said was all about The Greatest. On this GIF, Muhammad is asking Freddie about Valium:




Freddie said he gets so nervous before he watches Ali fight that he eats a Valium sandwich. If you've seen the interview, you're left with the impression that this man has ingested something very different from Valium.


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Muhammad Ali thinks you're crazy, reaction GIF's.

Muhammad Ali Mocks & Destroys Jimmy Savile

Muhammad mock fights with Sylvester Stallone

Muhammad Ali surprises Sylvester Stallone

Muhammad Ali Kayos Alien

Tuesday, February 20, 2018

Muhammad Ali Grabs A Word While George Chuvalo Punches Away: GIF Spotlight






I am reflecting on one of the toughest fighters to ever lace 'em up in Canadian heavyweight contender George Chuvalo. There are murmurs about him being essentially abducted at the age of 80 recently, in what is just one more very sad tale of George's complex family life. He has been a truly wonderful ambassador for the sport, in addition to one of the roughest contenders of the division's history. Here in March of 1966, Muhammad Ali shares a very intense moment with George in their first fight, with Ali defending his title on the road in Chuvalo's backyard.

If I recall correctly, Ali said Chuvalo was the toughest man he ever faced, and Chuvalo said the same about Muhammad. Here, you see George's tough inside body mauling and Ali's habit of holding the neck and back of the head as part of his attempt to assert his physical dominance over his opponent. That glove would work its way around, to the chagrin of a few referees as much as the opponents, whenever his opponent was pressing inside where Ali was less effective. He tried to pull down and tire them out, rough them up, stop them from continuing to work. Chuvalo kept working though, and Ali went to the hospital after winning, due to blood in the urine. They would fight again, still in Canada, still with Ali taking a hard-fought decision, and they'd be friends until Muhammad's passing in 2016. Well wishes to Mr. Chuvalo.



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George Chuvalo is smacked right across the face. And he takes it.

Tex Cobb with amazing rabbit punch combination, referee doesn't care

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Muhammad Ali Meets The Beatles

Friday, February 16, 2018

The Race For 2018 Fighter Of The Year: Who has taken the lead?




BGB's pick for 2017 fighter of the year: Vasyl Lomachenko, with Terence Crawford the runner-up
BGB's current leader for fighter of the year: Vasyl Lomachenko, with Wisaksil Wangek aka Srisaket Sor Rungvisai Nakornl and Terence Crawford as runners-up, close by: Oleksandr Usyk, Murat Gassiev, Naoya Inoue and Terence Crawford
First call:
27th of January:
Usyk takes the lead for me because of his defeating the undefeated Mairis Briedis in Briedis' home country to unify major world titles in his fourteenth professional match. That was a big one.

1st Update:
3rd of February:
Murat Gassiev takes runner-up status.

2nd Update:
24th of February:
Wisaksil Wangek's close victory over Juan Francisco Estrada has taken the lead, I'm thinking. This fight was incredible.

3rd Update:
12th of May
Vasyl Lomachenko takes on lightweight champion and titlists Jorge Linares in his third titlist and first true championship weight class and stops him on a terrific body shot in a very good fight where he needed to come off the deck.  It's big enough to regain the lead. Lomachenko in the lead with Wangek as runner-up, for me. A great achievement for Lomachenko. Crawford, Donnie Nietes and the winner of Usyk/Gassiev are going for it too with their own big fights.

4th Update:
26th of May
Naoya Inoue moves up in weight to shut down Ring's #2, and I believe TBR's #5 ranked Bantamweight and take his major title from him...IN ONE ROUND.  In his 16th professional fight, making him a major titlist at Light Flyweight, Super Flyweight and Bantamweight.  He is in the race.

5th Update:
Ninth of June

Terence Crawford enters the race by technically dominating and physically beating up undefeated Jeff Horn by ninth round TKO and capturing his WBO welterweight title to make three major title weight classes for Bud.



Comment and we'll talk as it progresses.


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Evander Holyfield's Mims KO GIF

Murat Gassiev Consoles Yunier Dorticos

Murat Gassiev sleeps Jordan Shimmell with a left hook

Andrew Golota Bites Samson Po'uha

Thursday, February 15, 2018

Evander Holyfield Scores A Timber KO: GIF Spotlight

In May of 1986, one-time prospect Terry Mims, well-worn survivor and then journeyman, making ends meet, did his best to stay upright and upset Evander Holyfield. Evander was burning through the ranks to get a title shot against Dwight Muhammad Qawi while still very short on professional experience. Holyfield was 10-0, while Mims was 13-12, according to Boxrec. During the fight, he was announced as 18-11, winning 15 by knockout. Nobody has to be right, but somebody has to be wrong. Holyfield put Mims down with a humdinger of an uppercut while Mims was trying to press ahead and had just landed one of his own to far less effect. Holyfield also goes down at the same time, because an invisible Emanuel Steward is tackling him.



Holyfield KO5 Terry Mims. I believe Mims was hit squarely on the nose by the uppercut and he was bleeding on the canvas from it when he was trying to get back up. Holyfield would get Qawi in his very next match and fight something tantamount to the cruiserweight version of Ali/Frazier with him. He would win the fight also. Mims would go on to lose most of his fights after this, but he would still get the most high profile name under his win column in Leon Spinks, despite that.

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Holyfield video game intro

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Wednesday, February 14, 2018

Murat Gassiev's Highleet Reel KO Against Jordan Shimmell: GIF Spotlight

PBC and FS1 delivered a card in May of 2016 where then 22-0 prospect Murat Gassiev took on fellow prospect 20-1 Jordan Shimmell. While a good match on paper, it wasn't particularly competitive.



Gassiev KO1 Shimmell. Gassiev is now looking to try and unify all the major cruiserweight claims to the championship against Oleksandr Usyk, with his reputation as a puncher proving more and more weighty as he goes. Jordan Shimmell hasn't fought since this match.


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Murat Gassiev Consoles Yunier Dortico

Holyfield video game intro

Usyk makes sure his hair is still pretty while fighting 

Gene Tunney gives a demonstration to troops in Auckland, New Zealand, 1943.

Tuesday, February 13, 2018

Urkel VS Fuffner: Skill VS Brute Strength (GIF Spotlight)




This is Jaleel White showing off the slickness as Steve Urkel on the sitcom Family Matters. Urkel has a boxing match with school bully Willie Fuffner (Larenz Tate) in the 1990 episode entitled Requiem for an Urkel. I don't want to be a buzzkill, but Urkel did not win this one on merit, but rather a technicality when the crowd got involved. This should've had a full investigation and an immediate rematch. This was bad for boxing, no matter how skilled Urkel was. Sitcom boxing needs better commissions and higher standards. That's just my opinion. Fuffner was robbed.


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Sugar Ray Leonard KO's Al Bundy

Little Mac and Doc Louis HARD WORK! GIF

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Monday, February 12, 2018

Juan Manuel Marquez Always Has A Follow-Up Punch: GIF Spotlight

"Dinamita" is not Juan Manuel Marquez's nickname for nothing. In Coeur d'Alene Casino, in Worley, Idaho, October of 2001, he took on Johnny Walker. Many have taken on Johnnie Walker, but this is the fighter, Johnny Walker. Walker was known to give his opponents a gift before the fight. You guessed it, a bottle of Johnnie Walker, as a sign of competitive respect. Gimmicks can really help. This time, not so much. Walker would go from 18-3, before this match, to 18-21 after less than one minute of action with the future Mexican legend. The fight was also another demonstration of JMM pretty much always having a follow-up punch in the knockdowns he scores. They're like shrapnel.  

The first knockdown, with that tail-end left hook to start:


The second and final knockdown/knockout, 56 seconds into the first minute of the first round:

Walker seemed very disoriented for some time as his people told him to sit in the corner. I don't think he believed in the stoppage. It was a rough one. The back of his head hitting the canvas was as much a doozy as the punch. But boxing needs its Johnny Walkers like it needs its JMM's to make the sport go around.


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Juan Manuel Marquez Puts Likar Ramos To Sleep

Young Juan Manuel Marquez's vicious uppercut
 
Ricardo Lopez puts down over-matched Myung-Sup Park with left hook

Ricardo Lopez flattens Rocky Lin with left hook

Ricardo Lopez's uppercut KO of Ala Villamor

Andrew Golota Gets To Feelin' Peckish At Work: GIF Spotlight


Tongan heavyweight prospect Samson Po'uha was 15-1 when he took on another prospect in 23-0 Polish gentleman, Andrew (Andrzej) Golota. "Gentleman" may be something of a misnomer. He was unofficially nicknamed "The Foul Pole." It was May of 1995, in Atlantic City, and a wild affair that Michael Buffer rallied the crowd for at the official finishing announcement. Golota was in pretty serious trouble as Po'uha, who'd recently rallied back from nearly being stopped himself, turned the tide and was laying down a whooping. Golota knew he had to do something to get through the round. But apparently it wasn't using his gloved fists first.



In his defense, it's not like you get to have a snack time at work when you're boxing on TV. If he was hungry, what's he going to do? Eat his gloves? He's not some glove-eating barbarian! His blood sugar was low! He's only human!  


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Basement Gym Boxing


Thanks for stopping by our place. Here are some other pages you might enjoy:

Conan O'Brien really tempts fate as he throws his crotch around at Andrew Golota

Heavyweight contender Mariusz Wach gets a mythical intro

Billy Joe decides to flash the weigh-in audience for his Lemieux fight

Golovkin dances "Mexican Style" 

Sunday, February 11, 2018

Darchinyan Rages & Shifts To KO Mijares (GIF Spotlight)


In 2008 and 2009 Vic Darchinyan put his historical stamp on boxing. He'd had a good run as a major titlist at flyweight, as a blunt object, beating all contenders about the head. He proved one of the most p4p physically imposing titlists, and as awkward a stylist as he was an imposing hulk of the lower weights. This is a combination few could seemingly overcome, until a young Nonito Donaire, the year before, had figured him out and shut him down with awesome ease. Darchinyan moved up to super flyweight and went back to the drawing board. It wasn't long before he broke down Freddie Roach's Dmitry Kirilov to win one of the four major belts in his new division. In November of 2008, only a few months after Kirilov, Darchinyan would match Mexico's Cristian "El Diamante" Mijares. Mijares, held two of the four major world titles. He was a smooth, conventional operator, and a name in the p4p conversation.

So, we got a unification of most of the marbles. In modern boxing's confusion, 3/4 of these titles tends to make journalists call you "undisputed" though any idiot can make any dispute they wish. It's not difficult (Ask The Flat Earth Society). Whoever won this bout would technically be the first modern fighter to be called undisputed in the super flyweight division. Due to politics, it's nearly impossible to do it in any division. This is why the current cruiserweight tournament deserves so much attention, I might add. So, for real boxing fans, the fighters may have been small, but the 2008 unification match was big. It was also a classic clash of styles, on paper.

A smooth operator VS a rough banger. It's boxing history on repeat. Mijares was thought to be a bit slick for Vic. And too sharp a counter-puncher for the crablike Darchinyan, who was so notoriously aggressive and unconventional, his skill was often missed. At a glance, it might have been too difficult to figure out what skills made Darchinyan successful. A deeper look showed a craftiness shrouded by Darchinyan's poor temperament, bizarre movements, and arrogance. He used deception, distraction, superior reflexes that normally belong to "cuter" boxers, to land the shots that destroyed body and spirit alike. Mijares and fans who didn't see it would soon find out the hard way.

Darchinyan's style flummoxed and broke the Mexican down through most of their match. If round one looked like this. . .


. . .you can easily see how round nine, with the cards in Vic's favor, looked like this:



A ninth round KO to become the "undisputed" super flyweight champion of the world from the modern era's Raging Bull. Even as he raged forward, there was method to the madness, shifting and forcing Mijares backward, measuring with the right, annihilating with the left. He owned the momentum; he shut down any ability for his opponent to set his feet and counter, and ran him over. It was a tremendous performance.

In 2009, Vic would defend the three titles against Jorge Arce in another dominant exhibition of skill and brute strength. That would mark the end of the three fight streak I assume will eventually put him in the Hall of Fame. He'd still win title fights after Arce, but he'd be waxing and waning the entire way, up until 2017, most recently. His wins against Kirilov, Mijares and Arce mark a brief peak for a truly unique fighter, as I see it. With another move up in weight, the kind of power he lorded over flyweights and super flyweights was not to be seen. It was fascinating while it lasted. Mijares is still fighting as well, and he'd go on to win a few more world title fights, but, to this day, the only man to ever stop him was Vic Darchinyan.


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Basement Gym Boxing


Thanks for stopping by our place. Here are some other pages you might enjoy:

The Three Stooges' Curly Gets Punched after the old 'look over there' trick.

Ricardo Lopez's uppercut KO of Ala Villamor

Rocky slips in a nice headbutt on Ezzard Charles 

Mike Tyson Bullies Norm Macdonald

Saturday, February 10, 2018

Evander Holyfield Lives The Dreams Of A Thousand Fighters: GIF Spotlight


Conan O'Brien hosted Late Night from 1993-2009 and there was a running pugilistic gag. There was also a dark genius who lived in the shadows of Late Night and SNL named Robert Smigel (Triumph the Insult Comic Dog). Conan would often have a wide assortment of faked celebrity guests appear on his screen where only the mouths would move in real time on a still photo of the person's face and one of his actors would play their lips. Faux Don King would show up regularly to inflict ebullient verbal torture on Conan, his "potato-eatin', leprechaunical [sic], young friend." One night, he showed up for an interview with Evander Holyfield.



This was after the first Holyfield/Lewis match took place, in the wake of the controversial scoring. Holyfield pretended to do what perhaps every fighter Don King's ever represented has wanted to do. Perhaps they can all watch this GIF as a form of therapy. On Late Night, Robert Smigel also played the lips of Donald Trump and Bill Clinton. If you squint, you may see a pattern in it.


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Basement Gym Boxing


Thanks for stopping by our place. Here are some other pages you might enjoy:

Evander Holyfield, for when you're so into Christmas: Reaction GIF Spotlight

Don King gets stared down by Bernard Hopkins

David Letterman Zings Don King With No Effs Given 

Conan O'Brien really tempts fate as he throws his crotch around at Andrew Golota

Friday, February 9, 2018

Wladimir Klitschko Shows His Wizardry For David Haye: GIF Spotlight


On Sky Sports, they gave Wladimir Klitschko VS David Haye all the press it demanded, from the first time Haye started to press the issue of potentially moving up to heavyweight and beating both Klitschko brothers and cleaning out the division. He succeeded in cleaning out Nikolay Valuev and John Ruiz, but the rest was much more complicated. There were multiple failed attempts for the parties to come together to make those matches. Promotional disagreements, injuries, mandatories, but they had a very long time to drum up interest in the threat of the cruiserweight destroyer.

As the match neared, there came a silly element of promotion in David Haye's shirt, and David Haye refusing to shake Wladimir's hand, as well as David Haye finally refusing to even meet face to face with the champion at Sky Sports' studio, even though he was at the building somewhere. Sky had to go to the trouble of split-screening them from their regular studio and wherever Haye was in the building. Days or weeks before, when the handshake issue came up during a presser, Wladimir, not seemingly amused, said "You don't want to shake the champ's hand?"

(Haye held one major title claim, Vitali another, Wlad two others, if that's not too absurd to comprehend-But Wladimir was clearly top dog)

Here, at the split-screen interview for Sky, it got even goofier, as Wladimir began to ask Haye to come and see him and shake his hand. "Shake the hand, dude...Come on." Then, starting to wave his hand up and down across the screen, he began to refer to his hand as the magic hand as he watched himself and Haye in the monitor. "Shake the magic hand." Listen, we all want to believe we have a magic hand, I like to think. But Klitschko's hand was more magic and he eventually won their bout by UD, with no rematch ever seemingly necessary, in 2011.


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Basement Gym Boxing


Thanks for stopping by our place. Here are some other pages you might enjoy:

Wladimir Klitschko opens Derrick Jefferson up with a slap down for a huge right hand KD

Klitschko sends Ray Austin out of the match with four quick left hooks to the head.

Tyson and Hughie Fury play Batman and the Joker for Wladimir Klitschko

Sergey Kovalev's crude and rude gesture to the Welsh people