Michael "Second Too" Nunn...HOF???

[cybox]

What is your take on Michael Nunn...does he have the credentials to make it into the Boxing Hall of Fame? You have to take what he did in the ring into consideration and not outside the ring.

IBF World Middleweight Champion 1988-1991 ( 5 title defenses )
WBA World Super-Middleweight Champion 1992-1994 ( 4 title defenses )

Nunn was a champion for a period of 7 years total ( 1988-1994, making a total of 9 title defenses )

Defeated World Champions
Frank Tate TKO9
Sumbu Kalambay KO1
Iran Barkley W-12
Marlon Starling W-12
Donal Curry KO10
Victor Cordoba W-12 / W-12
William Guthrie TKO7

Title Fight Record: 12-4
Career Record: 58-4 (37)

[purple.obi]

Hey, good work putting those stats together. Michael Nunn is definitely a Hall of Famer. And during his first title reign, before the Toney homerun shot, Nunn was a whole lotta fun to watch. The best.

[ringsider]

Nunn was a slappy southpaw......Toney showed him for what he was. A chinless chicken.......

[Saurfang]

Is he still in Jail?

[purple.obi]

Yes. I read a Des Moines Register piece, and he seems to be doing well, however. I'll find the link.
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/p ... /807060338

[ringsider]

Yes. I read a Des Moines Register piece, and he seems to be doing well, however. I'll find the link.

Just how can you be "doing well" in the can?

[purple.obi]

I think what I meant is that he was dealing with it, coping.

[dr_devious]

Yes, Michael Nunn should get into the HOF. A superb technician who never really fulfilled his promise

[Seamus]

For a 3 fight sequence, Tate, Roldan and Kalambay, Nunn looked practically unbeatable. He had some lackluster defenses, allegedly due to partying and losing focus, and he really should have beaten Toney. No excuse for blowing a big lead late. He never quite reached those same heights again, but he certainly wasen't disappointing after the Toney fiasco.

[purple.obi]

I agree about Toney. Michael Nunn was with Angelo Dundee at the time, and his former team the Goossen's acted like Nunn wouldn't have lost if he hadn't left them. Nunn was doing a pretty good job of handling Toney, got nailed.

[ringsider]

blah,blah,blah.....after the Toney fiasco.

Fiasco?

Depends on who you wanted to win that fight.

[purple.obi]

Fiasco?

Depends on who you wanted to win that fight. [/quote]


True, true. For me, it was probably like what Ali fans musta felt when Frazier sent him to the canvas.

[Seamus]

Fiasco in the sense that Nunn was less than 4 minutes away from a unanimous decision victory. Kinda like being up 5-0 in the 8th inning and just needing 4 more outs for the win, and then you blow it.

[ringsider]

Fiasco in the sense that Nunn was less than 4 minutes away from a
unanimous decision victory. Kinda like being up 5-0 in the 8th inning
and just needing 4 more outs for the win, and then you blow it.

Or like Tommy Hearns in Leonard/Hearns 1, a fiasco that fight was in my book and heart breaking. :(

[cybox]

A lot of fighters ducked Nunn. All the legends like Leonard, Duran and Hearns did not want to risk a fight with him. When asking Chris Eubank about the super-middleweight unification tournament Don King wanted to do, Eubank said he would want to fight Nunn last because he did not want to risk losing the title in the open of the tourey. Rony Jones Jr. decided to vacate the WBC 175 lb title after the purse bid was complete on the fight with Nunn instead of fighting Nunn.

[purple.obi]

Fiasco in the sense that Nunn was less than 4 minutes away from a
unanimous decision victory.

Or like Tommy Hearns in Leonard/Hearns 1, a fiasco that fight was in my book and heart breaking. :(

But then again! DD Yeah, both Tommy's & Nunn's losing those matches seemed disappointing, but Tommy did get some redemption in the rematch of course.

As for the Legends fighting each other, by the time Duran & Leonard did the rubber match, it didn't make sense for me. And it turned out that way if I remember right. This is paraphrasing, but I remember Nunn being quoted as having said to Leonard that he respected him, and he would still respect him after he knocked him out.

[elmersalsa]

A lot of fighters ducked Nunn. All the legends like Leonard, Duran and Hearns did not want to risk a fight with him. When asking Chris Eubank about the super-middleweight unification tournament Don King wanted to do, Eubank said he would want to fight Nunn last because he did not want to risk losing the title in the open of the tourey. Rony Jones Jr. decided to vacate the WBC 175 lb title after the purse bid was complete on the fight with Nunn instead of fighting Nunn.

It could be that Leonard, Duran and Hearns were old and knew that they could not beat a fast and young champion like Nunn.

[giacomino]

Agree that Nunn's 1988-89 stretch of KOing Tate, Roldan, and Kalambay and outpointing a flawed but dangerous Barkley was amazing. But he was just padding his record and bank account fighting blown-up welterweights Starling and Curry, who were both near the end of their careers. Losing the WBA super middleweight title in 1994 to a 21-13 club-fighter like Steve Little doesn't help his HOF case much. Losing in another title shot in 1998 to a 34-year-old Rocchigiani, who had lost three of his previous five fights, doesn't help much either. From the Toney fight on, Nunn seemed to lose or struggle against opponents who had half his talent

[Ambling Alp]

You could make a decent case for Nunn. His was only stopped once and that was to Toney and he was well ahead. The other losses were very close. As mentioned he had some pretty decent wins.
He wouldn't the most deserving guy to make it, but it wouldn't be a horrible selection.
However, it's doubtful he has much of a chance. He wasn't seen by many people as an exciting fighter and he has got into a lot of trouble. This hurts his chances quite a bit.

[purple.obi]

I understand what's been said about Marlon Starling, but I actually thought that was a good, entertaining win. I think after the first round, Nunn's trainer Goossen said "piece of cake." I thought it was a remarkable, intriguing match-up.

[cybox]

I agree, the Starling match up was interesting. It was like the old era of boxing when one champion wojld step up to challenge another champion for his title. You don't see that anymore. Even thought Starling was a welterweight champion when he moved up to middleweight for that fight he was juch smaller then Nunn but also much harder to hit and Starling had good defense. Starling made that win for Nunn a challenge even though Nunn won a unanimous dec.

[Bricks]

I do think Nunn belongs in the HOF. Hell if someone like Barry McGuigan can get in how can you keep Nunn out?

But I do think the Nunn of 1989 just after he beat Kalambay was vastly overrated by the East coast boxing media.

The whole argument about Leonard , Hearns and Duran being "afraid" to fight him was utter nonsense.

The shot Hearns of 1989-1992 still had a ton of hand speed and punch power, what had gone was his punch resistance which to his credit he recognised so adapted hi style by deciding to rely on his boxing skills and beleive me Hearns would have outboxed Nunn with superior speed and power.

Starling was a classical boxer who took Nunn close, and I do beleive Tommy was a much better "boxer" than either Nunn or Starling.

As for Leonard i beleive Nunn could have done what Norris did to him altho Leonard in 89 was better than Leonard in 1991 at 154 lbs.

[Bricks]

The losses to little,liles and rocchigiani hurt.
And also he didnt really fight enough big names in the first part of the 90's. A lot of it wasnt his fault. It was an anomaly that he didnt end up fighting Benn or Eubanks for big bucks, he was unlucky roy jones decided to pass up their fight, and he could have fought a mccallum or jackson.

[purple.obi]

Good stuff mugabi. Frank Liles, he was good too. All I really know is that briefly, at the same time I happened to be an avid boxing fan, Michael Nunn was a whole lot of fun, to me. I managed to have access to the premium channels at the time, bought the magazines at the time (especially KO), it was just a fun time to be a boxing fan.