Colin Jones and Barry Mcguigan

[FLINT ISLAND]

Anyone remeber these Prime early 1980's fighters ?

The Welsh Welterweight and the Irish Featherweight - both of the same era.

[dondada]

Yes. Yes, I remember them well.

Jones was one tough mofo. The strength of feeling behind McGuigan at one point was almost tangible - incredible emotion when his fatha used to belt out Danny Boy. Shame he got all headstrong after he beat Pedroza.

[Craig14]

I remember going to see "Mcguigans back" at the ally-pally when I was about 14, Nigel Benn was on the bill! And I remember west hams Mo Hussien on the bill aswell - what ever happened to mo hussein???

[Deserter]

No. Never heard of either of them. Doubt anyone else on the boxing forum has apart from hardcore historians...*











* Flint, why the f**k are you starting inane threads like this? You've posted about Jones on numerous occasions so clearly:
a) Already know who he is
b) Already know that everyone else knows who he is

And as for asking members of a British boxing forum whether they know Barry Mcguigan... well, words just fail me...

[bennie]

I remember going to see "Mcguigans back" at the ally-pally when I was about 14, Nigel Benn was on the bill! And I remember west hams Mo Hussien on the bill aswell - what ever happened to mo hussein???

Mo was at Frank Black's funeral in December 2008 and looked well.

[Deserter]

Smashing, two-fisted fighter.

Terry, which fighters don't have two fists?!

[FLINT ISLAND]

Barry came down and visited the boxing shed down by me years ago.

He was in the area on a golfing tounarment and popped down the gym.

Colin and Barry are 2 fighters that represented the Celtic nations during the early 1980's.

Along with Scotlands Jim Watt - the WBC Lightweight Champion.

[Deserter]

Barry came down and visited the boxing shed down by me years ago.

He was in the area on a golfing tounarment and popped down the gym.

Colin and Barry are 2 fighters that represented the Celtic nations during the early 1980's.

Along with Scotlands Jim Watt - the WBC Lightweight Champion.

Amazing insights. Thanks for sharing them

[palooka]

I read a very good interview with Colin Jones in 'Sweet Fghting Man 2'; he is a very hard man and was suited to his profession. I liked Herol Graham too much to say he was the best not to win a World Title though.

[Ezzard]

Jones was a real banger. The 2 wins over Kirkland just about summed up the man. Always dangerous though he could be out-boxed early on in a fight. Had he got home advantage in either of the McCrory fights he’d have probably won the title.

Terrible shame about the cut in the Curry fight. Colin would have really stretched Don had he got him into the later rounds.

McGuigan was amazingly popular. The kind of boxer your nan would love. He had that cross-over appeal and I believe his win over Pedroza had one of the highest viewing figures for the 1980s. Even when he lost to Cruz he put up a great fight and almost won it. Looking back he should have fought the faded Wilfredo Gomez when he had the chance. Barry should have got back in the ring quickly after the Cruz defeat he could have easily have regained a title. 3 big fights he should have had… v Cowdell (a natural)… v Nelson and v Fenech (would have been a fight of the decade candidate).

Lot of people I know got into following boxing because of McGuigan.

[Deserter]

Terrible shame about the cut in the Curry fight. Colin would have really stretched Don had he got him into the later rounds.

Love Jones, but have to disagree with you there as from memory a prime Curry was really going to town on him. It wasn't like the McCrory fights in that you just felt Jones had to get his motor running. Curry looked a different level. I'm still amazed at the pace of Curry's decline as around that point he was looking like he had potential to be an ATG. I accept you could never discount Jones (the Laing fights are proof of that!), but I can't buy your view on this occasion.
As for Mcguigan, he definitely got me into boxing and I was a massive fan, but he would have come off second-best against Nelson.

[Ezzard]

Terrible shame about the cut in the Curry fight. Colin would have really stretched Don had he got him into the later rounds.

Love Jones, but have to disagree with you there as from memory a prime Curry was really going to town on him. It wasn't like the McCrory fights in that you just felt Jones had to get his motor running. Curry looked a different level. I'm still amazed at the pace of Curry's decline as around that point he was looking like he had potential to be an ATG. I accept you could never discount Jones (the Laing fights are proof of that!), but I can't buy your view on this occasion.
As for Mcguigan, he definitely got me into boxing and I was a massive fan, but he would have come off second-best against Nelson.

I'm sure I read that Curry changed tactics and decided to go for it early on knowing that Jones would be very dangerous as the fight wore on. Curry put an awful lot into those opening rounds. Yes, Jones was having to soak it up BUT Curry could not have maintained that attack all night. I'm not saying for a moment that Jones would have won. I just feel that had he managed to get into the second half of the fight that he'd have had much more success. All academic now of course...


A boxrec mod once told me that Curry was a big weight drainer before fights and this strategy gave him a big advantage. But led to him burning our earlier and not looking so good once he moved up the weights.


Barry probably would have lost to Azumah (he's admitted it himself) but he'd have gone out on his shield.

[Deserter]

A boxrec mod once told me that Curry was a big weight drainer before fights and this strategy gave him a big advantage. But led to him burning our earlier and not looking so good once he moved up the weights.

I'm really surprised to hear that - not that he actually weight drainned, but that the mod felt it was this that gave him his advantage. I could understand that belief in relation to the Margaritos of this world whose style relied on being bigger and stronger than their opposition, but I honestly can't recall any occasions in Curry's career at Welter where I felt is was the size differential in his favour that aided him. Given the size of McCrory he surely must have been even more of a 'drainner'.
For me, Curry dominated during that brief period thanks to quick, crisp hands and unbelievably good shot selection - he rarely seemed to waste any punches, even when he was throwing in combination. I know it was Shane Moseley's father Jack who coined the term 'Power Boxing' to describe his son's style, but for me it was Curry who patented that type of dynamic boxing ability.
By the way, think you're completely right about Barry vs Azumah - that would have been one hell of a tear-up.

[Ezzard]

A boxrec mod once told me that Curry was a big weight drainer before fights and this strategy gave him a big advantage. But led to him burning our earlier and not looking so good once he moved up the weights.

I'm really surprised to hear that - not that he actually weight drainned, but that the mod felt it was this that gave him his advantage. I could understand that belief in relation to the Margaritos of this world whose style relied on being bigger and stronger than their opposition, but I honestly can't recall any occasions in Curry's career at Welter where I felt is was the size differential in his favour that aided him. Given the size of McCrory he surely must have been even more of a 'drainner'.
For me, Curry dominated during that brief period thanks to quick, crisp hands and unbelievably good shot selection - he rarely seemed to waste any punches, even when he was throwing in combination. I know it was Shane Moseley's father Jack who coined the term 'Power Boxing' to describe his son's style, but for me it was Curry who patented that type of dynamic boxing ability.
By the way, think you're completely right about Barry vs Azumah - that would have been one hell of a tear-up.

Apparently Curry was one of the first to take up the methods of the scientist whose name escapes me...

Something happened to Curry he did well to beat Starling but there was none of the explosiveness at that time that we would see in the Jones and McCrory fights. Then no sooner had it arrived than it just left him...

Curry liked a slow paced fight and I think Honeyghan took him out of his comfort zone and gave him a brutal battering.

Even so Curry was still favoruite to beat McCallum (though most didn't fully appreciate Mike at that time)

[orbtastic]

He didn't do badly in the first four rounds either, until boom...that peach of a left hook (not forgetting the feint and dummy before it)

[Ezzard]

Here's the quote from Petu v.d. Pajm.

Apologies i thought he mentioned the name of the guy helping Curry with his draining...

Curry killed himself to make welterweight for not only Honeyghan-fight, but even for few earlier defences. That kind of a malnutrition can take away one's physical prime very young indeed. And Curry sure NEVER looked as sharp again as in his 1983-1985 fights so he had short & early prime.

OTOH, one thing which made him special for that reasonably short period was the very fact that he was not only a crafty boxer with a good height reach, but additionally an immensely strong one for a welterweight.

He capitalised on being bigger than opposition by using very advanced weight losing methods and at the same time burnt up and eroded his physical skills quick&early.

[Counter-puncher]

Hugh McIvanney reported on the weightmaking in the Curry camp for the Jones fight. he said Curry was wrapped up in waterproofs, etc etc, but was so bonedry that it barely made him even sweat. there were huge woops of joy when Curry made something like 149lbs a few days before the fight, as i recall Mac saying.

[Deserter]

Here's the quote from Petu v.d. Pajm.

Apologies i thought he mentioned the name of the guy helping Curry with his draining...

Curry killed himself to make welterweight for not only Honeyghan-fight, but even for few earlier defences. That kind of a malnutrition can take away one's physical prime very young indeed. And Curry sure NEVER looked as sharp again as in his 1983-1985 fights so he had short & early prime.

OTOH, one thing which made him special for that reasonably short period was the very fact that he was not only a crafty boxer with a good height reach, but additionally an immensely strong one for a welterweight.

He capitalised on being bigger than opposition by using very advanced weight losing methods and at the same time burnt up and eroded his physical skills quick&early.

Fascinating. Cheers for digging it up

[FLINT ISLAND]

Yeah I remeber reading that book.

Shows how hard Colin is though - after the fight - he said in the post fight interview that he was gutted the fight was stopped on a cut cos he could have taken Currys punches all night.

And Curry was a serious puncher as he showed by gunning down Milton McCory inside 2 rounds.

[palooka]

Don Curry trained in Birmingham prior to the Jones bout and Robert McCracken witnessed and said that he was amazing. Colin Jones was tough, fast, brave and could knock a tree down but Curry was a boxing genius at that time. If you watch the fight again; Curry is just far better AND more powerful than Jones. Don Curry hit equally hard with either hand and moved across and under Colins power punches and countered with power. The cut was dreadful but; without being dramatic; (Ta Da!) Curry would have destroyed Colin that night. Curry was the very best welter in the world at that time; Jones and McCrory were very close to each other at 2 and 3 but a full leap away from Curry.