what happened??
Gavilan is rated as an all time great. BObo was a good champion but not an all time great. Gavilan was comming off wins over undefeated gil turner, bill graham, valient tough fight against sugar ray robinson at his best, beat carmen basilio, beat hall of famers ike williams and beua jack.
and he steps up and loses a majority decision to bobo olsen. was the fight close??? for those who saw the fight what happened???
was gavilian overwhelmed by the larger mans punching power?
i just would think a prime 28 year old gavilan would be able to outbox bobo olsen even if stepping up
What happened to Kid Gavilan against BOBO olsen
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BrocktonBlockbuster49
- Heavyweight

- Posts: 4900
- Joined: 29 May 2005, 00:32
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BrocktonBlockbuster49
- Heavyweight

- Posts: 4900
- Joined: 29 May 2005, 00:32
I don't think I've actually seen this fight but based on what I've read about it I think Olson fought the fight of his life,was a crowding fighter that upset the Kid's rhythm plus being a natural middleweight to welter champ Gavilan probably helped him too.Although primarily known for getting starched twice by Robinson after his comeback,by Archie Moore in 3,and to a lesser degree by Jose Torres in 1 he really wasn't too bad of a fighter.He manhandled Maxim,knocking the iron chinned Maxim down twice,gave a good account of himself in the first and second Robinson fights and beat some other tough fighters.I read an article about him years ago that Bobo had some personal problems in his career that perhaps contributed to his uneven later performances.
..where is our old friend..the gavilan superfan? he posted a long time ago that the reason was gavilan having trouble making the weight....or he was injured..whatever. the weight theory seems wrong as the keed was coming up a division to challenge.
i saw that fight and remember it well. olson had a very good streak going....was a superb infighter and was fast , After one of their early fights robinson said "That damn olson is the fastest middleweight i've ever fought." he simply was better that night than gavilan and won a clear decision.
he was looking so good for a while that some were saying he should challenge moore for the light heavy title..which he did...and as i predicted he would be knocked out in the first real exchange....which he was.
then his personal problems got publicized....he was married to two different ladies at the same time...one in hawaii and one stateside...and i think had children by both.
alas..then the sugarman came out of retirement....and bobo started down his slide. b ut i thought when he was good he was very very good....much better than his total record would indicate.
i saw that fight and remember it well. olson had a very good streak going....was a superb infighter and was fast , After one of their early fights robinson said "That damn olson is the fastest middleweight i've ever fought." he simply was better that night than gavilan and won a clear decision.
he was looking so good for a while that some were saying he should challenge moore for the light heavy title..which he did...and as i predicted he would be knocked out in the first real exchange....which he was.
then his personal problems got publicized....he was married to two different ladies at the same time...one in hawaii and one stateside...and i think had children by both.
alas..then the sugarman came out of retirement....and bobo started down his slide. b ut i thought when he was good he was very very good....much better than his total record would indicate.
Re: What happened to Kid Gavilan against BOBO olsen
As Kid Gavilan was mentioned last week thought I'd bump this little beauty
Re: What happened to Kid Gavilan against BOBO olsen
Olson was a big strong middleweight who could fight. His kryptonite was punchers which Gavilan wasnt. Gavilan's kryptonite was bigger physical guys, which Olson was. It was just a bad style matchup for Gavilan.
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dempseyfire
- Heavyweight

- Posts: 5534
- Joined: 29 Oct 2003, 22:56
Re: What happened to Kid Gavilan against BOBO olsen
For what it's worth, Gavilan claimed to enter into the fight with an injured right hand, but regardless Olson is a guy who gets under-rated; he was able to beat a large number of fighters with more speed and 'flash' than he had through his combination of durability, stamina, strength, and under-rated boxing skills.