Nigel Benn IBHOF

[Rover]

I remember watching Eubank-Collins on TV with members of my family of my age… We’d be early 20s… These lads, who are family, were n’er do wells…always on the rob… Two of them were geeing Chris up…then about round 6 they said he will win won’t he? Eubank? Only we both put a grand on him each…

Now these chaps didn’t have jobs. The whole room went silent. I eventually said Eubank will get the decision as long as he’s standing at the end…because that’s what usually happens.

Didn’t go according to plan that night…

Fck me man, don't you just hate it when you can't even rely on boxing to be corrupt any more?

S'weird feeling innit? A bit like a watching a sheepdog being savagely mauled by a sheep...

[misterpunch]

not the way i saw it - i thought he was robbed to the extent that even chris should have been honest and man enough to admit it.

you didn't think Eubank boxed Watson's socks off for about 5 or 6 rounds while Watson waited to wake the fvck up? or that Watson's hell for leather approach to the 2nd fight might just be related to the mistakes he made first time round?

no - i had watson making up admittedly some lost ground early on to win it clearly, i know thats not a real robbery but i was in the place sitting next to my brother who was shouting for chris. i was with watson so you can understand the situation.

[Counter-puncher]

clearly, how clearly out of interest? in points, or rounds.

[misterpunch]

in rounds i think i had watson winning 6 chris 3 and 3 shared. no robbery - ive seen worse - but clear enough to me at the time given the circumstances.

[SaadOffTheDeck]

Ok, we get it, you don't want Benn in the IBHOF. You don't need to make nearly 50% of the posts in the thread.

Yes he does

You know me so well.:)
Though it's not quite half...yet.:)

It seems like at least 3/4's. Brutal

[Rover]

in rounds i think i had watson winning 6 chris 3 and 3 shared. no robbery - ive seen worse - but clear enough to me at the time given the circumstances.

You are hereby disqualified along with me and CP from this discussion because you don't agree with Ez that it was a robbery, thus showing how biased you are.:)

[orbtastic]

My memory is clearer of the 2nd fight but I didn't think either were a robbery, any more than Watson knocked Benn out. Eubank was clearly the heavier puncher and that is often what caused this imbalance of opinion on the scoring of his fights but he could be endlessly frustrating to watch with a highly economical punch output, counterpunching and posing.

Eubank was hated, and I mean hated, by large swathes of the population but he definitely had the rub of the green on more than one occasion. I remember Close screeching like a little girl but you do have to feel he was robbed of the victory twice. Several others cried robbery for numerous other fights but the one that I felt closest was the Rocchiagianni fight. The Schommer fight was an awful spectacle but another that Eubank won clearly on the cards.

Dan Sherry was unlucky that Eubank wasn't DQ'd.

[Ezzard]

I remember watching Eubank-Collins on TV with members of my family of my age… We’d be early 20s… These lads, who are family, were n’er do wells…always on the rob… Two of them were geeing Chris up…then about round 6 they said he will win won’t he? Eubank? Only we both put a grand on him each…

Now these chaps didn’t have jobs. The whole room went silent. I eventually said Eubank will get the decision as long as he’s standing at the end…because that’s what usually happens.

Didn’t go according to plan that night…

Fck me man, don't you just hate it when you can't even rely on boxing to be corrupt any more?

S'weird feeling innit? A bit like a watching a sheepdog being savagely mauled by a sheep...

It's like they blamed me for Eubank losing.

Losing that sort of money was bad. Would take them a whole month of shoplifting sports clothes to make it back up.

[orbtastic]

I must admit, I chuckled.

[Rover]

I remember watching Eubank-Collins on TV with members of my family of my age… We’d be early 20s… These lads, who are family, were n’er do wells…always on the rob… Two of them were geeing Chris up…then about round 6 they said he will win won’t he? Eubank? Only we both put a grand on him each…

Now these chaps didn’t have jobs. The whole room went silent. I eventually said Eubank will get the decision as long as he’s standing at the end…because that’s what usually happens.

Didn’t go according to plan that night…

Fck me man, don't you just hate it when you can't even rely on boxing to be corrupt any more?

S'weird feeling innit? A bit like a watching a sheepdog being savagely mauled by a sheep...

It's like they blamed me for Eubank losing.

Losing that sort of money was bad. Would take them a whole month of shoplifting sports clothes to make it back up.

[Bricks]

Nigel Benn should have been inducted into the IBHOF ten years ago!

Benn achieved more than enough during his career, plus the way he went about it too should have been more than enough to cement his place as soon as he was eligible IMO.

What do you mean by the way he went about it?

Always seeking out the toughest challengers of his era & being willing to travel to face them.

Benn belongs in the hall of fame based on modern day post 1990 standards (multi titles) but pre that date most these guys like benn, camacho, hell even Tyson might not get into some crusty old timer from the early 80s definition of a hall of fame being only for the great and very best.

Obviously in a post 1990 landscape boxing HOF world where mcguigan is in, Benn walks in.

But there is a lot of revisionist stuff about how good guys like eubanks and watson and collins were. Benn is also in danger of being overrated....the fact is he did take on a dangerman like mclellan who was rated amongst the best of the best and beat him which the others cant say.....he also beat in barkley (altho one returning off detached retina surgery with the fight stopped too early) another top level guy. Than u have in that super tough talented era guys like dewitt, sims and , malinga and eubanks that he beat. But he didnt fight guys like mccallum, nunn, toney or jones jnr and thats why i find the modern day way of inducting hall of fame guys infuriating. So many of these guys comparatively didnt even fight 80% of the very best in their time!!!!!!!!!!!! Benn beat a gman and barkley but not a hearns, duran,toney, mccallum,nunn or even a jackson,johnson along the way.

[Rover]

Barkley had lost two fights the year before and was coming off retina surgery. Benn didn't beat Eubank, and Malinga beat Benn. Sorry, but I won't vote for someone for HOF based on wins over Simms and DeWitt. And McClellan was a top middle; he never accomplished a thing at super middle.
Same reason I don't rank Nelson among Whitaker's main achievements, nor Chavez. Neither did anything of note at the weight at which Whitaker beat them.

[Bricks]

I tend to agree with you Rover on many things. In my haste to type, i forgot to say I had Benn winning the rematch, and i recall most in the UK saw it the same way.

Barkley had lost his last two, to Duran and Nunn, but they were both close losses. The inactivity and retina thing was what did him in, i mean what kind of manager did he have to put him in with a (at the time) wild slugging from the first round powerpuncher like Benn!!!

Ive always said the silly 3 knockdown rule deprived us of what would have been a fight to surpass Hagler-Hearns. Barkley was clearly able to continue. Benn not giving a rematch is also a big no no in my book

In a nutshell in my purist mind Benn cant be a HOF'er based on the pre 1990 (multi multi title) days as he is a guy who in his time active never fought the true absolute best in Jones jnr, Toney,Nunn, Mccallum,Hearns, Of the B Level he didnt fight Kalambay, Graham,Jackson , but beat Mclellan and Barkley.......so what you really have is a guy who beat or drew with the C level foes of a exceptionally talent laden gifted tough era in MW history....(1986-1993)

[jj5000]

Did Benn actually duck Jones, Toney, Nunn, McCallum and Hearns?I remember he said a fight with Jones was his goal.Wouldn't Hearns have been too heavy for Benn in the 90's?

[Rover]

Did Benn actually duck Jones, Toney, Nunn, McCallum and Hearns?I remember he said a fight with Jones was his goal.Wouldn't Hearns have been too heavy for Benn in the 90's?

Hearns was too heavy for Benn as of 91 when he moved up to LHW.