silkov wrote:I also think it was a mistake not to let Frank fight for the British title... I think winning and defending the British and Europeon titles would have enhanced his experience and confidence a heck of a lot especially in the 80s.
Going from memory though around 85/86 The British Heavyweight Title scene was a little quiet. Dave Pearce was off the scene as was Neville Meade. So that only really left Dave Garside, Funso Banjo and Hughroy Currie. Not the most axciting of matchups for Big Frank.
Although I agree a few more defences of the European Title may have been of benefit to Big Frank.
silkov wrote:I also think it was a mistake not to let Frank fight for the British title... I think winning and defending the British and Europeon titles would have enhanced his experience and confidence a heck of a lot especially in the 80s.
Going from memory though around 85/86 The British Heavyweight Title scene was a little quiet. Dave Pearce was off the scene as was Neville Meade. So that only really left Dave Garside, Funso Banjo and Hughroy Currie. Not the most axciting of matchups for Big Frank.
Although I agree a few more defences of the European Title may have been of benefit to Big Frank.
I think the reason Bruno didn't fight for the British title was that Horace Notice his stablemate was the champ. Fights with Banjo, Currie and Notice could have built up Bruno nicely I think. Notice was pretty good... seems to be forgotten today.
mercman wrote:As for Notice: good boxer. Technically sound, good speed and could punch. It is a shame he didn't get the opportunity to fight at a higher level before his career ended.
Do you think he was big enough to compete at world level?
I think Notice would have done well in world class. He didn't have Brunos strength or power but he was a looser more fluid boxer and a match between him and Bruno would have been very interesting. Its a shame that if I remember right Notice had to retire after suffering detached reinas in both eyes when his career was still developing so we never really got to see how good he could have been. I think Brunos power would have been too much for him but it would have been very interesting especially if Notice could have taken the fight into the later rounds.
I suppose this is my point really... fights like this against Notice, Currie etc which may have stretched him a bit in rounds would have been very good for Bruno in the 80s....
I've no doubt that Horace Notice would have been a world champ at cruiser today, the 200lb weight limit would have been spot on for him.
Looking at his record he beat future champ Anaclet Wamba in his 8th fight, He also had a good chin and very underrated skills.
I JUST WANT TO SAY THAT IVE BEEN A FAN OF MR BRUNO SINCE I WAS A TODDLER AND I WISH HIM ALL THE BEST IN WHATEVER HE DOES.
MAYBE HE SHOULD TRY COACHING AS HE WAS A FITNESS ENTHUSIAST AND WAS ALWAYS IN GREAT SHAPE.
Yeah I think Bruno would make a good coach or trainer of young fighters but I think some exfighters find it hard being trainers as it can increase the urge for them to fight again themselves.... perhaps this is why Bruno hasn't gone in this direction. But Frank definately needs to do something, he needs to have some goal to aim for, a reason to get up in the morning.
I don't think Currie would have stretched Bruno much. I think Frank would have KO'd him without too many problems. I don't rate Currie anywhere near as highly as Notice. Horace was a better boxer, quicker and more durable than Currie. I see Notice as cut above the likes of Currie and Banjo (those two were involved in a truly and deeply boring fight for the British Title I remember) and probably see him as better than Mason too.
I agree but still would have liked to see Bruno fight Currie. Currie could have been awkward and was pretty tough from what I remember...
Well as Jerry Quarry once said I think he would have" fallen awkward!" Seriously, do you think Currie could have been tricky for Frank? I know he was a brawler and could be a handful but I see Bruno sorting Currie out with the jab and then doing him with the big right after three or four rounds.
I'm sure Frank would have won quite handily but this was the sort of fight he needed more of before he fought Witherspoon. Currie from what I remember was pretty duarable and had a fair punch himself. I think it might have been a bit rougth and Bruno would have probably had to take a couple of shots and that would have done him good.
Bruno did fight some decent opposition but my point is that had he fought for the British title and defended it against the likes of Currie and Banjo I think it would have done him the world of good in his pre-Witherspoon stage. He would have got a nice Lonsdale belt out of it too.
He needed guys that were going to extend him, Currie would have been got out of there inside of 4 rounds, what Bruno lacked was the experience of getting to the later rounds and winning through the tiredness.
Currie would have given him a good workout and at his best he was very strong and durable and I could see him roughing and mauling Bruno up a bit and getting into the later rounds. Banjo was never stopped in his career and besides being awkward had a good chin and a decent punch.
Another fighter whom it would have been interesting to see Bruno fight is Noel Quarless.... this could be over very quick but if Noel was in boxing mode it could be interesting.
But Bruno vs Notice would have been by far the most competitive fight I think and its a great shame it didn't happen......
topper123 wrote:Anyone know what Currie and Banjo are up to these days?
I am sure I read a few years back that Currie was doing well as a painter and decorator, I may be wrong. Also heard that he still trained and kept in good shape. I am also pretty sure that for a time after he 'retired' he took part in a few unlicensed fights.
As for Banjo I have no idea, some say he returned to Nigeria some say he still lives in London.
I heard that too. I wonder how he performed? I read somewhere that a former British Heavyweight Champion was ko'd at an unlicensed show by some guy off the street. It seems a bit far fetched but I wonder if it is true? Could it have been Currie?
I think I have read the same book as you. But going from memory wasn't it stated that it was someone who had 'fought for the British Title'? as in not won it?
I have no idea how Currie performed on these 'pirate shows'. Someone else here might though.
mercman wrote:To be honest though, I was a bit sceptical about the story when I read it at the time. I think it was in a book called 'Unlicensed'. I can't remember who wrote it. Maybe he was using a bit of artistic license.
Yes I was a little sceptical to, but who knows maybe it or something very simular happened after all Roy Shaw beat the shell of Ron Stander on an UK unlicensed show.
silkov wrote:Currie would have given him a good workout and at his best he was very strong and durable and I could see him roughing and mauling Bruno up a bit and getting into the later rounds. Banjo was never stopped in his career and besides being awkward had a good chin and a decent punch.
Another fighter whom it would have been interesting to see Bruno fight is Noel Quarless.... this could be over very quick but if Noel was in boxing mode it could be interesting.
But Bruno vs Notice would have been by far the most competitive fight I think and its a great shame it didn't happen......
Mmmmm, you make a good point but there is also the argument that Bruno may have gained more from fighting some more durable/testing type American fighter such as the likes of James Broad, Eddie Gregg, Larry Alexander or Mike Weaver etc etc around 85/86.
silkov wrote:Currie would have given him a good workout and at his best he was very strong and durable and I could see him roughing and mauling Bruno up a bit and getting into the later rounds. Banjo was never stopped in his career and besides being awkward had a good chin and a decent punch.
Another fighter whom it would have been interesting to see Bruno fight is Noel Quarless.... this could be over very quick but if Noel was in boxing mode it could be interesting.
But Bruno vs Notice would have been by far the most competitive fight I think and its a great shame it didn't happen......
Mmmmm, you make a good point but there is also the argument that Bruno may have gained more from fighting some more durable/testing type American fighter such as the likes of James Broad, Eddie Gregg, Larry Alexander or Mike Weaver etc etc around 85/86.
Weaver would have been an interesting fight... I'd pick Bruno early but Weaver would be dangerous the longer the fight went on.
I would have liked to see Bruno have a rematch against Smith too.
silkov wrote:I would have liked to see Bruno have a rematch against Smith too.
Me to and I have never really understood why that fight never happened sometime over the next few years.
Smith slowely went down hill about 18 months after that fight and Bruno slowely improved. It would have been good to see Bruno reverse at least one of his loses.
The thing is that Smith lost decistions to Witherspoon and I think Bey?... and was beaten by Holmes but he learned from all these losses and this is what led to him beating Spoon for the title. He learned from his defeats.
silkov wrote:The thing is that Smith lost decistions to Witherspoon and I think Bey?... and was beaten by Holmes but he learned from all these losses and this is what led to him beating Spoon for the title. He learned from his defeats.
Maybe, but by all accounts Witherspoon was mentally not in the fight for the Smith rematch due to his problems with Don King.
Smith took advantage of this. All things being equel I would pick Witherspoon to beat Smith 9 out of 10 times.
silkov wrote:The thing is that Smith lost decistions to Witherspoon and I think Bey?... and was beaten by Holmes but he learned from all these losses and this is what led to him beating Spoon for the title. He learned from his defeats.
Maybe, but by all accounts Witherspoon was mentally not in the fight for the Smith rematch due to his problems with Don King.
Smith took advantage of this. All things being equel I would pick Witherspoon to beat Smith 9 out of 10 times.
I agree really, but think Smith knowing he couldn't outbox Witherspoon went for the early ko. It would have been interesting to see a peak Witherspoon fight Tyson. Mike never fancied the fight I believe.
I'm pretty sure that Witherspoon in condition and focused could have beaten Tyson... he had the chin and the skills to do a 'douglas' on Tyson before Douglas, if you know what I mean!... 8) 8)
mercman wrote:Yeah, quite possibly. Witherspoon certainly had the ingredients to trouble Tyson: good technically, physically big, durable, streetwise, and a tremendous right. Good fighter.
Yeah, and he wouldn't have been intimidated by Tyson either...
mercman wrote:Always thought Witherspoon to be underrated. I was really surprised when Bonecrusher stopped him because I always saw him as a really durable fighter. Perhaps the Don King thing explains it though. My most vivid memory of Witherspoon is of him clubbing Bruno to defeat back in '86. Poor Frank was a state afterwards. It is a pity King froze 'Spoon out of the world scene in the late 80s. I would have liked to have seen him against Tyson. Tyson wouldn't have been able to bully Witherspoon like he did so many others around that time. It would have been interesting.
smith caught tim cold, because tim had already beaten smith i think mentally tim was thinking about a tyson fight he thought was going to happen somewhere down the line in the unification series.
tim was a relative novice of 16 or so fights when he very unlucky to lose a split decision to the then seasoned champ larry holmes.
witherspoon never looked in the best of shape to me, i always wonder if he had really applied himself in the gym a la bruno and coupled it with his undoubted natural talent he could have been something really special.
Bugner and Witherspoon both had their chances to make a bigger mark on the world scene, unfortunatly both didn't make the most of their given skills, they can blame promoters, trainers, managers and all other people. In the end they also have to blame themselves.
