Times bash Buckley – no way to treat such a loyal servant

[bennie]

Kostas Petrou was a real crowd pleaser.

His war with Rocky Kelly was one of the best scraps in a British ring back in the 80's. Highlights of that absolute war are on youtube.

Kelly himself was an all-action fighter. His cracking fight with Tony Brown is also on youtube in its entirety and well worth a watch.

Rocky was the pre-fight favourite but the unsung Petrou proved too sharp and did remarkably well to stop the rugged Kelly for the British title. On the same bill Petrou's stablemate, Martin McGough, failed to make it a win double when he was outscored by Sylvester Mittee for the Commonwealth title.

[Old bones Ian]

I got Kostas and Andreas Panyani mixed up

[bennie]

I got Kostas and Andreas Panyani mixed up

I once mixed up Sean Murphy with John Lyon, although in my defence both men sported the ginger crew-cut and looked seriously anaemic. As for Petrou, he was boxing better than ever when he failed a brain scan in 1989. He passed a second scan but the Board still pulled his licence. I saw him in a cafe in Birmingham, where he worked as a chef, later in 1989 and he looked pale and withdrawn. Bob Mee did a feature on him in BN shortly afterwards and Kostas was able to get a few things off his chest.

[Giancarlo]

Some excellent fighters of the 80's.

A young Kostas Petrou is in the middle.

[Coco]

Colin Jones and Slyvester Mittee, can only guess at the other two

[THEBUTCH]

Yep, Colin Jones and Slyvester Mittee.

Trevor Hughroy Currie 2nd from the left.

Would never have guessed Kosta Petrou.

The last one on the far left....Darren Dyer

[Giancarlo]

Yep, Colin Jones and Slyvester Mittee.

Trevor Hughroy Currie 2nd from the left.

Would never have guessed Kosta Petrou.

The last one on the far left....Darren Dyer

Funso Banjo

[bennie]

Some excellent fighters of the 80's.

A young Kostas Petrou is in the middle.

This was the line-up for the September 1985 show at Ally Pally. Currie outscored the gentle giant Banjo for the vacant British heavyweight title and Mittee outscored Petrou in a British and Commonwealth welterweight title clash. Good fighter Mittee. He made the mistake of linking up with Terry Lawless as a pro because Lawless turned all his men into pressure fighters and Mittee was a lovely boxer. Jones is obviously the best of the lot but had to withdraw from his fight on the bill (against a roadsweeper) with a back injury. Errol Christie took his place and stopped a useless American in three rounds. Christie had a succession of pathetically easy wins after his surprise defeat to Jose Seys - and then came the Mark Kaylor war. That fight ruined Christie.

[Giancarlo]

Robbie Davies and Joe Lally during their boxing days in the 1970s

[bennie]

Robbie Davies and Joe Lally during their boxing days in the 1970s

Robbie could really whack and was a big draw at the famous old Stadium in Liverpool which was dubbed "The graveyard of champions." He stopped Lally in four rounds in 1979 and got mighty close to a British light-middleweight title shot at Jimmy Batten but it wasn't to be.
The atmosphere in the Stadium on fight nights was electric.

[Giancarlo]

Yes, bennie, people often comment on the atmosphere generated there on fight nights.

Davies mentioned in a few interviews that Lally was the bloke who bent his nose for him. Must have been in their amateur meeting(s) as he had that crooked nose from the beginning of his pro career I think.

[Giancarlo]

[bennie]

There's a funny picture in Boxing News of Mick Mills on the floor looking up at Davies who is winding up a huge right hand. I don't know if Robbie threw it but Mills said of their amateur meeting, "I thought I was going to get killed!"
Cowdell was the only medallist in the Games (bronze) but McKenzie reached the quarter-finals where he lost to Ray Leonard on points. Magri really flopped against Canada's Ian Clyde and was floored and stopped in the third round. He had to wait a week for the bout after the African nations withdrew at the last minute and messed up the draw. However, southpaw Clyde also had to wait a week. Magri struggled against southpaws. Mittee and Jones went out early but I seem to remember they won their first bout in the event. Davies sparked an Aussie in his first bout, really flattened him, before he too was eliminated. Odwell, the team captain, also went out early and is the only one of the GB entrants not to turn pro.

[jamesmcdonnell]

There's a funny picture in Boxing News of Mick Mills on the floor looking up at Davies who is winding up a huge right hand. I don't know if Robbie threw it but Mills said of their amateur meeting, "I thought I was going to get killed!"
Cowdell was the only medallist in the Games (bronze) but McKenzie reached the quarter-finals where he lost to Ray Leonard on points. Magri really flopped against Canada's Ian Clyde and was floored and stopped in the third round. He had to wait a week for the bout after the African nations withdrew at the last minute and messed up the draw. However, southpaw Clyde also had to wait a week. Magri struggled against southpaws. Mittee and Jones went out early but I seem to remember they won their first bout in the event. Davies sparked an Aussie in his first bout, really flattened him, before he too was eliminated. Odwell, the team captain, also went out early and is the only one of the GB entrants not to turn pro.

I interviewed Clinton a few years ago, well, quite a lot of years ago now I'd imagine, at his gym in Tulse Hill, and when we talked about his olympic experience, his eyes lit up, it was meant to be a 30 minute interview and in the end, I was there for 3 hours. lovely guy. He said the experience of sharing a ring with Leonard was the greatest boxing moment of his life. It was like it was yesterday for him.

I also talked to Magri about his, he said he really struggled without his regular amateur coach, he just didn't feel right at the olympics and the actual fight itself was a blur, everything just fell apart.

[jamesmcdonnell]

There's a funny picture in Boxing News of Mick Mills on the floor looking up at Davies who is winding up a huge right hand. I don't know if Robbie threw it but Mills said of their amateur meeting, "I thought I was going to get killed!"
Cowdell was the only medallist in the Games (bronze) but McKenzie reached the quarter-finals where he lost to Ray Leonard on points. Magri really flopped against Canada's Ian Clyde and was floored and stopped in the third round. He had to wait a week for the bout after the African nations withdrew at the last minute and messed up the draw. However, southpaw Clyde also had to wait a week. Magri struggled against southpaws. Mittee and Jones went out early but I seem to remember they won their first bout in the event. Davies sparked an Aussie in his first bout, really flattened him, before he too was eliminated. Odwell, the team captain, also went out early and is the only one of the GB entrants not to turn pro.

I interviewed Clinton a few years ago, well, quite a lot of years ago now I'd imagine, at his gym in Tulse Hill, and when we talked about his olympic experience, his eyes lit up, it was meant to be a 30 minute interview and in the end, I was there for 3 hours. lovely guy. He said the experience of sharing a ring with Leonard was the greatest boxing moment of his life. It was like it was yesterday for him.

I also talked to Magri about his, he said he really struggled without his regular amateur coach, he just didn't feel right at the olympics and the actual fight itself was a blur, everything just fell apart.

[bennie]

There's a funny picture in Boxing News of Mick Mills on the floor looking up at Davies who is winding up a huge right hand. I don't know if Robbie threw it but Mills said of their amateur meeting, "I thought I was going to get killed!"
Cowdell was the only medallist in the Games (bronze) but McKenzie reached the quarter-finals where he lost to Ray Leonard on points. Magri really flopped against Canada's Ian Clyde and was floored and stopped in the third round. He had to wait a week for the bout after the African nations withdrew at the last minute and messed up the draw. However, southpaw Clyde also had to wait a week. Magri struggled against southpaws. Mittee and Jones went out early but I seem to remember they won their first bout in the event. Davies sparked an Aussie in his first bout, really flattened him, before he too was eliminated. Odwell, the team captain, also went out early and is the only one of the GB entrants not to turn pro.

I interviewed Clinton a few years ago, well, quite a lot of years ago now I'd imagine, at his gym in Tulse Hill, and when we talked about his olympic experience, his eyes lit up, it was meant to be a 30 minute interview and in the end, I was there for 3 hours. lovely guy. He said the experience of sharing a ring with Leonard was the greatest boxing moment of his life. It was like it was yesterday for him.

I also talked to Magri about his, he said he really struggled without his regular amateur coach, he just didn't feel right at the olympics and the actual fight itself was a blur, everything just fell apart.

Yes, Clinton did really well in the Games and proved in his later pro years that he rose to the occasion. He won a ton of championship fights, although he also lost a few. Clinton had it hard all through his long career because he didn't sell tickets and I think Mickey Duff resented him for that. After he lost his British title to Terry Marsh in 1984, McKenzie was out in the cold and switched to the F rank Warren camp. He took on Tony Laing for the vacant British title on a Duff promotion in May 1986 and looked desperately unlucky not to get the nod. Duff made a big play of congratulating Laing at the verdict but Clinton had the last laugh when he won back the British title in 1989 at the expense of Lloyd Christie. Clinton loved it when a fighter came to him (like Christie) but struggled with the movers (like Colin Powers, who beat him in two out of three fights). Laing, by the way, the younger brother of Kirkland, was slippery and a good banger with the right hand but he lacked Kirkland's brilliant boxing ability.
As for Magri, he was relentless and a huge puncher at flyweight but he didn't believe in pacing himself and was especially vulnerable in the later stages of a fight because he had essentially punched himself out. He should have beaten Clyde in the Games and he should have beaten Frank Cedeno in the first defence of his WBC flyweight title in 1983, but he came apart both times.

[jamesmcdonnell]

Yeah, it was interesting, when I sat with Charlie watching his fights, it seemed mysterious to him how he lost the ones he did, which makes sense if he had no sense of pacing himself.

His style really was predicated on all action constant pressure, and he didn't really throw any range finders, every shot had intent behind it. He was a terrific fighter, all action, and it's a crying shame he wasn't set for life when he retired.

I've not seen him in quite a few years, but last time I saw him, he was doing demolition work, and he looked really old and worn out - certainly didn't earn what he should have done considering how many tickets he shifted. Any old timer from London knows the name Charlie Magri, he was a household name.

[bennie]

Yeah, it was interesting, when I sat with Charlie watching his fights, it seemed mysterious to him how he lost the ones he did, which makes sense if he had no sense of pacing himself.

His style really was predicated on all action constant pressure, and he didn't really throw any range finders, every shot had intent behind it. He was a terrific fighter, all action, and it's a crying shame he wasn't set for life when he retired.

I've not seen him in quite a few years, but last time I saw him, he was doing demolition work, and he looked really old and worn out - certainly didn't earn what he should have done considering how many tickets he shifted. Any old timer from London knows the name Charlie Magri, he was a household name.

Charlie showed in his amateur days that he could box and punch but Terry Lawless turned him into an out-and-out pressure fighter and the boxing went out of the window. Yes, Lawless and the rest of the Cartel clearly made a fortune out of Magri but they made a fortune out of all their fighters. Only Ralph Charles, Frank Bruno and Jim Watt came away with anything. John L. Gardner also made a few quid but the rest of them, such as Magri, Hope, Stracey, Honeyghan, Kaylor, Cattouse, Mason and too many others to mention, wound up potless.

[mickey1975]

Yeah, it was interesting, when I sat with Charlie watching his fights, it seemed mysterious to him how he lost the ones he did, which makes sense if he had no sense of pacing himself.

His style really was predicated on all action constant pressure, and he didn't really throw any range finders, every shot had intent behind it. He was a terrific fighter, all action, and it's a crying shame he wasn't set for life when he retired.

I've not seen him in quite a few years, but last time I saw him, he was doing demolition work, and he looked really old and worn out - certainly didn't earn what he should have done considering how many tickets he shifted. Any old timer from London knows the name Charlie Magri, he was a household name.

Charlie showed in his amateur days that he could box and punch but Terry Lawless turned him into an out-and-out pressure fighter and the boxing went out of the window. Yes, Lawless and the rest of the Cartel clearly made a fortune out of Magri but they made a fortune out of all their fighters. Only Ralph Charles, Frank Bruno and Jim Watt came away with anything. John L. Gardner also made a few quid but the rest of them, such as Magri, Hope, Stracey, Honeyghan, Kaylor, Cattouse, Mason and too many others to mention, wound up potless.

So why did Wharton? He did ok and speaks well of them.

[jamesmcdonnell]

Yeah, it was interesting, when I sat with Charlie watching his fights, it seemed mysterious to him how he lost the ones he did, which makes sense if he had no sense of pacing himself.

His style really was predicated on all action constant pressure, and he didn't really throw any range finders, every shot had intent behind it. He was a terrific fighter, all action, and it's a crying shame he wasn't set for life when he retired.

I've not seen him in quite a few years, but last time I saw him, he was doing demolition work, and he looked really old and worn out - certainly didn't earn what he should have done considering how many tickets he shifted. Any old timer from London knows the name Charlie Magri, he was a household name.

Charlie showed in his amateur days that he could box and punch but Terry Lawless turned him into an out-and-out pressure fighter and the boxing went out of the window. Yes, Lawless and the rest of the Cartel clearly made a fortune out of Magri but they made a fortune out of all their fighters. Only Ralph Charles, Frank Bruno and Jim Watt came away with anything. John L. Gardner also made a few quid but the rest of them, such as Magri, Hope, Stracey, Honeyghan, Kaylor, Cattouse, Mason and too many others to mention, wound up potless.

So why did Wharton? He did ok and speaks well of them.

Wharton came along a bit later, fighters were a bit more clued up by then.

Magri was on a fixed fee for his fights, of 5 Grand no matter how many tickets he sold, he got a bum deal.

That's only 20 Grand a fight in todays money - a pittance for a fighter of his achievement and prominence.

[bennie]

Yeah, it was interesting, when I sat with Charlie watching his fights, it seemed mysterious to him how he lost the ones he did, which makes sense if he had no sense of pacing himself.

His style really was predicated on all action constant pressure, and he didn't really throw any range finders, every shot had intent behind it. He was a terrific fighter, all action, and it's a crying shame he wasn't set for life when he retired.

I've not seen him in quite a few years, but last time I saw him, he was doing demolition work, and he looked really old and worn out - certainly didn't earn what he should have done considering how many tickets he shifted. Any old timer from London knows the name Charlie Magri, he was a household name.

Charlie showed in his amateur days that he could box and punch but Terry Lawless turned him into an out-and-out pressure fighter and the boxing went out of the window. Yes, Lawless and the rest of the Cartel clearly made a fortune out of Magri but they made a fortune out of all their fighters. Only Ralph Charles, Frank Bruno and Jim Watt came away with anything. John L. Gardner also made a few quid but the rest of them, such as Magri, Hope, Stracey, Honeyghan, Kaylor, Cattouse, Mason and too many others to mention, wound up potless.

So why did Wharton? He did ok and speaks well of them.

That's good to read. Mickey Duff did well by Wharton but his profit-sharing Cartel was clearly designed to freeze out the rest of the competition. They closed ranks and even had the Board in their pocket. Nobody stood a chance until F rank Warren, who lost heavily on his first licenced promotion, chipped away at their dominance by challenging the Board in the courts, forcing them to rewrite the rules on boxing promotion.

[peter barlow]

Assuming that's Danny Flexen in the OP? Good on seconds out YouTube these days

[Giancarlo]

Great photo entitled 'The Terry Lawless stable at the Royal Oak in 1979'.

[Coco]

Magri, Clinton McKenzie and Jim Watt, I can't place the others

[mickey1975]

Magri, Clinton McKenzie and Jim Watt, I can't place the others

Macarinelli behind Magri.