Frank Bruno

overhand_right · Post by **overhand_right** » 27 Feb 2005, 10:02

Mercer v Bruno was scheduled in Hong Kong in 1994.

Mercer was coming off a draw with journeyman Marion Wilson. Previous to that he had been whipped in 10 rds by Jesse Ferguson when he was out of shape. He trained hard, got in shape and fought Ferguson in a rematch- and the Boogieman whipped him AGAIN!! This time Mercer luckily crept out with a crooked hometown decision awarded to keep his career alive.

Having done 20 rds against ray Mercer, Jesse travelled to the UK, and bet $15,000 of his OWN purse on knocking Bruno out. Bruno rolled right over the Boogieman in 1 rd, demolishing him.

A fight with Mercer in 94 was going to be tough, but Bruno would be strong & in shape, and Mercer would either be a hog-like 250 or in shape like Holyfield/Lewis fights.

Eitherway, looking at the form guide anyone who writes this off as a foregone conclusion is wrong IMO. Bruno beat Oliver McCall fair & square. Why couldnt he do the same to Mercer? Bruno shut McCall down in rd 1 with some heavy hitting and its worth noting McCall waxed Lewis in 2 rds and beat Larry Holmes on points, which is a hell of a lot more than Ray Mercer achieved against either man.

Brunos squashing of Jesse Ferguson also really made Ray Mercers two tough struggles with the Boogieman look ominous for the Merciless One.

Bruno W10 Mercer.

KOJOE90 · Post by **KOJOE90** » 03 Mar 2005, 15:04

overhand_right wrote:Eitherway, looking at the form guide anyone who writes this off as a foregone conclusion is wrong IMO. Bruno beat Oliver McCall fair & square. Why couldnt he do the same to Mercer? Bruno shut McCall down in rd 1 with some heavy hitting and its worth noting McCall waxed Lewis in 2 rds and beat Larry Holmes on points, which is a hell of a lot more than Ray Mercer achieved against either man.
.

I am not so sure mate. yes Bruno did beat McCall fair and square that is beyond question but was The Atomic Bull all there mentaly that night? I'm not sure he was. He seemed to revert to sparring partner mentality for most of the middle rounds.

Also I think that Mercer had a better jab than McCall and could be used effectively against Bruno (who I admit had an equally good jab).

Bruno as ever would turn up in great shape and determined to win. So to my mind it all depends on what mental and physical shape Mercer turned up in.

Bruno Vs a out of shape Mercer - Bruno WPTS10
Bruno Vs an in shape and determined Mercer - Mercer WTKO9.

Graham Brett · Post by **Graham Brett** » 04 Mar 2005, 06:02

KOJOE90 wrote:I am very proud to say I have not bought a copy of The Sun in many a year.

Good on you.

The Sun is basically a piece of dogshit, and it is a sad reflection of this country that millions of people buy it on a daily basis.

Collins2000 · Post by **Collins2000** » 04 Mar 2005, 08:27

It's true that Frank only lost to world champs or champs to be but................................. how many real contenders did he fight?

Sure, there are some good names on his record but they were almost all on the way out. Coetzee for instance. KO1 looks great but Gerrie had been coaxed out of retirement and weighed in at a stone more than he'd ever weighed before. The win over Ferguson looks decent but Jesse came with zero ambition. His weight isn't given in the record here but from memory he looked fat and totally uninterested. Of course, that's the art of good matchmaking in guess but I recall the fans, Boxing News and even dear old 'arry getting the 'ump with some of the blokes they dished him up.

I'm not knocking Bruno. He always gave his all and we can't ask for more. But he did benefit from some soft matchmaking which probably cost him in his big fights. Though maybe not as he did eventually win a 'world' title and made a squillion, which I hope he still has.

overhand_right · Post by **overhand_right** » 07 Mar 2005, 11:24

Collins2000 wrote: The win over Ferguson looks decent but Jesse came with zero ambition. His weight isn't given in the record here but from memory he looked fat and totally uninterested. Of course, that's the art of good .

This is complete BS. As i stated beforehand, Jesse bet $15,000 on himself knocking Bruno out. Just because Bruno crushed an opponent doesnt mean he turned up to lose.

Do you honestly belive Ferguson would throw that money down the drain?

ILikeBeer · Post by **ILikeBeer** » 07 Mar 2005, 14:59

I can't believe how popular this thread became? It is interesting to see that more people want to talk of Bruno then of Audley though. Both were mentioned in the opening question.

No, I don't particularly think we need another Audley-bashing article, we've all heard it before.

Collins2000 · Post by **Collins2000** » 10 Mar 2005, 12:11

"Jesse bet $15,000 on himself knocking Bruno out"

That's the funniest statement you have ever made, buddy. And you've made a few amusing ones - unintentional perhaps, but real rib ticklers nevertheless. If Ferguson did bet 15 grand on himself, you'd think he would at least have tried to make a fight of it and have come in in some sort of shape.

Anyway, I assume you've never seen the fight. Try reading the Boxing Monthly review - they didn't seem too impressed with The Boogieman's ambition. Mainly because he didn't appear to have any that night.

And please don't start crying again. You were the one to come out with the BS label.

barry · Post by **barry** » 10 Mar 2005, 17:01

Ferguson...he has never been motivated for anything except a meal! I just re-watched Tyson-Bruno I last night and forgot how dirty Bruno fought in that bout. Bruno held behind the head in that bout more than Lennox Lewis ever did!

jamesmcdonnell · Post by **jamesmcdonnell** » 11 Mar 2005, 07:56

Bruno is somewhat underrated, due to his failures at world level, but it's worth remembering that before Bruno came along we really had nobody even competing at world level for a very long time.

He gave Lewis murders in their fight, and was leading on all the scorecards before getting knocked out.

Bruno had a thumping jab, and of course phenomenal power, but sadly was a bit mechanical to say the least, and seemed to get more so as he got older and heavier.

There was nothing wrong with his chin, but when he got hurt, he had zero survival instincts, and he often got hurt when he was exhausted and couldn't lift his arms to protect himself.

He also wasn't much of a thinking fighter, he just tended to do the same thing over and over, but he was an excellent finisher, certainly against B level opponents who he absolutely destroyed.

Investigations revealed that Bruno had bipolar disorder. They suspect this has always been the case, because Bruno had a history of violence and mood swings as a teenager before boxing. The regimen and routine of training probably saved him from the worst excesses of his mental condition, but once that was gone, he began to unravel gradually. He is on medications now, and probably for the rest of his life.

I think Frank also suffered as a result of the years of playing the 'big dumb cudlly black guy', the non threatening idiot savante which Duff, ad co thought (probably rightly at the time) was Bruno's ticket to the big time. Lewis certainly hit a raw nerve when he called Bruno an uncle Tom, which was a terrible thing to say, but he probably had some call to make that comment as Bruno was portraying something of a cliche in his act. Bruno was far less stupid than he made out.

The sun's headline was absolutely scurrilous, they ought to be fornicating ashamed of themselves for taunting a man with serious mental problems. Whoever thought that one up should have been fornicating fired, or shot.

overhand_right · Post by **overhand_right** » 17 Mar 2005, 13:17

Collins2000 wrote:"Jesse bet $15,000 on himself knocking Bruno out"

That's the funniest statement you have ever made, buddy. And you've made a few amusing ones - unintentional perhaps, but real rib ticklers nevertheless. If Ferguson did bet 15 grand on himself, you'd think he would at least have tried to make a fight of it and have come in in some sort of shape.

Anyway, I assume you've never seen the fight. Try reading the Boxing Monthly review - they didn't seem too impressed with The Boogieman's ambition. Mainly because he didn't appear to have any that night.

And please don't start crying again. You were the one to come out with the BS label.

Lol. In actual fact i DID see the fight, buddy. I watched it live & taped it, and so have seen it several more times over the years. You see mate, in boxing, just because a guy gets knocked out in 1 rd doesnt actually mean he wasnt in shape/didnt try. It happens.

I'm more inclined to think that you havent really seen the fight, as Fergusons own bet is mentioned on the broadcast. As for his shape, well he was in no worse shape than he was twice whipping Ray Mercer, or 4 yrs later when he was 40 and took Hasim Rahman 12 rds & beat Obed Sullivan.

I'm glad you find some of my posts "real rib ticklers" mate. I'd comment on your own work on boxrec but for some reason neither you as a user or any of your posts/threads stand out in my memory.

Collins2000 · Post by **Collins2000** » 17 Mar 2005, 17:30

Hahahahahaaha, you crack me up with your stuff, buddy.

Anyway, if you saw the fight on TV I have 2 questions

(1) what was Jesse's weight announced as?
(2) how did the commentators describe Jesse's "effort"

You're quite correct - just because a guy gets blown away in a round doesn't mean he didn't turn up in shape or try. However, based on how fat and listless your man Ferguson looked, it's my opinion that he just came for a holiday and a good payday. Like many of Bruno's other non-title opponents.

And thanks for the advise, mate. I'll offer you some. Don't believe everything you hear from a boxing colour commentator. It's their job to try and make mundane affairs interesting and much of the 'colour' they add is hearsay or just made up.

And I'm not disputing that on occasion Ferguson could be a dangerous opponent. But on that night against Bruno to me he looked like he was just there to make up the numbers.

By the way, did you check how Boxing Monthly or Boxing News saw the 'fight'?

silkov · Post by **silkov** » 18 Mar 2005, 12:54

Collins2000 wrote:Hahahahahaaha, you crack me up with your stuff, buddy.

Anyway, if you saw the fight on TV I have 2 questions

(1) what was Jesse's weight announced as?
(2) how did the commentators describe Jesse's "effort"

You're quite correct - just because a guy gets blown away in a round doesn't mean he didn't turn up in shape or try. However, based on how fat and listless your man Ferguson looked, it's my opinion that he just came for a holiday and a good payday. Like many of Bruno's other non-title opponents.

And thanks for the advise, mate. I'll offer you some. Don't believe everything you hear from a boxing colour commentator. It's their job to try and make mundane affairs interesting and much of the 'colour' they add is hearsay or just made up.

And I'm not disputing that on occasion Ferguson could be a dangerous opponent. But on that night against Bruno to me he looked like he was just there to make up the numbers.

By the way, did you check how Boxing Monthly or Boxing News saw the 'fight'?

What does it matter what Boxing Monthly or Boxing News said about the fight or Jessies performance... both papers have been known to be wrong. The Truth is that Jesse was always quite heavy in fights... he was never close to streamlined in even his best performances. He was a slow starter who could give an opponent hell if they let him get into the latter rounds... he was a very tough fighter and some of his wins prove that. Bruno went out and jumped on him from the start and scored a good ko... at the time Harry Carpenter wasn't overly impressed with the Yanks performance and made this clear in the after fight interview with Bruno... but I thought at the time that this was unfair to Bruno and indeed Fergusan...... Bruno could be daedly early on if he let his punches go and thats what he did against Jesse. To say that Jesse was just not trying is silly, a win over Bruno would have put Jesse in as a contender and for much of his career he was trying to become a full fledged contender rather than a tough journeyman.
Why would Jesse not try against Bruno yet Try against Mercer and other top heavies that he done well against?... it doesn't make sense.
If you look at Brunos record compared with the other top heavies of his day he faced no more stiffs than any of the other guys on average and his record compares favourably with many them... to say Bruno only faced stiffs is grossly unfair. And remember he faced a peak Tyson while Lewis took 'step aside money' at least once when he could have faced Tyson much earlier.

KOJOE90 · Post by **KOJOE90** » 18 Mar 2005, 13:34

Bruno was a big puncher who was always capanle of getting fighters of fringe world class out of there early.

overhand_right · Post by **overhand_right** » 18 Mar 2005, 15:06

Collins2000 wrote:
Anyway, if you saw the fight on TV I have 2 questions

(1) what was Jesse's weight announced as?
(2) how did the commentators describe Jesse's "effort"

By the way, did you check how Boxing Monthly or Boxing News saw the 'fight'?

Mate, for obvious reasons i cant recall Jesses weight off the top of my head (did watch the weigh in, though). I can tell you however he was wearing these really cool purple Everlast shorts and came down to the ring to the Halloween theme tune, very spooky atmosphere. His body shape was the same as it was all through the 90s, decent, not great. (with the lone exception of his shot at Riddick Bowe where he came in tip top shape, but git blown out in 2 rds, the only other time in his entire career he got iced)

The commentaor, that bastion of knowledge called Harry Carpenter, gave a very reactionary judgement of Jesse getting blown out, using the word "woeful" i believe. Big fornicating deal what that old pudendum thinks. Nobody said Hasim Rahmans 12 rd struggle over a 40 yr old Boogieman was "woeful". In fact the Ring magazines Greats of the Game special in 2001 listed it as one of his best wins (!!). Interestingly, nobody called Andrew Golotas 10 rd decision over Boogieman, where he couldnt drop or stop him, "woeful" either.

Bruno could punch extremely hard, jumped on Jesse & wiped him out. Even when Jesse was badly hurt and legs shaking, he tried some desperation left hooks to try knock Brunos block off but they didnt work. Bruno overwhelmed him before he could get started. End of story.

A win that looked even more impressive in time when Jesse came alive in the late 90s as a wild card. Its also worht noting Jesse was only ever knocked out 3 times in his career, his first loss in 85 to Carl Williams where he dropped from exhaustion, and then to Bruno & Bowe.

Lefthookhappy19 · Post by **Lefthookhappy19** » 18 Mar 2005, 15:48

Didn't Tyson say Bruno was the hardest puncher he ever faced? He managed to light Tyson up a bit.

Collins2000 · Post by **Collins2000** » 18 Mar 2005, 17:34

Silkov,

Where did I make the statement "to say Bruno only faced stiffs is grossly unfair"?

silkov · Post by **silkov** » 18 Mar 2005, 17:40

Collins2000 wrote:Silkov,

Where did I make the statement "to say Bruno only faced stiffs is grossly unfair"?

You didn't mate I said that!...

I'm not having a go at you just putting in my opinion. I was refering to the number of people who are often accusing Bruno of facing poor opposition... I don't think he faced any worse opposition than most of the other top heavies of his time.

ABA Boxing · Post by **ABA Boxing** » 19 Mar 2005, 16:10

Lefthookhappy19 wrote:Didn't Tyson say Bruno was the hardest puncher he ever faced? He managed to light Tyson up a bit.

Bruno had the hardest punch in boxing at the time,

Making it land is another thing!

Why dosent Bruno coach Amateurs or train Pros if he misses the Sport so much?

KOJOE90 · Post by **KOJOE90** » 20 Mar 2005, 08:04

ABA Boxing wrote:Why dosent Bruno coach Amateurs or train Pros if he misses the Sport so much?

That a thought that has crossed my mind many times as well. I'm sure he could at least teach the basics of Boxing techniques or even get into the fitness and conditioning side of things.

Max Molyneux · Post by **Max Molyneux** » 20 Mar 2005, 14:55

He could definately get into the sides of conditioning and fitness with the pyshique he had.

ILikeBeer · Post by **ILikeBeer** » 21 Mar 2005, 04:00

Was watching one of my boxing highlight videos the other day, and the power behind Brunos whack was surprising. I think his chin/stamina let him down a bit though.

silkov · Post by **silkov** » 21 Mar 2005, 07:14

ILikeBeer wrote:Was watching one of my boxing highlight videos the other day, and the power behind Brunos whack was surprising. I think his chin/stamina let him down a bit though.

Bruno's power was on a par with that of Weaver and Coetzee... he didn't have a weak chin but had a stamina problem... his biggest flaw was that he didn't react well when he was hurt and tended to freeze up rather than hold or take a count. That aside he was a good fighter and should get far more respect than he seems to get. His best performance was against Lewis, who he came very close to beating before he ran out of gas.

ILikeBeer · Post by **ILikeBeer** » 03 Apr 2005, 06:37

Bruno's power was on a par with that of Weaver and Coetzee... he didn't have a weak chin but had a stamina problem

No you are correct, this is what I meant, but phrased it better. Its a bit like that joke that went round after the George Foreman grill came out about the Frank Bruno toaster. It was knackered after a couple of rounds.

bollox · Post by **bollox** » 03 Apr 2005, 06:45

Can anyone remember the crowd for the Bugner fight? It was a monster

Did Frank do much weight training? Can't recall ever reading that he did

KOJOE90 · Post by **KOJOE90** » 03 Apr 2005, 06:52

bollox wrote:Can anyone remember the crowd for the Bugner fight? It was a monster

Yes I remember, that was a massive fight in the UK and shown live on free TV. Ah those were the days.

bollox wrote:Did Frank do much weight training? Can't recall ever reading that he did

Yes, big Frank used a lot of weights in his training regime.