The Fight Of Their Lives: ITV1 10:35pm 05/12/2011

[roccittymaj]

That was a good doc. AWESOME!

[Tommy Gunn13]

There's an extended version being shown on ITV4 next week. Will this version show the fight?

Any idea when its on? i fell asleep half way through it

[Emmseegee]

Mclellan's so called trainer is a complete rat of a man.
I have to agree with Manny Steward's opinion that such an event was avoidable.

I was too young to understand exactly what happened that night and until now had delibrately not looked too much into it as its such a sad event but from watching just that documentary i cant imagine that Johnson bloke had what it takes to be involved in boxing.

To me he looks like a yes man, a hanger on. Someone who was so happy to be involved with a top fighter that he never had the courage to tell the fighter what he didnt want to hear.
I can imagine Mclellans camp not being geared towards a long night, expecting an early stoppage (which they nearly got).

So sad to think about how things could have been different but my gut reaction from watching that documentary is that a top trainer like Steward would possibly have had Mclellan in a condition entering the ring which would have prevented him being so exhausted etc.

Maybe im wrong, just my initial reaction without knowing too much background details.

[loaded_gloves]

The difference between McClellan's reaction to a clean shot between the first Julian Jackson fight and the Nigel Benn fight two years later was stark. I think he went in damaged, and what unfolded with his own weight loss, the referee, and Benn's dirty tactics all combined to create a horrible outcome.

[Tommy Gunn13]

There's an extended version being shown on ITV4 next week. Will this version show the fight?

Any idea when its on? i fell asleep half way through it

http://www.itv.com/thefightoftheirlives/

Tuesday the 13th.

Cheers

[Bricks]

I also saw the clip.

MCClellan`s sister saying she didn`t know how Benn can sleep at night after what he "did" to her brother was out of order.

understandably she is upset and bitter, but it is not Benn`s fault. They were both boxers giving their all and what happened was not intentional, nor something that Benn took any pleasure from at all.

yeah she oughta think about the stray dogs that cnt used to get hold of and use for his dog to rip apart in "training" for his dog's fights. karma is a bitch. Benn is a gent and a real man, not like that little faggot

big man....big man...real classy talk from the safety of your pc.
try and grow up and show some dignity.
gerald has suffered horrifically and isnt the same young man. and it was one dog not loads of dogs. he is a great father and family man and always was. try and think instead of being so cruel.

[Twinkle Toes]

All came across well apart from the old trainer and the referee who both appeared arrogant. Bit surprised Warren wasn't asked or giving some opinion on it.

It would have been interesting to hear his take on things.

I didn't know about the taking him back to the US too early claim - I thought it interesting that the surgeon at the time said it was only a small blood clot and although never able to box again, a good recovery was on the cards.

The documentary maybe should have included such a viewpoint, its a glaring omission considering.

[bad mamma jamma]

I also saw the clip.

MCClellan`s sister saying she didn`t know how Benn can sleep at night after what he "did" to her brother was out of order.

understandably she is upset and bitter, but it is not Benn`s fault. They were both boxers giving their all and what happened was not intentional, nor something that Benn took any pleasure from at all.

yeah she oughta think about the stray dogs that cnt used to get hold of and use for his dog to rip apart in "training" for his dog's fights. karma is a bitch. Benn is a gent and a real man, not like that little faggot

big man....big man...real classy talk from the safety of your pc.
try and grow up and show some dignity.
gerald has suffered horrifically and isnt the same young man. and it was one dog not loads of dogs. he is a great father and family man and always was. try and think instead of being so cruel.

He was a big man when he was doing what he did wasn’t he? I aint no internet warrior, I am a man who despises people like him. Just cos he got injured doesn’t mean I need to feel sorry for the cock. Yep, what a classy family man he was, what a shining example of a father when he tapes a dogs mouth up and lets his pitbull rip it apart. So carry on defending people like him, but do you fcuking dare tell me to grow up and call me a keyboard warrior. I have served my time in different fightsports and still train so its not like I am a fat 50 year old drinking beer talking sh:t. Shove your words up your own fudge tunnel..

[Boxing Addict]

I watched it live and for me this was the most brutal fight i've ever seen.

Both were 1 punch KO artists and were throwing bombs, not suprising that someone got hurt!!!

Pitty such a good fight ending in tragedy, but shows you just how brutal boxing can be

From the doc you can tell mistakes were made in the gerald camp, coach issues and I reckon he had nutritionist issues aswell, he came in under weight, suprising as he was a big middleweight and thought he'd move up for more power, not speed or agility! He was not 100% on his game and struggled to find form throughout - his power came through though

Also Gerald had him KO'd in the first round really, if in vegas that fight would have been over in the 1st

Its a shame one of the best, most savage fights of this generation gets hidden away because g-man got hurt.

G-man and Benn should really be proud of the classic war they had and the fight should be celebrated as g-man produced a great performance

I would love to see this in good picture quality and sound -

[plymouthskinhead]

I freely admit to weeping like a baby watching that. I reckon in the longer version there will be more raw emotion from Lisa McClellan too. What an amazing woman she is.

Gerald's coach is so full of shit saying Nigel was on the 'roids. He is looking for an excuse to cover up his ineptitude; everything about the man says total idiot and arrogant shit! Hindsight being a wonderful thing we can see now that Gerald was surrounded by yes men and even all Don King seemed to care about was his dollars in the bank. C*nt.

Nigel was surrounded by some horrible people then, Tony Tucker was in his corner at that fight who was murdered in the Range Rover killings in Rettendon. So yes, he freely admits to the recreational drugs, but the steroids? I believe he didn't, knowing full well that would have curtailed his career. How he got away with the other stuff, God only knows.

A very moving documentary and I look forward to the 90 minute version and will stand by with a tissue or two.

[dondada]

will stand by with a tissue or two.

Don't start that again, fella

[bad mamma jamma]

I've always been convinced that, like Paul Ingle, in my view, a poor weight-loss strategy resulting in dehydration and associated debilitation were what left McClellan particularly vulnerable to injury. Thankfully, in recent years, there have been monumental improvements in the approach to safer weight making. That said, some fighters and trainers do still continue to take risks either through ignorance or desperation. Hence, another 'McClellan' remains an inevitability.

Ignorance is still about, I see plenty of lads in my gym who still fight and they do not prepare properly, they think its sensible to lose weight at the last minute by dehydrating themselves. But then there are so many trainers about who think they know it all and don’t want to learn.

[johnnykayo]

thought it was a great documentary,i wonder if it will come out on dvd in the new year ? cos they brought that channel 4 documentary with the ali v frazier trilogy,so interesting to know if itv will bring that out. i was at the dinner and charity night for mcllelan in the grosvenor in 2007 and it was a very emotional night,as for this bollox regarding gerald having a bloodthirst for dogfighting its taken well out of proportion. i owned a pit bull for 13 years and he was a gentle giant and yes they do have a reputation to fight cos it was bred into them from victorian times,and NO i never fought it as it was a pet. its the bellends who own em and go on inflated ego trips that have ruined these lovely animals reputations,they really are a lovely dog. as for gerald being some viscious dogfighter i think it was all bravado and image as ive noticed in america a lot of lads who follow that rap stuff are obsessed with american pit bulls and tatoos so its a image thing over their. not saying it doesnt go on cos it does unfortunately all this dogfighting,but wish people would stop slagging these animals off.

[Counter-puncher]

I freely admit to weeping like a baby watching that. I reckon in the longer version there will be more raw emotion from Lisa McClellan too. What an amazing woman she is.

Gerald's coach is so full of shit saying Nigel was on the 'roids. He is looking for an excuse to cover up his ineptitude; everything about the man says total idiot and arrogant shit! Hindsight being a wonderful thing we can see now that Gerald was surrounded by yes men and even all Don King seemed to care about was his dollars in the bank. C*nt.

Nigel was surrounded by some horrible people then, Tony Tucker was in his corner at that fight who was murdered in the Range Rover killings in Rettendon. So yes, he freely admits to the recreational drugs, but the steroids? I believe he didn't, knowing full well that would have curtailed his career. How he got away with the other stuff, God only knows.

A very moving documentary and I look forward to the 90 minute version and will stand by with a tissue or two.

i thought it interesting that 2 or 3 times, when denying the steroid acusations, Benn added in qualifiers like 'while i was boxing' or 'i was not on steroids for the Gerald McLellan fight'

[Crazyboy]

I freely admit to weeping like a baby watching that. I reckon in the longer version there will be more raw emotion from Lisa McClellan too. What an amazing woman she is.

Gerald's coach is so full of shit saying Nigel was on the 'roids. He is looking for an excuse to cover up his ineptitude; everything about the man says total idiot and arrogant shit! Hindsight being a wonderful thing we can see now that Gerald was surrounded by yes men and even all Don King seemed to care about was his dollars in the bank. C*nt.

Nigel was surrounded by some horrible people then, Tony Tucker was in his corner at that fight who was murdered in the Range Rover killings in Rettendon. So yes, he freely admits to the recreational drugs, but the steroids? I believe he didn't, knowing full well that would have curtailed his career. How he got away with the other stuff, God only knows.

A very moving documentary and I look forward to the 90 minute version and will stand by with a tissue or two.

i thought it interesting that 2 or 3 times, when denying the steroid acusations, Benn added in qualifiers like 'while i was boxing' or 'i was not on steroids for the Gerald McLellan fight'

Yep must admit i noticed that too mate....

[plymouthskinhead]

I freely admit to weeping like a baby watching that. I reckon in the longer version there will be more raw emotion from Lisa McClellan too. What an amazing woman she is.

Gerald's coach is so full of shit saying Nigel was on the 'roids. He is looking for an excuse to cover up his ineptitude; everything about the man says total idiot and arrogant shit! Hindsight being a wonderful thing we can see now that Gerald was surrounded by yes men and even all Don King seemed to care about was his dollars in the bank. C*nt.

Nigel was surrounded by some horrible people then, Tony Tucker was in his corner at that fight who was murdered in the Range Rover killings in Rettendon. So yes, he freely admits to the recreational drugs, but the steroids? I believe he didn't, knowing full well that would have curtailed his career. How he got away with the other stuff, God only knows.

A very moving documentary and I look forward to the 90 minute version and will stand by with a tissue or two.

i thought it interesting that 2 or 3 times, when denying the steroid acusations, Benn added in qualifiers like 'while i was boxing' or 'i was not on steroids for the Gerald McLellan fight'

Yep must admit i noticed that too mate....

Hmmm...didn't notice that. May well ponder on that one next week when its on again.

will stand by with a tissue or two.

Don't start that again, fella

Hahahaha!! I wondered how long it would take! I was serious about blubbing away watching it though, I don't mind admitting it neither, anyone who knows me, knows what boxing is to me.

[dalcumly]

This was the most damaging documentary I have ever seen in relation to professional boxing,particularly as it was shown to a million or so non-boxing fans .


1 They saw the worlds top promoter ( Don King ) at his cynical best ,with his total disregard , at the end of the fight , for HIS stricken fighter.
2 We heard Nigel Benn say that he was addicted to drugs throughout his boxing career ,albeit he denied taking anabolic steroids prior to the McClellan fight .
3 We saw and heard a complete buffoon in McClellans corner .
4 The public must also be wondering why a world governing body appointed a non-English speaking , novice referee from France for this major fight .
5 We saw the real disgusting personality of McClellan prior to the fight ( the dog story was simply incredible ) what a disgraceful excuse for a human being . I feel sorry for him now but I sometimes wonder what his attitude would have been if the boot was on the other foot ?
and watching the doctors attending to the collapsed McClellan didn't inspire me with confidence .

Did anyone come out of that programme with any credit ?
If this had been screened a year after the fight ,with the Michael Watson situation still fresh , our sport would have been facing demands for it to be banned .

[boxingchat]

Just quickly rewatched it and it does appear that Benns backwards motion out of the ring was stopped by the commentators and looking at the timing, it was at about 11 or 12 seconds before he got back through the ropes to continue fighting......

Take nothing away from Benn though, hes a warrior and taking away the tragic ending, one of my favourite ever fights!

Also - The Ref had a f*cking MARE in this fight!

I've heard this loads about the commentators helping him back in the ring, I've seen it numerous times and I think they're barely touching him. He clearly gets back up, and in the ring of his own will and volition. Even watching it again I find it hard to believe people think he was helped into the ring.

The ref was shocking in the first round with getting in the way to commence fighting, not the worst thing I've ever seen a ref do in a ring but Benn benefited from it even if it was just seconds.

It was minimal but i thought the fighters was not allowed to be helped (and i use that term VERY loosely) regardless?? I agree that its bearely touching him but ultimately they did, so the question will always be asked...

Still doesn't explain the long count though....

"Must return to the ring unaided by his corner. The ITV people who touched him prevented him from falling on equipment that would have injured him no doubt. The corner cannot help him back.

[wrimc]

I freely admit to weeping like a baby watching that. I reckon in the longer version there will be more raw emotion from Lisa McClellan too. What an amazing woman she is.

Gerald's coach is so full of shit saying Nigel was on the 'roids. He is looking for an excuse to cover up his ineptitude; everything about the man says total idiot and arrogant shit! Hindsight being a wonderful thing we can see now that Gerald was surrounded by yes men and even all Don King seemed to care about was his dollars in the bank. C*nt.

Nigel was surrounded by some horrible people then, Tony Tucker was in his corner at that fight who was murdered in the Range Rover killings in Rettendon. So yes, he freely admits to the recreational drugs, but the steroids? I believe he didn't, knowing full well that would have curtailed his career. How he got away with the other stuff, God only knows.

A very moving documentary and I look forward to the 90 minute version and will stand by with a tissue or two.

i thought it interesting that 2 or 3 times, when denying the steroid acusations, Benn added in qualifiers like 'while i was boxing' or 'i was not on steroids for the Gerald McLellan fight'

Well as mentioned before Benn surrounded himself with people such as Tony Tucker and Carlton leach during this period. Both were notorious steroid users. Its not out of the question that Benn has experimented with them at some point with the people he surrounded himself with at the time. There was easy access to them however I still dont think he would have endangered his ring career for it.

[wrimc]

Here is a pic of Benn with Leach and Tucker

[Mimmy]

I thought the documentry was very good, brought back thefight to me and I remember thinking that boxing does not get any better than this. Im not sure the betting odds but I would have guessed Benn was the underdog, Gerald was a bad ass, in terms of boxing however I did hear he was involved in dog fighting and that came out in the documentry. Taping up a dogs mouth so another can kill it is disgraceful and im sure that showed when his sister spoke about it. Manny gave a good account and didnt hype Gerald up. There seemed to be a few nasty people involved in Geralds career which is a shame he went down the path of luxury and riches which he never got. I was suprised that the purses were not that big, Benn £700k and Gerald less that half that. Where the hell did the money go too, 11 thousand in the arena and tv rights around the world, someone came out of the fight with a huge pay check.

Benn came from an era when we had great fighters not just in this country but all around the world. I don't imagine for one minute that Benn took any form of steroids, arent boxers checked and checked during the preperation and completion, yes he collapsed at the end too but I dont buy that was a way of getting out of a drug test.

At the end of the day both men knew that blood would have been shed that night, you put 2 big hitters in together and something is going to happen, maybe Benn was lucky to suvive the first round but he turned the fight around and put his all into it. There will never be a fight like that ever again and proberly rightly so.

For those who were there that night it will be a fight night to remember, unfortunately one guy ended up permantly damaged. But thats what happens with contact sports, maybe the signs were there but I never heard the corner asking Gerald questions about his well being or health. I don't know its just unfortunate.

[hitman_hatton1]

I was suprised that the purses were not that big, Benn £700k and Gerald less that half that. Where the hell did the money go too, 11 thousand in the arena and tv rights around the world, someone came out of the fight with a huge pay check.

250k before tax.

going into the other guys hometown.

king had tyson to pay so maybe he was saving the pennies.

one thing i don't regret.

king's promoting career has gone down the tubes in recent years.

good. :)

[hitman_hatton1]

still living in that wooden shack he bought back in his fighting days.

if he was paid out it's gone elsewhere.

[hitman_hatton1]

still living in that wooden shack he bought back in his fighting days.

if he was paid out it's gone elsewhere.

I'm not sure why you rolled your eyes at me, I only told you what was stated in the documentary.

just like using smileys.

don't take it personal.

[hitman_hatton1]

providing g-man was adequately insured i doubt his family could sue for any reason.

no negligence in terms of medical care or otherwise.