BoxRec

Does Benn belong in the Hall of Fame?

yes he does. if only for his massive balls (if you know what i mean)

It's a complete injustice that he isn't even on the ballot and a guy like Gatti is. He was every bit as exciting and ten times the fighter.

SaadOffTheDeck wrote:It's a complete injustice that he isn't even on the ballot and a guy like Gatti is. He was every bit as exciting and ten times the fighter.

I think Eubank's more deserving.
Benn's in the Hamed category for me--kind of a tough call, but I'd vote no. Wouldn't be outraged if he made it. Kind of like Camacho.

nigel made the transition to a true world level - in my mind chris never moved enough away from the domestic arena.

misterpunch wrote:nigel made the transition to a true world level - in my mind chris never moved enough away from the domestic arena.

What do you mean by that? They were both world class fighters.
Their resumes are rather similar--except that Eubank KO'd benn (and IMHO the draw was fair in the rematch).
Eubank also beat (and nearly killed) Watson, who KO'd Benn.
Collins beat Eubank, but he also beat Benn.
The Thompson losses don't diminish Eubank in comparison to Benn because Nigel neever fought at cruiser.
Neither does the Calzaghe loss, as Benn never even fought JC, who turned out to be one of the greatest super middles ever.

read the post. chris never fought in the states after his first 5 fights. nigel went over there in his pomp and was a great success. this to me puts nigel at a truer world level than eubank who stayed in the safety of home almost his entire career. (i'm not taking too much from chris, i hope, as i like the guy and he was a very good fighter)

by the way nigel was ahead on the cards in the first eubank fight at the time it was halted. and watson was also ahead against him before the tragic incident.

misterpunch wrote:read the post. chris never fought in the states after his first 5 fights. nigel went over there in his pomp and was a great success. this to me puts nigel at a truer world level than eubank who stayed in the safety of home almost his entire career. (i'm not taking too much from chris, i hope, as i like the guy and he was a very good fighter)

And Floyd's never fought outside the States as a pro; so what?
I care more about whom one fights than where one fights.

misterpunch wrote:by the way nigel was ahead on the cards in the first eubank fight at the time it was halted. and watson was also ahead against him before the tragic incident.

So what? Sutherland was ahead of Saad, too. Sears was ahead of Spinks. Eubank stopped them both.

I have to say I think Benn is a worthwhile candidate. He had weaknesses but he truly tested himself against the best.

Wins over Barkley, McClellan...the draw with Eubank which I thought he won.

He improved vastly, ironed out the flaws which saw him lose early on.

Others of that era played it safe - Benn didn't. They were all top fighters but for me Benn takes it.

I'd take the guy who beat Benn (after Benn had beaten Barkley).
What did G-Man ever accomplish at super middle?

I would put Nigel in to any boxing hall of fame.

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.

One of the all-time great fights that never happened: Benn/Duran, what a war that would have been!

Benn is one of the top 5 British fighters period, and is without doubt a HOF caliber fighter.

Syntax Error wrote: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?

Rover wrote:

Syntax Error wrote: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.

Syntax Error wrote:

Rover wrote:

Syntax Error wrote: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.

Wasn't Barkley the last time he traveled?
And Barkley had lost to both Duran and Nunn the year he fought Benn, so I wouldn't call that the toughest challenge.

I think he should. He scored 39 knockouts in his 42 wins was involved in some of the greatest British fights of the 1990s with Chris Eubank and Steve Collins along with the tragic fight with Gerard McClellan in which came back from being knocked out of the ring to dig himself back into the fight into the later rounds and stopped a man who was widely regarded as one of the most vicious fighters of the 1990s.

first of all, ROVER, you can stay in the USA as a fighter and usually fight the top guys without going nowhere. they'll come to you. in britain you pretty much cant do that. nigel went to the states and busted up some very good guys. eubank stayed this side of the pond and did what he did. i and others have already pointed out to you that benn was edging out chris in both their fights - you know the outcomes and thats boxing. benns resume outclasses chris's in my view and he was prepared to put it all on the line whenever or whoever he fought.

Good responses ! I, too, would vote Benn into the Hall(and Eubank also, for the record). As a follow up extension, how close did Benn and Roy Jones come to having a bout? I remember Benn stating he wanted the bout, but can't remember if any serious negotians happened.

Sorry, I meant negotiations.

IRLangmaid25 wrote:I think he should. He scored 39 knockouts in his 42 wins was involved in some of the greatest British fights of the 1990s with Chris Eubank and Steve Collins along with the tragic fight with Gerard McClellan in which came back from being knocked out of the ring to dig himself back into the fight into the later rounds and stopped a man who was widely regarded as one of the most vicious fighters of the 1990s.

He scored 35 knockouts, and he only won one of those fights.

misterpunch wrote:first of all, ROVER, you can stay in the USA as a fighter and usually fight the top guys without going nowhere. they'll come to you. in britain you pretty much cant do that. nigel went to the states and busted up some very good guys. eubank stayed this side of the pond and did what he did. i and others have already pointed out to you that benn was edging out chris in both their fights - you know the outcomes and thats boxing. benns resume outclasses chris's in my view and he was prepared to put it all on the line whenever or whoever he fought.

The best guy Benn fought in the States was whom again?
G-Man: No.
RJJ: No.
Toney: No.
Nunn: No.
Even past-prime Hearns at super middle: No.
It was...Barkley, who had lost twice that prior year.
And his resume "outclasses" Eubank's?
Eubank KO'd him (and Watson, who'd beaten Benn).
Eubank also defeated Malinga, who beat Benn.
They both lost twice to Collins.
Sorry, but Iran Barkley (LOL!) doesn't outweigh the counterpoint that the guy you're being compared to (Eubank) KO'd you.
And so what if Benn was ahead on 2 of 3 scorecards when he was KO'd? So was Sutherland against Saad. I'll take final results, thank you, and Eubank KO'd Benn.
As for fight 2, Benn didn't edge Eubank. It was a very close fight declared a draw.
But sorry, I'm not going to trumpet the courage of someone in terms of being willing to travel when his best road win is Iran Barkley, who'd lost two fights that prior year.
And Benn didn't even travel to the States once his middle career ended; he fought five fights there and never again.
BTW, many of the top fighters at SMW at that time were British. And Benn didn't fight any of the top American ones in the States.

I don't think there's really much debate that Benn has a better record.

Eubank was a wonderful fighter but he got a number of ify decisions...and defended against an awful lot of WBO contenders who shouldn't have really been in the ring with him.

But Chris could really soak it up. I think I'd back him to beat Benn on most nights but I think Benn had a clearly better career.