BoxRec

Just having a think and over the years many fighters have claimed that they are constantly ducked/avoided.

How much of this is true and is there anyone in particular you think has been avoided on a consistent basis?

Doesnt have to be British but would be good if some of you could think of British fighters?

For example a US fighter who always claimed he is avoided is Chris Byrd...

With Chris its more due to style than actual fear of him.....Are there any fighters you can think of that other fighters were/are actually scared to face.

HH

Herol Graham

Hardhitters11 wrote:Just having a think and over the years many fighters have claimed that they are constantly ducked/avoided.

How much of this is true and is there anyone in particular you think has been avoided on a consistent basis?

Doesnt have to be British but would be good if some of you could think of British fighters?

For example a US fighter who always claimed he is avoided is Chris Byrd...

With Chris its more due to style than actual fear of him.....Are there any fighters you can think of that other fighters were/are actually scared to face.

HH

Chris Eubank and Nigel Benn admitted they wanted no part of "Bomber" Graham.

It does seem that a lot of fighters put off by certain styles which is understandable as nobody wants to be made to look an idiot.

Herol Graham is a favourite of mine and I loved his comeback and was gutted when Brewe managed to beat him....

HH

Hardhitters11 wrote:It does seem that a lot of fighters put off by certain styles which is understandable as nobody wants to be made to look an idiot.

Herol Graham is a favourite of mine and I loved his comeback and was gutted when Brewe managed to beat him....

HH

yeah , that was heartbreaking

My 'old man' has always claimed that absolutely no-one wanted to fight Dick Tiger.

A fighter grossly avoided in the late 80's and early 90's was Victor Cordoba of Panama.

The name Charley Burley springs to mind

Winky Wright has an even better argument about being duckesd by the top guys at 154. Byrd has only held the IBF heavyweight title for 15 months, whereas Wright has had the IBF 154-lb title for over 4 years.

Like Byrd, Winky is a slick southpaw, who is very hard to look good against.

Good of Shane Mosley to finally give Winky a payday, but he paid the price for it - I'm sure Oscar DLH ducked Wright for the very same reason that Shane knew he'd be tough (but he still underestimated how tough.)

In reponse to HH question.

Nigel Benn once admitted he was scared of Roy Jones.

glittermonkey wrote:My 'old man' has always claimed that absolutely no-one wanted to fight Dick Tiger.

Not after he floored and busted up Terry Downes at Shoreditch Town Hall in 1955, a match incidentally made by Mickey Duff. Downes said in his autobiography, My Bleeding Business: "Getting £125 for only a third fight was good pay. Tiger got about £60. A few years later they couldn't get us together for £30,000!"
It was only a six-rounder and Downes was forced to retire at the end of the fifth. They both went on to win the world middleweight title.

glittermonkey wrote:My 'old man' has always claimed that absolutely no-one wanted to fight Dick Tiger.

The guy is a “KILLER” !! I have pic`s of him destroying lodes of boxer`s !

Roy (Tiger) Williams was avoided like the Plague During his career.

Tim Witherspoon from the age of 29 until he was past it. He wouldn't re-sign with King if I remember rightly. This was after being ripped off (I would call clearing $90,000 from a $1,000,000 purse against Bruno being ripped off). Once the Boneclutcher put him out of the picture, he stayed out of the picture. Honourable man, if my memory serves me right. One of the most underrated heavys of his era.

Winky Wright is the obvious choice.

He and Chris Byrd are joint founders of the modern day "Who needs him?" club.

Henry Wills and Sam Langford from the days when the clour bar was in place in the states. Dempsey would take no part of either.

Its always a hard topic to call, particularly with the current trend of promoters and politics. For example, Herbie Hide didn't fight a meaningful name during his 2nd WBO reign and for a two time world champion his record is absolutely poor (I mean Michael Murray belongs as one of his best wins). Was he avoided? Or did promoters know about a weakness in his chin? I don't know so its hard to answer.

Other examples like Steve Collins calling Roy Jones out? Did Roy avoid Collins, or did Collins price himself out of the market (he wanted a guarenteed 7 million, the promotion would have been at a loss).

Of course there are classic old school fighters who were avoided, guys like Sonny Liston was avoided throughout most of his career - why wasn't he considered a part of the tournament after Ali was forced to give up his belt - he was undefeated in 15 fights.

Jack Johnson of course is the ultamite one, but in recent times I agree with Ian Tim Witherspoon has to be the most recent heavyweight to be avoided by all - although the dangerous Pinklon Thomas was discarded with very quickly following his loss to Tyson. Skill wise he was clearly the 2nd best heavyweight around.

Peter Oboh has been avoided in Britain for years.

Definitely.

bennie wrote:Peter Oboh has been avoided in Britain for years.

Yes, and with good reason - he's can fight a bit.

stujones wrote:

bennie wrote:Peter Oboh has been avoided in Britain for years.

Yes, and with good reason - he's can fight a bit.

He's pretty good with the head, too.

stujones wrote: Jack Johnson of course is the ultamite one,

the story of him chasing tommy burns all over the world to get a fight when burns was heavyweight champ is an amazing tale. well worth checking out. he followed burns all round the world after tommy won the title against marvin hart. tommy went to england on tour, johnson follwed him there and fitted in two fights in plymouth which he won, and then followed burns to dublin where he heckled him from ringside and the same again in paris.

when hart turned up for the australian part of his tour he found johnson had already arrived to greet him! finally after hart had a couple of warm ups in aus he announced he was ready to beat johnson. jack one in 14 fights.

if ever a demonstration was needed as to how big heavies have got these days its this fight. it took place in 1908 ( ive got it on tape) Johnson wieghed in at 192lbs (13st 8) and burns at a mighty 168lbs (12st) for a heavyweight title fight!!

The most "Feared" fighter in British Boxing History was Scottish middle & light-heavyweight Champion BERT GILROY!!!

the measures taken to see that he didn't get a British title fight were "UNBELIEVABLE"...

Tell us more, Jim...

The political element and people pricing themselves out of fights does sometimes cloud the picture.

Oboh is a good example of why fighters are avoided - can fight and has an unusual awkward style at times.

Bert Gilroy was a 'middleweight' up to and including 1943(in and around 12st.), in 1944 he began competing at 'L-HW so as to fight the "big-men", he officially became a 'L-HW in 1945 and only in his last year was he fighting over 12st.7.

He was No.1 from 1939-48 and "official" title challenger to BOTH the British 'middleweight' and the British 'light-heavyweight' titles, yet never got a "title" shot!.

1938 - No.3 'mw'
1939 - No.1 "
1940 - No.1 "
1941 - No.1 "
1942 - No.1 "
1943 - ratings "frozen" (war)
1944 - ratings "frozen" (war)
1945 - No.1 'middleweight' and L-HW
1946 - No.1 L-HW
1947 - No.2 L-HW
1948 - No.1 L-HW
1949 - No.4 HW

From 1940 - 46, Bert Gilroy was a Full classification ahead of his fellow British contenders, with only Pat O'Connor, Dave McCleave, Tommy Davies, and fellow Scotsman Jock McCusker sharing the honors a year each and then Vince Hawkins for two years. Where as All of the other contenders came and went Bert Gilroy was the only one that remaind at a constant. His ten year reign at No.1 was actually longer than the two Champions reign as Champs.

No.1 and for 10 years, yet NEVER was given his title shot, SHUT-OUT or "FROZEN-OUT" as they say in the states.

Remember Mills didn't make not-even-one "title" defense for his L-HW crown, NOT ONE!

McAvoy likewise never again defended his 'middleweight' title after he and Bert were down for the "title" before Bert's injury in 1940 and Bert was FAVORITE to beat him...

Bert Gilroy came into his own in mid-1937 and up until the end of 1946 he had only suffered 9 defeats out of 70 contests, including a six year 41 fight winning streak up to the beginning of 1943!!!

Bert Gilroy was a "first-class" boxer a fearless fighter and a "knock-out" puncher combined, the most feared fighter in Britain, Scotland's greatest "big-man" and he "may well" have been Britain's greatest "middleweight".