Promoter Cohen OK After Crash Landing in Poland

Posted on | November 1, 2011 | No Comments

Promoter Greg Cohen, of Greg Cohen Promotions, is safe after being aboard the Boeing 767 from New Jersey that had to make an emergency landing at Warsaw, Poland’s Frederic Chopin International airport today.

 

On his way to his fighter, James Toney’s fight against Russia’s Dennis Ledbedev this Friday, Cohen was among the 230 people on board who survived unscathed after trouble with landing gear forced the plane to land on its belly.

 

Live television covered the entire landing, as sparks flew when the plane hit the runway, which was already covered with flame retardant foam. The LOT airlines jet had previously circled and dumped most of its fuel before the perfect emergency procedure.

 

“That was crazy,” laughed the virtually unflappable Cohen afterward.

Cohen, who made a living in the private jet industry previously, is now a, thankfully, living commercial for his own former industry.

 

He will continue on to Moscow, Russia, for Toney’s Friday showdown with WBA #1 cruiserweight contender Denis Ledbedev at the Khodynka Ice Palace.

 

http://www.cnn.com/2011/11/01/world/europe/poland-plane/index.html?hpt=hp_t2

Colin Lynes: No Way I’m Coming Back Without The Title

Posted on | November 1, 2011 | No Comments

Former IBO World Light Welterweight Champion Colin Lynes has his eyes firmly set on adding yet another Championship belt to his collection, as he challenges British Champion Lee ‘Lights Out’ Purdy for his Lonsdale Belt at the Matchroom Sport promoted mid week event at the York Hall in Bethnal Green on Wednesday, 9th November

During his magnificent thirteen year career Colin held the British, European, IBO Inter-Continental and IBO World Light Welterweight titles before switching to the Welterweight division earlier this year.

Since making the move Colin has only competed twice, the first see him convincingly defeat Bradley Pryce over eight rounds in February.

Four months later Colin entered the excellent Matchroom Sport Prizefighter tournament. His quarterfinal draw see him face fellow TRAD TKO gym mate Bobby Gladman, who he beat by a shut out 30-27 (thrice) before controversially being denied the victory, over eventual tournament winner Yassine El Maachi, after dominating the semifinal.

Following a training session, under the watchful eyes of esteemed coaches Jimmy and Mark Tibbs at the TRAD TKO Boxing Gym in Canning Town, Colin took the time to talk briefly on the upcoming fight and his training camp. “Yeah, I’m fighting Lee Purdy, the British Champion and what a great fight it’s going to be.

He’s showed his worth, he’s done a job on Craig Watson twice in a row.

After the first time it wasn’t lucky, you think can lightning strike twice and he went and did exactly the same job again. He’s the man to beat at the moment, so i’m well up for it.

It’s a buzzing camp at the TRAD TKO now, Frankie Gavin’s come on board as well, so there’s lots of competition, for who’s going to go for what title and that, it’s good healthy competition and everyone is buzzing camp.

We’ve also got Frankie Buglioni come on board, a great amateur looking like a budding prospect. With the like of Billy Joe (Saunders) just now stepped up to title honours. Of course we’ve got the Mitchell brothers (Kevin and Vinny). Freddie Turner, Billy Morgan and Ben Murphy is defending his Southern Area title as well so it’s really buzzing here.

Leon Williams just won the British title, you could be looking at two British titles here at the TRAD TKO in a matter of three weeks, that’ll be really fantastic for the gym.

Sparring’s been great, been sparring Federico (Tavares), he’s an Italian Light Middleweight here, throws big bombs and comes to fight at every session, yeah it’s really good preparation. We’ve had a couple of other names as well, but I wont say about them because this has been very much a private camp this one.

I’m doing all I can and am preparing absolutely to the best , I’ve come away from my home, something I’ve never done before. I’m just living on my own, just going home for meals and washing my stuff and then I’m out of there staying in a B&B.

I’m doing everything humanly possible, that’s why this is a must win fight, there’s no way than coming out with that title.”

Chief support for the Purdy-Lynes British Welterweight title clash on the 9th November sees Ashley Sexton defend his English Flyweight title, against a yet to be named opponent.

Supporting the two Championship bouts is an undercard chock a block with the most exciting young talents in the country today, including the sensational Light Middleweight prospect Erick ‘The Eagle’ Ochieng, the supremely talented Light Welter Chris Evangelou, the formidable Middleweight John Ryder, rising welterweight star Tyler Goodjohn and making his second pro appearance Upminster Lightweight Ryan Taylor.

Lee ‘Lights Out’ Purdy versus Colin Lynes for the British Welterweight title tops the bill for the Matchroom Sport promoted ‘Battle of Essex’ event at York Hall in Bethnal Green, London on Wednesday 9th November 2011, as well as live on Skysports.

Tickets, priced £35 (Unreserved) and £60 (Ringside) are available on-line now at www.tkoboxoffice.com or in person from the TRAD TKO Boxing Gym, Gillian House, Stephenson Street, Canning Town, London E16 4SA. For information call 07960 850645.

STOP PRESS: On Thursday 3rd November watch Ed Robinson’s pre-fight interview with Colin Lynes on the Ringside Boxing Show, Skysports 1 at 6pm, repeated at 9pm (SS2) midnight (SS1) and 4am (SS2)

Gunn Challenges Former UFC Heavyweight Tank Abbott For Bareknuckle Title

Posted on | November 1, 2011 | No Comments

In Dayton, Ohio this past weekend, former UFC heavyweight Tank Abbott won a unanimous decision over Scott Ferrozo in a no holds barred contest.  In lieu of the win, current world heavyweight bareknuckle boxing champion Bobby Gunn has launched a formal challenge to Abbott to accept a fight for the title.

“First I want to congratulate Tank on the win; he is a great fighter and I have much respect for him, and so that is why I would like to give him an opportunity to fight for my title,” said Gunn.  “Under the advice of Joe McEwan—aka Big Joe Mac—I was told that Tank Abbott is the perfect opponent for my first title defense.  I think a fight with Tank would be a perfect tune-up in preparation for my fight with James Quinn in February.”

Abbott built a name for himself in the MMA world due to his savageness inside the cage and his unrelenting attack.  Tank prided himself on being a bareknuckle fighter and always putting on a show, win or lose.

“Myself and Tank Abbott would be a bareknuckle fight that fans would love to see,” said Gunn.  “But Tank, here it is.  I am giving you the chance to fight me for the world heavyweight bareknuckle title on November 19 at the Fort McDowell Casino in Arizona.”

Since Bobby Gunn defeated Richard Stewart in August to claim the vacant world heavyweight bareknuckle boxing title, last held by John L. Sullivan nearly 123 years ago, the international buzz for bareknuckle boxing has been increasing.  Gunn is confident that in the near future the fight sport will be as mainstream as MMA and boxing.

The reason for the recent taking off of bareknuckle boxing is that it offers the science of boxing coupled with the excitement of a MMA fight.

“I think the more big fights we have the popularity for bareknuckle boxing will continue to take off,” said Gunn.  “Ultimately I want to see it expand into an assortment of weight classes so bareknuckle boxers of all different weights can have their shot.”

Currently Bobby Gunn and James Quinn are scheduled to fight for the world heavyweight bareknuckle boxing championship in February of 2012.  This bout will feature two of the most revered bareknuckle fighters of our time, and will surely pave the road to a long and exciting future for bareknuckle boxing.

“We will anxiously await a response from Tank’s team,” said Gunn.  “I have received offers from some lesser known fighters who are simply looking to make a name for themselves and don’t belong in the ring with me, and I know that a fight with Tank would not disappoint fight fans worldwide.”

“Lastly I want to give thanks to all of Team Gunn for all of their ongoing support,” said Gunn.  “A very big thanks to Dave Feldman, Al Roth, Renato Colantoni, Joe McEwan, Matt Yanofsky and Chris Cella.”

Wrestling Links (11-1-11)

Posted on | November 1, 2011 | No Comments

Cael Sanderson and Penn State wrestling leave distractions behind, focus … PennLive.com (blog) 1 Penn State wrestling team have their focus set squarely on the future. The Nittany Lions’ first national championship since 1953, the resumption of Sanderson’s wrestling career and several wrestlers‘ brushes with the law in the offseason were brushed … See all stories on this topic »    PennLive.com (blog)

“Street Arm” pumps up quake-hit Japan city Reuters By night, he’s an arm wrestler — and on a recent Saturday, he’s preparing to do battle. Under a moonlit sky, Watanabe and his opponent face off across an arm wrestlingtable in a bustling pedestrian street in Sendai, a northern Japanese city hit hard … See all stories on this topic »    Reuters

DA drops rape charges against former Olympic wrestler Colorado Springs Gazette A prosecutor on Monday dropped rape charges against a former Olympic wrestler a day before he was to face a jury for a second trial on allegations he sexually assaulted a 20-year-old femalewrestler. Stephen Abas, 33, left court a free man after … See all stories on this topic »

Holley senior Murphy selects Indiana for wrestling Rochester Democrat and Chronicle Quinton Murphy has won three New York state wrestling championships and has a chance to set the state’s career win mark. / PETER CARR The Journal News With his weekend trip to Indiana University winding down on Sunday, Holley senior Quinton Murphy was … See all stories on this topic »

Wrestling News for 10/31/11 Daily DDT – Kayfabe Commentaries’ YouShoot DVD was released today. The company issued the following press release about it: More than a year ago, Sean Waltman sat down before the cameras on the popular shoot series “YouShoot” and told the world that “One Night … See all stories on this topic »

Starting spots contested at Wrestle-Offs The State Press By Kyle Newman October 31, 2011 at 6:48 pm Print This Post NOT JUST A SCRIMMAGE: ASU redshirt junior Levi Cooper stares down a teammate during awrestle-off last year. This year’s edition showcased a healthy Cooper and several up-and-coming freshmen. … See all stories on this topic » The State Press

Atwater Youth Wrestling Merced Sun-Star ATWATER — The Atwater High Wrestling Program is offering practices for kids ages 4-15. Sessions are Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6 to 7:30 pm in the Atwater wrestling room. The program will begin Nov. 8. The cost is $10 per child, which includes a team … See all stories on this topic »

Live in Atlanta, Raw was full of treats CANOE Wrestling ATLANTA – For the first time since WrestleMania XXVII weekend, the WWE returned to Atlanta, Georgia, for Monday Night Raw. But this is no ordinary Raw. Not only is it Halloween, but Raw has a group of special hosts: The Muppets. … See all stories on this topic »

Marvez: Barry Buchanan looks back with pride Evansville Courier & Press And now he works on the independent circuit in the Southeast while also training aspiring talent at the B2 Wrestling School in Franklin, Ga. Combined with the travels he took before making it to the big time, Buchanan has fulfilled the dream he had as … See all stories on this topic »

 

Blogs

Josh Koscheck: “Wrestling’s ten times harder than MMA” | MMA News By Pedro Carrasco “I think wrestlers are dominating because of the mentality, were trained from an early age to win and go out and compete, and I think that’s one of the reason’s we are so successful…Wrestling’s ten times harder. You know, on Tuesdays, Daniel … MMA News

IMPACT WRESTLING Wants you to help Save the Tatas – YouTube By TNAwrestling Though October is almost over, there is always time to make a difference and help a worthy cause. IMPACT WRESTLING has partnered with savethetatas.com and wa… Uploads by tnawrestling

Don Frye Caps Off a Wild Halloween Night on “INSIDE MMA”

Posted on | November 1, 2011 | No Comments

SAY WHAT?  DON FRYE SHARES SOME DETAILS THAT JUST MAY GO OVER THE LINE!

If you missed last night’s Halloween Special on “Inside MMA”, you missed Tyron Woodley begging for a fight, and Ben Askren talking about his future: 

http://www.hd.net/blogs/tyron-woodley-let-me-fight-somebody-inside-mma/

And you missed Don…well, being Don!

http://www.hd.net/blogs/don-frye-said-what-inside-mma/


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Relive Round 8 of Glen Johnson’s Gritty Performance Against Carl Froch – Lucian Bute vs. Glen Johnson on Saturday, Nov. 5 at 9 p.m. on SHOWTIME

Posted on | November 1, 2011 | No Comments

The relentless Glen Johnson shows his toughness fight in and fight out.

As he prepares for his world title matchup against IBF super middleweight champion Lucian Bute,

Relive a quintessential example of The Road Warrior’s resilience in a potential round of the year candidate:

Round eight against WBC super middleweight titlist Carl Froch

In the Super Six World Boxing Classic Semifinals.

 

Saturday, November 5th at 9PM ET/PT on SHOWTIME

BUTE VS. JOHNSON

Click below to view the back-and-forth eighth round from Froch-Johnson.

For more photos and videos from Showtime Sports

Visit sports.sho.com

Mixed Martial Arts Links (11-1-11)

Posted on | November 1, 2011 | No Comments

UFC Embraces Mexico as a Potential New Market for Mixed Martial Arts Sacramento Bee By Marca Pais – Imagen de Mexico MEXICO CITY, Oct. 31, 2011 — /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ –The following is being released today by Marca Pais – Imagen de Mexico: Mixed martial arts (MMA) is the fastest growing sport in the world, and sees incredible … See all stories on this topic »

Cutman ‘Stitch’ Duran: ‘Cro Cop’ planned retirement even before UFC 137 loss MMAjunkie.com by John Morgan on Oct 31, 2011 at 6:00 pm ET After suffering a hard-fought third-round TKO loss to Roy Nelson this past Saturday night, UFC heavyweight contender Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic (27-10-2 MMA, 4-6 UFC) announced his retirement from mixed … See all stories on this topic »    MMAjunkie.com

Fan’s Take: Diaz Proves it Pays Play the Bad Guy in the UFC Yahoo! Sports Nick Meyer is a longtime mixed martial arts fan who has watched virtually every UFC event since 2005. Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content. See all stories on this topic »

Spike to Air Viacom’s New MMA Shows Multichannel News The three-year-old Bellator franchise — which features an elimination tournament format over seven different weight classes, as opposed to individual championship matches like the UFC — gives the network an MMA franchise to replace UFC, which inked a … See all stories on this topic »

Cro Cop Retires, Ending Successful MMA Career: Fan Reaction Yahoo! Sports Though not a completely shocking event, it does come as a less-than-stellar footnote to a remarkable career in Mixed Martial Arts. As for his legacy, Cro Cop will remain a guiding light for those who look to topple the sport the right way. … See all stories on this topic »    Yahoo! Sports

Dana White: Jose Aldo-Chad Mendes on ESPN It’s going to be fireworks.” Mendes beat each of his two UFC opponents (Michihiro Omigawa and Rani Yahya) by unanimous decision, since the promotion merged with WEC in January. Franklin McNeil covers mixed martial arts and boxing for ESPN.com. … See all stories on this topic »

Hatsu Hioki Hoping to Inspire Fellow Japanese Fighters 5thRound.com Little did fight fans know, the Japanese star is attempting to revitalize an entire nation’s future in mixed martial arts. With that amount of pressure resting on his 145 pound shoulders, perhaps that explains why the former Shooto standout was less … See all stories on this topic »    5thRound.com

What I Do: Wade Barden gets his kicks as martial arts instructor Wisconsin State Journal I became interested in martial arts when I was 5 years old. I started taking karate lessons when I was 10 and began teaching karate when I was 13. I have a third-degree black belt in karate, third-degreemixed martial arts black belt and a Brazilian … See all stories on this topic »

Donald Cerrone, Nate Diaz to fight ESPN 5. After a four-fight stint at welterweight, Diaz returned to lightweight in September against Takanori Gomi. He submitted Gomi in the first round. Franklin McNeil covers mixed martial arts and boxing for ESPN.com. … See all stories on this topic »

 

Blogs

‘Warrior’ DVD with Tom Hardy and Joel Edgerton | Inside Movies … By Chris Nashawaty The rousing, Rocky-esque mixed martial arts drama, Warrior, will be available on DVD and Blu-ray Combo Pack on Dec. 20, loaded with extras that EW can reveal exclusively. The PG-13-rated fight flick about a pair of blue-collar brothers (Tom … Inside Movies

BOOK CLUB: Big John McCarthy – Let’s Get It On | Fightlinker – UFC … By Matthew Polly While in exile, Big John followed a time-honored tradition and wrote his memoir with the help of skilled MMA journalist Loretta Hunt, who knows a little about what it’s like to be on Dana’s bad side. The book has something for everyone. … Fightlinker – UFC, Strikeforce,…

 

Web

Viacom Purchases Bellator And MMA As A Whole Benefits | October Having a lot of implications for MMA and MMA on television as a whole, we were lucky enough to pick the brain of Sean Malone, editor of Inside The Cage MMA, … www.awfulannouncing.com/…/viacom-purchases-bellator-and...

Exclusive Interview Interview with Former Pro Boxing Champ Greg Haugen

Posted on | October 31, 2011 | No Comments

By: Patrick McElligott

Greg Haugen (40-10-1) has been called the greatest boxer from the state of Alaska by ESPN. During a professional career that spanned from 1982 to 1999, Haugen would win the world lightweight and super lightweight (junior welterweight) titles. The Seattle Times’ Bill Reader recently noted that Haugen, who has been frequently described as “cocky,” can be best understood as simply being “honest.” While I certainly agree with Reader on that, after last night’s interview, I think it is important to add intelligent, thoughtful, and humorous. Greg Haugen loves those he recognizes as the most important in the sport – the boxers and the fans. This comes through clearly in what is definitely among the most interesting interviews that I have done to date.

Q; When I think of your career, the one fight that stands out the most was your February 23, 1991 upset over Hector Camacho. He was undefeated, with impressive wins over Limon, Ramirez, Rosario, Edwards, Davis, Mancini, and Pazienza. You were the former two-time lightweight champion,  who recently moved up in weight. Except for the “no contest” with Del Toro, you had defeated every man you fought, except Pernell Whitaker. Did it surprise you that you entered the ring as a 7-to-1 underdog?

GH: Well, kind of …. but not really. Actually, I liked those odds. Don was looking ahead to putting on a  “Battle of the Undefeateds” with Camacho and Chavez. They looked at me as just a tune-up. I’d been written off after Whitaker, but the truth was I had been having trouble making weight, and I was a lot stronger when I moved up.

See, I had sparred Hector before. I knew him. For example, Hector was a guy who liked to fight about one minute of every round. 90 seconds per round at most. So my plan was to make it uncomfortable for him, by making him fight three minutes of every round.

I could tell going into the fight that he figured that he was fighting that hillbilly sparring-partner from Alaska. But he was a lot more beatable than Whitaker. I mean, Hector was a great fighter, and he had solid defensive skills. But you could hit him. If you look at films of Pernell, look how he positions his back foot, and that crouch. Hector was more squared-up.

Camacho came out fast, looking to overwhelm me. But I was able to place my shots to his belly. Then, in the second round, I went from body-to-head. I bloodied his nose and mouth that round. He came out even harder in the third, which meant he was fighting three minutes of every round. Now, I didn’t have the speed of hand and foot that he did, but I was digging hard shots to the body, and applying constant pressure. By the seventh round, he was breathing real hard. In the eighth round, I could hear him groaning when I was lifting shots under his ribs.

Q: As a “Greg Haugen fan,” that victory meant a lot. What did it mean to you at the time?

GH: That fight definitely meant a lot to me, too. Pressure kills!

Q: We’ve read that you started boxing at the age of five. Is that accurate?

GH: Yeah, I did. My father was a former US Marine. He was strict in the sense of like having my head shaved every weekend. He said that he was tired of me being bullied, and he knew a former Navy boxer who ran a gym for kids. So that’s how I got started boxing when I was five.

Q: Records indicate that you fought in over 300 amateur bouts, including numerous “boot-leg” and “tough man” competitions. What did you learn about yourself as an amateur boxer?

GH: Well, I knew that I could fight. But just knowing it wasn’t enough: I had to get in that ring and prove it. I did have 24 “Tough Man” fights, but there were a lot of other tournaments, too. There were times when I fought four or five times on a Friday, just to make it to Saturday. And you have to look back to the quality of fighters that came out of the northwest in that era. An impressive number of the top professionals from that era were from the northwest, and all of them had been top amateurs from the northwest first. And I knew that I was one of them.

Q: You didn’t have the luxury of  the big promotional backing that an Olympic champion often has when turning professional. In your early career, you fought some good, much more experienced pros. The Phillipino Noel Arriesgado and Ted Michaliszyn were prospects when you met them. Neither of them were very successful after you beat them. What do remember about these two?

GH: That’s right. I didn’t start out with easy fights. Part of that was because I wasn’t really a four-round fighter. I had some speed and power, but it was to my advantage to have longer fights with guys who were faster on their feet. So even early on, I prefered to be put in a ten-round fight, where I could wear an opponent down.

I fought Ted in my tenth fight. I had been preparing for a fight with a guy from New York City, who pulled out.  And then, that fight with Ted was thrown at me at the last minute. He was ranked at #7 by The Ring. When you don’t have the big promoters behind you, you have to take advantage of those opportunities. It was tough, because not only was he a good fighter, but I had been training to fight an orthodox fighter. He was a south-paw.

A lot of good fighters have that happen, getting brought in at the last minute. It’s a way for those big promoters to give their fighter an advantage. But I knew that it meant my opponent only had that same short time to prepare for me. Let’s take Freddie Roach. He was a good fighter, and his people were trying to get his career back on track. He had won three in a row.

I had sparred Freddie before, and his people didn’t think of me as a big puncher. They thought of me as just an opponent, a step along his comeback. But I never took any fight thinking of myself as just an opponent. I always prepared myself with the idea of winning every fight. For one thing, I knew that I was physically much stronger than Freddie. Plus, from sparring, I knew his moves. That’s why I was able to take him out in the seventh round.

My next two fights were like that, too. They were against Chris Calvin and Charlie Brown. I was brought in to both of those fights as the opponent. Both of them were good fighters, with a lot more speed than me. But after body-punching Calvin for four, he slowed down. By the fifth, he couldn’t move so fast. He was right there in front of me. I stopped him in six.

Charlie started out fast for about 30 seconds. Then I knocked him out.

Q:  Before you would have your triligy with the Pazmanian Devil, you beat Jeff Bumpus, the Tazmanian Devil. He was 18-1 going into that fight. How did it make you feel to establish yourself as a ranked contender in twelve fights?

GH: Jeff was a good fighter. It was another example of my working hard in training, and going into the ring with a plan to win. I knew he was well-prepared, too, and coming in with a strategy to win. But my body-punching in the early rounds was what made the difference.

He still went on to fight Pazienza and Chavez in his next two fights. So beating him in my twelth fight meant that I was on my way to the title.

Q: In May of 1985, you not only solidified a top-ranking in a deep division, but you beat tough Edwin Curet for the NABF lightweight title. It seems that European promoters have made better use of such regional titles. Could boxing in America be improved by this route, perhaps replacing the number of alphabet “world” titles?

GH: The European titles are equal to some of the alphabet world titles. Look at the quality of the European fighters since, say, Lennox Lewis. And not just in the heavyweight division. By the time they reach the world stage, the best European fighters have built a really strong foundation.

Not all of the good European champions necessarily become all-time great world champions. People might point to Ricky Hatton as an example. But if you look closer at Hatton, you see a tough guy with somewhat limited skills, who had a very successful career. That European experience made him more successful than he would have been if he started his career here in America.

A big part of that has to do with the lack of good trainers. It used to be that there were so many great teachers that America was dominant in the international amateur competition. Think about the great Olympic teams we had in 1976 and the mid-1980s. Compare that to what’s been happening in the past few Olympics.

It doesn’t require great skill to teach a fighter how to throw punches. If you listen to trainers in the fights on television, concentrate on what you hear the corner telling fighters between rounds. Anyone can say, “You’ve gotta hit him more!” No kidding. But how many of them are saying, “You need to counter-punch when he jabs.” Or, “You should be slipping under his right-cross, and sliding in on his side.” Too many are just saying to hit the guy, but not telling their fighter how to move to be able to deliver those punches. The reason why is that they haven’t trained their fighter how to do those things properly – which is why those few fighters who know how to move in the ring, to slip punches correctly, and to counter-punch, stand out.

Q:  About a half-year after Curet, you won the world title from Jimmy Paul. What did winning that title mean to you?

GH: That was when world title fights were fifteen rounds, which is what they should be. Paul was a really good fighter, with a great jab. And he had a hard right-hand behind that jab.

I was ranked number twelve at the time. His manager saw me as just another slow white guy. But I went in prepared, and with a plan. I nullified his jab with hard body shots. I felt really good in the ring that night, and I was proud to win the world title.

Q: Your trilogy with Vinny Pazienza was similar to that of Micky Ward and Arturo Gotti. What do you remember most about those fights?

GH: I got robbed bad in the first one. I went to his home town to defend my title. He was from Cranston, Rhode Island, but he fought out of Providence. I countered him to death that night. I knew I won. But he was awarded a home-town decision.

I beat him even worse in the second fight. So he ran like a dog in the third one. Maybe it was closer. But I definitely beat him in the first two.

Q: Speaking of Ward, in the book “Irish Thunder,” it explains his loss to Zab Judah by noting it was next to impossible to hit him. By the time Mick got a punch off, Zab had moved to another spot in the ring. You fought Pernell Whitaker, one of the greatest defensive wizzards in boxing history. What was that like?

GH: Ah, that guy was so hard to hit. He was tough. Really frustrating.

First, he was a southpaw. It’s hard to hit any good southpaw with your jab. You mainly are looking to land your right-cross and left hook. Usually, you are satisfied to just touch a southpaw with your jab, so that you can measure the right-cross and hook.

Whitaker was really smart, too. He had that crouch that made it hard to even touch him with a jab. And look at film of where he set his feet. It wasn’t just how he placed the back one. Against any southpaw, there is a contest to have your lead foot on the inside. He was a master of frustrating those attempts. So when you fight him, you can’t even do the two most basic things – having your feet right, or even touching him with a jab. That limits the possibility of landing a right-cross or left hook.

I wasn’t at my best that night anyhow. I had some management problems, and was finding out just how greedy promoters really were. And there I was, in the ring with Pernell Whitaker, who absolutely ranks high among the greatest fighters of all-time. That wasn’t a fun experience.

Q: Gert Bo Jakobsen was undefeated when you fought him. He would go on to become a world champion, and had a great trilogy with Manning Galloway. Tell us about your fight with him.

GH: I remember going over to Copenhagen to fight him. He was a big guy, tall, with a lot of knockouts. We knew going into the fight that he was a dangerous puncher.

Eddie Aliano was working as my cut-man. He went into Jakobsen’s dressing room, to watch him get his hands wrapped. Eddie saw that they were using an illegal substance with the guaze. When it got wet, it would turn to plaster, which is why he hit so hard!

We protested. It got pretty tense. The promoter came in and insisted that I had to fight. I told him that he really only had two options: either make Jokobsen re-wrap his hands, or go out an explain to the huge crowd why there wasn’t going to be a fight. He re-wraped his hands.

He was still tall and still hit hard. But I broke him down, going body-to-head. I stopped him in ten rounds.

Q: You ended Ray “Boom-Boom” Mancini’s career when he knocked him out in 1992. Have the two of you become friends since then?

A: Sure. I saw him inducted, he saw me. We’re friends. I really don’t have anything bad to say about any of the guys that I fought. I’m on good terms with all of them.

The way I see it, our fights were years ago. Those fights were like a calculated, physical chess match. They were looking to hurt me,and I was looking to hurt them. But when the fight is over, and especially when you are both retired, it’s time to be friends.

I think that it’s that way with the boxing fans, too. Maybe some people liked another fighter, and cheered for him to beat me back in the 1980s. But when I go to the Boxing Hall of Fame, or attend a boxing card, I get along with everyone.

The only people who’s opinion I didn’t care about were the promoters. I knew that some of them really didn’t like me. Tough shit.

Q: One of your most famous fights was against Julio Ceasor Chavez, who was 84-0 at the time. Most of the boxing community didn’t know that you entered the ring distracted by personal problems then. How do personal problems impact a fighter in the ring?

GH: Oh, a lot. I was getting divorced from my wife at the time. I had never felt that type of pain in any fight …. she was my first love, and that separation caused intense mental pain. That level of mental pain hurts physically, too.  I had never felt such horrible pain as that, until in the first round, when I threw my first jab, and Chavez countered it. I knew the fight was over right then, when I was trying to recover from that.

Still, it’s the only fight that I really wish I could go back and do over.

Q: Since retiring, you have trained a few fighters. What is that like for you? Any good prospects now?

GH: Yeah, I’ve been working with a few kids. Trained one kid for a month or so; he’s strong, works hard. He’s 3-0 now.  I had a couple others recently who were coming along good. One was 9-1; the heavyweight was 7-0. But they were getting to where they thought they knew everything. I’d tell them that I still had a lot more to teach them as they progressed, and to be patient and work hard.

But if a fighter isn’t going to listen to me, I’m not going to waste my time. I’ve been involved in this sport for decades, and so there is no way that I could possibly teach any kid everything I’ve learned in their first few fights. That heavyweight thought otherwise. He stopped listening, and got knocked out in his next fight.

I’ve told these guys, “Hey, if I wanted to talk to some young people who don’t listen to a word I say, I could just strike up a conversation with one of my kids.”

Q: Do you think that boxing would benefit from having a national commission in the United States?

GH: Yeah. Right now, every state has its own rules or regulations. That allows promoters to have too much power to dictate the sport. That gives boxing a black eye.

We need federal regulations. They should be modeled on Nevada’s, which are the best in the country. A federal commission would help the two most important groups in boxing – the fighters and the fans.

Right now, boxers get second fiddle. And they are the ones that make it happen. That’s just wrong. Right now, it’s the flesh-peddlers – the promoters – who are getting rich off of boxing. A few fighters make millions, but most don’t. The fans are laying down their money, because they love boxers. But the promoters don’t give a shit. They don’t care if you get hurt in a fight. They don’t care if you have brain injuries when you are retired – and you know that a lot of boxers do. There’s a lot of retired boxers around who are really suffering.

Promoters talk about the “free market.” A national boxing commission wouldn’t harm a free market, but it could help make a fair market. That includes mandating the fights the fans want to see, rather than the expensive mis-matches that too often are on PPV.  It could also help boxers unionize, and to come up with some sort of retirement plan.

Q: Does Manny Pacquiao deserve the current acclaim he enjoys? Is he really an all-time great? How would he have fared in your day?

GH:  Top ten. Top ten contender, at best, if he competed when I did. I know that Freddie trains the guy, and he really loves him, but he got hit in the head way too much if he really believes the crap he says about Pacquiao being an all-time great fighter.

First, you have to look at the way he has been promoted over the last couple of years. He’s fighting against damaged goods. Look at his next fight, for example. He’s finally giving Juan Manuel Marquez the third fight. Marquez gave him hell in both of the first two. There was a lot of controversy over who actually won those fights. Lots of people think Marquez won both of them. Why didn’t Manny settle it earlier?

Why does he keep fighting guys that Mayweather has recently beat? Look at the Mayweather vs Marquez fight. Some people say that Floyd should have knocked him out. But people who really know boxing know that taking twelve rounds of punishment from Mayweather did more damage to Marquez than his fights with Pacquiao combined. Freddie knows that, which is why Manny has made a pattern out of fighting guys who were recently damaged by Mayweather, including Hatton and de la Hoya.

You also have to consider how Manny was to move up from 108 pounds to 147 pounds. You have to be realistic. He didn’t just gain some weight. He not only kept his speed, but he became much stronger. His power increased dramatically. So didn’t his endurance, and his ability to take a punch. Talk to the guys who are experts in boxing history. Talk to the guys familiar with Roberto Duran’s rise in weight. Did he gain power? Endurance? The ability to take a punch? Of course not, and we are talking about Roberto Duran – who everyone recognizes as one of the absolute all-time greatest fighters.

Q: What do you think happens if Pacquiao fights Mayweather in 2012?

GH: Floyd will beat Manny just like he did Victor Ortiz. The thing here is that Floyd Mayweather, Jr., really is one of boxing’s all-time greats. He is at a much higher level than Pacquiao. Obviously, a big part of that is Mayweather’s defensive skills. It’s like Pernell Whitaker – you can’t hit those guys.

I know that some people will say that Pacquiao is a lot better than Ortiz, and would make a lot tougher fight of it. But I think – and I can tell you that a lot of the top people in the sport know this – that the areas that Pacquiao is better than Ortiz all play right into Mayweather’s hands. This isn’t just about Mayweather’s great defense – it’s back to those skills that allow him to slip under punches, to slide into position, and to time and devastate Pacquiao with hard counter-punches.

That’s the real reason this fight hasn’t happened. It isn’t Floyd who has actually avoided it. It’s the people promoting Manny Pacquiao that can’t afford to let him get in the ring with Mayweather.

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