The ESB British Forum Encyclopedia

Nearly done part one, though the page I have it open on is dying. **** hate my PC. if I can't recover it, it's never getting done, sorry.

 

Vibonchai.

 

The glossary is ****ed IMO.

 

Is it?!?

 

Hasn't been updated since last year! :yep

 

Not Mands fault, he couldn't have predicted how popular the thread would be. Nor is it LP's, cos you can't expect him to arbitrate the thread.

 

i'll add the more recent 1's tomorrow

 

:good

Top guy.

 

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GIFSoup

 

Name: Larry Holmes
Nickname: The Easton Assassin
Born: 1949-11-03, Cuthbert, Georgia USA
Stance: Orthodox
Height: 6′ 3″/190cm
Reach: 81'’

Record: 69 (44) – 6(1)

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Regarded by many critics to be amongst the best 5 Heavyweight boxers of all time, possesing wonderful athletic ability and a legendary left jab, Larry Holmes emerged from relative obscurity in the late 1970's Heavyweight scene to embark on one of the most fruitful title reigns in the history of the division. A character outside of the ropes, and a calculated beast within them, Holmes never quite captured the imagination of the American spectators - who craved another Muhammad Ali-esque superstar - but in his own right lay down a legacy matched by very few, to establish himself as one of the great fighters, in one of the most decorated divisions in the sport of boxing.

After dropping out of school as a teenager in search of work to provide money for his family, Holmes turned to boxing at an advanced age - 19. His amateur career was short and decidely un-profilic. He compiled a mediocre record of 19-2 before stepping out of nowhere to face the heralded American amatuer Dwayne Bobick in the Olympic trials in 1972. The inexperienced and unrefined Holmes was dropped hard in the first, prompting him to hold on excessively until he was eventually disqualified in the 3rd. Dissapointed, and growing discontent with the amatuer scene, realising that it was doing him no favours in terms of development, or on a financial level, Holmes set his sights on the professional ranks. He made his pro debut in 1993.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQ02-9XUs5w[/ame]


Holmes' early professional career was as barren as his amatuer days, as he spent the first 26 fights of his career in ambiguity, fighting lowly regarded fighters and - according to commentator Howard Cossell - not looking great in the process. Despite a TKO win over Rodney Bobick, brother of Holmes's Amateur foe Duane, most of Holmes' early opponents were unheralded stiffs who provided him with little recognition and failed to further his development as a fighter. However, amidst fighting these low calibre opponents in the ring, outside of the professional ropes Holmes had been sparring with some of the best Heavyweight fighters on the planet, including his idol; Muhammad Ali, as well as the likes of Joe Frazier, Ken Norton and Earnie Shavers. It was testing himself in the gym against these top class fighters that really gave Homes the opportunity to hone his skills, and gear himself up for the shot at the Heavyweight title which he so craved.

It wasn't until 1978, at the age of 29, that Holmes was able to truly announce himself on the world stage. The bout was a title eliminator against the dangerous Earnie Shavers, a concussive puncher in every sense of the word who had just recently fallen short in a competitive affair against Ali for the Heavyweight title. The enigmatic Holmes was seen as an outside bet to beat Shavers and earn a title shot against Ken Norton. Despite this, Holmes dramatically announced himself as a potential future Heavyweight star by boxing circles round Shavers and comfortably winning a wide unanimous decision. Holmes nimbly danced around his befuddled foe, taking the odd shot Shavers did land without issue whilst relentlessly slamming Earnie with a cultured left jab which his seasoned adversary had no answer. Holmes nearly capped off a scintillating performance by stopping Shavers in the final seconds of the fight, rocking him badly against the ropes. Though it wasn't to be, Holmes had broadcast his arrival on the Heavyweight scene with a terrific performance and had added the first quality name to his resume.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0hlXxeCTUp8[/ame]


Holmes was primed to challenge the experienced Ken Norton for the WBC championship the very same year. The awkward Norton was seen as a potential stylistic nightmare for Holmes, who had designed his own style on the fighter Norton had posed such difficulties to - Muhammad Ali. Unsurprisingly, Norton did prove a nuisance for Holmes, fighting from an awkward crouch and holding his hands in a position Holmes had not before encountered in his professional career. However, by alternating his style between fighting up close and dancing away on his tiptoes, flicking out the jab, Holmes was able to get the better of Norton in most rounds of the fight, even badly rocking the champion with some hard rights in the 9th. The final round was an all out war, among the best 3 minutes in Heavyweight history, where both tired warriors went all out in an attempt to leave the ring with the belt around their waist. Ultimately it was Holmes' speed, agility and superior jab which proved the difference, as he wrested the title from Kenny's hands via Split decision, becoming World Heavyweight champion for the first time at the age of 29. Holmes' reign had began.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDXZQralw64[/ame] [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xrlyacf0YKI[/ame]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-TXnp-hyK4[/ame] [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8lLsCKSWQ0I[/ame]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jW6ZgeL8uz8[/ame] [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I11HmOutJcQ[/ame]


The first defence of Holmes' belt came against the overmatched Uruguyan fringe contender Alfredo Evangelista, who Holmes toyed with for 6 easy rounds before dispatching with a crushing right hand to the temple in the 7th. The first real threat to Holmes' belt appeared in the form of Ossie Ocasio, an awkward, agile contender from Puerto Rico who had risen to promince with 2 close wins over Jimmy Young. The unorthodox style of Ocasio, which incorporated rapid head movement and nimble fotwoork was mooted to be potentially challenging for the slightly less mobile Holmes. However that reality failed to materialise as Holmes dominated the action for 6 rounds before displaying his slept-on power in pernicious fashion by dropping the young challenger 4 times in the 7th, each time with a different punch. After a left uppercut put the brave Ocasio down yet again, the fight was brought to a merciful halt.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=muD8vDRs5_E[/ame] [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ujT3C14UHY[/ame]


Holmes next task would not be so straightforward; a defence against another awkward customer in Mike Weaver, a fighter who boasted a deceptively ugly record. Holmes went into the fight believing he had an easy assignment ahead of him, as his sights were already set on a lucrative rematch with Earnie Shavers, mooted for later on in the year. After a bright start, Holmes appeared comfortable prior hurting Weaver in the fourth, but the challenger shocked spectators, and the champion, by roaring back and badly rocking Holmes at the tail end of the same round. Holmes regained relative control of the bout, but never looked wholly comfortable and remained weary of Weaver's power. Holmes was right in his caution, as Weaver hurt Larry again in the 10th, nearly stopping the astonished champion. In a real test for Holmes, he displayed his lauded recuperative powers as he engaged Weaver in the 11th in a toe-to-toe battle, culminating with Holmes dropping his foe with massive right uppercut just before the bell. Weaver was exhausted, and Holmes superior class and conditioning told as he put away his tormentor in the 12th. Holmes metal had been put to the test for the first time in his career, and though hardly looking stellar in the process, he had passed. Despite Weaver's poor record, he would go on to prove himself by beating some of the most able Heavyweights around in the form of John Tate, Gerrie Coetzee and James 'Quick' Tillis.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J78dluTBlhA[/ame]


Holmes would bring an end to the year with a victory over Earnie Shavers, the man he had beaten over a year earlier to announce himself on the world stage. This time, the win would not be so simple for Holmes, as the motivated Shavers pressured from the start and, despite trailing widely on the cards, maintained his pressure to drop Holmes with a monstrous right hand in the 11th. From the offset, it looked like Holmes would not get up - not many did from a flush Shavers bomb - though Holmes miraculously picked himself up and proceeded to resume dominating with his jab, eventually bringing an end to Shavers challenge in the 11th. Holmes had again appeared vulnerable, but his recuperative skills and superior ability were the telling factors as he held on to his title.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VEaDtbGzMb4[/ame] [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhhYo_SovgA[/ame]


3 routine title defences followed in 1980 for Holmes, most notably a victory over the unbeaten Leroy Jones, who had risen to prominence after decisioning Mike Weaver in '88. Holmes stopped Jones on the ropes in the 8th, a beating which would eventually terminally halt Jones' career due to a detached retina. Holmes' next assignment would be his most publicised to date; a fight with his idol, and face of American heavyweight boxing; Muhammad Ali. To the causal fans, it was Holmes' chance to really establish himself as the number one Heavyweight in the eyes of the American public, though more seasoned spectators knew Ali, in his diminished state had no right to share the ring with the younger champion. An unsurprisingly one-sided beat down ensued, with Holmes dominating every second of the action against his past-prime opponent before Ali's corner called a halt to the action after 10. The fight offered Holmes some publicity but did little in terms of enhancing his legacy or getting his many critics to side with him.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XBa9BxfYpHA[/ame]

 

Next in line for Holmes was Trevor Berbick, another unconventional fighter who had modelled his style on that of Ken Norton, the man who had given fits to Holmes in '78. There was much animosity between Holmes and Berbick in the build up to the fight, resulting in a street brawl which boiled over when Holmes leapt at Berbick from the top of a car like a Cheetah on PCP. The antagonism between the 2 transcended to the ring, which was furthered by Holmes frustration with Berbick's low crouch and Peek-a-boo style. This was evident after a bad tempered first round, where Berbick mocked Holmes for his stylistic imitation of Ali, resulting in the champion shoving the challenger at the bell, which in turn prompted Berbick to throw the referee to the ground when he tried to arbitrate. Things cooled down to a degree afterwards, and despite a close contest, Holmes's superior speed and jab prevailed over the somewhat inactive Berbick, earning the champion a fairly comfortable decision win.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-t2tOv6w1kw[/ame]


In June of 81, Holmes decimated the overmatched former champ Leon Spinks in 3 rounds preceding a bout against Renaldo Snipes. Snipes, unbeaten at 22-0 was a quick, agile fighter with good head movement who was seen as a bright spark in the division. Holmes began the fight as he did most others; dominating with the jab, keeping his opponent at bay and following up with smashing straight right hands. However Larry couldn't establish a rhythm against the unorthodox Snipes who refused to remain a moving target, but led nonetheless going into the late rounds of the fight. Snipes was behind, but stayed largely out of harms way until the 9th, where he hurt Holmes possibly worse than ever before in the champions career, rocking him hard and turning his legs to jelly after dropping him to the canvas. Holmes, yet again recovered to stop his opponent, with the referee controversially waving off a hurt Snipes against the ropes in the 11th. Snipes contested, but to no avail.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9lF6zRKd9M[/ame] [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwA00uflaz0[/ame]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arLK49ZW2oU[/ame] [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKTaKDAnmAI[/ame]


Holmes next fight would prove to be the biggest of his career thus far, a bout against unbeaten and highly regarded American contender Gerry Cooney. The massive Cooney was a big fan favourite and considered by many to potentially be the man who could end Holmes' reign at the top. In a hugely publicised fight on HBO, Holmes stopped Cooney in the 13th after an entertaining and dramatic encounter. Cooney displayed his best qualities; his tremendous strength, heart, coupled with his great jab and snappy left hook which allowed him to win around 4-5 rounds on the judges cards. It was his lack of true power and questionable punch resistance that let the challenger down though; as it transpired he could be hurt without possessing the ability to hurt the champion. Cooney was downed in the first and hurt again in the 6th before his corner pulled him out in the 13th after he was reduced to a stagger by another Holmes barrage.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYafZtYOJnU[/ame]


2 whitewash unanimous decisions followed for Holmes against the ridiculously overmatched Randall 'Tex' Cobb and Lucien Rodriguez. Midway through 1983 Holmes took on the unbeaten Philadelphia Heavyweight Tim Witherspoon, who despite his relative inexperience was considered one of the most highly skilled young contenders in the division. 'Spoon lived up to his billing, proving extremely difficult for Holmes to establish a rhythm against as Terrible Tim sported a cross armed guard with his right hand tucked under the left side of his chin, meaning Holmes could not land his jab or straight right with regularity. Witherspoon’s cute head movement, quick feet, sneaky jab and nice, sharp left hand meant he won a significant number of rounds, enough to make the fight very close on most scorecards. Holmes was given the split decision, and held onto his title by a whisker.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rboNcSTKXOg[/ame]

(The fights not on YT, so the decision announcement will have to do )

Holmes rattled off 2 fairly straightforward KO victories over the undefeated but unheralded Scott Frank and Marvis Frazier prior to defending his belt against James 'Bonecrusher' Smith, who had made up for a loss in his pro debut by ascending the ranks and stopping British prospect Frank Bruno in 10 rounds. He was outclassed against Holmes, with his open-ness to the counter right hand allowing Holmes to outland him significantly and dominate the action from the offset with his jab, eventually leading to a stoppage in the 12th courtesy of a nasty cut over Smith's eye.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZDg4ZVxk5g[/ame]


A dominant performance, ending with a stoppage in the final seconds of the 10th against a game but outclassed David Bey followed. Holmes would then take on another undefeated challenger, this time in the form of Carl 'The Truth' Williams. What transpired was a very close and controversial fight, which Holmes won by razor thin unanimous decision. The massive Williams refused to give Holmes an inch and fought toe to toe with the champion for the duration, giving and taking hard shots. Holmes better work in the late rounds of the fight, where Williams appeared to take his foot off the gas allowed him to establish a thin lead on the cards, and the champion prevailed by close Unanimous decision.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=os9QQ18MTMQ[/ame]


In the 20th defence of Holmes title, the champion would face the unbeaten, pound for pound ranked Light heavyweight champion Michael Spinks, who was making his Heavyweight debut by stepping up to challenge the champion. In 1985's upset of the year, Spinks defeated Holmes by unanimous decision, ending Holmes title reign after 7 years, and taking Larry's unbeaten record. The highly skilled and awkward Spinks didn't allow Holmes any time to establish any rhythm, peppering him from the outside with a sharp jab whilst slamming the champion with hard combinations from awkward angles on the inside. Holmes could not stick his normally pinpoint jab on the constantly moving head of Spinks in any sort of regular pattern, meaning he struggled to win rounds in succession. Holmes pressed the fight late on, hurting Spinks in the championship rounds, but he could not out-do the work Spinks had done earlier on in the fight, and despite the bout being incredibly close, the smaller man prevailed with the Unanimous decision, ruining Holmes chances of matching or eventually surpassing Rocky Marciano's 48-0 record, a milestone which he had his sites set on since winning the title.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QX24gNtOqDM[/ame]


Craving redemption, for his bitter loss, Holmes squared up to Spinks a year later, but again fell short on the cards as Spinks was awarded a very controversial unanimous decision. The scorecards were disputed, as Holmes himself along with many observers felt that he had deserved to win the fight in close but clear fashion. However, the judges again favoured the work of the unorthodox Spinks, despite him being unable to befuddle a more determined Holmes like he had in their previous encounter. Holmes jabbed with more authority, pushed back Spinks and tied him up on the inside to negate his better work and despite falling short in some rounds, appeared to better Spinks over the distance. Disgusted with the decision, and disillusioned with the way boxing had treated him, Holmes entered a temporary retirement in which would not return to the ring for almost 2 years. It appeared as though the better days of Larry Holmes career were over.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gBd0QFw9A_Y[/ame] [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sn4qNReFClc[/ame]

 

After the longest absense from the ring in his entire professional career, Holmes returned to the Heavyweight division in 1988 to challenge recently crowned undisputed champion Mike Tyson. Tyson, a beast of a fighter who boasted a combination of speed, power and ferocity not witnessed in the division since the days of Sonny Liston, was a massive favourite to stop Holmes, despite the veteran fighter never being KO'd before. This was exactly what transpired, as Holmes was stopped in truly brutal fashion in the 4th round after 3 heavy knockdowns at the hands of the relentless champion. Holmes's plan off jabbing off the back foot proved futile against the aggressive Tyson who walked Holmes down before wiping the brave challenger out with consumate ease. It was the first truly conclusive loss of Holmes career, and it was a devastating one indeed.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I8jdE2MCEVE[/ame] [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xSb4-ejQavw[/ame]


Holmes spent a further 3 years out of the ring following his crushing loss at the hands of Tyson, eventually choosing to again return to the ring in 1991, against a string of Journeyman and novices. After regaining his confidence and re-ad******g himself to the ring, Holmes stepped up to challenge the unbeaten prospect Ray Mercer, a highly touted fighter who was coming off 2 career high knockout victories over Francesco Damiani and Tommy Morrison. His devastating KO of the unbeaten Morrison had led many to believe that Mercer could be a force in the division, and Holmes was seen as the perfect catalyst for Mercer's rise to the top. Not if Larry had anything to say about it: In a scintillating performance, Holmes turned back the years to dominate the lackadaisical Mercer, dominating him with the jab whilst peppering him with hard combinations when his back against the ropes. The lazy Mercer allowed himself to be outworked by the more hungry and determined Holmes, and lost his unbeaten record via a comfortable UD to the veteran. Holmes was a shadow of his prime self, but was still, with the guile and skill he retained from his prime days, capable of testing any top fighter.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=izY9RHhc9Gw[/ame]


The victory over Mercer spurred Holmes on to challenge current undisputed champion Evander Holyfield. The younger, fresher and more capable Holyfield was able to defeat the game, but ultimately outgunned Holmes by Unanimous decision over 12, winning comfortably on all 3 cards. Holmes posed a few problems to the younger champion with his legendary jab and ability but was no match for the sharpness or combination punching of the quicker Holyfield. Holmes could take pride however in going the distance with the very capable champion as well as nicking several rounds along the way. Holmes courageous effort was epitomized by him vomiting at the sound of the final bell, showing that he could give his all regardless of age related handicapps.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wqm8TRYz4xk[/ame] [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ju9mHtsNg8c[/ame]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lUBz3XEI0Gk[/ame] [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xeebAj8GpU8[/ame]


The defeat sent Holmes down the road to facing a number of journeyman over the next 3 years until 1995, when Holmes saw possibly his final opportunity to regain the Heavyweight championship against the decidedly weak belt holder Oliver McCall. The fairly unskilled, but otherwise iron chinned McCall, who had won the belt with a shock KO over Lennox Lewis was viewed as one of the less stellar Heavyweight champions, and Holmes saw his chance to return to the limelight. It wasn't to be however, as despite performing valiantly Holmes fell just short and lost out by unanimous decision to the more active and aggressive. Despite winning a number of rounds boxing off the back foot and sticking his jab in the face of McCall, Holmes was simply too old to really get out of 1st gear, meaning he could not get his shots off, which allowed the younger MCcall to simply outwork the older challenger, particularly in the later rounds of the bout. Holmes again could take some pride in pushing the champion to the limit.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOay8JUj4JQ[/ame]


Refusing to be deterred, Holmes strung together 4 more wins before travelling to Denmark to test unbeaten Heavyweight contender Brian Nielsen. Nielsen, nothing short of a pudding with one of the most padded records in the sport, was nearly embarrassingly upset by Holmes, who at times schooled the unbeaten home town fighter but could not keep up with the pace set by Nielsen, who prevailed by a controversial split decision. It appeared Holmes last chance saloon at returning to prominence had passed.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cw17KsULuio[/ame]


Seeing that the end of his long career was on the horizon, Holmes brought a close to his career with 4 wins, including 2 over old, past-prime foe's Bonecrusher Smith and Mike Weaver. In the final fight of his career, at the age of 50, an almost geriatric Holmes took on well known novelty fighter Eric 'Butterbean' Esch, in a sideshow bout seen as a jovial last hurrah for Holmes. Larry won by easy unanimous decision against his obese opponent, sticking him with his jab whilst keeping on his toes to dish out a boxing lesson to the Bean. Holmes even put his showmanship on display when he feigned being hurt in the 12th round to spice up and otherwise boring encounter. It would be the final time Holmes would ever step between the ropes, and he was satisfied to go out with a victory, regardless of the opponent.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRotpnkhvtk[/ame]


It brought and end to a career which had spanned nearly 30 years, a career which had seen the emergence of one of the most skilled and most qualified Heavyweight champions of all time. Holmes boasts one of the best resumes the division has been afforded to bear witness too, which includes countless wins over unbeaten fighters as Holmes cleaned out his era with aplomb. Though he was never a fan favourite, with his mild personality and irritable mannerisms often preventing the public from warming too him, Holmes is nevertheless regarded as one of the greatest fighters his country has ever produced and can proudly sport a legacy which will go down amongst the very best in history.

 

Nice work. I'll upload the 'Spoon fight once I get my laptop sorted, I have it on DVD somewhere :good

 

Ah, really? Nice one. I could swear it was on youtube until recently. Though it was ages ago that I watched it.

 

And what an intriguing fight it is!