Marvin Johnson

I don't see Galindez as so shot .. he only lost one fight in over eight years to Rossman in a fluke where he was under prepared .. he thrashed Rossman in the rematch and was only 31 when he fought Johnson .. if anything he was struggling to make weight .. that being said Johnson iced him. I personally think the Saad/Mustafa/Johnson/Spinks/Qwai era of light heavyweights was one terrific group and any of this guys at their best beat Galindez and Conteh who were just a notch lower ..

 

I saw MJ train regularly here in Indy at the PAL Club with Champ Chaney. While Champ was a tough old-time fighter (he used to remind me all the time that he beat Lee Oma and was world ranked at one time), I think Johnson's contemporaries had higher quality sparring, training, and camps overall and this probably had more than a little to do with his "near misses" in big fights. Marvin was a surly, distant guy who, though the official "coach" of my PAL team, didn't have more than a passing interest in training or working with any of us. I know he avoids any interviews or discussion of his boxing career here locally out of bitterness that he never made the big money other champs did. I don't know if he might not have had that top-echelon career if he had been based out of Philly or L.A or some other market with different handlers.

 

He was staying with Spinks pretty well right up until the point when he got obliterated by that left hooker-cut though. Really, the only two fights where he was dominated was the Gregory fight and in his final fight against Stewart. He had very, very good moments against everyone else he faced.

 

The Rossman revenge was his last gasp...and rfemember, that fight ended because of Rossman's broken right hand. True, Galindez was fighting better that second time around, and he had much motivation in regaining the title for his fellow Argentines, who didn't hold him in the same esteem as Monzon, even in his prime. There was a good chance that it could have gone 15 rounds and a decision for galindez....but this was his last hurrah reeally. He beat better fighters than Johnson in his prime....and after losing to Johnson via ko, he lost by a deciaion to a man he had already beaten before, Jesse Burnett...getting decked a couple of times in the process. I give credit to Johnson for getting the job done vs Galindez, but that wasn't prime Victor. Like I said, the Galindez that beat Johnson's conqueror, Eddie Mustafa a couple of years earlier would have beaten Johnson as well. Prime Galindez would have beaten Conteh also IMO,...too bad that fight was never made.

 

The loss to Eddie Mustafa...that peerless performance by Eddie, ruined Johnson, as I said before.

 

Galindez was the rare breed that altered his style and continued to win and defend that title.

His legs were long since gone. He had some good wheels early in his career but by that stage of the game he was a retreat to the ropes and counter guy. But don't use those legs.

 

A great on the ropes counter guy.

 

Greetings McGrain!
Given Marvin's 'body of work' among LH's, I'd put him above Gregory in the weight class ranking; that being said Marvin doesn't compare to Eddie as a potential atg and wasn't near as talented.
Given all his bad decisions along the way along with his 'head demons' many grossly underestimate the true potential/talent of Eddie. Boxer! Puncher! Great set of whiskers! (no one knocks this guy out!).
Although many disagree, I STILL to this day think he was a superior fighter to 'The Jinx'. After dismantling Marvin he 'baloons' up to 200 lbs. to fight Snipes then...has to go into a sweat tank at the last minute to make weight for the Spinks defense (he looked like a shriveled pear when he stepped into the ring). After building a lead early, he wilted in the back side of the fight. Many don't realize that the Associated Press still called the Gregory-Spinks fight a draw. IMHO had he had his head on straight, Eddie would have gone down as one of the all-time greats giving anyone in any era PURE HELL!
As for Marvin, I'm an Indy native who followed him from his amateur days forward. Saw his first 6-7 pro fights at the Armory in Indy. We thought his aggressive lack of pacing would do him in once he stepped up and fought the 'big boys' but we were wrong.
It always sticks in my craw that, after beating Parlov, he didn't take a couple of decent 'paydays' before challenging Frankin again.
Was at ringside for the rematch.
Met Marvin's son in downdown Indy about 20 years ago; a soft-spoken kind gentleman which gives a good testament to Marvin as a father as well.
In closing, his first fight with Franklin in Philly is one for the ages!!!
I would encourage everyone to get a copy. Up until the final few minutes I don't think I've EVER seen a fight, up to that point, that was virtually impossible to score! Who knew what the judges were thinking after the 9th or 10th round? A true 'pier 6 brawl' as they say. Thank you Marvin for letting me be a part of your early growth to world class status. I'll take the excitement you gave me to my grave!

 

Good post

But at the end of the day, talent only gets you so far. I know it's a cliché, but it applies to Eddie.

Eddie lacked the dedication to fully maximize his potential.

Like you said, He also did some bizarre stuff:

Balooning up to 200 plus to fight Renalto Snipes in a rather meaningless Heavyweight fight and then having to drop 25 lbs in a short time to fight a very tough opponent in Michael Spinks . That surely cost him any shot at beating Spinks.

Then, he gets a rematch but can't make weight and claims the scales are rigged. He blows not only that title shot, but any chance of being taken seriously again.

The guy really blew it.

 

Eddie was a headcase .. he had a ton of talent but often under performed ... the way he froze up against James Scott .. losing a close one to Galindez for the title .. he pulled it together for a few years but then self destructed against Spinks with the weight issue .. never really understood why he didn't get another title shot .. he just sort of petered out ..

 

agree he...but what frigging talent! His head games ruined him.
I've heard he's still involved...training? other contributions?
I'd love to meet him and tell him how great he was (or could have been) tho if I brought up what I perceived as his shortcomings I might have to taste a left-hook or straight right.
No Eddie wouldn't do that.

 

986-02-09 Market Square Arena, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA Vacant WBA World Light Heavyweight Title . Don't forget that in the mid-80's, Johnson fought on USA / ESPN cards on week nites and worked his way back to win a WBA title over Leslis Stewart who went on to be a decent LightHvy himself.

 

Terrific fighter in a terrific era and division. Beaten by Alan Minter as an amateur.

 

That is awesome that you were at the Saad/Johnson rematch. What a fight. Saad simply walked through Johnson after hurting him at the end of the 7th round. Saad's face was a mask of blood all the while in the 8th round. What drama.

 

He got TWO more title shots. He failed to make weight for the Spinks rematch at the DC Armory in the summer of '83 and he challenged Slobadan Kachar and lost a very close decision for the IBF title in 1985.

There was something weird/delusional in Eddie's thinking process near the end of his career. Just before he fought Kachar, he wrote an "Open Letter" - Just an informal thing on pen/paper with terrible spelling and grammar as I remember, published in one of the less influential boxing magazines - I can't remember which one but it was not KO or the Ring. In the letter, he continued his conspiracy theory rantings that the scales were rigged and that is why he failed to make weight for the DC title shot against Spinks. He called Spinks a chicken, etc. It was actually the kind of sad ramblings of a fast fading fighter.