Watching Kenty-O'Grady on tv this morning and just in awe of the great body attack Sean laid on hilmer. ****in'brutal!! What could have been if his dad hadn't ruined his career in the next few months and totally demoralized The Green Machine. Him and Mancini is huge! This bodypunching o'Grady takes out the Arguello fight Boom boom I believe. Just a thread for a great performance by an underrated champion. Wonder what o'Grady does now?
One of the best. His whole attack that day was built around it. One of my favorite fights. AND a great WHAT IF? for me about Sean.
I agree...Sean tko's or decisions Mancini. O'Grady gets overlooked and underrated too much here IMO. Sean's dad really interfered with and ruined his son's career IMO.
Yes! he had to be totally demoralized to fight that hard that long and just give up the Lightweight Championship of the World. It had to effect his latter performances. His dad saying he couldn't make lightweight was bull**** also. And the division was lighting up like a Christmas tree with Sean as champ. Arguello, Super Gato, Mancini and Sean had to internalize his anger at his dad forever. Wow. I would drag that what if with me for a lifetime. I was reading about Sean in The Ring and the Victory Sports mags since the early 70s when he was a ranked BANTAMWEIGHT! To get to the top & have your own dad trash it? Wow. No way you are the same fighter. You realize then you are fighting for nothing. No org will rank you again and yr father just handed yr critics their sought after victory.
Sean should have dumped his Dad Pat O'Grady as Promoter / Manager. Yes, Sean would have probably lost some fights due to a cut and a TKO, but there were 4-6 really good top fights he could have possibly been involved in, and taken home another title or so. In Sept, 1983 the WBA stripped Aaron Pryor of the Jr. Welter title, so Sean could have been in the mix to fight Leroy Haley, Bruce Curry, Johnny Bumphus or Gene Hatcher for an ABC Jr. WW title at that time period. 1982-06-26 1983-05-18 United States Leroy Haley WBC 1983-05-18 1984-01-29 United States Bruce Curry WBC 1984-01-22 1984-06-01 United States Johnny Bumphus WBA 1984-06-01 1985-07-21 United States Gene Hatcher WBA
O'Grady's career best performance. I thought he had no chance against Kenty, but I couldn't have been more wrong.
Not sure where you place Mancini's "losing" effort against Arguello: 981-10-03 : Alexis Arguello 135 lbs beat Ray Mancini 134½ lbs by TKO at 1:44 in round 14 of 15 Location: Ballys Park Place Hotel Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA Referee: Tony Perez Judge: Jose Mayorga 127-122 Judge: Eva Shain 125-122 Judge: Roberto Ramirez Sr. 125-123 World Boxing Council Lightweight Championship (1st defense by Arguello) Notes The twenty-year-old Mancini entered the fight ranked No. 3 at lightweight by the WBC. More than 500 fans from Mancini's hometown of Youngstown, Ohio, attended the fight. After ten rounds, one judge had Arguello ahead, one had Mancini ahead and the third had the fight even. Mancini was floored by a right in the thirteenth round. Arguello floored Mancini with another right in round fourteen as referee Tony Perez stepped in to stop the fight. This was Mancini's first defeat after twenty consecutive wins. "It was the best fight so far this year, my friend," Arguello said to Mancini after the fight. He then told the press, "I think my heart is special. But his heart is bigger than I have. ... Someday this young man will be champion." After the fight, Mancini said, "This isn't the end of the story. This is the standard first chapter. I'll be back." Seven months and five days later, on May 8, 1982, Mancini stopped Arturo Frias in one round to win the WBA Lightweight Championship.
O Grady prime was so short because of his father interference. Kenty fight was his defining fight. Last words on this brutal fight to Sean " Kenty was one tough man . He was super tough and he just kept trying and trying. He puked between the 11 and 12 rd while he was in the corner. What a tough warrior. "
Ray looked good but man, did Ramirez look bad. Real bad, as in Duplooy bad. You just wondered how Ramirez got that lofty record of his. He did much better in subsequent fights, but he showed up with his B game, or worse, against Mancini.
I think Mancini gets gets sold short here. He looked great in this fight firing on all cylinders but all critics want to say is how bad Ramirez looked. Mancini was a very good fighter always in top shape tons of pressure and heart always gave his best yet as lot of people always dumping on him. What more can you ask for in a fighter?