I wish Jim Lampley and Larry Merchant and George Foreman were still commentating

Discussion in 'Classic Boxing Forum' started by InMemoryofJakeLamotta, May 13, 2020.


  1. sweetsci

    sweetsci Well-Known Member Full Member

    1,880
    1,831
    Jan 22, 2008
    Yeah, they were a pretty good team. I liked Al Albert and Sean O'Grady a lot. Albert had sort of a weird sense of humor that I liked, while O'Grady came off as a good guy. They knew the absurdity of some of the fights that USA aired, yet they were still very good natured without being condescending.
     
  2. Xplosive

    Xplosive Obsessed with Boxing Full Member

    24,250
    9,814
    Jun 23, 2008
    "Joe Louis always lied about his age!"
     
    InMemoryofJakeLamotta likes this.
  3. Xplosive

    Xplosive Obsessed with Boxing Full Member

    24,250
    9,814
    Jun 23, 2008
    I think Ryan and Tompkins were both better than Lampley.

    HOWEVER, there was nothing in the world like the feeling right before a big fight ring walk when Lampley said "TALE OF THE TAPE!"

    I'll definitely miss those moments.

    DAZN is horrible. Absolutely horrible. Makes boxing feel like WWE.
     
  4. InMemoryofJakeLamotta

    InMemoryofJakeLamotta I have defeated the great Seamus Full Member

    15,886
    11,436
    Sep 21, 2017
    I was thinking about a fantasy fight between Joe Louis and Mike Tyson and I imagined Jim Lampely being one of the commentators. As well as Merchant and Foreman.
     
  5. PernellSweetPea

    PernellSweetPea Boxing Junkie Full Member

    12,108
    5,694
    Feb 26, 2009
    I liked Larry Merchant.. I like Tompkins more than Lampley, and I thought Foreman was terrible. Awful. Sometimes he would come out and say things which didn't really match the fight or fighters he was commentating on. Merchant, Tompkins and Leonard was my favorite HBO team.. Gil and Tim and Leonard was also good. Pacheco to me was always bizarre commentary, but I liked him.
     
  6. zadfrak

    zadfrak Boxing Junkie Full Member

    8,494
    3,075
    Feb 17, 2008
    foreman was good on heavyweight fights---like he had done some scouting for himself. For the other weight divisions it was obvious he had not bothered to watch career development of both fighters.
     
    Richard M Murrieta likes this.
  7. Saintpat

    Saintpat Obsessed with Boxing Full Member

    23,113
    26,078
    Jun 26, 2009
    I can’t imagine that their subscriber model is too healthy right now with nothing happening.
     
    Richard M Murrieta likes this.
  8. Charlietf

    Charlietf Well-Known Member Full Member

    2,935
    2,502
    Feb 25, 2020
    Lampley was a total idiot
     
    Richard M Murrieta likes this.
  9. manilavanilla

    manilavanilla New Member Full Member

    94
    100
    Oct 30, 2019
    While I can't speak for how any of these teams could make a fight exciting in real time due to my age, I will say, from all of the HBO fights I've seeen from the 1980s and 1990s on YouTube, in my opinion Tompkins is leagues ahead of Jim Lampley, Larry Merchant is always enjoyable, and George Foreman is just tolerable. Sugar Ray was the much, much better boxer in the booth for mine. The production quality of a 1980s HBO boxing broadcast is second to none, pure class.
     
  10. InMemoryofJakeLamotta

    InMemoryofJakeLamotta I have defeated the great Seamus Full Member

    15,886
    11,436
    Sep 21, 2017
    What if a 76 year old ex-boxer really did make a comeback to fight his division's # 1 contender or reigning champion?? Wouldn't that be awesome??
     
  11. InMemoryofJakeLamotta

    InMemoryofJakeLamotta I have defeated the great Seamus Full Member

    15,886
    11,436
    Sep 21, 2017
    If I recall correctly, Leonard was a commentator for Mayweather/McGregor
     
  12. steve21

    steve21 Well-Known Member

    1,894
    3,328
    Jan 19, 2015
    Always enjoyed the commentary of fighters - they could bring a firsthand perspective that even the best reporters couldn't match. Foreman was 50/50, hot and cold ... in days of yore, Ken Norton and Jerry Quarry were excellent. In more recent years, Sean O'Grady, Ray Leonard and Roy Jones Jr were all competent and could speak firsthand to what was going on in the ring
     
  13. Mendoza

    Mendoza Hrgovic = Next Heavyweight champion of the world. banned Full Member

    55,255
    10,344
    Jun 29, 2007
    Lampley is a very good blow by blow guy, which is hard to do well. He's still on top of his game. Merchant took no crap, and boxing can be full of it. Foreman was part comic relief, but every one in a while gold came out of his mouth. A very good team. Also can't leave out the late Harold Letterman who offered quality score cards in a one of kind type of voice that mixed nervousness with excitement.
     
  14. Bonecrusher

    Bonecrusher Lineal Champion Full Member

    3,428
    1,156
    Jul 19, 2004
    They were together for quite awhile on ESPN Top Rank Boxing. Pretty much after Lampley replaced Tompkins at HBO. They were together there for most of the 90’s it feels like.

    Like others have said I have love for many of the teams I listened to over the years. I loved Al Albert and Sean O’Grady, weekly on USA Tuesday Night Fights. They had such a natural laid back chemistry which fit their product.

    Tompkins, Merchant and Sugar Ray were a great threesome in the 80s on HBO.

    I even enjoyed Len Berman and Joe Goosen when they did the TVKO stuff!!!

    Gil Clancy and Tim Ryan were a great team, kind of old-school, very classy.

    I think my Favorite team of all would still be Lampley, Merchant and Foreman.
     
    steve21 likes this.
  15. robert ungurean

    robert ungurean Богдан Philadelphia Full Member

    16,116
    15,075
    Jun 9, 2007
    They were a good team
    Lots of good memories
    For me Clancy & Ryan were the best
    I also liked Keith Jackson
    I liked Cosell too