Just like Eubank/Watson 2, no matter how incredible of a fight it was, I don't feel right sitting through it knowing what happens at the end.
D thing is that if it was'nt 4 that referee's constant deliberate stalling , McClellan would have gotten rid of Benn in d very 1st round . 2nd round if being very generous 2 Benn . McClellan 2 me is a 2 division champ who was never stopped , while Benn has yet another stoppage loss in his record . But McClellan would have probably gotten stopped later in his career if he wouldn't retire because d damage was already there prior 2 d Benn fight .
I agree. This tragedy could have been avoided. The fight should have ended in the first. It could have saved Mclellan from the life he now lives because he was having problems in sparring. He was hurt badly by a jab in sparring but never followed up on it. Terrible ending, but a brutal first round. Mclellan is called overated because he was a frontrunner, but he was a hell of a fighter that could have gone down with big credentials if he was smarter. Emanuel Steward knew how to harness his power over the course, the other guys just let him loose to throw bombs.
I think on this night Nigel Benn was fuelled beyond his normal capacity, not so much with the formidable challange Gerald presented, but perhaps by the added feeling that his own promoters were "Cashing him in" with the Don King promotional Linkup and Plans for subsequent Superfights for Gerald with Jones and Toney etc, Benns Resentment at his being sold short, and by most Boxing Journalists he considered knowledgeable friends, ignited the blood in his veins, - at the conclusion of the fight - battle of wills, - Wills that overrode Muscles and sinew all crying out for respite...Benns was head to say repeatedly and angrily "They only brought him over here to Bash Me Up.." I think Nigel went into that ring with more than one opponent in mind, and every Time Gerald Hit him, and he marched on, He was marching to Victory over a Collective, when he hit Gerald he was Hitting those Manoeuvring Money Merchants who sold him short and took him for granted, Gerald was the focus point of his cold rage, but i think there were a few additional targets that night, Of course victory was the aim, not the physical price paid by Gerald.
Yea i agree,the ending is very hard to watch..so much went wrong there,the ref should of stopped it in the 1st,then when the g-man starts the blinking etc,his corner or the ref should of stoppd it. Anyone know how his son goes in the ring? anygood?
Good post. :good Frank ****** was all hooked up with Don King at the time, and we can be sure that they both calculated that a McClellan win was most likely. I certainly thought McClellan would take him, and most in the British press thought so too. Obviously the Americans all favoured McClellan. Benn earned and enjoyed a great amount of recognition with the win, but at such a terrible price.
If it was stopped in the first wouldn't McClellan have just had the same problem in another fight? Benn was entitled by the ruleset 20seconds to get back into the ring btw
You didnt finish reading my post. He was having problems in training. He was hurt very badly by a jab in sparring before the fight. He had to stop and had blurred vision, but never got it checked out. Possibly it could have happened in less of a brutal fashion during training, and he could have retired or made it surgery whatever. I think the ref could have easily stopped the fight after Benn was knocked down and hurt badly for the second or third time? Bad call on the refs part in my opinion.
I know its easy being a revisionist but i feel the ref and McClellands corner have a lot to answer for. I clearly remember watching the fight in a bar with my mates and commenting on how he was breathing through his mouth and that something wasnt right (think it was round 3 maybe 4). Of course id no idea how serious it was but if we could see it unfold on a tv in front of us then the ref and cornermen had a better view