Frank Bruno was undoubtedly a popular figure in his time, both as a gallant losing contender, to the culmination of his victory over Oliver McCall to secure the World Heavyweight Title. Bruno had a few things going for him, in terms of furthering his popularity to the casual fan, below are a few significant benefits: 1. His fights with Tyson 2. Competing at the top end of the heavyweight divison 3. His brilliant camaraderie with Harry Carpenter. 5. Boxing at that time was still getting excellent mainstream coverage. 4. And, he was such a likeable guy All of this lead to Bruno becoming a British sporting hero and led to regular appearances on national tv talk shows in Britain and also in the US, where Bruno made an appearance on the Johnny Carson Show. So, compare this with the likes of Rendall Monroe, who really has such a good story - the boxing binman. A family man, dedicated trainer, humble and down to earth guy - who has worked harder than most (recent UK contenders anyway) to earn a world title shot. If Monroe had have operated in the days of Bruno, would he have gained more popularity and caught the attention of the casual fan, perhaps not to the same extent as Bruno, but nonetheless, a well known public figure to the casual fan?
Well the heavyweight division always gets more attention, and especially anybody who faced Tyson back when he was formidable, it really caught the casual fans' imagination
Granted. The Tyson fights elevated Bruno's popularity to another level, especially in the US i.e. his appearance on the Carson show. But, I remember his title fight against Witherspoon - it got massive publicity and Bruno was hugely popular at that time
Completely different landscape these days, there is no Lennox Lewis or Mike Tyson to fight in any division let alone down at that weight.
If he were at a higher weight he would get more press.Its a shame cos as you say he is made for the casual fan.Easy going,nice family man,works a normal job and trains hard.He is also a very good fighter,its just that the lighter weights dont get the publicity.I think had they got todays fight on these shores it would have got him some well deserved attention.Sadly though tomorrow he will barely get a mention in the papers.
Frank Bruno had more of a personality.......... Frank Bruno was a heavyweight.... They had two totally different personalitys.
Of course the lighterweights dont get the same attention as the heavys, but there have been exceptions, i.e. Barry McGuigan (featherweight) - one of the most popular domestic sportsmen during his time