This content is protected Was it a case of right place right time or would Lloyd always have been Dons nightmare?
At his best Don destroys Honeyghan. Honeyghan would jump all over Curry but Curry would be strong enough to survive and eventually pick him apart. The Don Curry that Honeyghan fought should never have stayed at welterweight.
Very. **** the excuses. Don was a robot overwhelmed that night. The rest of his career played that out. Curry like Tyson was in his prime and just got overwhelmed as would happen several times again for both.
The beauty of over 30 years of hindsight. At the time I knew of no-one who gave Honeyghan a sniff. And as for Curry not being at his best; well plenty were suggesting he was the best fighter on the planet at the time. And some of us were even tipping him to be man to end a Marvelous reign...
True he was tipped to beat Hagler. Skills wise he was one of the best. But no one knew about his weight problems. I don’t think he’d have beaten Hagler but I just think he would have been too fast and accurate for Honeyghan.
Honeygan would not have beaten the Curry of a few years earlier I don't think, picking the right time has been kind to a few British fighters, thinking, Stracey, Mcguigan, both beat greats, but long in the tooth greats. keep well.
That is comparing apples and oranges: Honeyghan was stepping into the ring with a fighter who was considered by some the best on the planet and in his prime. Both Napoles and Pedroza fought Stracey and McGuigan, with people knowing both were past their pomp and with the right fighter opposite them, there for the taking. Plenty thought McGuigan might be that fighter, Stracey less so, particularly during the first round!
Shocker at the time. Curry was at the top of the p4p rankings and was on top of the game. In retrospect, maybe Curry wasn't all he was being cracked up to be because he never came close to those heights again. But at the time it was a major shocker
No one knew of weight problems until after Honey. When they conveniently showed up. He had the same problems for McCrory but won that and is GREAT C' MON MAAAAAN! EVEN CORNPOP, A BAD DUDE! , DON'T FALL FOR THAT. HONEYGHAN crushed Curry's heart that night scared the **** out of him and made him quit. Curry heartless was never the same again. FACT!!!!!!!
I see where you are coming from ( sort of ) the apples/oranges is a bit harsh/misplaced if I may, on Curry yes I agree he was a highly thought of fighter, but we didn't know till after the fight was, how much weight he had to lose to make 147 and that he had been struggling to get down to WW for some time, so with hindsight that result is tarnished some what No ? so timing... Regarding the Napoles/Pedroza thread, you say with people knowing both were past their prime, as I recall ( and I will stand corrected ) the prevailing thought process with in the trade ( Boxing News ) and the sports press alike was both Stracey and McGuigan would both be defeated, despite the fact both were in their 30s, I dont remember reading anywhere they were " there for the taking " once again, if that was not the case, then I am mistaken and you will carry the day, enjoy your posts, and value your input and knowledge .keep well.
Can't fault Honeyghan's performance. He fought a brilliant fight. Don't discredit it. It was an excellent performance, very intelligent and very imposing. He used the right tactics. The excuses for Curry are a bit silly. Honeyghan was a top fighter, ranked #1 by WBC and was undefeated in 27 fights, and fought the right fight.
Napoles/Stracey was a little before I read magazines; but certainly Taylor and Lockridge were considered real threats to Pedroza and by 84 it was thought (harshly) that Pedroza was avoiding the big fish. I, like Boxing News, thought Pedroza would edge McGuigan, but generally that was a minority view. Sure there was a bias towards the Irishman, but there was a strong case built for a McGuigan win, and these people were proved correct.
The replies are really off the mark Anyone watching the Rodriguez fight 4 months after the Mcrory win, would be able to tell Curry had started partying ,doing drugs, given up his dedication.Weight was a factor.So was Curry's tangible frustration at a big payday with Hagler not materialising.He than wanted McCallum at 154.It didn't happen. In short he was weight drained,unmotivated and mentally distracted. He had at this point had over 400 amateur bouts suffered the 1980 Olympic disapointment and now he was being denied the superfight His "problems" didnt matter against a Rodriguez ...but against a Honeyghan who was a hungry fast highly skilled powerpuncher he needed to be at his best. Instead he was a shell. Anyone seeing how slow his reflexes were in the first round can see in hindsight he was a zombie. Honeyghan was the most talented gifted fighter Curry had ever faced even better than Starling who always upped his game against Curry.And he represented something Curry hadn't seen in the pro ranks.Hell there were very few fighters in the world with Honeyghans versatile jekyl and hide skills. The Curry of 1983-85 definitely beats the prime Honeyghan but Lloyd was a formidable fighter in 1986 and wouldve beaten Starling,McCrory or Breland that night.