You saw on free television? Mine was Marvin Johnson-Saad Muhammeed. Can't remember if it was the first or second fight. That fight got me hooked on boxing
Tony Tubbs-Tim Witherspoon of all fights. Still can´t believe that snoozefest got me hooked though the Rocky films paved the way. Watching Marvin Hagler-Beast Mugabi later the same year sealed the deal for me.
Napoles / Lewis 1st Saw it on a Saturday afternoon, Grandstand or World Of Sport, pretty much started my love affair both with boxing and Napoles. stay safe guys.
The earliest fight for me on free TV that I can remember any details from was Jim Watt-Sean O'Grady, a bloodbath that grossed my Sister out while she was trying to eat. The earliest fight I can remember going out of my way to see also involved Tim Witherspoon, in his fight vs. Bruno. Tyson was getting a lot of buzz around that time, and that's when I became hooked on the sport.
In Australia no such thing happens, except once in my lifetime. For whatever reason, as a complete one-off, the Acelino Freitas-Joel Casamayor fight was live on Australian TV. That’s it.
First one I can definitely identify was Archie Moore v. Guilio Rinaldi II. Seems like I may have watched a few fights before that featuring guys like Gaspar Ortega, Rory Calhoun, etc., but I am not sure. The first boxing magazine I ever purchased was the August 1961 edition of Boxing Illustrated which featured the write-up about the Moore-Rinaldi fight. After that, I started buying up all the used Ring, Boxing and Wrestling, and Boxing Illustrated magazines I could find at used bookstores, going back as far as the 1940s in the case of the Ring. And watching a lot of Gillette fights on Friday and later Saturday night.
