26 years ago today: Lawrence "Larry / Easton Assassin" Holmes vs. James Odell "Bonecrusher" Smith II

This content is protected

That's right, they had a rematch. Even aficionados of the 1980s heavyweight boxing scene might not have known, as it transpired quietly on a program called "Legends of Boxing" that also featured Greg Page vs. Tim Witherspoon II on the undercard - itself a return engagement from a 1984 championship tilt.

Page was able to exact a measure of revenge 15 years in the making. Smith, on the other hand, fared even worse against Holmes than he did as his first IBF title challenger in 1984, and was stopped four rounds faster. In that first encounter, on the prestigious platform of HBO Sports, a 31 year old Smith managed to buzz 35 year old Holmes (a few weeks removed from a hemorrhoid surgery and coming off nearly a year of inactivity due to bout postponements and cancelations and Don King skullduggery) multiple times before succumbing to a cut opened up by a punch.

In the sequel, on a much more modest stage, as fat old men (Bonecrusher had just turned 46 and Holmes was a grandfather, five months away from celebrating his 50th birthday and coming off twice as long a layoff as he was in '84) looking to milk monetization out of their fame from decades of yore, they engaged in a methodical mid-range jabbing duel. I literally cannot think of a worse strategy for Smith against Holmes.

Predictably, that went just disastrously. Smith was peppered with left sticks high & low until ultimate humiliation was suffered: JTFD by a body jab. Mere moments later, the ref mercifully waved the contest off.

Bonecrusher to his credit did take the universe's giant flashing neon hint and never fought again. Holmes defiantly extended his victory lap into his fifties, stopping another former eighties HW titlist in Michael Dwayne "Hercules" Weaver and finally deciding to hang it up after settling for a UD over Eric Scott "Butterbean" Esch (the so-called King of the Four Rounders).