fights on the radio

Ah.......Them were the days for sure :good Among the fights I listened to were -


Ali-Foreman
Ali-Spinks II
Hagler-Hearns
Honeyghan-Curry
Leonard-Hearns II


Really enjoyable. After Ali-Foreman I was dancing round my bedroom !

 

Radio 2 on Medium Wave desperately trying to get a decent reception...

I remember listening to Bruno/Coetzee, the commentator screaming "He's down!", then the signal went, and when it came back I heard only the crowd, it was probably only seconds, but it seemed like an eternity, before finding out Bruno had his title shot!

 

i remember froch v jermain taylor on the radio.....if i remember right it wasnt on uk tv live (that right?)....and it sounded epic.

frank bruno v tsyon in 89...i listened at 3 or 4am or whatever it was on the radio....it was one of the first ppv's in the uk i think....i also think it was the first year of sky tv....i remember one pub in the town where i was working in england were selling 25 pound tickets (this was 89 remember) to watch it on the pub telly in middle of the night, whatever kind of extension to the license they got....but it was far too much for me to pay with the shite job i had then......sounded great on the radio though....headphones in lying in bed punching pillows "go on frank...!!"

 

Hagler v Hearns was amazing to listen to on the radio.

Honeyghan v Curray also the commentators in shock at what was unfolding.

Many others but those stand out for me.

 

i have a collection of the 1940's and 50's classic fights.....with the likes of don dunphy, greatest of them all.....just so good to listen to....

this amazing video replaces the original commentary with the radio broadcast...fantastic...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IksKG80ER9o

 

The first fight was the first time SKY really made a national push in selling their services.

The second fight was the first time SKY used Pay Per View. But as AlFrancis pointed out, it was not the first time there was PPV boxing in the UK, that actually happened in the 1960s, when his Dad (Alan Rudkin) fought on Closed Circuit.

 

was that at cinemas ?

 

No, Al said it was a regional service offered to people at their home provided they had a TV. It was PPV...

This is the thread I am talking about:

http://www.boxingforum24.com/showthread.php?t=476192

 

I remember listening to many great fights broadcast on the radio from the late '50s through the early '70s. Among them were Patterson-Johansson II & III, Liston-Patterson I & II, Liston-Ali I&2, Ali-Williams, Ali-Terrell, Ali-Folley, Frazier-Ellis, Foreman-Chuvalo.

While they weren't real fights, the Murray Woroner Computerized Heavyweight Championship Tournament in 1967 was enjoyable. More interesting than the computerized fights were the analysis and predictions of fighters and fight experts. As an example, it was most interesting hearing Jess Willard giving his recollections and thoughts on Jack Johnson. The similar Middleweight Tournament the following year was likewise interesting.

Going back a generation, my father listened to many famous bouts in the '30s. He enjoyed telling of the antics of Max Baer being broadcast - such as running up to the referee and giving him a big kiss. He also told of the complete shock and disbelief of the broadcaster telling of Joe Louis being floored in the fourth round against Max Schmeling.

 

woah !!....tell me more about that please

 

just got to find recordings online of that 67 fantasy tournament.....got to be mp3's somewhere

 

Marciano and Toupee... I mean Ali actually stepped in the ring and created the final. Marciano wining by stoppage in America, and I believe a draw in Europe.

 

The only radio broadcast I can remember listening to was the Ali-Terrell.
I had my head under my parents 'consol' crap stereo/furniture system and they gave a delayed broadcast after each round.

 

To doug.ie - the following link gives a pretty detailed account of the 1967 computerized Heavyweight Championship tournament:

http://www.thecorememory.com/Boxing_Simulation.pdf

It started in September, 1967 and they ran one fight per week on numerous radio stations into December, 1967. The superfight - Marciano vs Ali was a 'sequel' to this tournament. A few years ago, I ordered the superfight from amazon.com and with it came another dvd of the computerized tournament. I must confess that I haven't listened to the dvd yet, so I can't say how complete it is. By completeness, I mean the comments of fighters and experts on the 'bout' about to take place. Prior to each fight, different persons would be interviewed for their thoughts and predictions about the upcoming fight. For example, prior to the Jack Johnson - Max Baer fantasy match they interviewed Jess Willard, who told of his 26-round victory over Johnson, Joe Louis, who fought Max Baer, and Nat Fleischer, among others. All of these picked Johnson to win. Others commenting throughout the series included Jack Dempsey, Jack Sharkey, Max Schmeling, Jim Braddock, Jersey Joe Walcott, Rocky Marciano, Muhammad Ali, Jack Kearns Jr., Angelo Dundee, and Nat Fleischer. I had just started my first year in college, and these weekly broadcasts were really something to look forward to.

The following year, Murray Woroner followed up with a tournament with the middleweights. One of the first fantasy bouts was a 'rematch' of Mickey Walker and Harry Greb. In talking to Walker, he related the story of their street brawl following their real 1925 bout. That story has been disputed over the years, but Walker told it as if it were true - waiting until Greb had removed his outer jacket to the point where his arms were pinned behind his back and then cracking Greb on the jaw.

I just looked through amazon.com to see if any of the computerized series are available for sale. I could not find any listed. This was just a quick search, so hopefully they are out there somewhere.