If there had been no Frank Bruno , would Gary Mason have got a world title shot ?

I refuse to contemplate a world without Frank Bruno ... but no, Gary was not quite that level. Beat some past-sell-by-date Americans who were taking paydays and had name recognition but nothing on his resume qualifies for a title shot.

 

The Lawless/Duff/Barret/Astair stable would have got whomever was their top heavyweight a title shot in the absence of Frank Bruno.

I’m not sure Mason necessarily suffered for being in Franks shadows though because when he was about ready he had to get past Lennox - and that fight ended his career.

Was Mason good enough to win the fights Frank did? Yes, I think he was because he fought some of them anyway. Frank was more versatile and a better boxer, but that is not to say they couldnt beat the same men.

 

Mason probably gets protected enough to be Tyson fodder in 89.

What is shuddering to think is that Gerrie Coetzee probably gets another title shot in 86, if Witherspoon choose to fight him; if not a Tubbs/Coetzee vacant title fight probably sets up Tyson's March 87 victim.

 

gary was much tougher the HP Sauce,but very slow on the offensive. a real life plodder footworkwise. watching him fight after a lower weight bout made you think your video was stuck in frame advance.


but he tended to apply 100% concentration, bruno would sometimes freeze.


HP was a better finisher, faster hands too.


PS. HP is bruno btw. he did HP sauce tv adverts.


gary was also a different age group i think.

 

I reckon with no Bruno ,Gary would maybe have got a shot against Tyson in 89.After a brave effort he'd have been stopped before the 7 th. He then loses to Lewis and suffers his eye damage and retires

 

Garry was slow of foot but had good hand speed decent power and concrete chops.he was a underrated fighter in my opinion .I dont think he beats Tyson unless he gets the Tokyo gig but could of beaten others in the top ten at that time.He didn't hit as hard as Frank but was more reliable chin wise .A fight with Forman in 90 would of been good .
RIP Champ.

 

I was a fan of both guys and Gary put up a brave effort, but I wouldn't suggest he gave Lewis a good fight. It became clear, very early on, that Mason had nothing in his locker to trouble Lewis.

Mason was systematically picked off by what was effectively a novice version of Lewis, taking a wince-worthy drubbing, in the process. The mercy stoppage came later than it should have, in my opinion.

In terms of levels, there was a fair bit of daylight between Mason and Bruno and the Mason/Lewis bout, more or less confirmed it without question.

 

That’s a bit unfair. I supported Mason in that fight, he-gave his all. Lewis won. It was not clear that there was “nothing in Garry’s locker room”, what are you talking about You fan boy! Lewis went life and death to win that fight what were you watching?

Lewis was never a novice. He was a two time Olympic veteran before he even turned pro!

You need to understand what you are watching before you pass judgment.

 

I am a little hazy on the Mason/Bruno beef, but I seem to recall reports focusing mainly on Gary's discontent at playing second fiddle to Frank. I don't recollect Bruno getting too involved, if at all, publicly - perhaps not wanting to help fan the flames that had been stoked up by the media.

I always felt Mason was a fair bit behind Bruno, but I don't doubt that Gary had a fair few supporters, believing he could be on a par with and/or even surpass Frank.

 

Even taking Bruno out of the equation, Mason hadn't done enough to warrant a title shot before Tyson was unseated by Douglas. Douglas was locked into fight Holyfield, who would inevitably fight Foreman next. By this point Mason had already lost to Lewis.

Even if we work on the basis that in a Bruno-free era Mason is pushed harder and faster by the Cartel, it's difficult to see how he gets the momentum to be a viable challenger for Tyson. Although he was a likeable chap, Mason didn't quite have Bruno's crossover charisma, or his mix of power and vulnerability (Mason being more of a durable pressure fighter).

The alternative and more viable route is that Mason is lined up for shot against Damiani for the WBO belt. The WBO was more recognised in the UK than elsewhere at that time, and they may have decided to try and gain some leverage with a title of sorts, bearing in mind at the time Britain hadn't had any kind of world heavyweight champion that century.

 

Mason ended up working as a bouncer at a nasty bar!

That is a damn shame!

 

Jesus Wept - Just when you thought it was safe to travel alone in cyber-space - out pops Choklab, like a chunk of unadulterated witlessness to ruin your evening...


What fight was I watching? The one where Lewis gave Mason a drubbing, in a bout that could have been stopped much earlier than the seventh round. The one where Mason gave his all but never had Lewis in trouble at any point in the bout. It just wasn't competitive.

At best, you could say Mason tried valiantly (and in doing so, looked like he had a vague chance of landing something back on Lewis, by the end of the first, and was getting a few reasonable body shots in, here and there). But Mason was being found by Lewis with just about anything he threw. Lewis wasn't even defending himself, earlier than midway into the bout, and it didn't look like Mason could really hurt him.


Life and death? You mean Mason was desperately looking for a KO as early as round-3; that Larry O'Connell and the judges might well have been watching a different fight than the one they were supposed to be scoring?

Harry Carpenter was calling it correctly, as was Frank Bruno, providing supplementary commentary. Lewis with 14 Pro fights under his belt looked the experienced Professional, in front of Mason. By the middle of the third round, the writing was on the wall for Mason. As one newspaper put it, "Mason... ...was deficient in pace and strategy" (The Guardian - 08 March 1991)


Put the brandy and port away and ask the night-duty nurse to tuck you in. There's a good chap.