just how good was A-Force..

Scorpion · May 31, 2015

tbe

Zakman · Jun 1, 2015

Here's a spot on assessment of A-FARCE and his fraudulent career:

He pulled the wool over everybody's eyes
By Martin Domin

Audley Harrison was akin to a cheating lover. An adulterer adept at the art of deception but even better at crawling back into his partners bed.

Delusional to the last, the London heavyweight will not be missed. The British public was the jilted party convinced time and time again that Harrison amounted to more than just empty bluster.

But first, an acknowledgment. Harrison was the first Brit to win super-heavyweight gold at the Olympics when he triumphed in 2000. His success paved the way for the likes of Amir Khan and James Degale to win medals of their own at subsequent Games.

Last years stunning haul of three golds, one silver and one bronze was in part thanks to the increased funding and attention the sport has enjoyed in the 13 years since Harrisons victory.

But his retirement today, at the age of 41, is not about those amateur achievements.

Harrison turned professional in 2001 to much fanfare, signing an initial two-year deal with the BBC.

His debut was the first live bout shown by the broadcaster since Frank Bruno beat Jesse Ferguson seven years previously. Six million people watched as Harrison knocked Mike Middleton out in the first round but by the following year, the audience had plummeted to 1.5m after a string of one-sided contests.

Of course, the death of boxing on terrestrial TV cannot be blamed entirely on Harrison poor match-ups, poor undercards and no guarantee over the length of a bout have all played their part.

Neither was Harrison the first to be eased into a professional career with a string of gimmes.

But I havent noticed the BBC rushing, blank cheque in hand, to Anthony Joshua, Britains second Olympic super-heavyweight champion.

Harrison has always insisted, right up until his final fight, that the collapse of his £1m deal left him an empty man but his real problem was a failure to rise to the big occasion.

No one deserves to be booed from the ring as Harrison was more than once; there is no disgrace in losing a fight. But time and time again he convinced us he could yet overcome his weaknesses only to fall considerably short on each occasion.

Boxing is to publicity as gin is to tonic. Fighters are programmed to convince themselves and the paying public that they can win, regardless of the odds. David Haye is no stranger to pulling a stunt to sell a fight and while he may have fallen flat on his face against Wladimir Klitschko, his pre-fight boasts were made on the back of being the unified cruiserweight champion of the world.

What of Harrisons professional accomplishments? In five title fights, he tasted defeat in four, with his sole victory coming in his rematch with Michael Sprott for the European belt.

He lost challenges for the British, Commonwealth, European and world straps yet continued to trot out the same old rhetoric.

Let me remind you of some classic A-Force quotes.
When Ive knocked you [David Haye] out and Ive got your belt, I will come over to you with some ice and say: Am I still delusional?

Harrison threw one punch and was knocked out in the third round.

If I lose to David Price, Ive got no future. Its over. Its over for me as a professional fighter if I lose to David Price. This is the last-chance saloon for me.

If only. Harrison returned via Prizefighter before he was destroyed inside 70 seconds by Deontay Wilder last weekend.

Before that final crushing loss, he laid out how he saw the rest of his career unfolding. Victory over Wilder would lead to a fight with Wladimir Klitschko, the co-event to Hayes shot at the elder brother Vitali. Victory for the Brits would lead to one last glorious night when he avenged his defeat to his countryman.

Words escape me.

Harrison has made a lot of money and pulled the wool over the eyes of a lot of people over the last three years. That is how I will remember him.
Click to expand...

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/boxing/article-2317725/Audley-Harrison-retires-boxing-Sportsmail-debates-legacy.html#ixzz3brsmSgDm[/url]

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just how good was A-Force..

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just how good was A-Force..

Scorpion Boxing Addict Full Member

Zakman ESB's Chinchecker Full Member