[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wCgC3qhwJhA[/ame] - 6.03 There aren't many instances where I feel like I'm going to cry because of the raw emotion displayed in sport, but when McGuigan dedicates the fight to a fighter he once beat and who died shortly after, it's pretty damn emotional. It's a shame McGuigan would fight Cruiz and never recover, because I think he had all the ability to go on and be a long reigning champion. I think he's the most knowledgeable Boxing analyst on British TV, also.
I have this fight from '85 on tape....... I recorded it as it occurred off national TV......... My copy is still clean looking after all these yrs, as well.................. Pedroza was still a master boxer at age 33, but the 24 year old McGuigan was simply too young and peaked to be denied in London....... McGuigan took the well deserved 15 rd. decision by a wide margin on my card.......... MR.BILL Note: McGuigan really ONLY had ONE solid year as a champ / big draw......... His fights against "Pedroza, Bernard Taylor, Danilo Cabrera and Steve Cruz" was his reign of fame........... Cruz and the Vegas heat ruined McGuigan in '86........
Was it a matter of Cruz being better, or was it really the heat. I heard that McGuigan's preparations weren't as good as it could have been either.
I think the heat in Vegas killed McGuigan........... Cruz fought the fight of his life in 1986, but he was never able to duplicate that performance ever again.......... Had the fight been a 12 rounder, I'm pretty damn sure Barry M. would've gotten the decision........ Barry tired and wilted in the crucial rds of 13 thru 15......... 'Twas a GREAT ****in' fight for the ages........... Roberto Duran dropped a close shave to Robbie Sims, and Thomas Hearns looked stinky in beating Mark Medal in around round 9 by TKO..... This was a decent PPV card in 1986........ MR.BILL
I liked McGuigan as a fighter, and I admire the inroads he's tried to make in his retirement to a certain extent. This vid is a particularly potent demonstration of his character. But he ain't no analyst; that much became apparent when he stated that De La Hoya's legacy as a top 10 welterweight of all time was comfortably secure.
It was billed as the 'Triple Hitter'. Ive seen a copy of the judges scorecard of this fight a while back,think i have put away somewhere,and 2 if not 3 of the judges had McGuigan ahead going into the last round
McGuigan should havbe taken the option to fight Gomez at 130. Wilfredo was a fading power and McGuigan would have won that oen comfortably.
