Remember Marlon " Magic Man " Starling ?

A very good fighter and I haven't thought of him or Breland or Honygan in a long time.
Which fight did Honygan win by hitting some one just after the bell....6-7-8th round?

 

I loved watching Starling school and beat down Honeyghan.

Starling's reaction after getting KO'd (later ruled a no-contest) on a late punch by Molinares was classic. He didn't remember anything.

"He didn't hit me!"

 

I often call Starling the original Winky Wright. His defense was extremely tough to get through.

I don't know if Honeyghan won any fights with punches after the bell, but Starling lost one like that. In a title fight against Tomas Molinares, he had been fighting his usual style, keeping his gloves up in front of his face and not getting hit with anything major through six rounds. At the end of the sixth, the bell rang and Starling dropped his gloves just as Molinares was winding up with a big right hand. It landed on Starling's jaw, he fell like he'd been shot, and was counted out.

He woke up and didn't remember a thing, producing one of the funniest post-fight interviews ever. Starling was complaining to the reporter (Larry Merchant, I think) about the fight being stopped -- saying things like, "I don't understand why they would stop it!"

The reporter's answer: "Uh, Marvin, you were knocked out."

Starling: "Knocked out?! I wasn't even knocked down!"

Reporter: ------- [WTF?!]

If I remember right, the WBA or the local commission changed the result to no contest and ordered a rematch, but Molinares couldn't make 147 any more, and never fought for that title again.

 

Beat me to it!

 

The problem with Starling had to do with how he squandered away his first match with Don Curry. He'd secure a beautiful position on the inside, then simply do nothing, rather than let his hands fly (as Gil Clancy pointed out repeatedly). Otherwise, he'd just cup his hands around his mouth and make those goofy bird calls with a foolish grin on his face, or perform that silly skipping stomp of his from time to time.

If he was reading Malcolm Gordon's boxing newsletter (as many boxers were at the time), it probably didn't help Marlon's attitude towards boxing that "Flash" wrote, "On January 9, 1980, Charles Newell was killed by Marlon Starling in Hartford, Connecticut."

His principle legacy in boxing sometimes seems confined to exploding the myth of Mark Breland, but while many would describe him as a definitive underachiever, it's more amazing to me that he had as much success as he did, after continuing despite such a tragedy. If it hadn't been for something like the Newell disaster, I'm convinced that Starling would have been a lock for HOF induction the instant he became eligible.

Like Max Baer, I suspect his heart was never really in boxing after his sixth professional bout, yet his incredible talent carried him to a number of championships through his career. Others might lament what he could have achieved and failed to, but I'll always marvel at how he managed to overcome what must still be a nightmarish episode for him to live with, as much as he managed to do.

 

:scaredas: I wanted to commit suicide three rounds into the Breland/StarlingII hugfest, did anyone land a punch in that fight?

If that is a classic then I suggest you review Nelson/Deleon and Nelson/Warring they would rate five stars on the criteria you used for Starling/BrelandII

 

I suspect a number of fans never lived to see Breland/Starling II, because they committed suicide during Curry/Starling I.:wall

 

Anyone else score the first Curry-Starling fight in favor of Marlon?

 

It's been a lot of decades since I watched that Ko....got the wrong guy.

 

Yeah, but Curry/Starling I was like Tyson/Smith. The winner only won because the loser refused to punch, and when the intrinsically superior fighter chooses to lose, that drives me nuts! (In contrast, I have no problem with the outcome of Curry/Starling II. Don was clearly superior in the rematch.)

 

He beat Honeyghan and breland at welterweight, the man should be in the HOF. He is better than cuevas, palomino,etc.

 

Honeygan decked Johnny Bumphus directly after the bell had sounded.
He ran across the ring and belted him outta there.
The tantrum Lou Duva threw was a classic