Familiar name to fans of the Asian fight scene and Filipino boxing especially, passed Wednesday at the age of 84. A boxer in the 1950s and 60s with a 31-2 amateur record, he would later officiate well over tenfold as many bouts as he fought (more than 500, starting in the seventies - with BoxRec listing an incomplete total of 438 between 1985 and 2019). Originally a New Zealander of Scottish descent, McTavish spent the last 58 years of his life in the Philippines. After decades of trying, he finally became a naturalized citizen of the country just as recently as 2018. He was third man in the ring for a slew of championship matches - three dozen, in all, from Jeff "Brick Top" Fenech vs. Satoshi Shingaki to Wanheng "Chayaphon Moonsri" Meenayothin Kaiyanghada vs. Tatsuya Fukuhara thirty-four years later. He called six of Manny Pacquiao's matches (and served at ringside as judge for two more) and the same number for Pongsaklek Wonjongkam. Outside the ring the Scotch-Kiwi-Pinoy was a philanthropist who labored to eradicate polio and provide housing for street urchins. Sound bloke.
(...he mentions doing 166 world titles in that video; but that includes Cracker Jack prizes like the WBF, the WBU, and the IBO. My estimate of 36 in the OP is based on just the Big 4 sanctioning bodies)
