Ty Biggs.11 Aug 1984 and setting the record straight.

30 years ago today Tyrell Biggs won the SH olympic gold medal.The first and last USA winner.The guy has had plenty of negative press down the years..here's the truth of his tale for those interested.
Picked ahead of Tyson after a 2 round box off between the 2 in Phoenix.Tyson never forgave him ! The USA coach Pat Nappi banned all fighters coaches from the olympic camp and at one point during the olympic tournament left for the airport as he was sick of pro trainers and promoters courting Biggs and the rest of the team.The USA boxers were a pretty tight nit group and they decided to go with Duva's main events as long as they went as a group.This settled things down and the tournament got back on track.After winning gold and turning pro Biggs checked into rehab for drug issues.He emphatically states to have been clean ever since although he has had alchohol issues.Instead of developing Ty's slick boxing style Lou Duva wanted to 'teach him to fight'..this led to Biggs getting involved in wars with guys he should have outboxed (David Bey,Renaldo Snipes)...Ty got his shot at Tyson and went back to his slick boxing and for a round looked good.
Tyson would have won anyway but the ammount of unpunished fouls from Tyson was alarming.Ty also had Duva screaming at him to fight Tyson on the inside ..'your'e a better fighter than him' !....Ty went on to lose to Damiani on cuts..plys Mason Bowe and Lewis ( all peak and unbeaten when he fought them)...he had success ...the one armed performance against Jeff Sims after breaking a collar bone early was one in the eye for those that said he had no courage( a baseless accusation which seemed to follow him round)..he beat Bey Snipes Tillis. Ocassio Marin...and fought Bowe in a classic.
Had he been trained more to build on his skills rather than to try and be something he wasnt he may have had more success.I Have found 2 press articles during his development where Duva talks about 'teaching him to fight'. Ty himself says that the look of admiration from his corner when he came through the Sims fight was the highlight of his career.
He gets alot of bad press for the Tyson fight..but in the same era did better versus Tyson than Thomas Williams Tubbs Bruno Berbick Spinks and Holmes.
He was one of the few that went in against Tyson thinking he could win.
Ty's biggest failing like many was he didnt look after his money...he was married and divorced early and lavish spending took care of the rest. He lived in an exclusive area of Newport Beach for much of his career but now lives back home with elderley parents in the modest house in Philly where he started from.He helps out with young hopefuls at a local gym.
World amateur champion 1982
Olympic gold. August 11. 1984.....30 years ago today.

 

Azzer.. yeh u r right.
Ty was a relatively light hitter.All the more reason to have worked on his skills.He was the best moving HW since Ali but they didnt build on that...i always enjoy seeing the first 2 minutes against Tyson...he looked great...until the first of many left elbows bust his mouth.!!

 

Yeh...all fair points...its easy with hindsight but yes he was rushed.Again though..to set the record straight...its often said that he was thrown in with Tyson BECAUSE of the Bey performance,this is 100% untrue.
The Tyson fight was agreed and Ty fought Bey on the undercard of Tyson-Bonecrusher (march)....Ty was up next for Mike in May...but due to the bad cut he got v Bey the brought in Pink Thomas and Ty was put back to October although amazingly they insisted Ty showed his well being by having a tune up (Lorenzo Boyd in July)...the cut from the Bey fight just delayed the Tyson match.
The Bey fight gave Tyrell's backers near heart failure i guess..the ref must have been close to stoping the fight due to the cut.For a negro fighter Ty was terribly prone to cut and 'mark up'.
It's easy to say now but yes if they had avoided Tyson for a year or 2 and kept Ty busy with winnable fights...who knows...but the Duva camp did have their doubts about him and took their money whilst they could...there was also a belief he could trouble Tyson.
Azzer....you make a good point about his stamina...yes to move well you have to be extremely fight...Tyrell always looked in great shape yet stamina never looked his strong point..i don't know why.
He himself says that in the Tyson fight his legs betrayed him quite early."i knew as early as round 3 i couldn't keep it up"...but in other fights i noticed his initial movement didnt last.
Another myth is that he split with Duva after Tyson..not true..
A year on he went to Italy to fight the unbeaten Damiani in his own back yard...a crazy first fight back IMO...he was still with Duva with Benton and Ace Moratta still in the corner.
Ty turned up in the best shape i ever saw him in...which again contradicts the 'druggie' label...the fight was pretty even when stopped on a cut...Ty says from an accidental headbutt...who knows..its hard to spot on the film..
After that he showed up in london and ran out of gas in a fight he was winning v Gary Mason...his best effort after that was a barnstormer versus Bowe.
He had a winning run after that before his career tailed off.
He came back against Larry Donald (its on youtube)..he looked 46 not 36...looked awful and got KO'd ,his punch resistance gone....he ended up in hospital with a heart ailment after that fight.
Amazingly he had one more fight against a guy called Carlton Davis and went out a winner.
Ty worked in Kirk Johnsons camp until that guy fell out of contention.

 

Silverskull...Tyson has since apologised for those remarks.
If someone hit you in the guy with that force i suggest you may make some kind of sound.
Any viewing of the fight cannot lead to anyone questioning his bravery.

 

See above..should say ' in the gut '

 

I think his lack of power would have found him out.
Maybe he just came to prominence at a bad time.
Tyson Damiani Mason Bowe Lewis is a pretty tough resume.
All peak and unbeaten.
In another time he may have nicked a decision and a title from a Berbick Smith Tubbs or Page kind of fighters ?