What classic fight was the one to first catch your attention?

Willard vs Dempsey
Firpo vs Dempsey

I saw them back to back on a documentary as a kid.

 

Willard v Dempsey same!

 

The anime "Hajime no Ippo" actually caught my attention but as I progressed I casually got into rl boxing and man, the reality is so often more incredible than the fantasy lmao.
The very first match that made me fall in luv with tha sport must be Pacquaio vs Morales I: Morales southpawing Pac during the last round and basically kickstartin' Manny's ascension was something so thrilling to watch that I don't remember experiencing any of that in another sport...

 

The first fight I remember watching was Duran vs Hagler on YouTube.

 

Same here. I think the main reason I started to get heavily into 'classic' boxing (was a BBC Heavyweights documentary with Harry Carpenter talking to Mike Tyson (maybe around 1989ish)?. And straight away i bought a Jack Dempsey and Jack Johnson video- as well as Papa Jack the book by Randy Roberts but Jack-Jess was definitely the classic fight that started it all (IIRC).

 

Born with a father who was into boxing in a big way, i heard about every classic fight from Louis through to Ali from him, and from mid 1960s i watched all the fights with my father.

But what made me even as a kid to seek out a classic fight to learn more of, was a 1942 film that was on the television called "Gentleman Jim" supposedly based upon James Corbetts autobiography "The Roar of the Crowd".

Back in the late 60s obtaining info etc about past fights was harder than today, much was word of mouth, so despite the film being 40s Hollywood, the fact it was based around the John L Sullivan vs James J Corbett Heavyweight title fight, made it for a wet behind the ears kid special.

As a teen purchasing the book Superfists: The Story of the World Heavyweight Champions, truly started my fascination with boxing history that has remained with me to this day.

So thats ol KernowWarriors 'artistic' input to the thread.

 

I really wanted Firpo to win I didn’t know the ending he looked brave he also sounded exotic, I liked that.
I was big into Robert E Howard novels so Argentina sounded supremely alien to a very uneducated kid. Mr Luis Firpo was the first fighter I cheered for.
After the JD fights it was a Marciano documentary containing some KOs.
Duran vs Hagler which was boring but I pretended I was a fan and then Hagler vs Hearns. I watched some full length fights on YouTube of which I don’t remember “eh” lost interest. I’m not sure what brought me back.
EDIT: It was the movie Raging Bull!

 

One of my first boxing films too. I think Somebody Up There Likes Me was probably the first (what a good looking fella Graziano was ). The other early one being something called Goldie and the Boxer....with OJ Simpson.

 

Marvin Jonson versus Matthew Saad Muhammed. Don't remember if it was the first or second fight. I was to young. I started loving boxing after that

 

Ippo is so good man… sendo is the best.

 

Kinda weird answer but I start watching Mike Tyson. I never watched too much of his fights but his interviews really got me. To this day I don’t watch many fights but the first fight to totally encapsulate me was Liston vs Ali 1, but not for the fight itself. Back then and right now I wanted to know everything surround the fight, it really is fun to learn about.

 

My mom has always been a reader (still is). She used to take me (and when they got old enough, my little brothers) to the library weekly.

Our relatively small-time library had a few 8mm films, one of which was the Tunney-Dempsey Long Count fight. I vaguely remember checking it out and my parents borrowing a projector from someone and watching it … I think projected onto a sheet hung on the wall.

So that was my introduction. I was probably around 6 or 7, so 1970-ish. Pretty sure I was already into boxing. My Pops was (and is) a big fan. I remember him going to see FotC on closed circuit at the local arena (or maybe it was the downtown theater) and being told I was too young to go, but him telling me all about the fight when he got back.

Pops also used to tell me about listening to Floyd Patterson’s title fights on the radio when he was young. Floyd was always his fave, although he came to embrace Ali and Holmes and Leonard and Duran later.

So that’s my earliest exposure to ‘super fights.’

 

This is the only ‘ippos I’m familiar with …

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But I’m more from the Rock Em Sock Em Robots generation.

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Were you a Tunney or a Dempsey man? (Boy) I wouldn’t be surprised to hear you were a Tunney fan you once told a story of how you got the Old Foreman button when you were “meant” to get the Holyfield one lol.The first fighter I cheered for was Mr Firpo.