Mike McCallum passed away at 68

[Sinister]

Here's some reflections of the man and Coach I knew:

 

[StopDucking]

He told Hagler to go f*ck himself at the HOF induction ceremony because Hagler told him he always respected him. Mike told him how Jamaicans say "Nuff respeck" to the tourists who come to the island because they spend money and give the people an economy. He said if Hagler respected him he would have given him the same chance to make the big money that Hagler was always complaining about never getting himself.

He said Emmanuel Steward was a scumbag because Steward signed step-aside papers on his behalf with no pay, this had to do with Hearns eventually fighting Duran. Then he knocked out two Kronk fighters in Braxton and McCrory, and told Steward he wanted Tommy next. Steward gave him a picture of Tommy with the belt and said "that's all the Tommy you're gonna get."

He didnt care for Freddie Roach. He seemed to feel like Freddie wanted to capitalize a lot on being Futch's understudy whereas Thell Torrence got buried. Mike stayed with Thell after Eddie passed.

He disliked Roy for claiming he went easy on Mike because he didnt want to knock out a legend.

That's just a few.

Those all seem like legitimate reasons to hate people, as far as I'm concerned.

 

[treelo]

Mike would have beaten the piss out of Tommy Hearns

 

[mozfonky]

I told this story in an interview with Fayz boxing, but Mike always said he was going to fire Georgie Benton in the corner of that fight after the 1st round. He didn't fully know and trust Georgie, and after Julian buzzed Mike pretty bad, Georgie told him he had to go right at him. He said if Mike stayed at the end of the punch Julian would kill him, he had to go in, roll under the shots, tap the body, then come back up to the head.

When I asked Mike about Julian's power he said the most surprising thing about it was his punches didnt hurt. He would hit you, you'd think you were ok, but then your legs dont work. Lol He also said Julian was faster than he thought he would be. So Georgie tells him to go right at Julian and Mike says to Lou Duva "Lou dis guy f*ckin crazy." He said he wanted Georgie to leave, he wanted to try to out-box Julian. But something told him to give Georgie's advice a chance so in that second round you can visibly see him fighting the urge to back up, his rear foot propped like a kickstand. He rolls under and it starts to work. He said he landed a good body shot and he heard Julian kinda whimper, he said that's when he knew he had him. "Oh, you can dish it out but you can't take it. I gotcha now."

Re-watch the fight with all that information in-mind:

ya, no telling how much those body shots took out of him, generally, bodyshots are for the long haul but most boxers will tell you that they really do hurt the most from a pain perspective. Julian was definitely fighting different after taking a few of those and he wasn't throwing back enough. Whenever a guy just isn't throwing back, it's kinda like they are caving in even if they aren't hurt, you have to throw back even if you miss. Ref will just stop it just thinking you're out of it. Julian protested but it looked like it was only going to get worse, it was reminiscent of Ray Robinson-Graziano when he got him on the ropes.

Georgie turned out to be right. Not to give Julian punching room. No one ever talks about that when they mention the Rosario Chavez fight, chavez took Rosarios entire game away from him but fighting off his chest. Rosario didn't throw short punches, at all. He was lucky to land one great shot in the fight.

 

[mozfonky]

He told Hagler to go f*ck himself at the HOF induction ceremony because Hagler told him he always respected him. Mike told him how Jamaicans say "Nuff respeck" to the tourists who come to the island because they spend money and give the people an economy. He said if Hagler respected him he would have given him the same chance to make the big money that Hagler was always complaining about never getting himself.

He said Emmanuel Steward was a scumbag because Steward signed step-aside papers on his behalf with no pay, this had to do with Hearns eventually fighting Duran. Then he knocked out two Kronk fighters in Braxton and McCrory, and told Steward he wanted Tommy next. Steward gave him a picture of Tommy with the belt and said "that's all the Tommy you're gonna get."

He didnt care for Freddie Roach. He seemed to feel like Freddie wanted to capitalize a lot on being Futch's understudy whereas Thell Torrence got buried. Mike stayed with Thell after Eddie passed.

He disliked Roy for claiming he went easy on Mike because he didnt want to knock out a legend.

That's just a few.

quiet guys can be the most bitter that's for sure.

 

[mozfonky]

Those all seem like legitimate reasons to hate people, as far as I'm concerned.

Bitterness is a battle for so many fighters, even the "winners". So many of them are easygoing and others are as bitter as can be. I'd say almost all of them have reason to be bitter because almost all of them get used and abused by someone. Alot of that has to just be ego and their own faults, no one forces them to take on hangers on and leaches when the big money comes around and they do. I recall watching an MC Hammer docu where he mentioned how he had so many people he helped and they were gone when the money was and I just thought of boxers, but I also thought how much of that was just ego with a vague hope of helping out the old neighborhood.

 

[mozfonky]

Mike would have beaten the piss out of Tommy Hearns

it definitely would not have been a good fight for him. Just stylewise. Tommy could box with pretty much anyone but he was chinny, wasn't durable to the body and he had poor stamina.

 

[mozfonky]

I was surprised to hear he was the first Jamaican champion. It's a sad world but a lesser talent like fellow jamaican Livingstone Bramble got hot for a minute by having pitbulls, a witchdoctor and some boa constrictors and beating the popular Mancini.

That's the world we're in though, it really is. Flash over substance. Same in most fields, it ain't the guys who take music apart like a watch and work at it for decades who sell the most, it's the young, empty, often talentless that sell.

 

[Sinister]

Mike would have beaten the piss out of Tommy Hearns

Maybe:

 

[Sinister]

I was surprised to hear he was the first Jamaican champion. It's a sad world but a lesser talent like fellow jamaican Livingstone Bramble got hot for a minute by having pitbulls, a witchdoctor and some boa constrictors and beating the popular Mancini.

That's the world we're in though, it really is. Flash over substance. Same in most fields, it ain't the guys who take music apart like a watch and work at it for decades who sell the most, it's the young, empty, often talentless that sell.

Bramble was from St. Kitts. US Virgins Islands.

 

[treelo]

Maybe:

that is fantastic, Hearns just keeping him on the end of the jab and when Mike got inside he was landing

i think without the headguards Tommy would have been in trouble, Mike was tough as old boots

 

[Sinister]

that is fantastic, Hearns just keeping him on the end of the jab and when Mike got inside he was landing

i think without the headguards Tommy would have been in trouble, Mike was tough as old boots

I agree, but Holy sh*t was Hearns big. It's easy to lose sight of because he was always tall and skinny looking. But he was massive. I cant recall a fight at 154 or 160 where I felt like Mike was just very visibly undersized and the opponent had just as much speed and skill.

Mike would have needed every bit of his intelligence to win.

 

[Natural Order]

Damn. Underrated for sure. Had a nice set with Lights Out Toney during his career and an absolute starching of power punching Julian Jackson. Never finished in the ring.

RIP warrior.

 

[mozfonky]

that is fantastic, Hearns just keeping him on the end of the jab and when Mike got inside he was landing

i think without the headguards Tommy would have been in trouble, Mike was tough as old boots

it would have been a bad fight for tommy, a solid champion with tons of skills and even a best case scenario of Tommy winning wouldn't gain him much except in the eyes of the hardcore fans. Tommy was a bad man but with all that height came some real weaknesses, I mention the stamina and resilience which he didn't have but he also wasn't that strong, physically. Ray and Marvin were both stronger and Marvin was dramatically stronger and didn't need to take one backwards step in their fight. McCallum was never knocked out? Is that right? Was he ever put down? none of that would bode well for Tommy's chances of a quick blowout kayo. Tommy was something, he could outbox slick boxers like Virgil Hill and Benitez and he could turn the lights out on guys but he had so many weaknesses. Iran Barkley basically ended their fight with a single punch, (even Hagler had to work for a kayo) . some guys with super potent offensive skills seem to completely turn off their defense when they go in for the kill, Tommy was one of the worst I ever saw for that. Juan Roldan put him on queer street out of the blue and even Dennis Andries did it when he was taking a whomping. Tommy was tall and long and even though he beat boxers, he wasn't really a defensive fighter at all. He pretty much let his assets do a lot of his work for him so he didn't need a strong defense in many cases. Duran was never really in their fight although Hearns did say he took a right hand that shook him for a second, outside of that, Tommy didn't think about defense in that one.

 

[mozfonky]

Damn. Underrated for sure. Had a nice set with Lights Out Toney during his career and an absolute starching of power punching Julian Jackson. Never finished in the ring.

RIP warrior.

i always think of The Jackson kayo as what goes around comes around because Julian did the exact same thing to an eager to prove himself Terry Norris a few years later after losing the first round big.

 

[Sinister]

it would have been a bad fight for tommy, a solid champion with tons of skills and even a best case scenario of Tommy winning wouldn't gain him much except in the eyes of the hardcore fans. Tommy was a bad man but with all that height came some real weaknesses, I mention the stamina and resilience which he didn't have but he also wasn't that strong, physically. Ray and Marvin were both stronger and Marvin was dramatically stronger and didn't need to take one backwards step in their fight. McCallum was never knocked out? Is that right? Was he ever put down? none of that would bode well for Tommy's chances of a quick blowout kayo. Tommy was something, he could outbox slick boxers like Virgil Hill and Benitez and he could turn the lights out on guys but he had so many weaknesses. Iran Barkley basically ended their fight with a single punch, (even Hagler had to work for a kayo) . some guys with super potent offensive skills seem to completely turn off their defense when they go in for the kill, Tommy was one of the worst I ever saw for that. Juan Roldan put him on queer street out of the blue and even Dennis Andries did it when he was taking a whomping. Tommy was tall and long and even though he beat boxers, he wasn't really a defensive fighter at all. He pretty much let his assets do a lot of his work for him so he didn't need a strong defense in many cases. Duran was never really in their fight although Hearns did say he took a right hand that shook him for a second, outside of that, Tommy didn't think about defense in that one.

Mike was down twice. Once against Fabrice Tiozzo in Italy. He told me he caught the Flu on the flight over there and had taken cold medicine. So he felt particularly sluggish, but it was also in the twilight of his career.

Roy knocked him down also.

 

[IanEdwards]

He told Hagler to go f*ck himself at the HOF induction ceremony because Hagler told him he always respected him. Mike told him how Jamaicans say "Nuff respeck" to the tourists who come to the island because they spend money and give the people an economy. He said if Hagler respected him he would have given him the same chance to make the big money that Hagler was always complaining about never getting himself.

He said Emmanuel Steward was a scumbag because Steward signed step-aside papers on his behalf with no pay, this had to do with Hearns eventually fighting Duran. Then he knocked out two Kronk fighters in Braxton and McCrory, and told Steward he wanted Tommy next. Steward gave him a picture of Tommy with the belt and said "that's all the Tommy you're gonna get."

He didnt care for Freddie Roach. He seemed to feel like Freddie wanted to capitalize a lot on being Futch's understudy whereas Thell Torrence got buried. Mike stayed with Thell after Eddie passed.

He disliked Roy for claiming he went easy on Mike because he didnt want to knock out a legend.

That's just a few.

appreciate that, thanks, goddam I can see why he didn't like Steward. maybe quite an understatement

 

[mozfonky]

Mike was down twice. Once against Fabrice Tiozzo in Italy. He told me he caught the Flu on the flight over there and had taken cold medicine. So he felt particularly sluggish, but it was also in the twilight of his career.

Roy knocked him down also.

I've seen the majority of Roy's fights but I don't think I ever saw that one. I recall Merchant giving him a hard time and Roy's insecure reaction about it on some talk show saying something like, "because I don't try to kill McCallum I'm no good" amazing how, like i always say, those big egos are fragile.

I loved Sugar Ray Robinson's response when he says the press was trying to push him about letting an over the hill Armstrong go the distance and Ray classily never responded any further than saying, "I just couldn't knock out Henry Armstrong". Armstrong's take was a bit different of course, he claimed that he caught Ray real good at one point and Ray ran the rest of the fight. Sounds like the press thought he carried Armstrong though.

 

[mozfonky]

appreciate that, thanks, goddam I can see why he didn't like Steward. maybe quite an understatement

Steward was one of the best brains ever in the sport. I've read those sorts of stories and he called McCallum "unmanageable" but never explained himself. The top coaches in their own way have bigger egos than their fighters, Eddie Futch, as humble as he seemed always seem to relish when a former fighter of his got in trouble and was deeply hurt by criticism too. I agree with Larry Holmes' take somewhat, that the cornermen don't deserve so much credit at least not all the time. Angelo Dundee also said if you're in anyone's corner you're a "biased bum" and lots of things even the top guys like Steward and Futch say after their guy loses shows they can be just as sore a loser as any fighter.

Hearn's was Stewards meal ticket for a long time and McCallum was just one of the guys who felt neglected at kronk. I'm not sure if I recall what McClellan's gripes were, or Moorer's, probably money more than anything but.., I recall an old boxing mag interview asking Steward how he could manage so many fighters, he claimed that he could do it just fine and had several assistant trainers'. I was skeptical then just seeing how my old trainers were, oftentimes one guy got all the attention and help and everyone else got neglected. I saw it like that even more in mma, 50 people in a class and an absent coach letting underlings train guys was getting most of them nowhere no matter what talent they had. The problem is, lots of coaches manage to get a name somewhere along the line and they live off that forever and have some rep, you'd have to see how things go behind closed doors to actually see how useless they can be. On the trainers side, it's a headache trying to get young men to listen, most don't, most are stubborn, most don't have the discipline to listen. I don't think it's ever easy for anyone really.

 

[froggyluv]

Mike told him how Jamaicans say "Nuff respeck" to the tourists who come to the island because they spend money and give the people an economy

Heh, I can attest to this. Although he was from St Thomas not Jamaica as I lived down there a long time and knew his son Julius. All the locals would play up the whole Bob Marley "Jah Rastafari, One Love" to the Hordes of daily tourists who soaked it up waddling Main Street like fat cattle, and after they passed by maybe giving a dollar for entertaiment "yaMuddahScunty meh put meh foootupYaAhss".

Once they got to know you as a regular they warmed up to you but they definitely have a contempt for the tourists who run the economy "how many ships cmin in t'Day Bhass???"