Your Very First Fight

[Marciano6]

What was your very first fight you all know what i mean it may have been on t.v or u may have jus went to one, that made you the boxing fan you are today? Mine for me was Tyson vs Douglas i'll never forget Tyson gettin knocked out i wasnt old enough to remember much however jus the feelin i got when the unthinkable happen.

[cubedrum]

Without a doubt the one that turned me into a boxing fan was Shavers-Lyle. Whatta war!!!!!!!!!!! I think I was about 9.


Cube

[maxx]

Mine was Ali/Norton 1 in 1973 when I was 10. At that time, Norton really hadn't fought any real "name" opponent & already had a KO loss on his ledger.

My dad was a big fight fan, and he'd always tried to get me interested in boxing. I never paid much attention despite his best efforts.

My dad was also one of the many boxing fans at the time who hated Ali. The fight was on network TV (Wide World of Sports, I think), but my dad had to be out of town on business that weekend. However, he'd seen a number of Norton's fights in person in San Diego & LA and thought highly of him. I remember him telling me to watch the fight because he thought Norton could take Ali out (I think this prediction actually had to do more with wishful thinking than any logical basis).

Anyway, I recall watching the fight and seeing Ali's jaw swell and get all misshapen once it broke. After the fight, I remember being amazed at what kind of heart Ali had to have to stand in there and keep getting hit by anyone, much less a puncher like Norton. I think it was the recognition of what it took to be a warrior, more than the action itself, that finally sold me on the sport.

Much to my father's chagrin, that fight turned me into a lifelong Ali fan. However, it also made me a lifelong boxing fan so he couldn't complain too much.

[Brooks TVB]

I really don't remeber the first fight i watched, i used to watch it because it was a sport. When I finally realised this was a sport I loved was when Douglas dropped Tyson.

[rdklein]

I think the first one I remember watching was the Ali/Holmes fight, but that fight didn't make me a fan.

Probably watching the 84 olympics... Evander Holyfield, Sweet Pea Whitaker, Mark Breland and Meldrick Taylor. I just enjoyed following the progress of all these fighter's careers - especially Whitaker and Breland. I liked their styles.

Julio Cesar Chavez was another early favorite as well.

[mh2365]

Arguello vs Mancini ... was my first real memory. My grandfather was a huge Arguello fan and told me no way Mancini can handle him. Never doubted my grandfather again. Still remember when he sadly told me that Arguello shouldn't fight Pryor about two weeks before the first fight.

[shane6969]

The first one I remember is Ali-Frazier in 1975, but the one that got me hooked was Mattioli-Obed in 1978.

[IceTea]

Ali/Spinks, the bout that was won by Leon. My favorite fighters as a child were Boom Boom Mancini and Matthew Franklin.

MJ

[Bronx Bomber 15]

My earliest memory was watching Ali lose to Spinks, and being p*****d! Always liked listening to the Ali vs. Louis debates between my father and grandfather. Funny thing was, neither one mentioned Rocky during the arguments.

[BradS]

The build up to the first Ali-Frazier fight. And the subsequent matchups with Foreman and Norton added into the mix. Rock, scissors, paper. Frazier beats Ali, Ali beats Foreman, thus Foreman Ko's Frazier lol. Or Ali Ko's Foreman who Ko's Norton who gives Ali all he can handle to pull out a decision. But that is whats great about boxing--how matchups can vary.

[bear]

Hard to say. Grew up watching bouts with my dad in the 50's and went to the armoory with him to catch fights. If there was a fight on TV, he'd watch it--unless there was baseball. The first names to stick in my memory were Sugar Ray Robinson, Marciano, Gene Fullmer, Carmen, and the Ingo-Paterson fight series. I even remember Ingo on the Dinah Shore show talking about toonder and lightning. I figure I saw all of the "classic bouts" from the 50s that are aired on ESPN live eeven though I may have been too young to recall much of them. We also listened toradio broadcasts otf title fights if they wern't televised.

Bear

Originally Posted by BradS

The build up to the first Ali-Frazier fight. And the subsequent matchups with Foreman and Norton added into the mix. Rock, scissors, paper. Frazier beats Ali, Ali beats Foreman, thus Foreman Ko's Frazier lol. Or Ali Ko's Foreman who Ko's Norton who gives Ali all he can handle to pull out a decision. But that is whats great about boxing--how matchups can vary.

[diablo]

I'm really going to date myself. The first fight I remember was on radio--Rocky Marciano vs. Ezzard Charles. I think it was their second fight. The first fight I can rembmer seeing on TV was Ray Robinson's first KO of Bobo Olsen.