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DJ-Steved

DJ-Steved

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Heads up on a program thats on Monday 5th Jan 10.35pm, ITV1

The Fight of Their Lives

Britain's most brutal, controversial fight. Boxing's most compelling story. A new ITV1 documentary revolving around the infamous world championship bout between Nigel Benn and Gerald McClellan in February 1995.

To be screened on Monday 5th December at 10.35pm on ITV1, The Fight of Their Lives is a story of human courage, the search for the truth and for redemption. It is a story that stretches far beyond the ropes of the boxing ring.

Gerald 'The G-Man' McClellan was one of the hardest punchers in history, a fearsome boxer who fought pit-bull dogs. Today he is brain-damaged, cared for by his sister Lisa.

Nigel 'The Dark Destroyer' Benn was a soldier turned world-class boxer, renowned for a playboy lifestyle. Today he lives in Majorca spreading the word of God. Having attempted suicide, he is coming to terms with the life he led and the people he hurt.

"This was a truly great fight. It fulfilled the prophecy." (Don King)

"That was one of the classics. Like the Rumble in the Jungle." (Brendan Ingle)

Benn v McClellan was a classic contest, laced with brilliance and controversy until its tragic end. So many lives were altered that night in 1995.

Benn was knocked down twice but recovered to achieve the most dramatic victory of his career - perhaps of any boxer's career.

The fight has never been shown on TV since and controversy over what happened that night persists today. The stories of the accused, talking for the first time, make for emotional viewing. Unseen footage throws new light on the story.

Boxing legends and A-list witnesses Barry McGuigan, Jim Watt, Frank Bruno and Manny Steward contribute their own powerful testimonies.

In 2007 Benn and McClellan were reunited, an incredible moment captured for The Fight of Their Lives. The reunion was meant to bring closure.

However, there have been fresh allegations, further twists and new discoveries made since then.

Interweaving past and present, the amazing narrative of a hidden sporting classic, the emotional testimonies of the accused and the incredible stories of two men, this will be compelling viewing on ITV1.

http://www.itv.com/thefightoftheirlives/
 
Hiya,

Thanks for that post. I'm a little ashamed to say I've never heard of this whole event before now. Guess I have to read a few things to get the complete story.

At one time I was a very big boxing fan and was lucky enough to be around when Ali and the other great heavyweights (and other lower bracket fighters) were all in their prime, I finally lost interest in boxing almost completely when poor Mike Tyson ended up as he did at the end. That's actually a tragic story, although I'm sure many of you don't believe me. I always thought there was some good in him early in his career before D'Amato died. After losing his mentor and protector, the guy was toast.

I believe he coulda had one of the best win/loss records ever if he wasn't exploited so badly.

Martin

Oh, one other thing: You guys familiar with the song 'Who Killed Davey Moore?'. Old Dylan song from the early-mid 60s he usta sing on tour sometimes. Back then, the only way to own that song on an album was to find a bootleg version recorded by someone. One line goes: "I hit him I hit him, yes it's true, but that's what I am paid to do. Don't say murder, don't say kill, it was destiny it was God's will"

Not a bad little three minutes or so.
 
That was the day I got married (to Mrs McClaine v1.1).

All the blokes were in the bar watching the fight, with the ladies in the function room eating cake.

Tragic.
 
Martin...like Hagler, Hearns and Leonard in the eighties the UK had a golden age of middleweights in the nineties before pay per view really kicked in...ours were Benn, Eubank & Watson. Watson (arguably the technically better of the three) met the same fate as McClellan, Eubank wasn't the same fighter after that, rarely do you see tear ups with the same intensity nowadays and for good reason.

5 minutes in...

[video=youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8wyCWkZ_9Vk&feature=related[/video]
 
antdad said:
Martin...like Hagler, Hearns and Leonard in the eighties the UK had a golden age of middleweights in the nineties before pay per view really kicked in...ours were Benn, Eubank & Watson. Watson (arguably the technically better of the three) met the same fate as McClellan, Eubank wasn't the same fighter after that, rarely do you see tear ups with the same intensity nowadays and for good reason.

5 minutes in...
Click to expand...

Thanks for the extra info,

Still, I'm surprised I don't remember hearing anything about those fights, even though I was pretty much done with boxing by then. Probably I musta read something about at least some of those guys at the time.........sheesh. Tough being an old geezer.

Yeah, those 80s era fighters you mentioned in the lighter brackets were also amazing fighters to watch. Leonard had about the fastest hands I can recall seeing, and he could take one hell of a punch as well. Then you also had Duran (Hands of Stone) in that mix of top boxers, which made things even more interesting.

Martin
 
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