But in the round’s later stages, Cruz turned the fight — and McGuigan himself — on his head after connecting with a snappy counter hook that drove the champion to a knee near one of the neutral corners. He may even have been mouthing along a few rows back: “Angel of God, guardian dear, to whom God’s love commits me here.

Again no punches of note connected, it was the collapse of an enervated marathon runner crossing the finishing line a split second behind the winner.

Cruz was a familiar face to faithful viewers of ESPN’s “Top Rank Boxing” series, and his record boasted some notable names such as Nicky Perez (W 10), Dana Roston (W 10), Tommy Cordova (KO 9) and, most recently, world title challenger Rocky Garcia (majority W 10).

Despite doubts over weight and niggling ankle and ear injuries, McGuigan was a heavy odds-on favourite being touted for mega fights in the near future. Jutras’ score read 142-141 while Tovar’s was 143-142 for the winner — and new — WBA featherweight titleholder, Steve Cruz. In appearance Pat was a carbon copy of his son although thicker, blacker facial hair coupled with sharply angled eyebrows gave his face a somewhat sterner countenance. A triple-jab briefly pushed McGuigan to the ropes, after which Cruz connected with the punch Gorman was seeking from him, a booming hook to the jaw that caused McGuigan’s usually rock-solid legs to buckle. The weary but composed McGuigan waited until Steele counted “seven” to regain his feet and to non-verbally reassure his corner he was still in control of his faculties. It was just something I shouldn’t have done.

Air conditioning units overhead and a bank of cooling misting fans would have been nice, but instead a canvas canopy was hung to trap the sun’s punishing heat which was in turn intensified by the blaze of 74 television lights surrounding the squared circle. On the face of it, there was little about Cruz worth writing home about. But what could never be touched was Barry McGuigan the man: and, of course, he was the guy that Sandra and the kids truly depended on.

On June 1, 2019, a charismatic and powerful world champion from “across the pond” was poised to make his mark in America against a challenger summoned from the sidelines on painfully short notice and for reasons that could not be foreseen. BARRY McGUIGAN vs. STEVE CRUZ (Site) Description : Here we have an original super-scarce official onsite main event boxing fight poster for the WBA world featherweight championship title bout held at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA, 23rd June 1986. Barry McGuigan was expected to defeat Steve Cruz with ease in 1986, but the Irishman was not accustomed to fighting in the baking heat of the desert Spotting Duran posing for a photographer, McGuigan smiled and shouted, ‘hey, Duran,’ and leaped in front of the cameras and eagerly shook hands with the Panamanian legend.

But to achieve all that, he had to defeat Cruz, who was earning $6.50 per hour as a plumber’s assistant and who entered the bout with a 25-1 (13 KOs) record as well as a No.

The unthinkable had happened: a 10-7 round.

A knifing right to the face was enough for McGuigan to topple backward, bounce off the ropes and fall to the canvas for the second time in the round. Fan Rating: 0. His wife Sandra lowered her head and covered her eyes and the urgency level in his corner was clearly elevated, if not outright panicked. That would change in Round 6.

But it was not to be.

Any use or distribution of our content without the express written consent of eyeonthering.com is strictly prohibited. With the finish line in sight, the two men picked up their pace even more, but following the first exchange, Cruz connected with a right-left to the chin. Looking back, it was probably unfair of society to expect the young man to have been a symbol of anything other than athletic excellence, but McGuigan dealt with the pressure and proved to be a rare uniting force in a world of demarcation. Although McGuigan trained for this match in Palm Springs — one of the most consistently hot locales in the U.S. — and despite having outlasted Bernard Taylor in the stifling heat inside the King’s Hall nearly nine months earlier, the champion was distressed by the possibility of fighting in what would be 110-degree heat. The morality of such incentivisation is dubious at best but it appeared to be working until a short, sharp left hook put McGuigan down in the neutral corner. Still, if he could stay upright for 70 more seconds he would go home with his belt and never again agree to fight in Vegas before the desert stars had lit up the cool black Nevada sky. The other centered on the heat, which, for McGuigan, was a huge concern that proved prophetic.

Secondly, it was all his spent body could do to rise from the corner at the chime of the penultimate bell. His Panamanian cornerman literally nibbled his ear to try and hurt or shock him back into the land of the fully coherent but McGuigan’s weary body was now fighting from memory. He is the author of “Tales from the Vault: A Celebration of 100 Boxing Closet Classics” (available on Amazon) and the co-author of  “Muhammad Ali: By the Numbers” (also available on Amazon).
His autobiography attempts to describe how he felt at that moment.
The pace was quick, and while Cruz regularly speared McGuigan’s face with jabs, the constantly advancing champion also managed to close the distance and land thudding power shots to the challenger’s flanks. A Catholic born in a border town in the Republic of Ireland, Finbar “Barry” McGuigan married a Protestant from the North and contested the majority of his fights in a fraught Belfast that was buckling under the weight of a sustained period of bloody sectarian violence. Join our newsletter to get info about latest events and deals! McGuigan complained of dizziness and headaches in his dressing room, and he was transported to a local hospital.

Before each bout his father would sing Danny Boy in the ring and McGuigan’s shorts were emblazoned with a white dove of peace rather than the traditional tribal colours of Republican and Loyalist Northern Ireland. Noting the frequency with which McGuigan was being hit, ringside commentator Harry Carpenter wondered if McGuigan had invested too much energy in the early rounds.

Your destination for the best boxing news, videos and live streams! Il met un terme à sa carrière en 1989 sur un bilan de 32 victoires et 3 défaites Distinctions. Because Cruz strayed from the neutral corner, Steele stopped his count until the challenger complied with the neutral corner rule, a development that gave McGuigan a few more precious seconds of recovery time. The 14th was closer, but McGuigan’s improbable show of strength helped create a lead on the scorecards that appeared almost unassailable. As the shadows on the canvas floor lengthened, the odds on a Cruz victory suddenly shortened dramatically. He was a man who had “star” written all over him, and he was ready to expand his sphere of influence. He fought for a world title twice more, losing by decision to Jorge Paez in August 1989 and by third-round stoppage to Paul Hodkinson in April 1992. Tired, sapped, wrecked, out of it and hollow are just a selection of the adjectives he uses.

With his corner urging him to consolidate his advantage, Cruz scored with a few solid punches, but refrained from going all out. “Say a prayer that we’ll be alright.” Eastwood had a different motivational technique and sent his charge back into the fray with the rallying cry: “Sandra and the kids are depending on you.”. Fittingly, he ended on the line, “I love you so” before taking his seat at ringside next to Barry’s wife, Sandra, and eldest son, Blain.


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