elgigante
06-21-2005, 07:06 AM
http://www.woodland-trust.org.uk/celebrities/images/barry.jpg
Name: Barry McGuigan
Nickname: The Clones Cyclone
Weight Class : Featherweight
Record : 32-3 (28 KO?s)
Notable Wins : Juan La Porte, Eusebio Pedroza
When one thinks of Ireland?s boxing scene today unfortunately their thoughts probably drift to Kevin McBride and therefore generalize the country as not a good haven of boxers overall. But there have plenty of great fighters over the years in Irish history including the likes of Stevie Collins and Wayne Mccullough amongst others. The man who probably inspired both these gentleman?s careers though came from the mid 80's. He was based in the featherweight class and had a world of talent and heart. This man was Barry Mcguigan.
After a sterling amateur career which included medaling in the 1977 Commonwealth Games in Canada, Barry Mcguigan decided to turn pro. He had a very good skill set and was pegged for great things in boxing circles. He was quick, a vicious puncher and had a work rate which never stopped, a trait that Wayne Mccullough carries on today. Mcguigan would stumble a bit out of the pro gate, losing to a rather unheralded fighter by the name of Peter Eubank in his 3rd pro bout. Never deterred however, Barry got back in the ring a month later and proceeded to ring off 8 straight wins. Included in this string of wins was a TKO of his conqueror Eubank.. June 14th 1982 would provide a tragic bump in Barry?s career path however. He faced a pro debutante named Young Ali in what was guaranteed to be a walkover fight en route to his path to championship glory, After pummeling Ali for 5 rounds, Barry was able to KO him in the 6th. Ali would slip into a coma after this bout however and died five months after the bout. Barry would be able to move on from this tragedy however and strung together 13 straight wins after this bout. In his 26th fight , he would face his first big test in rugged 126 lb veteran Juan La Porte.
La Porte had been in with the very best the 126 lb division had to offer. Although he suffered losses to both Eusebio Pedroza and Wilfredo Gomez, Juan had given a good account of himself in both bouts and would show whether or not Barry was ready to step up to World title level fight wise. Barry passed the test with flying colors outworking Laporte throughout the evening en route to a UD win. After KO?ing Farid Gallouze in his next bout to win the European 126 lb title, Barry would get his title shot. This would be no easy task however as he was to face the king of the 126 lb division in one Eusebio Pedroza.
Eusebio Pedroza was the 126 lb champion of the WBA and also one of the tougher fighters you could ever get in a ring with. He had an extreme penchant for going south of the border with his blows and was not above doing anything to win. With that said though he was also an excellent puncher and had strung together 19 straight title defenses before facing Mcguigan. This was one of the most anticipated title bouts in years in the UK and sold out Loftus Road stadium in England very quickly. With all the pressure of fighting in front of 25k fanatical fans and the menacing presence of Pedroza in front of him, could Barry live up to expectations?
Barry lived up to the expectations and then some. With his fanatical base roaring ?Here We Go? as he came into ?Eye of the tiger? Mcguigan went to war with the favored Pedroza. For the first seven rounds of the bout , it was even but in round 7 Barry staggered Pedroza with a bodyshot and the tide of the fight turned. Pedroza basically was in survival mode throughout the second half of the fight and it showed when the scorecards were read. . At the end of the evening Barry Mc guigan had pulled out the UD win over the Panamanian legend and was crowned WBA featherweight champion of the world, The UK and Ireland in general were ecstatic over the win and it truly was the crowning achievement of Barry?s career
Barry would achieve two more title defenses before his nightmare bout with unknown Steve Cruz in 1986. I actually remember watching this bout when I was very young and it was a surprising result . Mcguigan was heavily favored over the unknown Texan but this did not matter come fight time. In a ring where the temperature was measured at 129 degrees at fight time, an dehydrated and utterly exhausted Mcguigan would lose a UD to Cruz and have his featherweight title taken from him. This defeat along with a litany of managerial problems pretty much ended Barry Mcguigan effectiveness as a top class fighter.
Barry Mcguigan would fight four more times after the Cruz defeat. He won three of them and then after a loss to unknown Jim McDonnell announced his retirement in 1989. Today Barry can be found writing a column for Maxboxing.com and providing commentary on major bouts for Sky Sports out of the UK. His career may be long since over but the legend of the Clones Cyclone will never be forgotten in either UK or Irish boxing lore.
Info sources: Boxrec.com and clones.il
Name: Barry McGuigan
Nickname: The Clones Cyclone
Weight Class : Featherweight
Record : 32-3 (28 KO?s)
Notable Wins : Juan La Porte, Eusebio Pedroza
When one thinks of Ireland?s boxing scene today unfortunately their thoughts probably drift to Kevin McBride and therefore generalize the country as not a good haven of boxers overall. But there have plenty of great fighters over the years in Irish history including the likes of Stevie Collins and Wayne Mccullough amongst others. The man who probably inspired both these gentleman?s careers though came from the mid 80's. He was based in the featherweight class and had a world of talent and heart. This man was Barry Mcguigan.
After a sterling amateur career which included medaling in the 1977 Commonwealth Games in Canada, Barry Mcguigan decided to turn pro. He had a very good skill set and was pegged for great things in boxing circles. He was quick, a vicious puncher and had a work rate which never stopped, a trait that Wayne Mccullough carries on today. Mcguigan would stumble a bit out of the pro gate, losing to a rather unheralded fighter by the name of Peter Eubank in his 3rd pro bout. Never deterred however, Barry got back in the ring a month later and proceeded to ring off 8 straight wins. Included in this string of wins was a TKO of his conqueror Eubank.. June 14th 1982 would provide a tragic bump in Barry?s career path however. He faced a pro debutante named Young Ali in what was guaranteed to be a walkover fight en route to his path to championship glory, After pummeling Ali for 5 rounds, Barry was able to KO him in the 6th. Ali would slip into a coma after this bout however and died five months after the bout. Barry would be able to move on from this tragedy however and strung together 13 straight wins after this bout. In his 26th fight , he would face his first big test in rugged 126 lb veteran Juan La Porte.
La Porte had been in with the very best the 126 lb division had to offer. Although he suffered losses to both Eusebio Pedroza and Wilfredo Gomez, Juan had given a good account of himself in both bouts and would show whether or not Barry was ready to step up to World title level fight wise. Barry passed the test with flying colors outworking Laporte throughout the evening en route to a UD win. After KO?ing Farid Gallouze in his next bout to win the European 126 lb title, Barry would get his title shot. This would be no easy task however as he was to face the king of the 126 lb division in one Eusebio Pedroza.
Eusebio Pedroza was the 126 lb champion of the WBA and also one of the tougher fighters you could ever get in a ring with. He had an extreme penchant for going south of the border with his blows and was not above doing anything to win. With that said though he was also an excellent puncher and had strung together 19 straight title defenses before facing Mcguigan. This was one of the most anticipated title bouts in years in the UK and sold out Loftus Road stadium in England very quickly. With all the pressure of fighting in front of 25k fanatical fans and the menacing presence of Pedroza in front of him, could Barry live up to expectations?
Barry lived up to the expectations and then some. With his fanatical base roaring ?Here We Go? as he came into ?Eye of the tiger? Mcguigan went to war with the favored Pedroza. For the first seven rounds of the bout , it was even but in round 7 Barry staggered Pedroza with a bodyshot and the tide of the fight turned. Pedroza basically was in survival mode throughout the second half of the fight and it showed when the scorecards were read. . At the end of the evening Barry Mc guigan had pulled out the UD win over the Panamanian legend and was crowned WBA featherweight champion of the world, The UK and Ireland in general were ecstatic over the win and it truly was the crowning achievement of Barry?s career
Barry would achieve two more title defenses before his nightmare bout with unknown Steve Cruz in 1986. I actually remember watching this bout when I was very young and it was a surprising result . Mcguigan was heavily favored over the unknown Texan but this did not matter come fight time. In a ring where the temperature was measured at 129 degrees at fight time, an dehydrated and utterly exhausted Mcguigan would lose a UD to Cruz and have his featherweight title taken from him. This defeat along with a litany of managerial problems pretty much ended Barry Mcguigan effectiveness as a top class fighter.
Barry Mcguigan would fight four more times after the Cruz defeat. He won three of them and then after a loss to unknown Jim McDonnell announced his retirement in 1989. Today Barry can be found writing a column for Maxboxing.com and providing commentary on major bouts for Sky Sports out of the UK. His career may be long since over but the legend of the Clones Cyclone will never be forgotten in either UK or Irish boxing lore.
Info sources: Boxrec.com and clones.il