The Roar
The Roar

Advertisement

Is it time for a boxing world seniors circuit?

Anthony Mundine will face off against Tommy Browne at Star of the Ring II. (AAP Image/Joe Castro)
Roar Guru
7th December, 2016
3

Ladeez and gentleman, in the seniors’ corner, weighing in at 140kg and at 67 years old, the one, the only, genial George Foreman.

In the other seniors’ corner, weighing in at 120kg and at 66 years, the challenger, jovial Joe Bugner.

This world seniors heavyweight boxing title should pack in 60, 70 and 80-year-old fans.

The venue could be renamed Madison Squares Garden.

Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier may be gone to the great ring in the sky, but there should be a few left from the great days to challenge the winner.

Ken Norton, Ron Lyle, Ernie Shavers and co. Some must still be upright and ready to box on.

Plenty of all-star supports to the main event too.

Alan Minter was considered the best pound-for-pound fighter Britain had produced when he entered the ring as world middleweight champion against Marvin Hagler.

Advertisement

But Minter had bad eyes and future legend Hagler opened a cut up and the fight was stopped in the third round.

The now 62-year-old Minter would surely jump at the chance to get it on with the 65-year-old Hagler, and no haggling about money.

Ditto for the 52-year-old Jeff Fenech, who ended his career towelled up by Azumah Nelson, crying ‘we wuz robbed’ after their first title bout in the United States. Fenech pleaded lack of pre-fight discipline after the return.

Fenech v Nelson: The Revenge
What a program! The late, great Ray Connelly would invent a new thesaurus to introduce that one.

And as a special bonus, the night could start with a preliminary: Anthony Mundine v Danny Green.

Fanciful? Outrageous? Absurd? Of course.

Anyone salivating approval should give themselves an uppercut.

Advertisement

No boxing authority anywhere, no medical association, the RSPCA, not even FIFA, would allow it.

Well perhaps a boxing authority somewhere might, when the dollars came rolling in.

Is there an odd bout out in the program?

The slated Mundine v Green return would be nominated but is it so out of place?

Mundine has found the canvas a few times in two of his last three bouts, against Charles Hatley and Joshua Clottey, and has had hip surgery.

He will have to bulk up for the heavier Green and the long-retired Fenech has given Mundine no chance and has said he shouldn’t have taken the bout.

Green has said this will be it after the last big pay day, but with Mundine it’s hard to know where calculation stops and delusion continues.

Advertisement

Having made a failed, impossible attempt to model his life and style on his hero Ali (at least to the observer), Mundine might lower his reach and try and emulate another boxing legend Archie Moore, and box on into his fifties.

Or threaten another rugby league comeback, or pan to make the Australian Olympic Rugby Sevens.

The best result: call it a draw, and Mundine and Green exit the ring uninjured with their cash from the celebrity It’s A Knockout.

The better result?

One of the immortal Rex Mossop’s favourite Mossopisms for the football field was that a punch never hurt anyone.

Rex was wrong, of course. Punches can kill people, especially those who don’t fight for a living, like footballers.

The real better result than the end of Mundine v Green would be to stop the footballer fights.

Advertisement

Someone will get hurt.

close