Boxing's Best Seniors - 10 Big Wins From Fighters Over 40

By Andrew Fruman

Given the phsyical demands and punishing nature of the sport, it's not surprising just how few boxers have been able to post significant wins in their forties. Glen Johnson will be looking to do just that tomorrow night in Hartford, and in honor of his bid, let's take a look at the fights that earned boxing's grizzled veterans exclusive membership in the over 40 club.

40 - Forty

Dick Tiger UD 10 over Andy Kendall – November 14, 1969 – age 40 (3 months)

Entering the bout as the world’s #1 light-heavyweight contender, the long time Madison Square Garden favorite pounded out a 10 round victory over #2 ranked Andy Kendall. Tiger staggered Kendall early in the fight, but the 31 year old from Oregon hung tough and while the judges’ scores were wide – 9-1 twice and 8-2 – the rounds were competitive. At one stage in the late going, Tiger brought the crowd to their feet with his impression of the Ali shuffle, explaining afterward, "I wanted to prove that I’m still young.”

Tiger fought once more, losing a 10 round decision to Emile Griffith the following June, before being diagnosed with terminal liver cancer. He was just 42 years old when he passed away in December of 1971.

Carl Thompson TKO 5 over David Haye – September 10, 2004 - age 40 (3 months, 15 days)

Thompson was expected to bring nothing more than some name value to the list of the big punching upstart’s knockout victims. Instead, the tough as nails 16 year pro soaked up all kinds of punishment, before stopping the brash youngster - who had run out of gas - via 5th round TKO.

Bob Fitzsimmons W 20 over George Gardner – November 24, 1903 – age 40 (5 months, 29 days)

The former heavyweight and middleweight champion added light-heavyweight honors with his victory over Gardner. While historically significant, the bout provided few sparks with the 26 year old Gardner unwilling to exchange, and Fitzsimmons – who claimed to have broken both his knuckles early in the bout - fighting cautiously the whole way. The lack of action prompted referee Eddie Graney, the sole arbiter in the contest to call it the worst bout he’d ever seen.

41- Forty One

Bernard Hopkins UD 12 over Antonio Tarver – June 10, 2006 - age 41 (4 months, 26 days)

While Tarver was only a few months short of his 38th birthday, the one sided nature of Hopkins victory still makes it one of the more impressive performances on the list. From start to finish, Hopkins was in complete control of the bout, with Tarver - a 3 to 1 favourite - barely landing a significant punch.

Archie Moore KO 11 over Yvon Durrelle – December 10, 1958 – age 41 (11 months, 27 days)

Arguably the most impressive come from behind win of all time – and that much more astounding when the man that came back from the brink was a few days shy of 42nd birthday. Showing remarkable resolve, a badly shaken Moore somehow made it out of the first round despite being put down 3 times. After tasting the canvas again in the 4th, the ageless wonder managed to find his footing in the bout, eventually wearing the rugged Canadian down with an 11th round stoppage.

The two light-heavyweights met again the following year, with Moore knocking Durelle out in the 3rd round.

42 - Forty Two

Virgil Hill UD 12 over Valery Brudov – January 27, 2006 – age 42 (9 days)

Hill retired after his most impressive post-40 performance, a narrow points loss in 2004 to Jean Marc Mormeck, the class of the cruiserweight division at that time. Two years later, he returned to the ring to face the undefeated Russian. It was an easy victory for the 42 year old, who used his superior footwork to stay at long range, while moving in and out of his ponderous opponent on the way to a lop-sided decision victory.

Larry Holmes UD 12 over Ray Mercer – February 7, 1992 – age 42 (3 months, 4 days)

Before the bout, Holmes had pointed out Mercer’s lack of head movement being easy pray for his ancient, but still precise skills, but with the younger man coming off a vicious stoppage victory over Tommy Morrison, there were few believers in his chances. It turned out old Larry was on the money, as the 4 to 1 underdog made Mercer looking foolish at times, as he pounded his way to a unanimious decision win.

Holmes parlayed the win into a title shot against Evander Holyfield 4 months later. He made it competitive, especially in the early going, but had no answers when Holyfield chose to fight at long range. After the bout when asked if he would have done anything differently, the ex-champ drew some laughs when he answered, "I would have fought this fight in 1980."

43- Forty Three

Bernard Hopkins UD 12 over Kelly Pavlik – October 18, 2008 – age 43 (9 months, 3 days)

Having struggled over the late rounds in his loss to Joe Calzaghe, this was the bout that was finally going to send The Executioner into retirement. Instead, Hopkins put forth one of his most masterful performances, using his superior ring smarts to completely neutralize his 26 year old opponent's offensive talents, while responding with a steady stream of hard counters.

45 - Forty Five

Archie Moore TKO10 over Alajandro Lavorante – March 30, 1962 – age 45 (3 months, 17 days)

This was Moore’s last great performance, and perhaps the most impressive result for the over 40 crowd, as the 45 year old former light-heavyweight champ handed the world’s 3rd ranking heavyweight a one sided battering. Giving away 20 years, 4 1/2 inches in height and 14 pounds, Moore consistently got inside his bigger opponent, steadily breaking Lavorante down over the course of 10 one sided rounds.

George Foreman KO10 over Michael Moorer – November 5, 1994 – age 45 (9 months, 26 days)

Having been away from the ring for a decade, Foreman’s remarkable return from a 10 year ring absense had appeared to have run its course with his 12 round defeat at the hands of Evander Holyfield 3 years earlier. Yet the big man stayed active and kept plugging away, before getting another crack at the crown - and this time, made the most of it. It wasn't easy, as Moorer appeared in complete control until a left jab, right hand combination flattened the 27 year old for the 10 count.

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Score It!... Holmes/Witherspoon (Part 2)

Yesterday, we looked at rounds 1-6 of the controversial 1983 heavyweight title fight between champion Larry Holmes and challenger Tim Witherspoon. Today, we move on to the second half of the fight.

Let's get right to it...

ROUND SEVEN

“Something got into Tim this round. He came rumbling forward tossing bombs, and did some bruising work early. Holmes came right back, like he always does and banged some hard shots of his own. More damage was done in this round than in the previous six combined. Tim did a little more though.” - LP

“Both men nutted up and put forth their best out put of the night. Tim's body work is thudding and he landed the harder right hands. Very close round, but I gave it to Spoon.” - ML

“I had Witherspoon well up at the half way point. He’d landed a couple nice body shots, and did some good work upstairs as well, and was really taking it to Holmes. But he did nothing for the next minute, and Larry came on very strong, and landed a number of clean hard shots. Real tough one to score, but I thought Larry actually did enough over the second half to come back and win it.” – AF


ROUND EIGHT

“It is jabs vs. heavy body shots to start. Which do you prefer? Larry also threw in some holding to mess with Tim. I gave him the round because over the second half, he was more effective.” – LP

“Tim landed some solid shots to the body but Holmes worked his one-two from the outside. This one could have gone either way, but I preferred Larry’s work.” - BM

“Both men take a little bit of a break after the action of the last round. Witherspoon's best punch here is another right hand to the body that made Larry wince. Larry lands a number of stiff jabs. Witherspoon did some good body work at the end. Witherspoon edged it, I think he did more damage.” - MN

“Both fighters seemed to be content with taking a rest, and neither made a real attempt to grab the round.” - AF


ROUND NINE

“One of the best rounds I have ever seen in a heavyweight championship fight. Larry is wobbling around, but he just refuses to let anyone get the best of him and out of nowhere he tags Witherspoon with a sword of a right hand out of the corner. Get's a huge reaction out of me every single time. This is caveman stuff and I love it!!” – LP

“A right hand to the body dropped Holmes' guard and set him up for a clubbing right over the top that stunned him. A hard left hook to the body followed by a right hand further staggered him. About half way through the round, Larry was getting bombed in the corner and it looked for a second he was close to getting stopped. Angelo Dundee, commentating on the fight, is going wild. Witherspoon punches himself out and Holmes, showing legendary heart, nails him with several right hands in the final minute of the round, even hurting him at one point. Clearly Witherspoon's round, but a classic.” - MN

“WOW! Holmes never ceases to amaze me with his balls. People don't talk about it enough. The dude was practically out on his feet and clearly won the last minute of the round. It wasn't enough for the round, but it gave me wood. War both of these guys.” – ML


ROUND TEN

“Not flashy but the experienced Holmes shows why he kept his crown for 20 defenses in this round. He used some nice movement to blunt Witherspoon`s momentum.” – BM

“Witherspoon looked like he was resting on his laurels this round. He followed the champ around, but didn’t let his hands go. Larry didn’t do a whole lot of punching himself, but I think landed enough jabs to win it. It was close though.” - AF

“Larry comes out on his toes like nothing happened. Flicking his jab and Spoon was defending most of them. Tim flipped the script a bit at the end of the round. But he caught a couple of rights before the bell.” - ML


ROUND ELEVEN

“Holmes did some good early work, but Witherspoon took the play away with some very heavy punches that seemed to hurt the champ. Not much happened after that so I had to give it to Spoon.” – LP

“Holmes started well, but Witherspoon came on strong in the middle of the round, and I had the challenger up with a minute to go. Larry came on towards the end and made it close, it wasn’t enough.” - AF

“Spoon got a little lazy, and Holmes took advantage. The Easton Assassin landed some good solid right hands, and takes it on my card with his activity and straight punching.” - BM

“Holmes is snapping Witherspoon's head back with his patented jab. He mixes in a clean left hook. Witherspoon lands some nice left hooks himself. The round tightens up in the final minute as Witherspoon starts landing his own jab. Holmes round based on the first half.” – MN


ROUND TWELVE

“Tim begins the round with two nice shots to the body that backs Holmes off. Holmes circles him and jabs. Witherspoon gets on his toes and starts throwing flashy jabs and right hands, missing most of them but slipping in a left hook to the body. Holmes lands a right to the head, Witherspoon lands another left to the body. In the last minute, Holmes snaps off a number of clean jabs, but Witherspoon lands two big left hooks. The bell rings and Witherspoon raises his arms as Holmes walks back to his corner, looking completely spent. Witherspoon edged the last round, and the fight.” - MN

“I thought that Larry worked harder, and landed more over the first two minutes. Witherspoon was doing his dancing, but other than a couple body shots, he hadn’t really done a whole lot of punching. Then, he landed a couple nice left hooks, and a short time later, a nice right hand. They were the hardest punches of the round, and were enough to sway it in his favor.” - AF

“Great final round. Both guys are spent and they throw on guts alone. This was another very close one. I shaded it to Witherspoon on the basis of the two massive left hooks he landed towards the end of the round.” - ML

“Tim has a solid beginning, but I thought Larry Holmes gutted out the final round. While he didn't land the heaviest blows, he worked harder and landed more punches.” - LP

“Spoon blew the fight in this round. His dancing did nothing and it was a premature celebration. He needed this round. Holmes worked the whole round. Tim landed one good punch but he didn’t do enough in my opinion.” - BM

The official judges scorecards favored Holmes by a split verdict.

Chuck Hassett: 118-111 Holmes
Herb Santos: 115-114 Witherspoon
Chuck Minker: 115-113 Holmes

The Boxing Bulletin's judges had Witherspoon winning 3-1-1.

Lee Payton: 115-114 Witherspoon
Brian McCarraher: 115-114 Holmes
Michael Nelson: 115-113 Witherspoon
Andrew Fruman: 115-115 Draw
Mark Lyons: 115-114 Witherspoon

Let us know how you had it.
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Score it!... Holmes/Witherspoon (Part 1)

For this month's scorecard feature, The Boxing Bulletin looks back to the night Larry Holmes put his heavyweight title on the line against young Tim Witherspoon. With only fifteen fights to his name, few gave the challenger much chance, but the 6 to 1 underdog pushed the long-time champ to the brink.

Did Larry deserve to hang on to his title? Did Terrible Tim do enough to take it?

Let's go back to the Dunes Hotel in Las Vegas, May 20, 1983...

The Boxing Bulletin have assembled a panel of our writers to judge the fight and explain their scores.

The Judges: Lee Payton, Brian McCarraher, Michael Nelson, Andrew Fruman and Mark Lyons.

Today, we'll break down rounds 1-6.

ROUND ONE

“This was a classic feeling out round. Tough to score, but it’s obvious at this stage that Spoon’s defensive style is going to be a problem for Holmes.” – BM

“Both fighters let their hands go, but in a cautious non-committal way and nothing of note landed.” - AF

“There's very little to separate the two fighters. Holmes is throwing far more punches, but Witherspoon blocked or slipped almost all of them. The few punches that Witherspoon threw were more accurate, albeit nothing damaging. Close round that I'd give to Witherspoon.” – MN

“Neither guy got off much, as both fighters showed excellent defense. Holmes landed a few more jabs and actually got in a hook or two.” - ML


ROUND TWO

“Larry still can't find a home for that left jab, and is having trouble landing when he lets go with power shots. Tim landed a hard right to the body and a short one in the corner, which probably won him the round, though Holmes nailed him with a beautiful shot at the bell. It was another close one.” – LP

“Witherspoon landed a crisp right inside and worked the body well. He also blocked just about all of Larry’s jabs that round, while backing him up consistently.” – BM

“Witherspoon is still doing a good job blocking Larry's shots, and now he's landing nice right hands to the body, as well as a strong counter jab. Holmes finally caught him with a flush punch at the end of the round as Witherspoon moved in, but most of the solid blows were landed by Witherspoon.” - MN

“Much the same story as we saw in the first round. Spoon got in some nice body punches, but a cross from Holmes at the bell was the best punch of the fight so far, and was enough to even the round on my card.” – ML


ROUND THREE

“Larry has started to touch Tim up with the stick in this round, but clubbing punches from the young man to end the round are enough to win it on my card. Witherspoon also landed the hardest punch of the round (and maybe the fight, so far). It was a murderous right hand to the ribs. That had to hurt a lot.” – LP

“I'm being reminded how much more fun it is to watch these guys fight than the current batch of heavyweights. Holmes is finding his range with his jab, landing a number of stiff ones. Witherspoon continues to bang Holmes' left side with his right hand. It was a close round, but it seems like Witherspoon's landing the harder shots, so I'm giving him another one.” – MN

“Witherspoon landed a couple nice right hands to the body, and punctuated the round by winning a good exchange near the end.” – AF


ROUND FOUR

“Larry's pumping his jab energetically, and it's landing more and more. Tim's still sneaking in nice body shots and counter jabs. The first two minutes are close, but Holmes took over in the last minute.” - MN

“Spoon landed a big cross early. From there Holmes dictated the pace. He
is still having trouble getting off his vaunted jab. But he slipped several through and followed with a couple of nice crosses.” - ML

“Witherspoon’s defense is the biggest factor so far. His high guard and leaning style is a bad fit for Holmes, and he’s consistently landed his counter jab right in the center of the champ’s face.” – BM


ROUND FIVE

“Spoon got lazy in the round and Holmes won it. The champ came out throwing some more combos, and managed to start getting through with some clean shots.” - BM

“I thought Holmes outworked Witherspoon this round, although the challenger came on over the last 30 seconds. It wasn’t enough to sway the round though on my card.” - AF


“Holmes finished off a four punch combo with a clean right to the head, but Tim came back with a heavy hook to the body and some nice forearm work. The challenger added some more physical stuff that earned him the round, while Holmes just couldn’t hit him like he wanted to.” – LP


ROUND SIX

“Holmes had Witherspoon handcuffed a bit, and had his own jab working well. Clear round for Larry.” - LP

“Larry controlled the 6th with his jab. Witherspoon landed a big right hand to the body with about the 30 seconds to go, but Larry came back with a couple of body shots of his own.” - MN

“Spoon's defense against the jab is masterful, but Holmes still kept him at bay
with it and got a few home. He mixed in some nice right hands as well. Spoon had a bit of a rally in the last minute. But I would say this was Holmes best round so far.” - ML

We'll be back tomorrow for Part 2.

January's edition: Hagler/Leonard

February's edition: Morales/Barrera
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Mark's Top 40 at 40: (25-21)

It's time for another installment of the Mark Lyons Top 40. If you've been following along, you know that Mark was born 40 years ago, and in honor of reaching the big Four-O, he's counting down the 40 favorite fighters of his lifetime.

If you aren't up to speed, make sure to check out Mark's previous countdown entries: Intro, 40-36, 35-31, 30-26.

This week, we're down to numbers 25 through 21.

25. Marvin Johnson Career Record: 43-6 (35) Three favorite fights: Matthew Saad Muhammad KO by 8 & TKO by 12, Victor Galindez KO11 Marvin took on all comers and took part in some of the more memorable fights of my lifetime. The two wars with Saad were as barbaric as Boxing gets. Among the best fights I have ever witnessed. His left cross that separated Galindez from his senses and his title was among the most brutal one punch knock outs I have ever seen. The beating to the body he took from Eddie Mustapha Muhammad was possibly the most vicious body beating I have ever seen. What I am getting at, is the man was memorable. He had hand grenades in his gloves and grape fruits in his trunks. The man won a piece of the Light Heavyweight Title three times during a Golden age for the division. Quite an accomplishment. The main chink in his armor was stamina. And while Marvin may not go down as one of histories greatest fighters, on Saturday and Sunday afternoons it was always must see TV when he was in the ring.

24. Chad Dawson Career Record: 27-0 (17) Three Favorite Fights...so far (you know Chad's going to give us a lot more): Tomasz Adamek UD12, Glen Johnson UD12, Antonio Tarver UD12 My story on Chad from January: The Future P4P King Photo © Ray Kasprowicz

23. Azumah Nelson Career Record: 39-6-2 (28) Three Favorite Fights: Salvador Sanchez TKO by 15, Wilfredo Gomez TKO11, Jeff Fenech TKO8 Ah, The Professor, this guy could do it all. He is acknowledged as a great, but I still find him to be underrated. Pushing Sanchez to the brink after a handful of fights was an amazing sight to behold. I can’t help but like his chances if a rematch ever would have happened. Then we got to watch the transformation from crude brawler to brilliant tactician. Using whatever style suited him best for that evenings work. The rematch against Jeff Fenech was one of the most violent displays of revenge I can recall. After the dubious draw it was a pretty consensus opinion that the Aussie bad ass was going to take his title. Nothing could have been further from reality however as Jeff found himself in the lions den from the opening bell. Very reminiscent of Mosley/Margarito for the shocking way he completely destroyed a high caliber opponent. A glossed over win is Pat Cowdell. The Englishmen had pushed Sanchez the distance in split verdict that wasn’t quite that close, but still highly competitive. 'Zumah turned out his lights inside of a round. From fighting Leija four times to taking on Fenech, Gabriel Ruelas, Mario Martinez & Marcos Villasana twice each. You never had to look long to secure a fight with the Professor and if it was close he was more than willing to do it again and do his best to leave no doubt. Honestly, that’s as high a compliment as can be given to a fighter from where I sit. This man would have fit right in at any era in history.

22. Michael Moorer Career Record: 52-4-1 (40) Three favorite Fights: Bert Cooper TKO5, Alex Stewart TKO4, George Foreman KO by 10 Double M was a baaad man. His place in history is a strange one. I find his work at Light Heavyweight to be overrated and I think he is severely underrated as a Heavyweight. He was a staple on Tuesday Night Fights early on and early was the operative term for the latest Kronk knockout artist. He could never have stayed at the weight long enough to do much more than he accomplished there. HBO was the stage for his first big Heavyweight fight and he and Alex Stewart exchanged bombs like Roman gladiators. Moorer nearly closed the show in the first before a spirited rally from Alex. In the fourth a series of uppercuts nearly landed Stewart’s head in the fifth row and a new player was born. The war with Bert Cooper can best described as epic. If Heavyweight scrapped like that now, I wouldn’t have to drink a pot of coffee to endure one of their tickle fests that is passed off as Boxing. Michael’s critics point to his chin and desire as weak points. This is Heavyweight Boxing - guys that come to fight will get rocked from time to time. One thing you can never say is that Moorer didn’t go out on his shield. Many fighters would have paid the same price for standing in front of Big George. I was cheering for Moorer the whole fight. But when he hit the canvas a room of about twenty of us erupted in unison. Since George isn’t on my list. I wanted to give him some love. The sport could never have enough Michael Moorer’s. The next time you’re watching Wladimir Klitschko make love to a man, flip in a tape of Moorer/Cooper.

21. Larry Holmes Career Record: 69-6 (44) Three favorite Fights: Ken Norton SD15, Gerry Cooney KO13, Ray Mercer UD12 After reading about Ali’s former sparring partner for quite some time my first viewing was an eliminator against Earnie Shavers. Holmes put on a beautiful exhibition over twelve rds. Shavers couldn’t land a glove on and though he labored to get out of Ali’s shadow. He found a 10 year old fan right then and there, and his title winning effort over Norton a few months later is still one of the greatest Heavyweight fights I have ever seen and I think it always will be. Holmes had the best jab in heavyweight history, sorry Muhammad, it carried the power of a cross and was deadly accurate. The most overlooked quality of the Easton assassin was his balls. Go back and watch the shot he took from Shavers in their rematch. That would be among the greatest one shot KO. punches in history, if not for one small fact; Larry got up and won. The Cooney fight was HUGE. Those were different times, grade school and high school kids talked about Boxing then. Big fights were truly big sport, they were covered on the local news. I had several $5 bets with other kids in my eighth grade class on Larry Legend. My pop and I went to the Baltimore Arena and watched it on closed circuit TV. Cooney was good that night, but not nearly good enough. My best friend and I used to get a case of beer and watch the comebacking Holmes on TNF with regularity. Sue me, I’m a sucker for watching old greats apply their craft. The ray Mercer fight was poetry in motion. I had bragged for weeks that Holmes was going to win and seconds into the fight he was almost floored. Then he put ray through a crash course in Boxing genius. That was larry’s last great moment, but well into his 40’s he still had enough to give Holyfield & McCall tough fights. When you rank the top Heavyweights, I can’t see a Top 5 without Holmes in it. The man had it all and was quite a character outside of the ring. People just didn’t want to give him a chance and many still don’t want to give him his due. From “ I aint no Tommy Morrison”, to the glorious leaping kung fu kick off of the car hood at Trevor Berbick, Holmes never failed to entertain me. In closing, Larry probably could have chosen a more tactful phrase to proclaim his superiority over Marciano, but I believe he was right. Rocky Marciano was no Larry Holmes. Few fighters were.

Check out the previous installment of Mark's Top 40 at 40: 30-26

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