R.I.P. Mike McCallum (1956-2025)

[Tyson2fastFury]

leider wieder eine boxlegende weniger… mike mccallum ist im alter von 68 jahren verstorben. der body-snatcher gehörte zu den besten kämpfern der 80/90-er jahre. ein tolles gesamtpaket im ring.

ich durfte ihn 2017 kurz im mayweather-gym kennenlernen. ruhe in frieden, mike! was war euer lieblingsfight von ihm?

Mike McCallum, one of the greats, passes away aged 68

One of the underappreciated greats, Mike McCallum, has passed away at the age of 68.

www.boxingscene.com

 

[holy Cow!]

Einer der absoluten Meister seiner Zunft, dem es leider verwehrt blieb seine Brillanz auf ganz großer Bühne unter Beweis stellen zu können.

James Toney, nicht besonders freigiebig mit Wertschätzung gegenüber anderen Boxern, zu McCallum.

Best fighter: Mike McCallum — That’s an easy choice, right off the top of my head it’s the Body Snatcher. He was the best fighter I fought at middleweight, super middleweight and cruiserweight. Out of all the fighters I fought, I respect him the most because he made me think about everything I tried to do. Before McCallum I was just runnin’ in on everyone, but he made me slow down and think for the first time.

Best Boxer: McCallum — Yup, it’s him again. It’s between McCallum and Michael Nunn, but I gotta go with McCallum because he was a master boxer who wasn’t afraid to stand his ground. Nunn was mostly fast. I admit that he outboxed me for about nine rounds, but my body shots slowed him down. I told him during the fight ‘I’m gonna catch you!’ And I did.

Best defense: McCallum: He was right there in front of me, but I had a hard time hitting him with clean punches. I basically came into my own by fighting him. I learned how to be elusive without running around the ring by fighting Mike McCallum three times.

Best jab: McCallum: Mike’s jab was like a piston. There were other guys I fought who had good jabs, like Nunn and Jones, but they just had speed and they just flicked it. Mike popped that jab with authority. He was an old-school fighter.

Smartest: McCallum: Come on, who do you think it is? Who’s the one fighter I truly respect? You got it, the Body Snatcher, Mike McCallum. I fought my share of boxers who thought they were clever like Roy Jones, Michael Nunn, Montell Griffin, and Reggie Johnson, but they were all scared to really fight. McCallum boxed, he fought, he defended, and he didn’t run all over the ring. He could do all that because he was smart.