By Terence Dooley
There’s a lot to be said for works of art that come close to but never quite reach perfection; the wabi-sabis—nearly and incomplete pieces that allow our minds to play freely with the work or subject, filling in the gaps between potential and perfection.
Boxing’s an art form that best illustrates the term. Fans of the sport love their Alis, Robinsons and the men who had careers that reached greatness, if not outright perfection, but we also love the ragtag bunch of nearly men, potential greats and those who grate due to their failure to reach their full potential.
Arguments over who is the greatest, or one of them, tend to throw up the same names yet conversations about the ones who could and should have been features a cast of the usual suspects, supporting actors in the field of greatness, unusual picks and personal favourites.
BoxingScene canvassed Twitter for a list of names of British and International fighters who ‘Shoulda, Woulda, Coulda’ or who fall under the definition of near-beauty that is: “imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete”. Men who are similar to a jigsaw of the Mona Lisa that has a few too many pieces missing—nearly but not quite beautiful and complete, but with enough there to stimulate our minds. Here are the pick of the British nearly men, those unlucky, and at times unruly, men who didn’t make the grade.
Kirkland Laing:
If you are looking for someone who fits all three criteria then look no further than the “Gifted One” Kirkland Laing, 43-12-1 (24). Laing’s name was throw up by a number of people: actor and director Paddy Considine (@PaddyCOnsidence), journalist Jasveer Singh Gil (@JazzTheJourno), former British light-welterweight champion Curtis Woodhouse (@woodhousecurtis), Livefight’s John Evans ((@John_Evans79) and Graham Tiller (@TillerGraham), plus others, went for the talented welterweight. Tiller asked the question most ask when looking back at Laing’s career: ‘What if?’
The Jamaica-born, Nottingham-based boxer raised a few eyebrows in 1981 when Peter Moss of the Daily Mail wrote a story about his lack of concentration. ‘Kirkland Laing’s weakness has been confirmed by a Harley Street specialist as a chronic inability to concentrate’, he wrote—unwittingly referring to a different type of chronic. The story was a follow-up on Laing’s April 1980 TKO 9 loss to Colin Jones ahead of their rematch in May 1982—the rematch that went exactly the same way as their first encounter.
However, Laing regrouped, leaping to international fame when out-pointing Roberto Duran in Detroit in September of the same year, joining the elite list of Esteban de Jesus, Sugar Ray Leonard and Wilfred Benitez.
Laing struggled to come to terms with the enormity of the task early on, he said: ‘Maybe I was a little in awe of him for the first two rounds but [manager] Mickey [Duff] told me I was in America and if I didn’t throw punches, I would throw the chance away’ [Daily Mail, September 6 1982]. Throw he did, posting scores of 96-94 (twice) to offset the 94-96 card in Duran’s favour from Bernard Humphrey.
Joe Ryan, his trainer, stated that he felt his man was only boxing at 35% capacity, a frightening thought for fellow welters. Post-Duran, Laing’s lack of focus cost him dearly; talk of a fight against Thomas Hearns fell apart when he went AWOL for a full year following the enormous win. When he resurfaced, he killed the goodwill from the Duran fight during a 10-round KO loss to Fred Hutchings at Atlantic City’s Harrah’s Marina Casino.
There will still highs, though, as he regained the British title after a gap of seven-years by stopping Sylvester Mittee in five at London’s Elephant and Castle on March 14 1987. It wasn’t a vintage display, but it was enough to remind onlookers that Laing had once been touted as a potential world champion and (whisper it) a genuine British great. Deryk Brown spoke for many when writing that Laing’s tale was one of: ‘wasted talent, of a potential genius even, who lacked dedication.’ [The Times, March 15 1987]
Laing still held out hope of a world title despite the fact he was now in the dying embers of a career pockmarked by ill-discipline, telling Mickey Duff: ‘It’s the world now, Mickey, it’s the world,’ after defeating Rocky Kelly (TKO 5) in November of the same year according to Srikumer Sen of The Times [November 28 1987].
Duff, though, was handling Lloyd Honeyghan at the time and openly admitted that: ‘I am morally committed to Honeyghan.’ It became a moot point anyway as Laing lost to Nino La Rocca (UD 12) for the vacant EBU title after yet another year long sabbatical. Although he picked up the belt by hammering Antoine Fernandez in two on May 9th 1990. He lost the belt to Patrizio Oliva in a controversial fight soon after. Boxing Monthly wrote that: ‘No round lasted the required three minutes and it was amazing when the final stanza lasted well over four minutes.’
Ironically, Nick Halling of The Independent had bumped into a seemingly rejuvenated Laing in January 1990, the fading contender had trained over Christmas in preparation for a fight against Buck Smith—with the promise of an IBF shot should he win.
Halling wrote that: ‘the festive training session is tangible evidence that at the age of 35, the fighter once dubbed the Peter Pan of pugilism is growing up. Laing himself insisted that the gym be opened over Christmas so that his preparations for tomorrow's contest against Buck Smith at the Royal Albert Hall could continue uninterrupted.’ [January 9 1990].
Like Mike Tyson many years later, one good camp could not wash away years of bad living, despite Laing’s insistence that: ‘Losing another fight is my biggest fear. Right now, I feel like a man on Death Row waiting to be sentenced. It scares me that I've been in boxing for all this time, yet I don't feel I have anything to show for it. I don't want it to end like this, I want to go out with something worth having.’ However, he could not buck the losing trend against Smith and was KO’d in seven.
Despite the loss, Laing’s mystique meant he was still talked about in world title terms, a mooted WBC crack at Maurice Blocker was on the cards as long as he continued to win. Victories against Trevor Smith (W TKO 6), Antoine Fernandez (W TKO 2) and Rocky Berg (W TKO 2) brought him a step closer. Then the EBU defeat against Oliva in his next fight moved him two steps back—the story of his career.
Writing about Laing’s fight against Glenn Catley (L TKO 5 in November 1994), Harry Mullan stated: ‘It seemed cruelly inappropriate that the career of Kirkland Laing, the most extravagantly talented British boxer of his generation, should peter out in a place like the Whitchurch Sports Centre, a purpose-built eyesore at the back of a drab council estate on the outskirts of Bristol.’ [The Independent, November 27 1994].
Former foe Jones found it hard to watch Laing’s demise, telling Matt Lloyd of the pain he felt when reading that Laing had fallen on hard times and out of a window to end up very ill in hospital following the end of his career.
‘When I saw what had become of Kirkland my eyes just filled up with tears, I couldn't believe what had happened to him. It is absolutely tragic what has happened to such a great boxer and wonderful character. Even my wife and children were gutted. I have great memories of him and our fights and it is so sad that he has ended up on the streets.’ [Wales on Sunday, August 3 2003]
The win over Duran was in the rear-view mirror by that point, although it’s been kept vividly alive in the imagination of British boxing fans to ensure that Laing’s name is one of the first to pop up when we ask ourselves who should and could have done that much more.
Richard Evatt:
Boxing Monthly’s Mark Butcher (@KOwriting) threw down Evatt’s name. ‘Richard Evatt from a domestic view. Interviewed him way back in the day for Boxing News. Serious banger, wayward soul,’ he Tweeted. David Lee (@DavidLee8885) backed his pick and it is clear to see why.
In 1998, the Coventry-based featherweight, nicknamed “The Tiger”, was talking about tackling Naseem Hamed after moving to 13-0 (11) courtesy of a seventh-round RTD win over Mzukisi Oliphant for the IBO’s Inter-Continental featherweight belt.
‘I'll beat Naz. I'm just biding my time and building my knowledge. I enjoyed going seven rounds this time because my fights usually only take two rounds. This was education. So I'm ready for Hamed.’ [from an interview with Iain King of The Sunday Mail, March 1 1998]
Fast forward to 2002 and he was 20-5 (14), another talent had fallen by the wayside. Following the win over Oliphant, promoter Barry Hearn had scheduled a run of fights that he believed would lead to a crack at “The Prince”, but he also wanted to make sure that his man would be ready when opportunity knocked, telling Vince Ellis that: ‘We have been keeping him under wraps to a large extent. I never like to expose a boxer until I am sure he can live up to his billing. I'm sure Richard can and over the next few months he has got the chance to prove that.’ [Sports Argus, May 2 1998]
Sadly, a failed brain scan in July of the same year, just days before a British title eliminator with Kelton McKenzie, was a red flag, a sign that it may not all be smooth sailing for the 24-year-old contender [The Birmingham Post, July 20 1998].
The despair was short-lived, his licence was reinstated on Friday November 13 of the same year: ‘I am delighted,’ he stated when the news came through [Birmingham Post]. ‘It will be tremendous to get back into training and to carry on boxing. I know have to make up for lost time as I've fought only once this year.’
Three-months later, Evatt had to face yet another setback after losing to Smith Odoom (UD 12) in February 2013. It was supposed to be the first of a “two-step” charge to the world title, in reality it was the beginning of the end.
Sure, he bounced back with a win over the ever-ready Peter Buckley two-weeks later, but that comeback win was followed by three defeats on the bounce (L TKO 11 to Junior Jones for the vacant IBO world title, RTD 1 versus Mick O’Malley, due to a broken jaw, and L TKO 2 to Isaac Sebaduuka respectively).
Evatt’s pre-fight joy prior to Jones, ‘This is a genuine world title fight and I truly believe that I have what it takes to succeed at the highest level. I'm buzzing,’ [when speaking to John Wilkinson of the Coventry Evening Telegraph, March 9 1999], had turned to despair despite a promising display that saw him knock the former WBO champion down early before being stopped. To add insult to injury, he was leading on two of the cards after 10 rounds according to Mark Staniforth of the Birmingham Evening Mail [April 12 1999].
The next setback was in some ways even harder to take, Hearn secured home advantage for Evatt’s Commonwealth title challenge to O’Malley only to see his man succumb to a jaw injury after a single round. ‘We think it was the first right uppercut of the fight that did it,’ stated Dean Powell, Evatt's trainer, when talking to John Wilkinson [Coventry Evening Telegraph, October 23 1999].
‘As soon as he came back to the corner I knew I had to withdraw him. Richard's a fighter and he wanted to carry on, but one more punch on the jaw and his career could have been over. We will have to regroup, see what happens, and concentrate on getting Richard fit again. It's a bitter disappointment for him.’
After a six-month rehabilitation period, Evatt came back to the ring only to be demolished by Sebaduuka. As was the case with Jones, he scored a first-round knockdown only to end up on the losing end after: ‘a torrent of blows that prompted referee Lee Cook to halt the contest,’ [Coventry Evening Telegraph, April 18 2000].
‘I couldn't believe it when the referee stopped the fight,’ argued Evatt. ‘I was on the ropes but I didn't think I was in trouble. If the fight should have been stopped the referee should have halted it when I had Sebaduuka down in the first round.’
A cut sustain against Rakhim Minhalieyev (W4 on April 7) delayed a mooted WBU world title shot against Casius Baloyi, which was pencilled in for April 24 of that year, as the wound required six-weeks to heal. A brace of foot injuries proved yet another in a growing line of setbacks.
‘Richard has been dogged with these foot injuries,’ said Matchroom’s John Wischusen when speaking to the Sunday Mercury [July 22 2001]. ‘If Richard is going to find that every time he thinks the foot is repaired he just breaks down again in training, then it will be very hard for him to keep going. The next month will really tell us what's going to happen. It's a real shame he's in this position because at his best Richard is one of the most exciting and powerful fighters at his weight.’
Evatt gave a candid insight into why his career hadn’t taken off during an interview with Vince Ellis in November, showing shades of Laing when dissecting his career thus far. ‘I probably only ever prepared properly for three fights in my career, that's all. The rest of the time I was relying on my power and my ability. I proved that I could do it at the top level—when I fought Junior Jones for the world title I was all over the guy and he never really hurt me. I trained really well for that fight, even though I only had seven weeks' notice. But for too many of the others I wasn't in the right shape.’ [Sunday Mercury, November 11 2001]
The 27-year-old had earned decent money, but was living with his sister and her husband as well as laying patios to earn money. The £50,000 he had earned from two title shots was a fading memory, as was his prime. He said: ‘I had a good time. You do when you are young. I've still got a little bit left tucked away but cash burns a hole in my pocket.’
A second-round KO loss to Craig Spacie in November 2011 saw him take to the ring for the final time. Matt Bozeat later penned an article titled ‘Time is running out for Tiger’s title bid’ for the Coventry Evening Telegraph on January 24 2007. Evatt, 20-5 (14), was 33 and knew he needed to do something to get back into contention, saying: ‘I need two or three fights to get ready for a title fight, but will take any chance sooner if the money is right. I've had loads of sparring in the gym, but I need a fight to get sharp and rebuild my confidence.’
It didn’t come to pass, though, and tragedy in July 2012 when he was found dead at the Salvation Army Hostel in Hillfields in July 2012. The man who Barry Hearn had once labelled: ‘pound for pound, one of the hardest hitting fighters in the world,’ [Coventry Telegraph, July 18 2012] had fallen a long way from his glory days. The postmortem result was inconclusive.
Alleged drug use and acknowledged alcohol abuse had blighted his health and outlook during retirement. His shocked family had tried to reach the former fighter only to discover that he was deep into his addiction.
‘As a family we loved Richard and we cared for him all his life,’ stated Bobby Evatt, his mother, when speaking to Martin Bagot of the Coventry Telegraph on July 19 2012. ‘He wasn't homeless and as long as I have a breath left in me I would never have let him live on the streets. He was a great figure for Coventry and for anyone who knew him as a person. Richard was our life. For the last two years he had been drinking. We tried as a family to support him and get him back, but he was lost.’
It was a sad end to a promising career blighted by injury, scan irregularities and that old chestnut of ill-discipline coupled with bad timing.
Gary Mason:
Graham Tiller waded in with another good shout when Tweeting: ‘Gary Mason should have avoided Lennox and gone further....’ and he is right, although the Londoner faced a race against time due to persistent hand and eye problems.
Mason himself had assumed he would always remain in the shadow of Frank Bruno, once telling John Burton of the Daily Mail that: ‘I accepted it was impossible for two good fighters to emerge from the same place at the same time. It was frustrating, but now I’m making people take notice. I am the man of the moment.’ [June 22 1989]
Only a moment, though, as there was a third heavyweight player, Lennox Lewis, about to hit the ‘same place at the same time’, not to mention the small matter of Mason’s eye retina problem, which required surgery from Professor David Macleod, who had corrected Maurice Hope’s detached retina in 1980 [The Daily Mail, March 17 1990].
Prior to the operation, Mason had motored to 34-0, the best record in world heavyweight boxing at that time, and was well-ranked. However, he complained of “misty” vision following his win over Everett Marin, prompting manager Terry Lawless to book him in for a visit with Macleod.
It worked, but Mason wasn’t prepared to wait for BBBoC clearance, telling Sky TV that a fight against George Foreman in America was an option. “My eye has passed medical standards in every way, but whether the Board will grant me a licence is debatable,” he said.
“If a match for me and Foreman was made, I can't see me having any problem with getting a licence in America, but I'd still like to go with the Board's blessing. There is no reason why I would not take a match with George Foreman. A match like that would mean me getting world exposure, the chance to earn a lot of money and in beating Foreman I'd be right in the picture for fighting Tyson, Evander Holyfield or for a world title. I totally believe that if the match were to be made I would beat Foreman.”
It didn’t come to pass, by December of that year the contender had dropped three stone to prove he didn’t have a weight problem (weighing 16st 11¾lb for a Board approved comeback fight against James Pritchard). It wasn’t all gravy, though, as Lewis was stealing a march on his domestic rival; he picked up the EBU belt in October 1990 when stopping Jean-Maurice Chanet by sixth-round TKO. Mason now had it all to fight for.
Mickey Duff was now in place as his manager, he told John Burton that a dominant return win would persuade Lewis to skip a showdown with Mason. He said: ‘After watching Gary in action I’m positive Lewis will make a strategic withdrawal.’
Mason was just happy to be back. Saying: ‘Nine months ago my life was in ruins…I went up to nearly 20 stone but since the Boxing Board gave me the all-clear, this is like a new beginning. If they said I couldn’t fight here again I would have gone to America and risked going blind in one eye.’
The successful surgery led to talk of a fight against Bruno, who had stoked the flames by telling an audience in Bradford that he would be willing to return to face the winner of Lewis-Mason. Duff believed that his man was a sure fire bet to beat Lewis, estimating that the resulting Bruno clash would net £2 million [Daily Mail, 27 February 1991]. In the meantime, Mason had to clear Lewis from his plate, a fight that brought him £178,000.
A month later, Mason had lost to Lewis (TKO 7), and announced his retirement—he was only 28. The former fighter told the Daily Mail that he was thinking about a new career in rugby league, vowing to join London Crusaders [11 January 1992] despite a detached retina, a legacy of his fight with Lewis. He did switch careers, but it was a short-lived thing.
Mason wasn’t done just yet, he defied warnings over his vision to take out a boxing licence in America—Foreman was again mentioned as an opponent for a £320,000 summer money spinner [The Independent, January 25 1992]. An eye-specialist in the U.S. gave him the go-ahead to box, but John Morris, the Board’s General Secretary, sound sceptical when speaking to the Daily Mail’s ubiquitous John Burton.
‘There is nothing to stop Gary applying for his licence, but I think it is significant he didn’t come to us first before starting to box again.’
‘You must remember I retired myself—the Board didn’t say I couldn’t box,’ was Mason’s take. However, and despite modest wins over Kevin P Porter (W TKO 2) and (W TKO 3), he called it quits for good with a record of 37-1 (34 early).
The former fighter worked for Sky as a pundit for a time. Sadly, the union didn’t last due to an off-air comment. Mason had lent his tie to a news presenter and, when he noticed the presenter leaving, let rip with: ‘Fuck me, he’s still got my tie on’ [The Guardian, January 23 1998]. His mic was still on at the time.
Like so many boxers before him, Mason tried his hand at many different things only to find that he couldn’t reach the earning power the sport had once given to him. His death came out of the blue, he was hit by a van while cycling his bike in 2011, leaving behind £1000 and no will (to put it into perspective, he earned an estimated fifty times that when defending his British title against Jess Harding in June 1989). The tragedy of Mason’s career is that he will be remembered for his sole defeat.
In Part Two we will look at British world title holders and challengers who could have done more.
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