By Terence Dooley

Liam Cameron turned professional on the 24th of October with a six-rounds points win over Nottingham’s Matt Scriven at the City Hall, Sheffield.  Scriven, who recently tussled with Billy Joe Saunders, had high praise for Cameron after the fight.  Another man praised Campbell’s performance, former two-time heavyweight title holder Tim Witherspoon took in Cameron’s debut and the 51-year-old Philadelphian believes that Cameron will make it to the top.

“I’ve been coming this way for years,” said Witherspoon when asked what had brought him to Sheffield.  “I’ve been working with Dennis Hobson and some of his fighters.  I’m here to support Liam Cameron, who can make it as a fighter if he listens to the people around him, and Femi Fehintola – I’ve always supported all of Hobson’s fighters. 

“Boxing needs help and I’ve been around this game for over 25-years, my son fights as well, so I’ll do anything I can to help.  I broke British hearts with Frank Bruno but right now I’m an ambassador for these British guys and the sport of boxing. 

“I’ve trained people so I know how to talk to promoters and managers.  Everyone deserves to make money from boxing and there is plenty of money for everyone.  So let us cut it up right and get rid of the arguments.  The bottom line is that there is plenty out there for us all.”

Witherspoon shot to prominence at the age of 25, and with only 15 fights under his belt, by taking on, and almost beating, WBC heavyweight champion Larry Holmes in 1983; Larry was in and around his peak at the time.  Witherspoon believes that this lifetime involvement with the sport gives him an inside track on what makes a fighter tick.

“I go around.  I can teach and I can emphasise.  I try to get into a fighter’s head and guide them in the right direction,” said Tim.  “To me, all of this is natural.  I’ve been doing this for years.  If you need help come to me and I’ll let it all out.”

Tim negated Holmes’ jab during their contest; using his own compact style to counter Larry, himself a master at countering shots.  It was a close fight and the 115-113, 118-111 and 114-115 scorecards reflected this.  Witherspoon, though, has no regrets; he believes that a win over Holmes would have been a professional triumph but it would have come at a huge personal cost.

“It was a dream come true to be in the ring with Larry Holmes.  I did what I could do with him.  I’m glad he won.  I met a whole lot of people through that fight and the fact I didn’t win means I can be standing here today talking with you.  If I had won I’d have gone wrong and wouldn’t be here today – I’d be dead or somewhere else.  That loss taught me a lot of things.  It teaches you who your friends are and where you are in boxing.  Losing allowed me to understand that there is a lot to this boxing game,” confessed Witherspoon.

Tim was a well-schooled boxer.  At 6’ 3½’’ tall and with a solid physique he was one of the best physical specimens of that hazy 1980’s era; Witherspoon also had a top-notch training team back in those early days.  ‘Slim’ Jim Robinson gave Tim the blueprint for beating Holmes.  Witherspoon acknowledged the work put into him by this boxing brains trust.

“Yeah, I had Slim Jim Robinson in my corner that night.  We practised to take away Holmes’ jab, to take away his main strength, and that worked for us,” recalled Witherspoon. 

“Larry didn’t want a rematch after that.  He was trying to get lesser fighters to fight him as he wanted to break Rocky Marciano’s [49-0] record and Don King didn’t want a rematch with me.  They created the IBF along with Bob Lee so that Larry wouldn’t have to fight any of the big, young guys.  They let him fight who he wanted to fight.  Then he took on Michael Spinks but he came unstuck and made some comments about Rocky Marciano [Writer’s note: Holmes claimed Marciano could not carry his jockstrap] that that came back to haunt him,” claimed Witherspoon.

Many, this writer included, feel that a fit, focussed and hungry Witherspoon could have given Mike Tyson a tough fight.  The two were on a collision course only for Bonecrusher Smith to rip that fight, and the WBA title, from Witherspoon’s grasp in 1986.  Tim, however, believes that Mike would have been too tough a proposition at this point in their respective careers.

“Mike was in very good shape at that time”, admitted Witherspoon, “and I just wasn’t ready for that type of fight.  I think he would have won that one.  Don King was causing me problems so I wouldn’t have been ready for that fight.  I wouldn’t have been in shape for it.” 

In conclusion, Witherspoon claimed that he had tried his best to beat the boxing system, often to the detriment of his own career, claiming that: “I stood up for myself more than any other fighter and I did my best.”

Please send news and views to neckodeemus@hotmail.co.uk