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Many of the greatest boxers are men of few words who do their talking in the ring. Not for them the long drawn out press conferences and the endless sound bites for the TV.
Luckily for fight fans however, there are always fighters who are as devastatingly efficient at delivering a putdown in or out of the ring. Many of the most spiteful, sly digs often land weeks before the first bell rings, but then sometimes there are those who can sum up the fight game in one emotive, poignant sentence. Here are 20 of our favourite classic quotes.
‘Fear is standing across the ring from Joe Louis and knowing he wants to go home early.’ Max Baer
‘I fought Sugar Ray so many times it’s a wonder I didn’t get diabetes.’ Jake La Motta
‘He's gonna need an industrial-strength toothpick to pick the leather out of his teeth. I'm gonna hit this man so hard he's gonna grow an Afro.’ Michael Olajide, before fighting Iran Barkley
‘I get worried when a guy goes down, in case he doesn't get up - for me to hit him again.’ Nigel Benn
‘If you screw things up in tennis, it's 15-love. If you screw up in boxing, it's your ass.’ Randall ‘Tex’ Cobb
‘A champion is someone who gets up when he can't.’ Jack Dempsey
‘I'm scared every time I go into the ring, but it's how you handle it. What you have to do is plant your feet, bite down on your mouthpiece and say, and say ‘let’s go.' Mike Tyson
‘To me, boxing is like a ballet - except there's no music, no choreography, and the dancers hit each other.’ Jack Handey
‘Boxing is the toughest and loneliest sport in the world.’ Frank Bruno
‘Me and Jake LaMotta grew up in the same neighbourhood. You wanna know how popular Jake was? When we played hide and seek, nobody ever looked for LaMotta.’ Rocky Graziano
‘My girlfriend boos when we make love because she knows it turns me on.’ Hector Camacho
‘Nigel Benn is like washing-up liquid: built on hype and one day the bubble will burst.’ Chris Eubank
‘Mike's not all that bad. If you dig deep… dig real deep, dig, dig, dig, dig. Dig deep, go all the way to China... I'm sure you'll find there is a nice guy in there.’ George Foreman on Tyson
‘When Mike Tyson gets mad, you don't need a referee, you need a priest.’ Jim Murray (1989)
‘I'll fight Lloyd Honeyghan for nothing, if the price is right.’ Marlon Starling
‘This boxer is doing what is expected of him... bleeding from his nose.’ Harry Carpenter
‘I can close any cut in the world in 50 seconds, as long as it ain't a total beheading.’ Cutman Adolph Ritacco
‘When I was a young fellow I was knocked down plenty. I wanted to stay down, but I couldn’t. I had to collect the two dollars for winning or go hungry. I had to get up. I was one of those hungry fighters. You could have hit me on the chin with a sledgehammer for five dollars. When you haven’t eaten for two days you’ll understand.’ Jack Dempsey
‘Getting hit motivates me. It makes me punish the guy more. A fighter takes a punch, hits back with three punches.’ Roberto Durán
‘I’m not in this sport to see how hard I can get hit or to see how many big punches I can take. I am in this game to fight as long as I can. I am trying to dish a lot of punishment.’ Floyd Mayweather Jr.
Luckily for fight fans however, there are always fighters who are as devastatingly efficient at delivering a putdown in or out of the ring. Many of the most spiteful, sly digs often land weeks before the first bell rings, but then sometimes there are those who can sum up the fight game in one emotive, poignant sentence. Here are 20 of our favourite classic quotes.
‘Fear is standing across the ring from Joe Louis and knowing he wants to go home early.’ Max Baer
‘I fought Sugar Ray so many times it’s a wonder I didn’t get diabetes.’ Jake La Motta
‘He's gonna need an industrial-strength toothpick to pick the leather out of his teeth. I'm gonna hit this man so hard he's gonna grow an Afro.’ Michael Olajide, before fighting Iran Barkley
‘I get worried when a guy goes down, in case he doesn't get up - for me to hit him again.’ Nigel Benn
‘If you screw things up in tennis, it's 15-love. If you screw up in boxing, it's your ass.’ Randall ‘Tex’ Cobb
‘A champion is someone who gets up when he can't.’ Jack Dempsey
‘I'm scared every time I go into the ring, but it's how you handle it. What you have to do is plant your feet, bite down on your mouthpiece and say, and say ‘let’s go.' Mike Tyson
‘To me, boxing is like a ballet - except there's no music, no choreography, and the dancers hit each other.’ Jack Handey
‘Boxing is the toughest and loneliest sport in the world.’ Frank Bruno
‘Me and Jake LaMotta grew up in the same neighbourhood. You wanna know how popular Jake was? When we played hide and seek, nobody ever looked for LaMotta.’ Rocky Graziano
‘My girlfriend boos when we make love because she knows it turns me on.’ Hector Camacho
‘Nigel Benn is like washing-up liquid: built on hype and one day the bubble will burst.’ Chris Eubank
‘Mike's not all that bad. If you dig deep… dig real deep, dig, dig, dig, dig. Dig deep, go all the way to China... I'm sure you'll find there is a nice guy in there.’ George Foreman on Tyson
‘When Mike Tyson gets mad, you don't need a referee, you need a priest.’ Jim Murray (1989)
‘I'll fight Lloyd Honeyghan for nothing, if the price is right.’ Marlon Starling
‘This boxer is doing what is expected of him... bleeding from his nose.’ Harry Carpenter
‘I can close any cut in the world in 50 seconds, as long as it ain't a total beheading.’ Cutman Adolph Ritacco
‘When I was a young fellow I was knocked down plenty. I wanted to stay down, but I couldn’t. I had to collect the two dollars for winning or go hungry. I had to get up. I was one of those hungry fighters. You could have hit me on the chin with a sledgehammer for five dollars. When you haven’t eaten for two days you’ll understand.’ Jack Dempsey
‘Getting hit motivates me. It makes me punish the guy more. A fighter takes a punch, hits back with three punches.’ Roberto Durán
‘I’m not in this sport to see how hard I can get hit or to see how many big punches I can take. I am in this game to fight as long as I can. I am trying to dish a lot of punishment.’ Floyd Mayweather Jr.
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