When I returned from Vegas just after Labor Day in September of 1985, the fight that was on my mind was the Larry Holmes vs. Michael Spinks fight set for September 21st at the Riviera. Since I liked both fighters, my emotions were torn as to who to root for.
Since the fight was on HBO and we didn’t have it, I went over my cousin’s house to watch the action. My mom would babysit for him and his wife on Saturday nights, so it would be the perfect place to go. He also had a state of the big screen projection tv at the time, and that didn’t hurt matters either.
Michael had weighed in at 200 lbs. officially for the bout. The pre-fight build up had focused on Michael’s training program to bulk up to heavyweight, with interval training, and weight lifting as well. He had hired Mackie Shilstone to train him, and he looked solid at the 200 lbs. he tipped the scales at. Larry Holmes weighed in at 221 and a half lbs., which was about normal for him.
The fight itself was not action packed to say the least. Michael moved and jabbed and tried to make himself unavailable to hit. He would land an occasional hard right, but none of his punches seemed to bother Holmes. Landed blows build up points however, and Michael was definitely in the fight as it reached the middle rounds.
Larry seemed reluctant to throw his right hand. It was revealed after the bout that he had a pinched nerve in his 5th vertebra, and the doctors advised him to avoid the punch because it might leave him paralyzed. It definitely affected his performance, and that night made me screaming for him to throw his right hand.
Holmes’ jab landed enough times to make it close, and Michael fought almost spastically, landing punches from odd angles. When the 15 round fight came to a close, I knew it would be a close decision.
The scores were unanimous for Michael, and made him the new heavyweight champion. It also ruined Larry Holmes’ chance to tie Rocky Marciano’s undefeated record of 49-0. I went home that night with a lousy feeling in my stomach, happy for Spinks but at the same time disappointed for Holmes.
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