My Top Closed Circuit Fights. Part 4.

This is the List of My Top Closed Circuit Fights. Part 4.

1. Mike Tyson vs. Razor Ruddock 1. March 18, 1991. Mirage Hotel; Las Vegas, Nevada. Mike Tyson faces the number 2 heavyweight contender Donovan ‘Razor’ Ruddock, in a battle to see who will earn a title shot against champion Evander Holyfield in the fall. Tyson would put Ruddock on the deck twice, although one was more of a slip than a knockdown. After a heated back and forth battle with both men landing huge punches, the ends comes to a controversial end in the 7th round, when referee Richard Steele stops the bout. Ruddock backed to the ropes after getting hit with a 6-punch Tyson combination, but never fell to the canvas, and appeared able to continue. Steele ruins a great fight by halting the action, and his stupid call spawns a June rematch.
2. Mike Tyson vs. Razor Ruddock 2. June 28, 1991. Mirage Hotel; Las Vegas, Nevada. For me, it was another trip to the beautiful Pavilion in Cherry Hill, New Jersey to catch the rematch on closed circuit action. Ruddock bulked up 10 pounds for the rematch, and it was another slugfest between the two huge punchers. It was also a foul-filled contest, which went the 12 round distance. Ruddock visibly hurt Tyson, who withstood the barrage, and finished the bout as a unanimous decision winner. I went home satisfied that the fight went the distance, and happy that both men were gracious after the bout ended.
3. Evander Holyfield vs. Larry Holmes. June 19, 1992. Caesar’s Palace Outdoor Arena; Las Vegas, Nevada. Larry Holmes had earned the title shot with Evander by defeating Ray Mercer in February, but this fight was a totally different story. Holmes tried the same lay on the corner ropes tactics with Holyfield that had worked with Mercer, but Evander was too smart. In a boring, lackluster bout, Evander won nearly every round, with the only drama coming when a Holmes’ elbow opened a huge gash over his eye. Not much fun to watch, and I was glad when it was over.
4. Oscar De La Hoya vs. Julio Cesar Chavez. June 7, 1996. Closed circuit fights had ended in 1992, but were revived by Bob Arum for this bout. The reason being that most Mexicans in Mexico didn’t have access to pay-per-view, so he put the fight in theatres, so they could see the fight. One last trip to the Pavilion in Cherry Hill to see a short bout, which ended because of a huge gash over Chavez’s eye in the fourth round. The cut had been opened in training, not because of any huge De La Hoya blow. Oscar had been successful boxing however, and showed why he was the new champion of the next generation. It also ended and era of closed circuit fights for me, and I was glad I had a chance to be a part of it.

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