Black History Month Tribute — Larry Holmes
Larry Holmes was no stranger to doubters throughout his career, and was not the only heavyweight to show his greatness through proving detractors wrong on the grandest of occasions. Muhammad Ali’s health was deemed to be in danger prior to his greatest victories. Lennox Lewis was under-appreciated during his 14-year professional career, but is now recognised as an all-time great heavyweight champion.
Holmes was considered an Ali imitation with no charisma, and his ability, heart and chin were questioned during the early stages of his career and he had it all to prove. Eventually, Holmes carved his own legacy, and ironically, proceeded to show as much grit and bravery as any fighter who has ever lived during the course of his career.
Larry had a ramrod jab, devastating and underrated right uppercut, unbelievable recuperative powers, blistering hand speed, great movement, tremendous heart, intelligence, courage and durability. A true all-around heavyweight great.
Holmes’ career was a perfect example of the essential ingredients needed to carve a great legacy. A jab is the most important punch in boxing, and Holmes mastered it, his left jab being the best in heavyweight history. He took part in top-level sparring from the very beginning of his career against great heavyweights like Ali and Joe Frazier. He worked with the best trainers and cut-men that he could find, and for Larry, they just happened to be the best to ever do it, with over a century’s worth of experience and knowledge between them, the likes of Ray Arcel, Eddie Futch and Freddie Brown.
In his first noteworthy fight against devastating puncher and former sparring partner, Earnie Shavers, Holmes scored a 12-round near shut-out in a WBC title eliminator. Holmes displayed that terrific left jab. This is one of his finest victories.
Following the Shavers fight, Holmes’ first title shot came against Ken Norton. In June 1978, Norton and Holmes engaged in a historic war. This fight sits amongst the most classic heavyweight battles of all time such as Jack Dempsey vs Luis Firpo, Ali vs Frazier (1 & 3) and George Foreman vs Ron Lyle.
This fight is particularly famous for its spectacular final round. For fourteen rounds, it was an intense back and forth war. In the fifteenth round, both men went hell for leather in a round for the ages.
It was a split decision, with Holmes being declared the new WBC heavyweight champion after going through hell-fire to win by the narrowest of margins. Only truly great fighters come through tests like this, but Holmes still couldn’t get his just due.
Holmes had three successful title defences, including a tougher than expected outing against Mike Weaver. Larry had to show his gargantuan fighting heart yet again by overcoming the determined challenger in round twelve after grave difficulty, and then came Holmes’ rematch with top contender Shavers.
Holmes got hit flush on the jaw by quite possibly the hardest punch in boxing history, Shavers’ overhand right, in the 7th round. Holmes should have been knocked out cold. As Holmes got up, he appeared to be in another galaxy, on shaky legs and wobbling around the ring. However, he showed the heart of a lion, weathered the storm in one of the toughest rounds of his career, and eventually prevailed via 11th round TKO to retain his WBC heavyweight title with a fourth successful title defence. This fight confirmed Holmes as the real deal. Holmes’ heart and toughness could never be questioned again. He was a worthy champion and this victory set in motion the beginnings of a long, historic reign, comprising of 19 successive title defences.
Holmes had six further defences of his WBC crown, which included against a shadow of Ali, Trevor Berbick, and a third-round destruction of Leon Spinks, before a stay-busy fight against Renaldo Snipes whilst awaiting a much anticipated showdown against Gerry Cooney.
In this 1981 title defence against Snipes, the young challenger put up a much greater challenge than expected and connected with a clean overhand right that would have knocked out a horse on Holmes’ chin in the 7th round. This was the Shavers fight all over again. Snipes raised his fists in the air believing that Holmes was finished as ‘The Easton Assassin’ tried rising back up and fell face-first into the turnbuckle, before Holmes once again righted himself, re-gathered his senses, used his wits and long arms to survive, and once again showed the heart, chin and recuperative powers that can only be found in the most special of champions to prevail via an 11th-round TKO.
By this point in his career, Holmes had proven himself to be a born champion. He’d always find a way to win. He had bundles of both ability and heart.
Then finally came his defining fight against Cooney in 1982, a fight with racial undertones.
Holmes won via 13th round TKO against “The Great White Hope”. Holmes displayed what a complete fighter he was in taking Cooney apart and stopping him.
After two more successful defences of his WBC title, Holmes came up against a very game and talented Tim Witherspoon on 20 May 1983.
Holmes again showed the heart of a champion, proving his championship credentials by displaying his ability to absorb punishment under immense pressure, to then return fire with fire when looking like he was on the brink of a stoppage defeat in the ninth round, prevailing via 12-round split decision victory.
Holmes subsequently relinquished his WBC title to demolish Marvis Frazier in one round, then started repping the newly-formed IBF title. He defended his title against James “Bonecrusher” Smith, David Bey and Carl Williams, and then with his record at 48–0, one victory away from tying Rocky Marciano’s flawless undefeated record, came his loss on points to Michael Spinks in 1985.
After losing a debatable split decision in the immediate rematch, Holmes retired a very angry and bitter fighter. This decision was intended to be for good, until none other than Don King persuaded him to return in January 1988 to face an in-prime, young Mike Tyson.
Larry put up a gallant effort for the first three rounds, before Tyson floored him three times in the fourth round and the referee waved off the fight after a heavy third fall. Holmes’ tremendous heart and chin could not save him on this occasion as he was stopped for the only time in his professional career. This was the conclusion of a bad idea, which was to pit a shadow of Holmes, brought back out of retirement after 21 months of inactivity, against a peak and ferocious ‘Iron Mike’.
Just like in life, boxing seems to work in circles, and a few years after Holmes beat up a shadow of Ali, Tyson did the same to Holmes. Except, Tyson got lauded for his victory. Holmes, even to this day it seems, has been lambasted for his.
As the great Alexis Argüello was quoted as saying in Beloved Warrior: The Rise and Fall of Alexis Argüello, written by Christian Giudice: “It’s part of the cycle that sports has shown us that you guys don’t talk about. It happens to Sugar Ray Robinson; it happens to Muhammad Ali; it happens to George Foreman, and it happens to me. I did to Olivares what Pryor did to me fifteen years later. That is a life cycle that none of us can avoid. It’s something that whatever has been done to someone, it comes back and happens to him. That’s the cycle.”
The Tyson loss seemed to be a formality and the conclusion of Holmes’ career. However, with Tyson’s invincibility shattered by James ‘Buster’ Douglas and Foreman’s comeback becoming more and more of a success, with Big George getting a title fight against Evander Holyfield and a multi-million dollar payday, Holmes returned in April 1991 at the age of 41.
In 1992, at age 42, Holmes challenged “Merciless” Ray Mercer. Before the fight, Holmes looked every one of his 42 years, appearing years past his prime, coming up against an 18–0 Mercer. Not only was Larry contending with a young, vicious heavyweight, but a hostile crowd too, with the pro-Mercer crowd in Atlantic City booing Larry when he entered the ring and during his introduction. Once the fight started, Holmes out-boxed Mercer to score a major upset with a convincing 12-round unanimous decision, giving him his biggest win since his knockout of Cooney in 1982.
Holmes proved his class in the 90’s by using his craftiness and ring IQ to hold his own against young, talented fighters of a great era.
Larry finally retired in 2002, more than 29 years after making his professional debut, with a unanimous decision win against Eric “Butterbean” Esch, and his legacy secured beyond doubt.
When people talk about the great heavyweights of the past, common names flowing off tongues include the heavyweights that preceded and followed him, Ali and Tyson. Holmes did not have the charisma of Ali, or the ability to exhibit the same fear and intimidation in opponents and capture the world’s attention like Tyson, but Holmes was great in his own right, and deserves to be fully appreciated.
Nobody could have followed Ali. Ali transcended sports and was a cultural phenomenon. However, in terms of ring-craft, ability and genuine championship heart and guts, there could have been no finer successor to take the baton from “The Greatest” than Larry.
