Yesterday’s Heroes: Tommy Tiger, “the very best demo horse in the organization”
A Wonderful favorite of mine in the journeyman class from the late 1950s and the 1960s is Tommy Tiger, a Nigerian boxer who settled in Leicester.
He took portion in 120 expert contests, controlling to gain only 30, but he was common all-around British rings in the course of that period. Nowadays there are numerous journeymen with documents like Tommy, but again then he was really unusual. He was a person of the last United kingdom-dependent boxers to hit 100 contests before they went out of vogue for about 20 a long time, back again in the 1970s. Ray Fallone was the final of the bunch.
Tommy commenced out in his native Nigeria, in which he competed for the Nigerian featherweight title in 1958. He boxed other lads there who also arrived in excess of to the British isles to get paid far better cash, with Sammy Etioloja, Ola Michael, Nye Ankrah and Appreciate Allotey amongst them. He arrived all through 1959 and immediately settled with a Leicester-based mostly supervisor, Johnny Griffin. Fellow stablemates incorporated Jimmy Assani, Sunny Osemegie, Costa Lawrence and Joe Falcon, for Griffin specialised in choosing up lads from close to the Commonwealth. I am pretty selected that Tommy will have been on the bum-close of the offer, not only with choices, but also with his purse sizing, as black fighters at that time have been not handled as properly as they must have been. This is no reflection on Griffin, who may perhaps have tried his most difficult for his lads, but the promoters will have turned the screws on him to accept a lessen purse.
Tommy is potentially most effective remembered for the two contests that he had with the up-and-coming Ken Buchanan in 1966. The two contests took location at the Nationwide Sporting Club, then situated at the Café Royal in London’s West End. The BN report for the bout is shorter and sweet, but revealing, “Former ABA champion Ken Buchanan clearly outpointed Tommy Tiger in excess of eight rounds, but understood he experienced experienced a combat when the remaining bell sounded.”
Buchanan was happy to satisfy him once more, two-and-a-fifty percent months afterwards and this time Buchanan additional plainly demonstrated his authority in what was only his seventh professional bout. “Ken Buchanan, one particular of Britain’s brightest prospective buyers, conceded six and a quarter pounds to Tommy Tiger, and concluded a distinct points winner in excess of eight rounds. The Scot’s left jab dominated the struggle and he usually strike the challenging Tiger with three or four jabs without reply. Buchanan experienced the normally tranquil associates breaking out with spontaneous applause with his good and speedy boxing.”
Immediately after this bout Tommy achieved an additional ABA winner, Al White of Dulwich, at Walworth’s Manor Location Baths. This what a hat-trick for Tiger through 1966, getting also boxed Ron Smith, of Liverpool, in the bout promptly preceding the second bout with Buchanan. Smith outboxed Tiger at Blackpool and then White did the similar, with BN stating that “Buchanan, Smith and White all know they have experienced to combat prior to receiving out of the ring. Tiger normally takes all the things in the way of a jab, is tireless and can toss a handy small counter punch to the head and body. He is just about the best light-weight demo-horse in the business enterprise.”
Tommy also boxed Maurice Cullen, Vic Andreetti, Des Rea, Pat McCormack and, in his past contest, Jim Watt. All had been British champions, and all had been great, with Watt turning out to be the world light-weight champion in 1979. Tiger also experienced a good collection with Bermondsey’s Vic Chandler, and he defeat Ray Fallone in a battle of the centurions in 1968.
When he at last hung up his gloves, in 1969, Tommy remained in Leicester, wherever he had lived during his career, after loyally being with Griffin for eleven decades, and he grew to become a trainer at the East Goscote ABC, using notably fascination in the progress of the schoolboy boxers.
His genuine identify was Babatunde Taiwo, and I speculate if he is continue to around. He was a cracking minimal fighter again in the day.
Test Much more Most current Athletics Information Click Here– Newest Sporting activities
Check out More Latest Online Training Information in World Click on Here– Most recent Online Schooling
A Wonderful favorite of mine in the journeyman class from the late 1950s and the 1960s is Tommy Tiger, a Nigerian boxer who settled in Leicester.
He took portion in 120 expert contests, controlling to gain only 30, but he was common all-around British rings in the course of that period. Nowadays there are numerous journeymen with documents like Tommy, but again then he was really unusual. He was a person of the last United kingdom-dependent boxers to hit 100 contests before they went out of vogue for about 20 a long time, back again in the 1970s. Ray Fallone was the final of the bunch.
Tommy commenced out in his native Nigeria, in which he competed for the Nigerian featherweight title in 1958. He boxed other lads there who also arrived in excess of to the British isles to get paid far better cash, with Sammy Etioloja, Ola Michael, Nye Ankrah and Appreciate Allotey amongst them. He arrived all through 1959 and immediately settled with a Leicester-based mostly supervisor, Johnny Griffin. Fellow stablemates incorporated Jimmy Assani, Sunny Osemegie, Costa Lawrence and Joe Falcon, for Griffin specialised in choosing up lads from close to the Commonwealth. I am pretty selected that Tommy will have been on the bum-close of the offer, not only with choices, but also with his purse sizing, as black fighters at that time have been not handled as properly as they must have been. This is no reflection on Griffin, who may perhaps have tried his most difficult for his lads, but the promoters will have turned the screws on him to accept a lessen purse.
Tommy is potentially most effective remembered for the two contests that he had with the up-and-coming Ken Buchanan in 1966. The two contests took location at the Nationwide Sporting Club, then situated at the Café Royal in London’s West End. The BN report for the bout is shorter and sweet, but revealing, “Former ABA champion Ken Buchanan clearly outpointed Tommy Tiger in excess of eight rounds, but understood he experienced experienced a combat when the remaining bell sounded.”
Buchanan was happy to satisfy him once more, two-and-a-fifty percent months afterwards and this time Buchanan additional plainly demonstrated his authority in what was only his seventh professional bout. “Ken Buchanan, one particular of Britain’s brightest prospective buyers, conceded six and a quarter pounds to Tommy Tiger, and concluded a distinct points winner in excess of eight rounds. The Scot’s left jab dominated the struggle and he usually strike the challenging Tiger with three or four jabs without reply. Buchanan experienced the normally tranquil associates breaking out with spontaneous applause with his good and speedy boxing.”
Immediately after this bout Tommy achieved an additional ABA winner, Al White of Dulwich, at Walworth’s Manor Location Baths. This what a hat-trick for Tiger through 1966, getting also boxed Ron Smith, of Liverpool, in the bout promptly preceding the second bout with Buchanan. Smith outboxed Tiger at Blackpool and then White did the similar, with BN stating that “Buchanan, Smith and White all know they have experienced to combat prior to receiving out of the ring. Tiger normally takes all the things in the way of a jab, is tireless and can toss a handy small counter punch to the head and body. He is just about the best light-weight demo-horse in the business enterprise.”
Tommy also boxed Maurice Cullen, Vic Andreetti, Des Rea, Pat McCormack and, in his past contest, Jim Watt. All had been British champions, and all had been great, with Watt turning out to be the world light-weight champion in 1979. Tiger also experienced a good collection with Bermondsey’s Vic Chandler, and he defeat Ray Fallone in a battle of the centurions in 1968.
When he at last hung up his gloves, in 1969, Tommy remained in Leicester, wherever he had lived during his career, after loyally being with Griffin for eleven decades, and he grew to become a trainer at the East Goscote ABC, using notably fascination in the progress of the schoolboy boxers.
His genuine identify was Babatunde Taiwo, and I speculate if he is continue to around. He was a cracking minimal fighter again in the day.
