10 things to still appreciate about Larry Holmes

Mitchell Kane · Jun 6, 2008

Is going to be inducted into the IBHOF this weekend, which inspired this article from Don Steinberg.

10 things to still appreciate about Larry Holmes

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By Don Steinberg
Special to ESPN.com

Smile, Larry Holmes, you're being inducted into boxing's Hall of Fame.
It's time to retire the "underrated" tag for Larry Holmes. History's second-longest-reigning heavyweight champ takes his 69-6 lifetime record into the International Boxing Hall of Fame this weekend.

But let's send "underrated" off with a bang and 10 bells.

The reputation does seem past its expiration date. Oh, sure, Holmes rarely got his due as a fighter -- he even placed ninth in ESPN Classic's "Who's Number One?" list of the most underrated athletes ever. Few gave young Holmes a chance against Earnie Shavers in March 1978, but Holmes won. When he took a split decision to win the WBC heavyweight title against Ken Norton, almost exactly 30 years ago in June 1978, some said he just got lucky. Fans complained Holmes was no Muhammad Ali -- who could ever be? -- and Holmes was vilified when he beat a 38-year-old Ali in 1980. Many Americans even convinced themselves that the awkward Gerry Cooney had a chance against Holmes in 1982.

What were they thinking? Or hoping?

But more recently, Holmes made ESPN's top-10 list of all-time heavyweights. The Ring and Associated Press both rated Holmes No. 5 on their all-time lists.

Underrated? As he enters the Hall in Canastota, N.Y., Holmes is getting his props. Still, there's plenty about the Easton Assassin people have yet to fully appreciate:

1. The right hand

Holmes, right, is best remembered for his left jab, but his straight right was just as lethal.
Holmes' left jab is considered one of the great weapons in sports history, up there with Randy Johnson's fastball and Tiger Woods' chip shots. But Holmes had a devastating right. He threw it straight or overhand from the far end of his 81-inch reach. When in close, he'd whip it in to the head and body. His right nailed Michael Spinks for 12 rounds in their rematch, it sent Cooney pirouetting to the canvas in Round 2 to begin that demolition and it dispatched lesser opponents like Marvis Frazier in early rounds.

2. His guts

Holmes' heart as a fighter got a bad rap early. At the 1972 Olympic trials, he was disqualified for clinching against Duane Bobick. Someone wrote that Holmes crawled from the ring, and legend grew that he'd been a coward. But Holmes weathered big trouble to prevail in his first big pro test, against menacing Roy Williams in 1976. Holmes got off the canvas to beat Shavers in 1979 and Renaldo Snipes in 1981. Holmes was stopped just once in 75 fights -- when he was 38, by Mike Tyson.

3. His stamina

Holmes was the last great 15-round heavyweight champ, and he often surged late. Judges had his fight with Norton even after 14, and Holmes battered Norton for the final 30 seconds to win. He knocked out Mike Weaver in 12, Shavers in 11 (in their rematch) and Cooney in 13.

4. His fight against the system

Jack Newfield called the heavyweights of the 1980s the lost generation. In a division controlled by Don King, fighters like Tim Witherspoon, Greg Page, Michael Dokes and Tony Tubbs were robbed of pride and pay, Newfield wrote. Holmes escaped the worst of it. He formed his own promotion company in 1983 against King's wishes. In 1984, he jumped at the chance to become the first heavyweight champ for the fledgling New Jersey-based International Boxing Federation, which was formed to break the grip of established sanctioning organizations.

5. His sense of humor

Ali was a tough comedy act to follow. A lot of boxing fans didn't find it funny in 1985 when Holmes, just after losing his chance to tie Rocky Marciano's undefeated record of 49-0, said that Marciano "couldn't carry my jock strap." But people forget the first part of that remark: "If you really want to get technical about the whole thing, Rocky couldn't carry my jock strap." If you really want to get technical -- about qualifying to carry a jock strap. Like there's an official way to measure it. Priceless.
Holmes, left, didn't take too kindly to losing to Michael Spinks.

6. A PG rating

Holmes often had a right to be outraged, but he wasn't crude. Many remember his bitter comments in the dressing room after his second rip-off decision loss to Michael Spinks: "I can say to the judges, the referees, the promoters, to kiss where the sun don't shine, and since we're on HBO, that's my big black behind." Yes, Larry, HBO lets you say "behind." There are Saturday morning cartoons that use worse language than that.

7. His political principle

Ali had been a leader in the antiwar and civil rights movements -- but Ali took money from a brutal dictator to fight in Zaire. Holmes spoke at protests against apartheid and says he turned down an offer of $30 million to fight Gerrie Coetzee in South Africa in 1984.

8. Ample ego

After Ali, everyone else's ego seemed small. But Holmes often called himself the greatest, too. And half of Easton, Pa., in Trump-like fashion, now has Holmes' name on it, including Larry Holmes Properties and Larry Holmes Enterprises on Larry Holmes Way.

9. His forgiveness

You'd think a guy who was so disrespected in his prime might stay bitter. It would be easy to hold a grudge against Cooney after the black-versus-white hype before their fight subjected Holmes to racism and insults. But Holmes and Cooney became friends and have worked together on efforts to help retired boxers. Living well is Holmes' revenge.

10. A golden throat?

Just kidding about this. Larry was horrendous performing "Let's Get it On" on VH1's "But Can They Sing?" On the mic, he's no Joe Frazier. He should have lip-synched, the way Pia Zadora did the national anthem before Holmes-Michael Spinks I.

Don Steinberg, a winner of the Boxing Writers Association of America's award for best column in 2005, covers boxing for The Philadelphia Inquirer.
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Mitchell Kane · Jun 6, 2008

He'll be a guest on FNF.

For Holmes, Hall of Fame is 1-2 punch of recognition

By J. Michael Falgoust, USA TODAY
The roll call for all-time great heavyweights is a short one.
It'll always include Muhammad Ali, Joe Louis and Rocky Marciano, and sometimes a contemporary such as Evander Holyfield.

Larry Holmes is rarely mentioned, unless as an afterthought.

"They said my legs were too small, that I was just a copy of Muhammad Ali," says Holmes, whose 20 consecutive successful defenses of the heavyweight title from 1978 to 1985 was second only to Louis' 25. "No one would give a penny for my career."

FROM YOUTUBE: Holmes vs. Norton in 15th round
SPEAKING OUT: Holmes has a few choice words
Sunday, Holmes ( 69-6, 44 KOs), who once said Marciano "couldn't carry my jockstrap," will be inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota, N.Y.

He feels its recognition is long overdue, but nostalgia hasn't softened his tone. "I'm glad I said it," says Holmes, 58, who felt cheated after failing to tie Marciano's 49-0 mark when he lost to Michael Spinks in 1985. "That wasn't a sling against Marciano. … I love me."

Holmes' reign came in an era when sanctioning bodies multiplied, and mandatory defenses as well as stripping champions of their belts became the norm.

The Easton, Pa., native also never had a foil the way Louis had Max Schmeling or Ali had Joe Frazier and George Foreman. Though Holmes was spectacular in lifting the WBC belt from Ken Norton in 1978, he didn't win adoration two years later for pummeling an aged and already neurologically damaged Ali into submission.

So instead of the public embracing Holmes, who like Marciano defeated every discernible challenger in a less-than-spectacular era, there was a never-ending casting call for "the next Ali." Meanwhile, welterweights Ray Leonard, Roberto Duran and Thomas Hearns were waging memorable battles to capture the public's imagination.

"When you are a great, well-rounded fighter, in order for people to appreciate your greatness, they need to see you in against another great fighter," says Max Kellerman, a boxing analyst for HBO. "Great offense, like a young Mike Tyson, overwhelms mediocrity. Well-rounded skills, like Larry Holmes, don't overwhelm mediocrity."

Holmes lacked the humility of Louis, Ali's charisma, the game-changing left hook of Frazier, Norton's Herculean physique, or the menacing lure of Foreman.

What he did have, however, was a toughness that belied his guile and a "shotgun" jab — the perfect combination of Louis' power and Ali's speed — that's perhaps the best the division has ever seen. He developed it by working as a sparring partner for Ali for four years and possessed a right hand that would come behind it and earn him the nickname "Easton Assassin."

"I used to be able to knock Ali's jab down with my left hand and counter with my right," says Holmes, who left Ali's camp in 1975. "My jab had more power on it than his. That's how I used to test myself. I tried to be better than Ali."

When Holmes upset Norton, he did so despite tearing a ligament in his left arm six days before. A year later, he rose from a knockdown vs. Earnie Shavers, anointed by Ali as the hardest puncher ever, to stop him in 11. Holmes destroyed former heavyweight champion Leon Spinks, who twice took an older Ali the distance, in three rounds.

In 1992, at 42, Holmes dealt Ray Mercer, an undefeated contender and 1988 Olympic gold medalist, a devastating loss. That earned him a shot at then-champion Holyfield, who won but failed to dominate.

"When I was right, you couldn't touch me," says Holmes, scheduled to be a guest on ESPN2's Friday Night Fights (8:30 ET). "Joe Louis, Jack Dempsey, Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier, none of them."
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Mitchell Kane · Jun 6, 2008

themorningcall.com
Honor for a hometown champion
June 6, 2008

Larry Holmes is best known around the world for his accomplishments in the boxing ring. Over the course of his professional career, he had a record of 69 wins and six losses. Forty-four of the wins were by knockouts. And, he faced most of boxing's most influential, historic, and celebrated heavyweights, including Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier, Earnie Shavers and Ken Norton. His immensely successful time as a professional boxer from 1973 to 2002 has rightfully earned him a place in the International Boxing Hall of Fame, to which he will be inducted in ceremonies in Canastota, N.Y., on Sunday.

Yet, here in the Lehigh Valley, Mr. Holmes is known as a local man who rose to the top of a sport that has more than its share of glitter and spotlights -- but never cut his ties to hometown of Easton. Even better, while so many boxers and other ringside figures have been waylaid by trouble, Mr. Holmes never was. In fact, he's been a model citizen, investing in local businesses, encouraging children to get good educations and helping charities whenever he can.

Mr. Holmes started boxing with the future in mind. He has told interviewers that he had always dreamed of opening businesses and rearing a family. The money that came with being such a successful athlete, he knew, could fulfill his dreams. And, he did not see himself doing these things in a major city like New York or Las Vegas, though he easily could have done so. Instead, he chose to make his life here and to have a positive impact on the community he belongs to.

This impact is an important aspect of Mr. Holmes' reputation. He's focused on young people, particularly through the Easton Area Community Center, which used to be known as St. Anthony's Youth Center -- the place where he first learned to box. Today, when he talks to children he connects with his honesty and humility. Though he left school early to help to support his family, he tells students, ''Don't do what I did. Stay in school. Listen to your teachers.''

Mr. Holmes is a good citizen and an important member of the Lehigh Valley community, with or without the world heavyweight title. As he takes his place in the International Boxing Hall of Fame, Mr. Holmes will join the ranks of the boxing greats. It's an honor he has earned and deserves. In the Lehigh Valley, however, he also has earned recognition as a good man who honored his town by staying ... and giving back.

Copyright Â© 2008, The Morning Call
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Mitchell Kane · Jun 6, 2008

Hall for Holmes
Often-overlooked champion gets his due this weekend with Hall of Fame ceremony.
Thursday, June 05, 2008
By MICHAEL BLOUSE
The Express-Times
Larry Holmes knows how to play the part of boisterous and boastful champion.

He's had plenty of practice over the years.

Since the great Muhammad Ali revolutionized boxing and also the art of trash talking, the sport's public has come to expect certain qualities from its leading man. Loud and proud is at the top of the list.

But dim the cameras, turn off the tape recorders, and the "Easton Assassin" is most comfortable talking about his family and friends or reminiscing about old times.

It's Larry being Larry.

On Sunday, Holmes will join the ranks of the sport's immortals like Ali, Joe Frazier, George Foreman, Joe Louis and Rocky Marciano when he is inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

During an interview this week, Holmes played the obligatory part of boisterous champion as he ranted and raved about the length of his induction speech. Then, in his next breath, he turned into the thoughtful Larry.

"If they tell me I have two minutes, I'll take three," the 58-year-old yelled. "If they tell me I have five, I'll take 10. It's about damned time they put me into the Hall of Fame and I'll take as much damned time as I wanna take. This is my day ... the people are coming to see me.

"Really, though," he continued as his voice turned quiet, "I just want everyone to have a great time. It's a great honor and all, but this is a weekend more for my family and friends than it is for me.

"I just want everyone who's there to have a great time," Holmes repeated.

He plans to make the almost four-hour drive to boxing's shrine in Canastota, N.Y., accompanied by his wife, Diane, on Friday night.

The induction ceremony is set for 2:30 p.m. Sunday.

Holmes, who held the heavyweight title from 1978 to 1985 and finished his career with a 69-6 record with 44 knockouts, is the headliner in this year's class. He will be honored along with 11 others.

"I told people for a long time I would be heavyweight champion," the Palmer Township resident said, "and nobody believed me. Well, I did it. And now I'm being rewarded for it. Yeah, it's a good feeling."

Lifelong friends

One of the Eastonians who plans to trek to upstate New York and celebrate Holmes' induction is Easton Mayor and lifelong friend Sal Panto Jr.

They both lived in Delaware Terrace and played sports at Saint Anthony's Youth Center.

"I guess I'm going up in a dual role," said Panto, who also served a term as Easton's mayor from 1984 to 1992. "I'll be there because I'm mayor, but I'd also be going up if I wasn't the mayor. We've been friends since we were kids. And I was at almost all of his professional fights."

Panto remembered Holmes as a tough youngster who struggled at several traditional sports.

"He was a tall, bad dude who not many people messed with. I'm glad he was my friend. Larry couldn't play basketball or wrestle too well, so I'm glad he found boxing," the mayor joked.

The only "major fight" of Holmes' career that Panto said he missed came almost 30 years ago in Las Vegas. It was the night Holmes prevailed in a dramatic split decision over Ken Norton to become the heavyweight champion.

Holmes then defended his title for 20 fights, the second-longest reign in heavyweight history.

Panto said two of Holmes' triumphs are the most vivid.

"The Cooney fight (Holmes won by TKO in the 13th round), a lot of pressure was placed on both Larry and Gerry," he said. "Larry is black and Gerry is white and that was the story.

"I remember Larry moving out of Caesars Palace and into another hotel. Everyone, everyone including ushers and staff, was wearing green and white for Gerry. Some nasty things went on out there that I don't think Larry talks about even today. But Larry showed the heart of a champion.

"The other fight is the Ali fight (Holmes won by TKO in the 11th)," Panto said. "The best part of that fight was Larry's compassion for Ali. Larry handled himself with professionalism and dignity."

Expert opinion

Like a lot of retired athletes, Holmes' status both in and out of his sport continues to rise as the years pass, according to boxing authority Bert Randolph Sugar.

"Larry is one of the most popular fighters ever," Sugar said, "and it's in hindsight that he's become so popular. People who know Larry's skill and accomplishments are finally appreciating him and warming to him."

Sugar was not only impressed by Holmes as a fighter but also as a person.

"Larry is a gentleman and a gentle man," he said. "All the fighters he's helped out over the years, let it be known, Larry Holmes helps people who are down.

"He has his health because of his ability to avoid punches and because of Diane. He has his wealth because he has a mind for business and because of Diane."

Still, Sugar thought Holmes would never make it to the Hall of Fame. A boxer must be retired for five years to be eligible.

"He boxed until he was 910 years old, for crying out loud," Sugar joked. "I mean, enough's enough. But really, Larry was a great champion and is a wonderful person. He truly deserves this honor."

Michael Blouse can be reached at 800-360-3601 or by e-mail at mblouse@express-times.com.

Â© 2008 The Express Times
Â© 2008 NJ.com All Rights Reserved.
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Neil · Jun 6, 2008

I appreciate his leap off the limo

dsimon3387 · Jun 6, 2008

dsimon writes:

Holmes rocks and is a good example of when the revisionists get it right. It took some time but the man is getting his due. Its nice that people are even starting to say he was better technically than Ali, cause he was! Ali had physical gifts that nobody else had but Holmes perfected the craft in a ay few heavyweights have.

Xplosive · Jun 6, 2008

Neil said: ↑

I appreciate his leap off the limo
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:laughing: :laughing:

That had to be one of the funniest things in boxing history. Holmes was gangsta as hell for that!

whiskey · Jun 6, 2008

Xplosive said: ↑

:laughing: :laughing:

That had to be one of the funniest things in boxing history. Holmes was gangsta as hell for that!
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What made it funnier was Berbick's crying like a bitch. ::

Xplosive · Jun 6, 2008

whiskey said: ↑

What made it funnier was Berbick's crying like a bitch. ::
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:crying:"Larry Holmes kicked me! And punched me!"

whiskey · Jun 6, 2008

Xplosive said: ↑

:crying:"Larry Holmes kicked me! And punched me!"
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::

The Genius · Jun 7, 2008

Neil said: ↑

I appreciate his leap off the limo
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That's one of the greatest moments in pro sports.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-XVCW95nHU&feature=related

Roll With The Punches · Jun 7, 2008

his whinging and excuse making is legendary :bears:

boxingnotboxers · Jun 7, 2008

The Genius said: ↑

That's one of the greatest moments in pro sports.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-XVCW95nHU&feature=related
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:crying:

Seriously, who the hell runs on top of a limo?! HAHAHAHAAA

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10 things to still appreciate about Larry Holmes

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10 things to still appreciate about Larry Holmes

Mitchell Kane WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

Mitchell Kane WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

Mitchell Kane WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

Mitchell Kane WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

Neil tueur de grenouilles

dsimon3387 WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

Xplosive X-MOD Bad Motherfucker

whiskey Czarcasm

Xplosive X-MOD Bad Motherfucker

whiskey Czarcasm

The Genius DEMONRY!!

Roll With The Punches WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

boxingnotboxers WBC Champion

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