EYE TO EYE
W hen Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk stared at each other for 11 minutes prior to their bout last December, the boxing world reacted as if history had been made. People were highly impressed by the sheer audacity of two professional boxers acting like, well, a couple of stray dogs who had encountered each other in a vacant lot, ears back, each daring the other to make a move.
king Kid Gavilan posed together for photographers. The Associated Press reported that long after the cameras stopped clicking, the pair stayed eye-to- eye until a full 15 minutes had passed. Olson broke a few times, while the “Keed” stared at his opponent “most fiercely and steadily.” The AP headline roared, “GAVILAN TRIUMPHS OVER OLSON IN STARING CONTEST.”
James Jeffries, Stanley Ketchel, Sam Langford and Young Corbett were all said to be masters of the staring game. Bob Fitzsimmons was known for his “hypnotic eye” and could even hold the gaze of his pet lion. One of Fitzsimmons’ opponents, Peter Maher, called Fitz “the devil in disguise,” so unsettled was he by Fitzsimmons’ demonic bearing. Jack Sharkey was also known to
“It’s like looking at a pair of waxworks at Madame Tussauds.”
disturb opponents with what the AP called his “frosty glare.” Jack Dempsey defeated Sharkey in their 1927 bout, but even the Manassa Mauler admitted in his autobiography that Sharkey’s scornful look “unnerved me.” The eyeballing between Dempsey and Sharkey began when they appeared together in New York for a contract signing. Dempsey held his own, offering what one reporter called “the fiercest conceivable glare from beneath a penthouse of frowning and beetle brows.” But when they eventually entered the ring at Yankee Stadium, Dempsey’s corner instructed him to look away from Sharkey. The United Press’ coverage of the bout noted as much: “Sharkey, when he came into the ring,
It was intense, it was silly, and whether it was meaningful in any way is debatable. It’s also doubtful that either of these two accomplished veterans of the ring were particularly bothered by the other’s stare. For all we know, each wanted to break away and get to the buffet spread. Yet the Fury-Usyk staredown may someday take its place alongside other eccentric boxing moments, certainly up there with Ricardo Mayorga’s victory cigarette or Tony Galento wrestling an octopus. A British TV analyst even offered a running commentary during the standoff. “It’s amazing,” he said, “They’re not even blinking. It’s like looking at a pair of waxworks at Madame Tussauds.” Without irony, his colleague added, “We’ve gone to a different level.”
1938 AP article, Finkle credited his success to so many fighters being “superstitious.” Experts often disregarded the usefulness of the staredown. Some felt it was wrong to credit a fighter’s success to his stare, that it trivialized other aspects of the sweet science. By the 1940s, the staredown was considered an old boxer’s trick, and a cheap one at that, like stepping on an opponent’s foot. There’s probably a reason that staredowns became more noted in the 1950s when boxing became a staple of television. Let’s face it, the staredown is partly showbiz. Archie Moore’s use of the staredown so impressed Red Smith that the popular New York columnist praised it in his coverage of Moore’s win over Olson in 1955. Smith observed that when
Joe Calzaghe (right) did all he could to get inside Bernard Hopkins’ head.
attempted to stare Dempsey down but Dempsey refused to look at him.” Dempsey knew fights were won with punches, not by endless staring. Dempsey had already been through the eyeball wars when he fought Georges Carpentier in 1921. The Frenchman’s manager, Francois Deschamps, claimed a background as a hypnotist and bragged that his stare made Carpentier’s opponents give up all hope. Again, Dempsey overcame the orb offensive and KO’d Carpentier in four. Another renowned starer who worked his magic from outside the ring was Ben
But a different level of what? Despite its massive length, which was roughly the same as a three-round fight (with rest periods), Usyk and Fury were two guys dressed as Austin Powers giving us a glorified schoolyard game. Besides, while it may be hard to believe, an even longer staredown took place years ago. Though there’s no footage to prove it, an epic staredown occurred in the office of the Illinois State Athletic Commission in April 1954. After being examined for their impending bout, middleweight champion Bobo Olson and welterweight
“Evil Eye” Finkle, a manager/trainer from St. Louis, Missouri. Stationed in the corners of many Depression-era stars, Finkle fixed his evil eye on fighters he wanted to see lose. Finkle said he began staring at fighters as a joke but noticed he had a startling success rate. Soon his evil eyes were in demand all over the country, as fight managers would hire him to work for
Olson went on to win a spirited 15-round majority decision, proving that a staredown smackdown doesn’t always predict what will happen in the ring. Still, many fighters have used staring as an opening gambit, including some greats from the far gone past. John L. Sullivan had a withering scowl that reportedly struck fear in the hearts of opponents, while Jack Dillon,
their fighters and hex the opposition. Many labeled “The Eye” as nothing more than a con artist, but some believed Finkle’s steely-eyed stare could cause great discomfort. In a
referee Ruby Goldstein “called the fighters together for instructions, Moore didn’t listen. He fixed Olson with a menacing, unwinking stare that never wavered, holding this
Tyson Fury tried to unnerve Oleksandr Usyk, but staring wasn't enough.
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