MIKE MCCALLUM’S ABILITY TO GRIND FOES DOWN IN THE POCKET MADE HIM ONE OF THE MOST FORMIDABLE – AND AVOIDED – FIGHTERS OF HIS ERA By Adam Abramowitz
Two of McCallum’s signature moves were specific counters after a miss. His most famous play was slipping the jab to the inside and riddling an opponent’s body with a left hook. Another great move was when an opponent would overshoot a straight right. McCallum would often slip the shot to the inside and fire off a right uppercut to the body, or take a step back to evade the shot and then counter with the right uppercut to the body. McCallum was famous for making opponents pay for missing shots. His brutal effectiveness with body counters held the dual purposes of depleting his opponents and making them gun-shy to launch more offense. McCallum also was excellent at protecting his body in close. He was able to block and parry body shots while still maintaining his offensive posture in the pocket. At close range, he often would have one of his hands down closer to his chest to take the body away. He believed enough in his reflexes and chin to deal with head shots. McCallum was left-hand dominant. So much of his work started with his jab or left hook. In his loss to Kalambay in 1988 (which was McCallum’s first attempt for a belt at middleweight), Kalambay wisely circled away from McCallum’s left hand, which is unusual against an orthodox fighter but the perfect play against McCallum. McCallum had a reputation as a slow starter, which isn’t fully deserved. He scored lots of early-round KOs in his developmental fights, and whenever he was taking a stay-busy assignment during his championship days, those always seemed to end early. But it’s true that McCallum often needed several rounds to dismantle top opponents (with Jackson being a notable exception). His body work and pressure built up over time. McCallum was a breaker of wills. He would deplete fighters before stopping them; the McCrory fight is a great example of this. There were essentially two Mike McCallum styles. His preferred style was when an opponent came to him or wanted to trade in the center of the ring (the Jackson fight, for example).
M ike McCallum, a champion at junior middleweight, middleweight and light heavyweight, died on May 31 at the age of 68. A member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame, the Jamaican- born McCallum was relentless with both hands to his opponents’ midsections, earning him the nickname “The Bodysnatcher.” His left hook in particular could be a pulverizing punch. Not the fastest or the most powerful, McCallum defeated top opponents with a combination of sterling inside-fighting technique, pressure and doggedness. Despite winning two of his titles after the age of 30, McCallum wasn’t a late bloomer. At 19, he represented Jamaica as a welterweight at the 1976 Olympics. He was also a three-time Golden Gloves champion in the United States as an amateur. McCallum was an active professional fighter from 1981-97. He won his first world title, at junior middleweight, in 1984 against Sean Mannion. He made the last defense of his light heavyweight belt in 1995. He retired with a record of 49-5-1, featuring 36 knockouts. He was a true world champion, fighting in seven countries: The U.S., Jamaica, Italy, France, England, Monaco and Germany. As a student of the game, McCallum was a sponge, picking up techniques from the best trainers in the business. In Jamaica as an amateur, he was coached by Austin Taffe, a forward-thinking trainer who incorporated Cuban boxing techniques for his fighters. As a professional, McCallum was surrounded by greatness in his corner, working at different times with Emanuel Steward, the George Benton/Lou Duva tandem and perhaps the greatest modern trainer
of them all, Eddie Futch. Though appreciated in his time, McCallum never attained superstardom in the way that many of his contemporaries did. Roberto Duran famously picked Tommy Hearns for a fight over McCallum, despite McCallum’s No. 1 ranking for Duran’s junior middleweight belt. McCallum had sparred Hearns on numerous occasions during their time together at the Kronk Gym, but Hearns never gave McCallum a shot in the pros. Nevertheless, McCallum racked up wins against impressive fighters. His highlight reel always starts with the perfectly timed left hook he landed in the fifth round on fellow Hall of Famer Donald Curry. He also destroyed future multi-divisional champion Julian Jackson in two rounds. Other notable wins include Milton McCrory (an Emanuel Steward fighter), a rematch victory over Sumbu Kalambay (who gave McCallum his first loss as a pro), and triumphs over Steve Collins, Herol Graham, Michael Watson and Jeff Harding. Even into his mid- and late 30s, McCallum had a memorable three-fight series with the great (and much younger) James Toney. Although McCallum was officially 0-2-1 in the three fights, Toney has often referred to McCallum as the best fighter that he has faced in the ring. W hat McCallum may have lacked in hand speed or pure power, he made up for with expert ring technique at mid- and close range. McCallum was so good in the pocket that he never had to leave unless he wanted to. He had complete faith in his ability during exchanges. His chin was legendary (never stopped in 55 pro fights). He incorporated many of the lost arts of infighting in terms of defensive techniques, creative counters and how to come forward responsibly.
Mike McCallum THE FIGHTER IN FULL
McCallum when he was the WBC light heavyweight titleholder, circa 1995.
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