A Champion's Last Fight

The Struggle with Life After Boxing

Nick Parkinson

• Publisher: Pitch Publishing
• eBook ISBN:
  9781785311659
• Year: 2016

Drink, drugs, depression, sex scandals, financial meltdowns, and serious health issues are just some of the fights British boxers have faced once they've quit the ring. A Champion's Last Fight examines just why and exactly how some of Britain's greatest boxers have self-destructed in retirement. It tells the stories of former world champions who have struggled in life away from the spotlights and the glare that comes with boxing success, delving into the post-boxing lives and tribulations of Benny Lynch, Randolph Turpin, Freddie Mills, Ken Buchanan, John Conteh, Alan Minter, Charlie Magri, Frank Bruno, Nigel Benn, Chris Eubank, Naseem Hamed, Scott Harrison, Herbie Hide, Joe Calzaghe, and Ricky Hatton. With interviews and new revelations, A Champion's Last Fight is an emotional journey through boxing history that examines the struggles many former champions experience after hanging up the gloves—and asks what, if anything, can be done to help the nation's boxing greats adjust to life away from the ring?

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• Acknowledgements
• Preface - ‘Boxers are not like ordinary people’
• Round 1 - The biggest thirst in boxing
• Round 2 - Suicide or murder?
• Round 3 - ‘How could a man like that give up in life?’
• Round 4 - Battling the bottle
• Round 5 - Dealing with low blows
• Round 6 - Where did all the money go?
• Round 7 - Going broke
• Round 8 - Fighting depression and the risk of CTE
• Round 9 - Boxers behind bars
• Round 10 - Champions of crime
• Round 11 - Mind the gap: the void left by retirement
• Round 12 - The bitter science
• Photographs