Frank Bruno had a boxing career to be proud of but has admitted there is one contest he thinks, with hindsight, he should not have taken.
The London-born heavyweight had a promising amateur career that saw him become the youngest ever ABA heavyweight champion when he won the title in 1980 at the age of 18.
Bruno turned professional in March 1982 and won his first 21 fights, all by KO, before losing to James “Bonecrusher” Smith. He rebuilt well and headed into his first world title fight in July 1986 against Tim Witherspoon, but was stopped in round 11.
A second attempt for the unified titles followed against Mike Tyson in 1989 and again ended with a KO loss, has did his third attempt in 1993 against Lennox Lewis for the WBC strap.
Finally, in September 1995, he took on Oliver McCall at Wembley and won the WBC title by unanimous decision.
He had one more fight, a rematch with Tyson, that ended in a third-round stoppage loss and he hung up his gloves for good.
Speaking to The Guardian, Bruno revealed that the second Tyson fight is the one he regrets.
“I took a big risk but I’ve got family to provide for and I couldn’t rob a bank. Sometimes in boxing you think if you’ve lost one eye, you’ve still got the other eye. If you damage one hand, you’ve got the other hand. In the ring you go mind over matter.
“When your eye is not right your mind is there 80% but the other 20% is worried about your sight. The reality hits you in your dressing room so I just went out there and winged it. The fight only went three rounds before he stopped me. You could say it’s brave but it’s very stupid. One of the most crazy things I’ve ever done.
“It would have been wise to retire after I won the world title against Oliver McCall [in his previous fight in September 1995] but I’ve got kids who go to private school. Private school for each kid costs £1m. I’ve got four kids and all four have been to private school – one of them is still there.”
Despite how that fight ended, it is another with Jumbo Cummings that Bruno has named as the hardest of his career.
Bruno left the sport behind with a record of 38 KO wins from 40 fights and just five losses, and remains one of the most popular British sports personalities of his generation.
