- Cassius Clay lies on his hotel bed in London holding up five fingers in a prediction of how many rounds it will take him to knock out Henry Cooper at Wembley.
Henry Cooper v Cassius Clay
Wembley Stadium, London, 18 June 1963
- Clockwise from top left: Cassius Clay trains for the fight on the streets of London; the crowd enjoy one of the preliminary fights before the main event; Cassius Clay is put down by Henry Cooper in the fourth round; Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton watch from ringside at Wembley.
“ It was in a boxing ring, of course, that Ali first inserted himself into the consciousness of the British people. The seminal moment came at two minutes and 55 seconds of the fourth round of his 18 June 1963 fight against Henry Cooper. That was when ‘Enery’s Hammer landed flush on Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr’s jaw. Cassius fell to the canvas like he’d been shot. Only the bell enabled him to survive. Between rounds, trainer Angelo Dundee revived his fighter. Clay stopped Cooper on cuts in the following round. Three years later, he duplicated that feat as Muhammad Ali.” Thomas Hauser
- With a cut to his left eye, Henry Cooper jabs tentatively at Cassius Clay.
Barry McGuigan v Eusebio Pedroza
Loftus Road, London, 8 June 1985
- From left: Barry McGuigan looks for an opening against Eusebio Pedroza during the WBA world featherweight title fight; Pedroza falls to his knees against McGuigan.
“On 8 June 1985, 20 million BBC1 viewers watched McGuigan win the WBA world featherweight title from Eusebio Pedroza. The imposing champion, from Panama, had not lost a fight for eight years and had defended his title successfully 19 times. Twenty‑six thousand fans crammed into Loftus Road and George Best, Lucian Freud, Norman Whiteside, Irvine Welsh, Willie John McBride and Mary Peters were among those watching McGuigan on a joyous night.” Donald McRae
- Barry McGuigan celebrates having beaten Eusebio Pedroza on points after 15 rounds to become the new WBA world featherweight champion of the world.
Carl Froch v George Groves
Wembley Stadium, London, 31 May 2014
- Left to right from top: Carl Froch and George Groves face each other at the weigh-in; Anthony Joshua knocks out Matt Legg during the first round on the undercard to the main event; Michael Watson takes his seat before the fight; fireworks erupt before the start of the IBF and WBA world super-middleweight fight; Froch knocks down Groves to win the title; Froch proposes to girlfriend Rachael Cordingley after victory.
“ How do you define a great punch? It’s what it means. And what that meant was the whole George Groves saga, the history of the fight and how people will look back at it in years to come. It will be that right hand. That’s why it is the best punch I have thrown in my life.” Carl Froch
- George Groves and Carl Froch trade blows during the world super-middleweight fight at Wembley.
Randolph Turpin v Sugar Ray Robinson
Earl’s Court, London, 10 July 1951
- Clockwise from top left: Sugar Ray Robinson signs autographs in Paris three days before his world middleweight fight against Britain’s Randolph Turpin; as crowds pack Windmill Street in London, Turpin steps out from a taxi for the weigh-in at Jack Solomon’s gymnasium; Turpin demonstrates his crouching style to Robinson during the fight.
“One punch for the body looked like a man releasing a bowling ball; another a right hand for the head, was like a granny boxing a boy’s ears. He might be one of the hardest hitters in history. Turpin was so strong that his unconventional blows shook Robinson when they landed, although Robinson knew that, according to the book, they shouldn’t.” AJ Liebling, The Sweet Science
- Edna Mae Robinson, centre, sits next to her sister-in-law as she watches Turpin outpoint her husband in front of an almost disbelieving Earl’s Court crowd.
Ricky Hatton v Kostya Tszyu
MEN Arena, Manchester, 4 June 2005
- Clockwise from top: Ricky Hatton attacks Kostya Tszyu during the IBF light-welterweight title fight; Hatton connects with a right cross on Tszyu; Hatton celebrates when Tszyu was pulled out of the fight after 11 rounds.
“Nothing is going to change me from the man I am. I want to celebrate it with the ordinary people who followed me right the way through my career. I can’t think that there have been too many undisputed world champions who have chosen to celebrate with a few pints in their local. But that’s me.” Ricky Hatton
- Ricky Hatton relaxes in his local pub, the New Inn, in Hyde after defeating Kostya Tszyu.
Nigel Benn v Chris Eubank
NEC, Birmingham, 18 November 1990
- Left to right: Chris Eubank is knocked down by Nigel Benn; Eubank stops Benn four seconds from the end of the ninth round, when the compassionate referee Richard Steele rescued the Londoner from his own bravery.
“This was the most dramatic fight I’ve ever refereed.” Richard Steele
- Chris Eubank is congratulated by Nigel Benn after winning the WBO middleweight title.
Frank Bruno v Lennox Lewis
Cardiff Arms Park, Cardiff, 2 October 1993
- Lennox Lewis defeats Frank Bruno in the seventh round after a powerful left hook led to a barrage of unanswered punches.
“I saw him pulling back to throw a right hand and I hit him with a perfect hook, which everybody said I didn’t have.” Lennox Lewis
Joe Calzaghe v Mikkel Kessler
The Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, 3 November 2007
- Left to right: The Millennium Stadium during one of the fights on the undercard; Joe Calzaghe throws punches to the body of Mikkel Kessler during the super-middleweight title unification fight.
“Ten years a champion, four major belts – what else is there to do? Dig all those guys up – Roy Jones, Bernard Hopkins, let’s do it.” Joe Calzaghe
- Calzaghe celebrates after defeating Kessler with a unanimous points decision.
Photographs by Tom Jenkins for the Guardian, Rex/Shutterstock, Getty Images, Empics and PA.
