Nigel Benn just might be the quintessential East End boxer. Born and raised in Illford, Benn did 18 months time on patrol in Northern Ireland during The Troubles. Kind of makes stepping into the ring seem like a cakewalk, wouldn’t it? Both a World champion at middleweight and super middleweight Benn possessed all the tools to be one of the greatest English boxers in history except he always seemed to lack that final bit of drive that differentiates the good and the great. Not to say that there wasn’t some tremendous triumphs in Benn’s career, he took out Iran Barkley in one round, nuff said. But his fight with the tremendously talented Chris Eubank was to be another misstep in a career full of them on the biggest stage. With the heart of a champion and ability to match it, it’s scary to imagine what Nigel would have accomplished if he could take it too the next level.
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