I remember watching this fight in the eyes of a child as I was only 11 years old at the time. I remember thinking that Michael watson clearly won the first fight but because it seems like Michael was robbed, therefore a rematch date was set.!!! Again I thought Michael was winning all the way, then that blow came from eubank that changed Michael life forever. Michael was still strong even after getting the back of his head caught on the ropes he still fought the last round then collapsed at the end.!! You are a legend Michael.
Both great middleweights from these Isles, but Watson won that one. The good old days when commentators and hosts were more honest, and actually knew what they were talking about. That was my childhood, and I loved boxing, the only sport a child doesn't need to hear the rules too, all boys get into fights at some point or other. Thanks for the walk down memory lane 👍👌
I second that @CraigMansfield, although Herol Graham was good, he was a bit luckier 👍👌 Ps, and Watson was carried out on his shield when he lost, like against Mike McCullum.
@Sebastian Phipps I grew up with Michael Watson and live across the road from him and went to the same boys club in Hoxton Crown and Manor , Michael was a brilliant boxer , we absolutely hated Eubank , and I still do , Michael is the pride of Islington here and is loved by all . What a tragic ending for Michael as he was a much better boxer and man than Eubank ever was and is .
I scored it a draw, 5 rounds each and 2 even but a lot of rounds were so close they could have gone either way. No fighter really grabbed hold of it and a lot of punches were missing the target. Evenly poised the whole way through.
@@storminboy Eubank got a few iffy decisions over the years. I was at the fight and he won it by at least two rounds. That's not because he was more likable it was because he outworked him.
This fight was one of those British classics that most Americans didn't know about. They didn't promote English fighters in the U.S. at that time, except occasionally Lewis at Heavyweight.
I thought the fight was basically overr as far as points are considered with an unsurmountable lead for Eubank at 7-1-1. In the 9th the commentators began the same old song and dance, dutifully trying to build Watson up. At the end McGuigan even said that Watson began to gain control while the replay they used showed Eubank landing 2 or 3 good shots. He said Eubank went for his usual walk at the end, maybe proud of the little bit he did at the end. I thought the 9th was Eubank's best round, dominationg by landing more then 10 good shots. Watson may have had one of his best rounds as well but landed only 5 or 6 good punches. Those claiming that Watson won were delusional. The best thing Watson had going all night was the crowd but none of them landed a single punch.
Thanks for upload, great couple of channels yo got,I notbseem that since the night of fight I thought Watson won,but watching now I had Eubank a clear winner,and although its now 4:24am I think I'll roll some smokes and make a cappacino and crack on with the rematch though of course with a heavy heart and sense of foreboding about the drama about to unfold at White Hart Lane
At the end of the 9th round McGuigan said Eubank 'isn't doing enough, when he punches, he doesn't sustain the action'. Watch the 9th round replay that begins at 47:37. McGuigan must be a comedian these days. In the replay Eubanks comes forward twice beginning at 47:37, he throws a total of 8 punches, 3 or 4 of them landed. McGuigan said that Watson continues to keep him under pressure, while Watson is backing up and getting hit. Then he said that Watson is controlling the rounds, while Watson is doing nothing in the replay. I noticed that U.K. commentators have zero love for Eubank, they critique his fights very unfairly, always putting the onus on him to ' do something, to maintain throwing punches'. They always adapt the position that it's up to Eubank to bring the action, ignoring that his opponent is doing much less. Watson did next to nothing in the 9th round. He was far too tentative in the fight overall. Eubank wasn't coming forward either, but he moved in with big shots at times. Watson would move forward one step, then stop and stare. He threw jabs that were a foot short most of the fight. Usually in the 1st round fighters will start that way, loosening up by throwing jabs that don't quite reach. By the 2nd/3rd rounds however, the gap closes and each guy starts landing some shots. Watson never closed the gap until very late because he probably knew he hadn't done enough. Round after round I can't give it to Watson, he's standing on the perimeter watching, when he finally throws a counter he's leaning back anticipating a counter in return. He never really committed to the battle, Eubank likes to engage although he gets tired and has to catch his breath at times. If you don't agree that Watson was too passive, too far away and not landing enough punches to win the fight, compare this performance to their 2nd fight. He was the opposite, coming forward to engage at a maddening pace. I had that fight close; if it had gone to Watson by decision I would have been okay with that. In this fight, Watson didn't come close to winning, wasn't eager to engage, not enough punches landed.
Watson faded away the last 4 rounds it was a really good fight though I cannot remember Michael Watson having 2 fights with Eubank I was only 11 and can't remember thank you for sharing this matchup
Watched the two Eubank Carl Thompson fights recently. Proper 50/50 slug fest. Eubank still good & went up in weight to win another title. Thompson was no mug & had beaten David Haye. Respect to both.
@@ezekielthemack Count the number of punches landed by each fighter. Use slow motion if the truth is what you want. If one guy landed more punches, he should win the fight. Go ahead, let me know. Obviously I have nothing against Watson, he lost his good health in their next fight. I get nothing out of lying about a man that lost so much. I just like the truth.
Entertaining fight. I had Michael Watson winning by one round, although a lot of the rounds were close and could have been scored either way. However, the onus was on Watson to rip the title away from the champion, and although he out-boxed Eubank in spells (particularly from the 6th round onwards), he didn't really dominate at any point in the fight. Of course, he well won the rematch at super middle, until Eubank landed a punch from the locker room that changed both of their lives forever, and glad to see that he's made such a fantastic recovery from such life-changing injuries. Classic 90s British middleweight battler - thoroughly enjoyed it thanks.
( 1stly ignore the bias from the commentators) Ewbank won this, Watson looked a busy fighter but a lot of his punches missed Ewbanks didn't miss as much, there both warriors regardless of liking or disliking either of them, credit to both for putting on a great show.
Bias from Jim Watt ? Really ? You could have made alot of money back in the day betting against his predictions . Jim Watt has spoiled so may fights I've watch it ain't funny . Totally agree with you . I'm all for supporting the British fighter , but Blind Freddie could call the fight better .
Chris says in his book that he passed out the afternoon of the fight after losing nearly a stone and a half in four days to make weight earlier in the day, crazy and even his eyeballs were drying out
1-Eubank 2-Eubank 3-Eubank 4-Eubank 5-Eubank 6-Even 7-Eubank (Watson doesnt land) 8-Eubank 9-Eubank 10-Watson (Eubank is spent) 11-Eubank (Watson not pressing) 12-Watson (Eubank lost the round more than Watson won the round) 118-111 Eubanks Unanimous
To be honest It was one of those rare occasions where Eubank won the first 6 rounds and Watson won the next 6. I always agreed with Reg when he said you have to proper take the champions belt. It can't be a round here or there to win it. You have to convincingly win it.
@@storminboy totally agree 👍pal for me draw or 7-5 Watson but he didnt win convincingly enough to rip the belt away from eubank the champion should always get benefit of doubt in a close fight
@@richardthompson8961 Exactly. When you sit and judge a fight you do it round by round. 10-9 or 10-8 if there is a knockdown. They try to discourage a 10-10. It does not matter if you are champion or not if you do enough to the naked eyes you call it as you see it.
Eubank started out strong, countering Watson with the more solid shots. But then Watson picked up the pace in the second half of the fight and was more composed and more accurate as Eubank lost steam. Then E>ubank felt the urgency and went all out but didn't connect with anything serious as Watson controlled the fight .
I would say easily, but I think he won because he had control of the fight and the most telling punches were from Eubank . Watson was punching air a lot of the time . Watson schooled Benn but he didn't quite do enough that evening . The challenger has to take the title by domination or a knockout .
Both were weight-drained & couldn't fight at a pace - very slow/cautious. Eubank was such a hated man at the time that anythg he did was "controversial". The Rocky V ref had clearly told them beforehand that he would deduct points for any kind of holding! Will never know why MC Alan Hughes announced the scorecards in the order that he did. Weird!
Quite clearly a victory for Eubank. The problem then, is one that still exists today. Watson was the fan/commentator favourite. So the bias commentary made folks believe it was a wrong decision. Commentators were guilty a lot of this with Eubank...rewatch the Benn fight, they spend most of it saying Eubank is doing everything wrong, that he does not know how to fight etc etc. Shame for Eubank that the public only really took to him at the end of his career...they should have appreciated him more during his peak years. He was a phenomenal fighter
Watson is a nice guy, everyone knows that, but he lost this fight badly. I gave him the last round, making my score 11-1 for Eubank. Only the 6th and the 12th were close rounds.
Well, thé refs have had watched the fight and thé commentators had just non stop talk and talk. If they had talk less they'd see that it was Eubanks fight - hé scored more and he was thé one who tried - whatson was thechnical ans touhgh, but hé nevertook a risk to Land a power shot- Eubank did. This is not a game or touch BUt of hit. And If tout doubt - juste look a t eubanks clean face at thé and, ANd hasthe watsons face changéd every round - more and more marks...
Watson a class act, a decent guy. Eubank interesting, thinks he's more intelligent than he is though he is no fool...And regardless who you prefer as a person and certainly Watson was, probably still is more popular, on the basis Watson missed far more than Eubank, (if you can be bothered and know anything of the sport just go through each round and count and you'll be astonished at the hit miss ratio in Eubank's favour....If you don't knock out, if you don't get disqualified its down to your accuracy and Eubank was more accurate so it was the right decision. And yet the debate, impassioned as it is to this day, rages on. One thing that was blatant through these years, nobody, absolutely nobody in the Middle and Super Middleweight divisions took punches as well as Eubank which was fortunate as he left himself unguarded so often. Guess he prefered a clearer vision of his target and it worked against the very best...until he met Steve Collins.
Barry McGuigan had Watson ahead a couple rounds, that's what he said during the 10th round. I'm calling Barry a damn liar. I don't care if he was a pro fighter or not, he's a damn liar. I'm not even saying that he's wrong and that I disagree. I'm saying that he's just lying. He knows damn well that Watson hadn't won more than one round up until the 10th. You can give him the 6th but I had Eubank winning every round going into the 10th. What McGuigan did during this fight was criminal. Maybe I'm not using the correct criteria, I thought that punches landed were the key to winning a fight. Watson wasn't landing anything, in every round Eubank landed more punches. I'd like to have a couple of independent scorers review the fight. They might find a round or two for Watson out of sympathy but that would be a gift. Someone tell me which rounds Watson won. Most of you think Watson won, please tell me which rounds you gave him. I'll bet that nobody will respond because when you leave out the bias, you'll see that Watson didn't win any rounds.
Watson was a damn good boxer no doubt. After watching his fights here on UA-cam a few times I've come the conclusion Watson was very vulnerable in the later rounds against some of the best.. Watson vs a 35 year old McCallum = 11th round brutal knockout with Watson still laid on the canvas a while afterwards. Watson vs Eubank 2 = 12th round brutal knockout after a class uppercut when Eubank was nearly finished in the 11th. No disrespect here to Watson but imagine what James Toney would have done in a fight with Watson. Against the very best he came up short.
McCallum proved for me once again that fighters mske some of the worst judges, saying he gave Watson a slight edge after the 6th round when Watson did nothing the first 5 rounds. I gave Watson the 6th but I had it 4-1-1 for Eubank at that time. Watson was a bit more active in 7 and 8 but still lost both as Eubank stepped it up a bit right with him. I don't see why most thought that Watson won the fight. At the end of the 8th I've only found 1 round to give to Watson with one round even. Eubank is more willing to commit to his punches while Watson so far refuses to step inside the punching zone with conviction. Eubank is moving around slowly but steadily while Watson follows without punching. When Eubank stops to face him up, Watson freezes so as not to cross the line of being too close. Inevitably it'sEubank that strikes first with combinations, usually just a left right, then Watson tries to counter but Eubank backs away too quickly leaving watson's punches short. Even standing face to face Watson leaves himself 2 inches short for his jab to land. If the jab reaches, Eubank easily slips them by moving his head to one side or the other. If Watson throws a right Eubank ducks under most often. Having said all of that, Eubank isn't setting the world on fire either. He's doing his best work by letting the clock run as he moves so that Watson can't land, then comes forward at random and lands one or two decent punches. A couple times each round he does that and wins each round by a couple of shots. I've been counting punches, erven using slow motion in 2 rounds just to check my own accuracy. Watson is not doing enough because he won't go for it, breaking into Eubanks kitchen often enough to make him fight more steadily. Maybe he will in the last 4 rounds but I already have it 6-1-1 for Eubank. If I'm off by at least one round and Watson can win the last 4 then it could go either way but as of now I don' t see it happening.
Watson at best gets a Draw here but Watson was to much of the good boy in boxing. Never really had that killer drive like Benn did even though he beat Benn. I just think Watson didn’t threw enough punches and I agree with the commentators he let Eubank have to much time to recover. 🥊
The big stink it caused was silly. Very rarely does a fight happen where one guy wins the first 6 and the other wins the other 6. Thats how I scored it anyway.
Eubank's easy. Won it early on the counter punch and classic Eubank jab, clubbing right hand. Watson was easy to hit coming in. Look at the upper cut he takes walking in with nothing after good work with 3 seconds left in the 10th around 51:10 for portent of things to come.
Watson looked huge at the weight. Looks more like a light heavyweight. I believe he's well known struggles to make weight was definitely a factor in his loss to Eubank and his inevitable brain damage. Sadly.
@@anthonymcken6050 👍.....He looks so much better these days......his motor functions look like they're improving with every year that passes, which is good to see! But Yh.... he was very tall for the middleweight/super middleweight division . Which is a good thing.... if you can manage the weight correctly and rehydrate properly by fight night. But dehydrating and starving yourself to get down to the lightest possible weight division as you can, in order to gain as much of a height and weight advantage as possible come fight night is very dangerous.
Close fight. Watson had to really take the title from Eubank. He didn't. There was outrage at the time. People saying Watson was the clear winner. Probably more that people wanted bad buy Eubank put in his place.
adam collins you win the fight , you win the fight . It’s as simple as that . Watson won it by 3/4 rounds. The old saying of Having to ‘take’ the title is a load of nonsense .
The judges didn't agree. Making Eubank the clear winner. Both Watson's & Eubanks reaction after at the final bell showed neither of them were sure. However the Calzaghe/Lacey fight...
As said in my first post, the crowd wanted flash Eubank put in his place after he beat fans favourite Benn. Couldn't choose between them watching this video.
adam collins boxing is all about opinions which is what makes it great . IMO Watson clearly won the fight , finished the stronger and deserved to have been crowned world champ that night .
Depends how you scored the first half. Watson clearly won the second half and I felt the first half was quite even. But if you chose to give all those close early rounds to Eubank you maybe could have it close.
Agreed! That's why Watson was looking for the ko in the second fight he didn't trust it going to the score cards again! His corner should have told him to move and counter for those last few rounds in the second fight, as he was clearly winning and not go looking for the ko. He was my favourite of that era beautiful technical fighter big heart and and a local boy, he truly deserved to be a world champion! but he will forever be the people's champ!🥊👌🏼
Eubank had so many gift decisions it became ridiculous. Benn 2 ,Watson 1 , ray close beat him twice convincingly, plus other close fights that could have gone against him like malinga and the one against that tall guy in Germany. Eubank was really overrated. Very tough guy but so limited. He was too easy to out work and his attacks became kind of predictable.
Eubank beat Malinga and Rocchigiani by miles, winning round after round. Close was hurt badly in both fights. He didn't lose these fights and he clearly won this fight. He did lose to Benn by a point though, hardly a robbery.
Lee Scammell I’m not sure if you haven’t watched these fights recently or not. He lost both fights to ray close in my opinion. Malinga fight was close. I remember the rocchigiani fight being close but can’t remember honestly. I thought he lost Watson 1 as well. Just an opinion though.
What a cruel irony: Watson’s life’s destroyed while defending the sport of boxing, Eubank, who dealt the lethal blow, all the while lamenting the brutal fight game. By an even stranger twist of fate, both men brought together by this, where they profess to be closer than brothers. Beautiful story.
This was a really poor decision by the judges and it's sickening to think that Michael Watson would never win a World Crown as he was so good, technically very gifted and also stopped Benn. Watson however was not the only man to suffer injustices V the protected Eubank, Benn in their 2nd fight, Malinga in their only fight and Northern Ireland's Ray Close, 2 times in Glasgow, called a draw and then Belfast, a split decision for Eubank. Steve Collins would eventually catch him out in their 1st encounter, a close but deserved win and then comprehensively in the 2nd.
Eubank beat Malinga and Rocchigiani by miles, winning round after round. Close was hurt badly in both fights. He didn't lose these fights and he clearly won this fight. He did lose to Benn by a point though, hardly a robbery.
@@leescammell9988 How do you make that out? Ronnie Davies, Ebanks trainer, told him after Rd 10, ' You need a KO to win Chris'. Who do you think knows more about scoring fights, us or him?
@@leescammell9988 Ah come on Lee you know better than that my friend, he didn't beat Malinga by miles, I personally think he got the sympathy vote from the judges as it was his 1st fight back after the Watson 2..It was really close either way, you'll be telling me that Benn also deserved his victory over Malinga later that year 92, also, next, which he didn't by the way.
Watson was hitting oxygen most of the night or only skimming Eubank's skin. GREAT reflexes Eubank, those sharp counters from a standing static position 😮
@@markant9534 So Watson couldn’t jab and Benn was a quitter. You not really a fan of British middleweights then? Why hold back, perhaps you could tell us a few home truths about Sibson, Minter, Eubank and Collins.
I agree with you mate about Mc Callum, he was absolutely brilliant , a legend and would have easily beaten all the guys you mentioned but I disagree with you about the Marvelous 1. Hagler was on a different level, not the most skilled fighter but a ferocious competitor with amazing stamina and an unbelievable chin and I never heard of him avoiding canybody and as far as I'm concerned, the best 168lb fighter in the last 50 years just ahead of Monzon.
@Brian Whitehead Hi Brian, Andy makes some very good and true points, the facts are that Mc Callum challenged Eubank, 90, at 160 and Benn, 92 at 168 and they declined. He was the most avoided fighter of the late 80s early 90s and SRL openly admitted he didn't want any part of him. I reckon if they fought in the mid 80s, SR would have won comfortably on pts but never by Ko, if they fought late 80s,early 90s, Mc Callum would have won quite easily tbh.
,@Brian Whitehead The gripe I have with SRL is his refusal to give the best MW of the last 60 years, an immediate rematch, then in 89, he was given a draw V T Hearns, it was a disgusting result really, even he admitted this, and he did avoid Mc Callum, he also admitted this. As far as I'm concerned, he was probably my favorite fighter up to the Hearns return in 89, but he quickly went down in my estimation, because of his cowardice and failure to honor a rematch clause with Hagler. I'm not the only fight fan with such views, Leonard has lost loads of fans because of this. I'm never going to deny how good he was and rate him as 1 of the best P4P guys ever but his achievements at 160 are nowhere near Hagler and Monzon, not even close.
Eubank won the 10th round as well. I have him ahead 10-0 after 10 rounds. Those who think Watson won this fight, you don't know what you're watching. Those that think it was a close fight, you don't know what you're watching either. Block out your hatred for Eubank, he won every round up to the 10th.
Great boxing era,unlike today!!!
I met Michael few days ago in Hackney great guy legend
Stop telling lies lad
I m not lying I have photo of me and him together who are u to call me a liar
@@jasoncauley9698 prove it lad
@@billybarr7443 Don't embarrass yourself
@Jason Cauley Don't entertain him mate.
I remember watching this fight in the eyes of a child as I was only 11 years old at the time. I remember thinking that Michael watson clearly won the first fight but because it seems like Michael was robbed, therefore a rematch date was set.!!!
Again I thought Michael was winning all the way, then that blow came from eubank that changed Michael life forever.
Michael was still strong even after getting the back of his head caught on the ropes he still fought the last round then collapsed at the end.!!
You are a legend Michael.
The good old days of itv free boxing ,and that music,happy days ,thanks for uploading
Both great middleweights from these Isles, but Watson won that one. The good old days when commentators and hosts were more honest, and actually knew what they were talking about. That was my childhood, and I loved boxing, the only sport a child doesn't need to hear the rules too, all boys get into fights at some point or other. Thanks for the walk down memory lane 👍👌
I AGREE!
Do you think? I scored it even it was really a close one for me.
I totally agree as I watched it live with a bunch of mates and everybody in and around us watching including Eubank fans thought Watson had won!!!
M Watson is hard as nails what a man
Tragic what happened to Micheal Watson and it was incredible how he got back from that seriously bad brain injury in the second fight.
Michael Watson has to be the best/unluckiest boxer in British history.
And what a lovely man he is too.
Nah, Herol Graham takes that spot.
I second that @CraigMansfield, although Herol Graham was good, he was a bit luckier 👍👌
Ps, and Watson was carried out on his shield when he lost, like against Mike McCullum.
@Sebastian Phipps I grew up with Michael Watson and live across the road from him and went to the same boys club in Hoxton Crown and Manor , Michael was a brilliant boxer , we absolutely hated Eubank , and I still do , Michael is the pride of Islington here and is loved by all . What a tragic ending for Michael as he was a much better boxer and man than Eubank ever was and is .
@@michaeljay3846great story mate thanks.
@anthonymcken6050 No worries mate
Very close fight!!
Fantastic rivalry by two men in the ring
👊🇹🇿🇬🇧
Michael Watson always seemed like a decent bloke.
He was a coke dealer that beat up his white girlfriend 😆
@@waynemarshall8836 Really ?. Guess I was totally wrong about him then .
just a shame he was a gooner
@@waynemarshall8836 how do you know that?
@@Rebelconformist82 do your research my man you’ll find out. Great boxer though
This was about as close a fight as you could have. But I thought Watson won it by a round or 2.
People hated èubank but i grew 2love him like most ov us😎
No I still dislike him 😊
I scored it a draw, 5 rounds each and 2 even but a lot of rounds were so close they could have gone either way. No fighter really grabbed hold of it and a lot of punches were missing the target. Evenly poised the whole way through.
I agree there totally. The stink it caused was well over the top. Judges don't score fights on who is the most likable dude in the fight.
You know boxing mate
🤝🤝🤝
@@storminboy Eubank got a few iffy decisions over the years. I was at the fight and he won it by at least two rounds. That's not because he was more likable it was because he outworked him.
Frank cappucino knew how to referee a good fight. Did gatti v ward 1 also.
He did Tyson v Spinks too. He was a well respected referee.
Cracks me up. Hearn walking over to Eubanks and clearly telling him it’s a draw
Watson won it ! Chris got a lot of these kinds of dubious decisions.
For sure
This fight was one of those British classics that most Americans didn't know about. They didn't promote English fighters in the U.S. at that time, except occasionally Lewis at Heavyweight.
I thought the fight was basically overr as far as points are considered with an unsurmountable lead for Eubank at 7-1-1. In the 9th the commentators began the same old song and dance, dutifully trying to build Watson up. At the end McGuigan even said that Watson began to gain control while the replay they used showed Eubank landing 2 or 3 good shots. He said Eubank went for his usual walk at the end, maybe proud of the little bit he did at the end.
I thought the 9th was Eubank's best round, dominationg by landing more then 10 good shots. Watson may have had one of his best rounds as well but landed only 5 or 6 good punches. Those claiming that Watson won were delusional. The best thing Watson had going all night was the crowd but none of them landed a single punch.
This was such a great era for British middleweight boxing.
Thanks for upload, great couple of channels yo got,I notbseem that since the night of fight I thought Watson won,but watching now I had Eubank a clear winner,and although its now 4:24am I think I'll roll some smokes and make a cappacino and crack on with the rematch though of course with a heavy heart and sense of foreboding about the drama about to unfold at White Hart Lane
At the end of the 9th round McGuigan said Eubank 'isn't doing enough, when he punches, he doesn't sustain the action'. Watch the 9th round replay that begins at 47:37. McGuigan must be a comedian these days. In the replay Eubanks comes forward twice beginning at 47:37, he throws a total of 8 punches, 3 or 4 of them landed. McGuigan said that Watson continues to keep him under pressure, while Watson is backing up and getting hit. Then he said that Watson is controlling the rounds, while Watson is doing nothing in the replay.
I noticed that U.K. commentators have zero love for Eubank, they critique his fights very unfairly, always putting the onus on him to ' do something, to maintain throwing punches'. They always adapt the position that it's up to Eubank to bring the action, ignoring that his opponent is doing much less. Watson did next to nothing in the 9th round. He was far too tentative in the fight overall.
Eubank wasn't coming forward either, but he moved in with big shots at times. Watson would move forward one step, then stop and stare. He threw jabs that were a foot short most of the fight. Usually in the 1st round fighters will start that way, loosening up by throwing jabs that don't quite reach. By the 2nd/3rd rounds however, the gap closes and each guy starts landing some shots. Watson never closed the gap until very late because he probably knew he hadn't done enough.
Round after round I can't give it to Watson, he's standing on the perimeter watching, when he finally throws a counter he's leaning back anticipating a counter in return. He never really committed to the battle, Eubank likes to engage although he gets tired and has to catch his breath at times.
If you don't agree that Watson was too passive, too far away and not landing enough punches to win the fight, compare this performance to their 2nd fight. He was the opposite, coming forward to engage at a maddening pace. I had that fight close; if it had gone to Watson by decision I would have been okay with that. In this fight, Watson didn't come close to winning, wasn't eager to engage, not enough punches landed.
Watson faded away the last 4 rounds it was a really good fight though I cannot remember Michael Watson having 2 fights with Eubank I was only 11 and can't remember thank you for sharing this matchup
You gotta love the Eubank guy.
Simply the best…what a legend❣️🍻
Watson was good at counter punching.
Watched the two Eubank Carl Thompson fights recently. Proper 50/50 slug fest.
Eubank still good & went up in weight to win another title. Thompson was no mug & had beaten David Haye.
Respect to both.
Eubank made him look like a donkey,til his eye shut
Eubank won the 11th as well. 11-0 for Eubank, no emotions, no bias, no hatred. I'm scoring a fight based upon the action in the ring.
Bull crap. You cannot win a fight when you are ambling around the ring doing hardly nothing. Watson clearly won this no question.
@@ezekielthemack Count the number of punches landed by each fighter. Use slow motion if the truth is what you want. If one guy landed more punches, he should win the fight. Go ahead, let me know. Obviously I have nothing against Watson, he lost his good health in their next fight. I get nothing out of lying about a man that lost so much. I just like the truth.
I remember back in the day Joe Bloggs clothing was the shit!!
I must admit when I watched it live, I thought Watson was the clear winner. Watching it now I think a draw would have been a fair result
Can't give Watson a draw here, he didn't do enough
Lee Scammell I respect you’re opinion but don’t agree.
Entertaining fight. I had Michael Watson winning by one round, although a lot of the rounds were close and could have been scored either way. However, the onus was on Watson to rip the title away from the champion, and although he out-boxed Eubank in spells (particularly from the 6th round onwards), he didn't really dominate at any point in the fight. Of course, he well won the rematch at super middle, until Eubank landed a punch from the locker room that changed both of their lives forever, and glad to see that he's made such a fantastic recovery from such life-changing injuries. Classic 90s British middleweight battler - thoroughly enjoyed it thanks.
There was 3 judges none gave it to Watson the commentary was biased
Watson started taking over from 42:15.
( 1stly ignore the bias from the commentators) Ewbank won this, Watson looked a busy fighter but a lot of his punches missed Ewbanks didn't miss as much, there both warriors regardless of liking or disliking either of them, credit to both for putting on a great show.
Bias from Jim Watt ? Really ? You could have made alot of money back in the day betting against his predictions . Jim Watt has spoiled so may fights I've watch it ain't funny . Totally agree with you . I'm all for supporting the British fighter , but Blind Freddie could call the fight better .
Great fight
Chris says in his book that he passed out the afternoon of the fight after losing nearly a stone and a half in four days to make weight earlier in the day, crazy and even his eyeballs were drying out
1-Eubank
2-Eubank
3-Eubank
4-Eubank
5-Eubank
6-Even
7-Eubank (Watson doesnt land)
8-Eubank
9-Eubank
10-Watson (Eubank is spent)
11-Eubank (Watson not pressing)
12-Watson (Eubank lost the round more than Watson won the round)
118-111 Eubanks Unanimous
Eubank was crap.
@@markant9534 ummmm yeah
@@markant9534 eubank would knock your block back into the wall, so you must be real shitty.
Eubank won this fight. More power shots. I'd always thought Watson got robbed without watching the thing. Eubank looked good in this one.
I don't know where you get this impression. Watson was really controlled with the jab and in a touch more control.
HE OVER EXAGGERATING THAT UBANK HEADBUTT
Alan Hughes got some work from Hearn with the snooker 😂
Not a big fan of Eubank but I score it 115-113 Eubank.
I was at that fight and after watching it again i still can't see how Eubank won this.
To be honest It was one of those rare occasions where Eubank won the first 6 rounds and Watson won the next 6. I always agreed with Reg when he said you have to proper take the champions belt. It can't be a round here or there to win it. You have to convincingly win it.
@@storminboy totally agree 👍pal
for me draw or 7-5 Watson but he didnt win convincingly enough to rip the belt away from eubank
the champion should always get benefit of doubt in a close fight
So going by that you have to beat Barcelona 2 nil because its Barcelona? If you win you win. Near or far you win you get the title
@@richardthompson8961 Exactly. When you sit and judge a fight you do it round by round. 10-9 or 10-8 if there is a knockdown. They try to discourage a 10-10. It does not matter if you are champion or not if you do enough to the naked eyes you call it as you see it.
@Dawei Lee Based on what?
Eubank started out strong, countering Watson with the more solid shots. But then Watson picked up the pace in the second half of the fight and was more composed and more accurate as Eubank lost steam. Then E>ubank felt the urgency and went all out but didn't connect with anything serious as Watson controlled the fight .
Watson lost, you don't know how to score so you think he won!
Eubank won because of his domination of the early rounds.
I would say easily, but I think he won because he had control of the fight and the most telling punches were from Eubank . Watson was punching air a lot of the time . Watson schooled Benn but he didn't quite do enough that evening . The challenger has to take the title by domination or a knockout .
Domination? what? Am I seeing things here. Watson was way more sturdy and working the jab better.
Took long to announce the decision
Both were weight-drained & couldn't fight at a pace - very slow/cautious. Eubank was such a hated man at the time that anythg he did was "controversial".
The Rocky V ref had clearly told them beforehand that he would deduct points for any kind of holding!
Will never know why MC Alan Hughes announced the scorecards in the order that he did. Weird!
Watson won both fights it was down to poor medical procedures that Michael came to the very sad end of collapsing
It was down to the referee, and ultimately his corner.
Quite clearly a victory for Eubank. The problem then, is one that still exists today. Watson was the fan/commentator favourite. So the bias commentary made folks believe it was a wrong decision. Commentators were guilty a lot of this with Eubank...rewatch the Benn fight, they spend most of it saying Eubank is doing everything wrong, that he does not know how to fight etc etc. Shame for Eubank that the public only really took to him at the end of his career...they should have appreciated him more during his peak years. He was a phenomenal fighter
The fans never took to him because as well as being a phenomenal fighter he was also a phenomenal asshole.
Watson is a nice guy, everyone knows that, but he lost this fight badly. I gave him the last round, making my score 11-1 for Eubank. Only the 6th and the 12th were close rounds.
!!!!
Well, thé refs have had watched the fight and thé commentators had just non stop talk and talk. If they had talk less they'd see that it was Eubanks fight - hé scored more and he was thé one who tried - whatson was thechnical ans touhgh, but hé nevertook a risk to Land a power shot- Eubank did. This is not a game or touch BUt of hit. And If tout doubt - juste look a t eubanks clean face at thé and, ANd hasthe watsons face changéd every round - more and more marks...
Still interesting fight thus. Great masters both or them
Watson a class act, a decent guy. Eubank interesting, thinks he's more intelligent than he is though he is no fool...And regardless who you prefer as a person and certainly Watson was, probably still is more popular, on the basis Watson missed far more than Eubank, (if you can be bothered and know anything of the sport just go through each round and count and you'll be astonished at the hit miss ratio in Eubank's favour....If you don't knock out, if you don't get disqualified its down to your accuracy and Eubank was more accurate so it was the right decision. And yet the debate, impassioned as it is to this day, rages on. One thing that was blatant through these years, nobody, absolutely nobody in the Middle and Super Middleweight divisions took punches as well as Eubank which was fortunate as he left himself unguarded so often. Guess he prefered a clearer vision of his target and it worked against the very best...until he met Steve Collins.
Is Gary Stretch still alive?
A Google search says apparently so !
Last I heard he was in the Alexander movie with Collin Farrell in as Cleitus.
The first fight Watson Won and pethetic how he didn't get the results he deserved against a fixed Idiot.
AJ and watson sound quite similar, well before watson had that terrible Incident
I was a massive eubank fan but Watson won that fight.
Yes
Barry McGuigan had Watson ahead a couple rounds, that's what he said during the 10th round. I'm calling Barry a damn liar. I don't care if he was a pro fighter or not, he's a damn liar. I'm not even saying that he's wrong and that I disagree. I'm saying that he's just lying. He knows damn well that Watson hadn't won more than one round up until the 10th. You can give him the 6th but I had Eubank winning every round going into the 10th. What McGuigan did during this fight was criminal.
Maybe I'm not using the correct criteria, I thought that punches landed were the key to winning a fight. Watson wasn't landing anything, in every round Eubank landed more punches. I'd like to have a couple of independent scorers review the fight. They might find a round or two for Watson out of sympathy but that would be a gift. Someone tell me which rounds Watson won. Most of you think Watson won, please tell me which rounds you gave him. I'll bet that nobody will respond because when you leave out the bias, you'll see that Watson didn't win any rounds.
Watson was a damn good boxer no doubt. After watching his fights here on UA-cam a few times I've come the conclusion Watson was very vulnerable in the later rounds against some of the best.. Watson vs a 35 year old McCallum = 11th round brutal knockout with Watson still laid on the canvas a while afterwards. Watson vs Eubank 2 = 12th round brutal knockout after a class uppercut when Eubank was nearly finished in the 11th. No disrespect here to Watson but imagine what James Toney would have done in a fight with Watson. Against the very best he came up short.
But the Body snatcher was a special old man type of boxer. They dont make them like him anymore.
@@anthonymcken6050 Agreed. He was never stopped or knocked out.
McCallum proved for me once again that fighters mske some of the worst judges, saying he gave Watson a slight edge after the 6th round when Watson did nothing the first 5 rounds. I gave Watson the 6th but I had it 4-1-1 for Eubank at that time. Watson was a bit more active in 7 and 8 but still lost both as Eubank stepped it up a bit right with him.
I don't see why most thought that Watson won the fight. At the end of the 8th I've only found 1 round to give to Watson with one round even. Eubank is more willing to commit to his punches while Watson so far refuses to step inside the punching zone with conviction. Eubank is moving around slowly but steadily while Watson follows without punching. When Eubank stops to face him up, Watson freezes so as not to cross the line of being too close. Inevitably it'sEubank that strikes first with combinations, usually just a left right, then Watson tries to counter but Eubank backs away too quickly leaving watson's punches short.
Even standing face to face Watson leaves himself 2 inches short for his jab to land. If the jab reaches, Eubank easily slips them by moving his head to one side or the other. If Watson throws a right Eubank ducks under most often.
Having said all of that, Eubank isn't setting the world on fire either. He's doing his best work by letting the clock run as he moves so that Watson can't land, then comes forward at random and lands one or two decent punches. A couple times each round he does that and wins each round by a couple of shots.
I've been counting punches, erven using slow motion in 2 rounds just to check my own accuracy. Watson is not doing enough because he won't go for it, breaking into Eubanks kitchen often enough to make him fight more steadily. Maybe he will in the last 4 rounds but I already have it 6-1-1 for Eubank. If I'm off by at least one round and Watson can win the last 4 then it could go either way but as of now I don' t see it happening.
Watson at best gets a Draw here but Watson was to much of the good boy in boxing. Never really had that killer drive like Benn did even though he beat Benn. I just think Watson didn’t threw enough punches and I agree with the commentators he let Eubank have to much time to recover. 🥊
Was a good fight
7-5 eubank. Eubank jab won it for him
The big stink it caused was silly. Very rarely does a fight happen where one guy wins the first 6 and the other wins the other 6. Thats how I scored it anyway.
Eubank's easy. Won it early on the counter punch and classic Eubank jab, clubbing right hand. Watson was easy to hit coming in. Look at the upper cut he takes walking in with nothing after good work with 3 seconds left in the 10th around 51:10 for portent of things to come.
Michael won that fight . As did Ray Close from NI who was also given a draw .
Watson looked huge at the weight. Looks more like a light heavyweight.
I believe he's well known struggles to make weight was definitely a factor in his loss to Eubank and his inevitable brain damage. Sadly.
I met him in 2011 and even with his illness he is still quite tall.
@@anthonymcken6050 👍.....He looks so much better these days......his motor functions look like they're improving with every year that passes, which is good to see!
But Yh.... he was very tall for the middleweight/super middleweight division . Which is a good thing.... if you can manage the weight correctly and rehydrate properly by fight night.
But dehydrating and starving yourself to get down to the lightest possible weight division as you can, in order to gain as much of a height and weight advantage as possible come fight night is very dangerous.
Watson was red hot,
Thought I'd look back on this one, Eubank was 5 up by the 6th🤷 easy easy won by 2 or 3 rounds.
Close fight. Watson had to really take the title from Eubank. He didn't.
There was outrage at the time. People saying Watson was the clear winner. Probably more that people wanted bad buy Eubank put in his place.
adam collins you win the fight , you win the fight . It’s as simple as that . Watson won it by 3/4 rounds. The old saying of Having to ‘take’ the title is a load of nonsense .
The judges didn't agree. Making Eubank the clear winner. Both Watson's & Eubanks reaction after at the final bell showed neither of them were sure.
However the Calzaghe/Lacey fight...
As said in my first post, the crowd wanted flash Eubank put in his place after he beat fans favourite Benn.
Couldn't choose between them watching this video.
adam collins boxing is all about opinions which is what makes it great . IMO Watson clearly won the fight , finished the stronger and deserved to have been crowned world champ that night .
Depends how you scored the first half. Watson clearly won the second half and I felt the first half was quite even. But if you chose to give all those close early rounds to Eubank you maybe could have it close.
116-112 eubank, and iam no fan of eubank
Truth hurts.
Watson won
24:40 is where Watson began taking over, he started catching most of Eubank`s shots off his cross guard.
Watson won this fight clearly .wot are the judges looking at.and if they had got it right the first time the second time might not have happened
Agreed! That's why Watson was looking for the ko in the second fight he didn't trust it going to the score cards again! His corner should have told him to move and counter for those last few rounds in the second fight, as he was clearly winning and not go looking for the ko. He was my favourite of that era beautiful technical fighter big heart and and a local boy, he truly deserved to be a world champion! but he will forever be the people's champ!🥊👌🏼
Eubank had so many gift decisions it became ridiculous. Benn 2 ,Watson 1 , ray close beat him twice convincingly, plus other close fights that could have gone against him like malinga and the one against that tall guy in Germany. Eubank was really overrated. Very tough guy but so limited. He was too easy to out work and his attacks became kind of predictable.
Eubank beat Malinga and Rocchigiani by miles, winning round after round. Close was hurt badly in both fights. He didn't lose these fights and he clearly won this fight. He did lose to Benn by a point though, hardly a robbery.
Lee Scammell I’m not sure if you haven’t watched these fights recently or not. He lost both fights to ray close in my opinion. Malinga fight was close. I remember the rocchigiani fight being close but can’t remember honestly. I thought he lost Watson 1 as well. Just an opinion though.
@@hughwardjackson4776 a poor and incorrect opinion, as I told you on the other reply under your other name
Lee Scammell haha ok man. Up to you. I think you don’t really know how to score fights.
@@hughwardjackson4776 bless you. The professional judges agreed.
Eubank the wank! Watson, dominated that fight, PERIOD!
Watson could have been one of the best ever but, alas! 🙈
What a cruel irony: Watson’s life’s destroyed while defending the sport of boxing, Eubank, who dealt the lethal blow, all the while lamenting the brutal fight game. By an even stranger twist of fate, both men brought together by this, where they profess to be closer than brothers. Beautiful story.
Brain damage in boxing is generally caused by an accumulation of hard punches . Mike McCullam the ' body snatcher ' took Watson to the gates of Hell .
@@johnniethepom2905
Absolutely agree.
I thought it was a draw.
This was a really poor decision by the judges and it's sickening to think that Michael Watson would never win a World Crown as he was so good, technically very gifted and also stopped Benn. Watson however was not the only man to suffer injustices V the protected Eubank, Benn in their 2nd fight, Malinga in their only fight and Northern Ireland's Ray Close, 2 times in Glasgow, called a draw and then Belfast, a split decision for Eubank. Steve Collins would eventually catch him out in their 1st encounter, a close but deserved win and then comprehensively in the 2nd.
Eubank beat Malinga and Rocchigiani by miles, winning round after round. Close was hurt badly in both fights. He didn't lose these fights and he clearly won this fight. He did lose to Benn by a point though, hardly a robbery.
He also beat Collins in Millstreet. Clearly.
@@leescammell9988 How do you make that out? Ronnie Davies, Ebanks trainer, told him after Rd 10, ' You need a KO to win Chris'. Who do you think knows more about scoring fights, us or him?
@@leescammell9988 Sorry, meant to say Eubanks as opposed to Ebanks
@@leescammell9988 Ah come on Lee you know better than that my friend, he didn't beat Malinga by miles, I personally think he got the sympathy vote from the judges as it was his 1st fight back after the Watson 2..It was really close either way, you'll be telling me that Benn also deserved his victory over Malinga later that year 92, also, next, which he didn't by the way.
Eubank was so easy to hit
So easy to hit yet so hard to actually hurt
Eh??
Watson was hitting oxygen most of the night or only skimming Eubank's skin. GREAT reflexes Eubank, those sharp counters from a standing static position 😮
Easy to hit? Eubank was notoriously hard to nail,really awkward
Watson had a very weak jab.
Try telling Nigel Benn that.
@@davidkirkwood9537 Benn punched himself out, the jab didn`t knock him out, he gassed and quit.
@@markant9534 So Watson couldn’t jab and Benn was a quitter. You not really a fan of British middleweights then? Why hold back, perhaps you could tell us a few home truths about Sibson, Minter, Eubank and Collins.
Eubank won this
Robbed Watson by 3 rounds for me
Watson cud never have won this fight. Chris is hated by many simply da best Chris
What's the name of Nigel's hairstyle?
*'asylum'?*
Hmmm.........Not sure about the decision.
You could the Freemason hearn was on eubanks side lol
McCallum would have tanked Eubank and Benn and Hagler and Sugar Ray..... the list goes on. The most ducked fighter in the world.
I totally agree
I agree with you mate about Mc Callum, he was absolutely brilliant , a legend and would have easily beaten all the guys you mentioned but I disagree with you about the Marvelous 1. Hagler was on a different level, not the most skilled fighter but a ferocious competitor with amazing stamina and an unbelievable chin and I never heard of him avoiding canybody and as far as I'm concerned, the best 168lb fighter in the last 50 years just ahead of Monzon.
Sorry, meant to say 160lb fighter.
@Brian Whitehead Hi Brian, Andy makes some very good and true points, the facts are that Mc Callum challenged Eubank, 90, at 160 and Benn, 92 at 168 and they declined. He was the most avoided fighter of the late 80s early 90s and SRL openly admitted he didn't want any part of him. I reckon if they fought in the mid 80s, SR would have won comfortably on pts but never by Ko, if they fought late 80s,early 90s, Mc Callum would have won quite easily tbh.
,@Brian Whitehead The gripe I have with SRL is his refusal to give the best MW of the last 60 years, an immediate rematch, then in 89, he was given a draw V T Hearns, it was a disgusting result really, even he admitted this, and he did avoid Mc Callum, he also admitted this. As far as I'm concerned, he was probably my favorite fighter up to the Hearns return in 89, but he quickly went down in my estimation, because of his cowardice and failure to honor a rematch clause with Hagler. I'm not the only fight fan with such views, Leonard has lost loads of fans because of this. I'm never going to deny how good he was and rate him as 1 of the best P4P guys ever but his achievements at 160 are nowhere near Hagler and Monzon, not even close.
Watson robbed
Imo Watson clearly won the fight.
@Dawei Lee No. Ur opinion is wrong. Unless you're related to Bruce.
Listen. I'm entitled to my opinion. And the people agree with me. So i'm not into arguing with you. Bye.
Eubank won the 10th round as well. I have him ahead 10-0 after 10 rounds. Those who think Watson won this fight, you don't know what you're watching. Those that think it was a close fight, you don't know what you're watching either. Block out your hatred for Eubank, he won every round up to the 10th.
fixed
It's a Barry Hearn fight . What's not to fix ? Almost as nice a man as Don King .
daylight robbery Michael watson won that fight
That was a robbery
Boring fight
Corrupt
m.watson won that .... end of ...