When Julian “The Hawk” Jackson challenged Mike “The Physique Snatcher” McCallum on at the present time in 1986 for the latter’s WBA junior middleweight strap, it was greater than only a match-up of unbeaten, elite-level prizefighters. It was a gathering between two decisive finishers, with fifty knockouts between them out of a mixed fifty-five fights. This meant there wasn’t simply strain to not lose, but additionally to not be rendered helpless and humiliated in entrance of the sporting world and find yourself on the opposite man’s spotlight reel.
And that was particularly the case for McCallum. Whereas each males have been accustomed to ending bouts inside the space, it was the Virgin Islands’ Jackson who was thought-about the extra explosive puncher, his concussive energy clearly evident in his stand up the ranks. Nonetheless, regardless of accumulating a document of 29-0, Jackson had but to face a very important take a look at. In his first title shot, he was taking a big step up in competitors; everybody knew McCallum was a most succesful pugilist, among the best within the recreation.
However Jackson confirmed he wasn’t intimidated by the second, as he instantly attacked on the opening bell, coming ahead and throwing a tough proper, foregoing any feeling-out course of. Instantly the tempo ratcheted up, with Jackson unleashing his two-fisted assault. McCallum was caught off-guard however he held his floor and landed some good counters.
That’s, till Jackson landed a pointy left hook that wobbled the champion and compelled him to retreat. Jackson instantly pressed, wanting to follow-up however McCallum was capable of tie his man up and forestall additional harm earlier than rapidly regaining his senses and touchdown some photographs in return to maintain the challenger at bay. The Jamaican then properly adjusted his recreation plan, utilizing extra lateral motion and a heavy dose of onerous jabs to disrupt the challenger’s offence.
The momentum continued to swing in favour of the champion, his give attention to protection being the primary motive. As a substitute of buying and selling leather-based, McCallum confirmed persistence, letting the challenger throw so he might counter with precision and thus make the challenger miss after which make him pay. It was particularly the counters to the physique that have been only, as they took the wind out of Jackson’s sails, and supplied extra proof for McCallum’s apt “Physique Snatcher” nickname. On the finish of spherical one, the raucous crowd on the Miami Seaside Conference Centre roared in approval.
The torrid tempo continued within the second, with the fighters exchanging bombs at shut quarters, and it was solely a matter of time earlier than a very damaging shot landed. That punch got here courtesy of a McCallum left hook after a lead proper, which caught Jackson on the chin and put him on one knee. Though “The Hawk” rose instantly, the champion moved in with dangerous intentions.
A left hook-right hand mixture compelled Jackson to the ropes, the place the champ unleashed a vicious assault. McCallum landed a sequence of damaging blows together with overhand rights, left hooks, and quite a lot of well-timed and positioned physique photographs. Whereas Jackson tried to land one among his haymakers between McCallum’s bursts, he wasn’t profitable, and the missed makes an attempt solely allowed extra clear punches to get via. With the challenger holding his guard up in an effort to guard his head, the champion properly centered his efforts on the rib cage, on which he detonated a sequence of crushing hooks.
Sensing the end, McCallum continued his pursuit, battering Jackson across the ring. The ultimate sequence got here after the champion landed a left hook that wobbled the challenger and despatched him stumbling to the ropes. McCallum then fired off a sequence of photographs which knocked Jackson’s head round on a swivel and compelled the ref to rightfully intervene and wave off the competition. Jackson instantly raised his arms in protest, but it surely was the suitable transfer. The beating was solely getting worse and nobody wanted to see the challenger pummeled into complete helplessness.
McCallum not solely emphatically proved superiority over Jackson on that night time however the identical may be stated about their careers at massive. Though Jackson would rebound properly from the loss, beating Baek In Chul for the WBA title that McCallum had vacated and making three spectacular defenses, he would lose the 2 greatest fights of his profession, struggling stoppages on each events to Gerald McClellan.
In the meantime, McCallum would go on to defend his 154 pound title three extra instances, together with standout wins over Milton McCrory and Donald Curry. He would solely endure his first loss in his middleweight debut, dropping in a WBA title bid to wily veteran Sumbu Kalambay. Following that defeat, he regrouped and beat Herol Graham for a middleweight belt and defended towards strong opposition in Steve Collins, Michael Watson, and Kalambay in a rematch. McCallum would additionally declare a light-weight heavyweight title, and provides the nice James Toney all he might deal with over the course of their trilogy earlier than all was stated and achieved.
It’s a travesty that McCallum is such a criminally underrated fighter. However regardless of being blatantly ducked by lots of his period’s finest, he nonetheless took on all comers and bested some elite abilities in his exceptional profession. And close to the highest of his lengthy listing of spectacular showings is his stoppage of Julian Jackson, when he vanquished a foe thought to be one of many hardest punchers of all-time. — Jamie Rebner
