Time flies and it has been more than five years since Britain’s Kell Brook tried to shake up the boxing world by challenging feared puncher Gennady Golovkin at London’s O2 Arena. Brook was a huge underdog when he moved up from welterweight in hopes of conquering the Kazakh beast, and in the build-up to the fight, his daring challenge to one of the fighting game’s most respected talents had pundits reminding others “giant killers” from the UK, as well as huge “surprises” from the past. But while Brook failed to upset Golovkin and was stopped in the fifth round, it was in fact a British fighter who, on this date in 1986, scored one of the biggest upsets in boxing history.
When Lloyd Honeyghan crossed the pond three decades ago to challenge undisputed welterweight champion Donald Curry, he too was a huge underdog. Curry, also known as “The Cobra,” was considered one of the top pound-for-pound talents, having claimed every welterweight belt while amassing a glittering 25-0 record. He had displayed impressive skill and punching power, and was so respected that prior to his title defense against Honeyghan there was talk of a possible superfight with middleweight kingpin Marvelous Marvin Hagler. Therefore, the result of Curry vs Honeyghan was a huge shock to fight fans everywhere.
No surprise in sports happens by accident; there are always reasons why David takes down Goliath. Curry vs Honeyghan was no different, as there were a number of factors leading up to the fight that influenced the outcome. Aside from the distractions of becoming one of the sport’s newest stars, Curry struggled to make weight in the days leading up to the fight. And having logged just four rounds of action in over a year, the champion also had some serious problems in terms of ring rust. Meanwhile, if the Brit was a significant underdog, he too was an undefeated fighter with boundless confidence.
And it was apparent from the opening bell that Honeyghan, unlike Curry, was primed, primed, and ready for combat. He attacked from the opening bell, throwing hard power shots and not showing an ounce of fear. And though his bombshells still didn’t fall, the ferocity of his assault made it abundantly clear that he had no respect for the esteemed champion. In fact, Curry’s punching authority and speed paled in comparison to his rival, as the champion looked listless and hesitant by comparison. While neither fighter landed any significant punches in the first round, Honeyghan took it with sheer aggression.
The reckless challenger’s relentless efforts to land a smashing shot paid off in the second when a right lead over Curry’s low left rocked “The Lone Star Cobra.” For the rest of the round, it became clear who had the upper hand as Honeyghan outworked Curry to land hard, energy-draining body shots as the Brit punctuated the round by landing another forehand spin. In the third, Honeyghan picked up where he left off, intimidating the champion and landing hooks to the body at every opportunity. Curry finally showed some life, landing a hard left hook to the liver followed by a solid right to the head that caught Lloyd’s eye, but the challenger then came back with a strong left hook of his own, determined as he was to hold. the momentum of him and maintain the advantage.
Early in the fifth round, Honeyghan broke through again to land a vicious left jab and straight right combination that hurt Curry badly and turned his legs into spaghetti. The champion seemed to recover, but then midway through the round he found himself in serious trouble again when he was blinded by Honeyghan’s jab and pinned by another hard right hand. Ringside commentator Gil Clancy summed up the action perfectly: “Honeyghan is too fast for him…he goes in and out, hits him with punches and comes back out…too fast and too active.”
Midway through the sixth round, a nasty cut opened over Curry’s left eye and the match was now a one-sided thrashing. Honeyghan continued to land heavy punches and a right-left-right combination surprised Curry and bent his legs again. It was another big round for the challenger and it would be his last, as shortly after it was over, the ring doctor deemed Curry’s cut too dangerous to allow the fight to continue. Fans watched in shock as Lloyd Honeyghan celebrated one of the sport’s greatest upsets of all time, an inspiring tale of boxing history for all the underdogs who dream of shocking the world. —Jamie Rebner
Post September 27, 1986: Curry vs. Honeyghan first appeared on The Fight City.
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