MARK KAYLOR vs. ERROL CHRISTIE (Original Billboard) 

Description : Here we have a super rare original Billboard boxing fight poster for the British middleweight title eliminator bout to be held at Wembley Arena, Tuesday 5th November 1985.

Those of us of a certain vintage will recall the 'Bonfire Night' battle between two of Britain's finest middleweights. In many ways, the fight started long before the first bell. A pre-fight press conference at London’s Stakis Regency Casino erupted, words were exchanged, punches thrown prematurely. A forced exchange of pleasantries soon after failed to convince or defuse the hostilities or the anticipation for a fight that divided a nation. Boxing News made it their front page headline:

‘It will take more than a handshake to repair the damage.’

Mark Kaylor and Errol Christie had different recollections of that initial conversation. Was it two words or three words uttered in Christie’s ear? One fighter disputed the word black was used, the other convinced it was. The unscripted fight cost Kaylor and Christie thousands in fines, Kaylor £15,000 and Christie a lesser amount of £5,000. Make no mistake, this was no fake PR stunt to sell a few more tickets. A genuine grudge match with an uncomfortable edge to it.

There were widespread calls for the fight to be called off. Fears of a National Front presence were high. Christie received death threats. It was now much more than a mere British middleweight title eliminator. Christie had a record of 20-1 at the time of the fight, looking to rebound from a shock 1st round stoppage to Jose Seys, his first defeat since he was fourteen, and justify on the hype his decorated amateur career promised

Kaylor was looking to reclaim the British title he had won from Roy Gumbs in 1983 and lost to Tony Sibson a year later. It was a must-win fight for both.

Christie was down inside the first 30 seconds. A short right hand did the damage. A firework exploded soon after, the Kaylor faithful sensing their man was about to record a sensational victory. But Christie recovered and dropped Kaylor near the end of a dramatic 1st round. The scene was set, and there would be no let-up.

The two fighters traded punches with little respite for the remainder of the fight. Kaylor was on the canvas again in the 3rd round, Christie had a moment. He needed a little more. Kaylor came roaring back in the same round. Christie was hurt again, this time badly. The bell saved him. It did so again in the 4th.

It was a fight to the finish, both unleashing savage punches on each other. It was a battle for survival, Kaylor looked the more battle-hardened of the two fighters, Christie you sensed would be the one who would be found wanting, the fighter most likely to break. But Christie hurt Kaylor again in the 7th, his last glimpse of victory. It soon passed.

Kaylor finished it in the 8th. Another right hand ended the brave resistance of his opponent. The fallen fighter desperately tried to crawl and scramble to his feet. He didn’t make it, and Harry Gibbs waved it off, Christie had given more than we could have imagined prior. McCarthy said it was the worst he had seen his man box. He was wrong. It was anything but.

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