Home Boxing News BARRY McGUIGAN Cyclone: My Story

BARRY McGUIGAN Cyclone: My Story

BARRY McGUIGAN

Cyclone: My Story

Published by Virgin Books on 26th May 2011, £18.99 hardback

“Barry McGuigan was one of the best fighters of his generation, he had fanatical support. Barry’s a great ambassador for the sport of boxing.” Sugar Ray Leonard

On a hot summer’s night in June 1985, in one of the most emotionally charged fights of all time, Barry McGuigan beat Eusebio Pedroza to become the Featherweight champion of the World. An epic battle that lasted a full 15 rounds, it remains one of sport’s greatest moments – watched by 27,000 spectators ringside, another 20 million on the BBC and an estimated 200 million around the world. McGuigan returned home to a hero’s welcome and cemented his reputation as a renowned and revered figure, both in the boxing world and beyond.

Raised in the border town of Clones, Co. Monaghan, at the height of the troubles, Barry McGuigan’s profile went far beyond the boxing ring. He united people across sectarian and religious divides during a difficult time in Ireland’s political history. A Catholic, Barry married his Protestant childhood sweetheart, Sandra in 1981. An Irishman, he fought for the British Title, wearing boxing shorts in the colours of the United Nation’s Flag of Peace – and in place of a national anthem his musician father, Pat sang a heartfelt rendition of ‘Danny Boy’ before his title fights.

Gripping, open and candid, Cyclone: My Story tells McGuigan’s remarkable life in his own words for the first time.

From the moment he took up boxing aged 11 after finding an antique pair of gloves in a derelict house to the build up to his world title fight, Cyclone: My Story spans the extraordinary highs, and lows, of McGuigan’s career. He evocatively recreates his early days in the amateur ranks (training in a club run by farmers), his unsuccessful visit to the Olympics and his decision to turn pro, and then his progression to title-fight contender. Recollecting each of his fights, his vivid prose takes you right to the heart of training and sparring, and provides a blow-by-blow account of what happens when you step through the ropes into the ring.

Written with the perspective of a sportsman who has reached the peak of their game and then experienced life outside the ring, Cyclone: My Story contrasts professional glory with personal tragedy. Reflective and contemplative, McGuigan discusses the experiences of his daughter’s illness, brother’s suicide and the impact of the Young Ali fight to provide a unique insight into the place of success and boxing in his life.

Shot-through with McGuigan’s characteristically unassuming, straightforward and open manner that won him a loyal army of fans, Cyclone: My Story is a fascinating portrait of one of boxing’s biggest icons.

Barry McGuigan is a Former World Featherweight Champion boxer. He currently enjoys a successful career as a sports commentator and writer and motivational speaker. He continues his involvement in the boxing world through his Boxing Academies and as a boxing promoter and trainer, who has coached his youngest son Shane to National Titles in England and Ireland. He lives in Kent with his wife and family.

For more information, please contact Caroline Newbury on 020 7840 8730 or [email protected]

 

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