Boxing's greatest trainer reveals all"The book is written in a highly conversational tone, and by the end the reader will know precisely what it is like to listen to the Bill Walsh of boxing hold court on the exotic art of the cornerman."--New York Times Book Review"[H]ere's one for the fans: an as-close-up-as-you-can-get view of boxing's biggest, baddest personalities and poundings."-Men's Journal

'Sharp, direct, witty . . . A thumping, must-read memoir' – Daily MailOn 24 November 2012, four-time World Champion boxer Ricky Hatton dropped to his knees, felled by a sickening punch to the body in his first comeback fight in almost three years. Gasping for breath, down and out, it was then that something extraordinary happened: 20,000 fans began to sing his name.Ricky Hatton: War and Peace is the story of one of British boxing’s true ic...

The first book ever to delve into the life of the legendary heavyweight boxing champion.Acclaimed sportswriter Phil Pepe explores the iconic boxer "Smokin' Joe" Frazier's early beginnings. From his dirt poor childhood and relationship with his father to his street fights and Olympic boxing championship, Pepe's book follows Frazier's rise, culminating in the "Fight of the Century" with Muhammad Ali. Pepe beat all other writers to the punch in his seminal work on the...

"A dazzling portrait. . . . Written with energy, daring, and artful intelligence." --San Francisco Chronicle

Among the legendary athletes of the 1920s, the unquestioned halcyon days of sports, stands Gene Tunney, the boxer who upset Jack Dempsey in spectacular fashion, notched a 77—1 record as a prizefighter, and later avenged his sole setback (to a fearless and highly unorthodox fighter named Harry Greb). Yet within a few years of retiring from the ring, Tunney willingly receded into the background, renouncing the image of jock celebrity that became the stock in trade of so many of his contempor...

"It didn't occur to me until fairly late in the work that I was writing a book about the beginnings of a national celebrity culture. By 1860, a few boxers had become heroes to working-class men, and big fights drew considerable newspaper coverage, most of it quite negative since the whole enterprise was illegal. But a generation later, toward the end of the century, the great John L. Sullivan of Boston had become the nation's first true sports celebrity, an American icon. The likes of poet...

**'Reveals details that even close followers might not have known. . . . An amazing story' – New York TimesRevealing the extraordinary rise of a young fighter from Louisville who changed the world of sports, King of the World chronicles the incredible battles fought by Muhammad Ali inside the ring and out.**It was the night of February 25, 1964. A cloud of cigar smoke drifted through the ring lights. Cassius Clay threw punches into the gray fl...

A luminous account of the most compelling and climactic phase of boxing's long history.For three decades at the end of the twentieth century – throughout boxing's most engrossing era – James Lawton was ringside, covering every significant bout, spending time with the likes of Muhammad Ali, Sugar Ray Leonard, Marvelous Marvin Hagler, Tommy Hitman Hearns, Roberto Duran, Mike Tyson, Lennox Lewis, Evander Holyfield and many other great fighters.Lawton found him...

In 1971, could a little group of unknown automotive engineers independently design and build a race car from an old 1964 Pontiac sedan and really compete against professional, factory-backed racing teams? Blood, Sweat & Gears is based on the true story of a small group of GM Pontiac Division engineers who did just that – they independently created a race car in 1970 from an old 1964 Pontiac Le Mans with 80,000 miles on its odometer.Without factory support and on a shoestring budget...

In Sydney, Australia, in 1908 the talented black fighter Jack Johnson won the heavyweight championship of the world from the Canadian Tommy Burns. There was an immediate storm of protest. It was predicted that his reign would lead to civic unrest and race riots. This is the story of sport, racism, corruption and larger-than-life characters.

"The fight game in the raw great contests and some really hard men. What a life!" Roy ShawPrize-fighting was one of the greatest sporting attractions in the 18th and 19th centuries. Prize-fights attracted thousands of spectators from all walks of life and, nothwithstanding its illegality, was patronised by royalty and the aristocracy. The area outside London around Barnet, Whetstone, Finchley and up into Hertfordshire was one on the most popular for staging fights. Featured in ...

The Stakes were High follows the amazing life of "Glorious" John Gully, the butcher's boy from Bristol who first achieved fame as a bare-knuckle fighter and champion of England. No other boxer in the history of sports has had such an amazingly varied career. He amassed a huge fortune first as a successful bookmaker, gambler, and racehorse owner—and later MP. This is the fascinating story of his life.