Donald Curry - Fall From Grace

Fall From Grace

Curry's next defense of the title was against London-based Jamaican Lloyd Honeyghan on September 27, 1986 in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Honeyghan was 27-0 and ranked #1 by the WBC.

Curry's training was disrupted by managerial issues. His managerial contract with David Gorman was to expire on September 30, 1986, and Curry announced that Akbar Muhammad would become his new manager. Muhammad said he wanted Gorman to remain a part of Curry's team, but Gorman said he wouldn't accept a position as co-manager and that Curry would not work out of his gym if he was not Curry's manager. Curry told Gorman to stay away from his training camp, but shortly before the fight, Curry asked him to work in his corner for the fight and Gorman agreed.

Curry was such a prohibitive favorite that there wasn't a betting line on the fight, but Honeyghan came into the fight with great confidence. He easily won the opening two rounds, pressuring Curry and rocking him badly in the second round. Curry came back to win the next two rounds, but after that, he had little left. Curry had difficulty making weight. "I was weak and sluggish," Curry said. "I had no strength in my legs, and my timing just wasn't there. I wasn't myself." Honeyghan manhandled Curry in rounds five and six. Late in the sixth, an accidental headbutt opened a bad cut over Curry's left eye. Two ringside physicians examined the cut after the sixth round and told the referee to stop the fight, giving Honeyghan a TKO victory. The fight was The Ring magazine Upset of the Year.

In his next fight, Curry defeated Tony Montgomery to win the USBA light middleweight title. Montgomery was disqualified in the fifth round for intentional headbutts. Curry's next opponent, Carlos Santos, was also disqualified in the fifth round for intentional headbutts.

On April 6, 1987, the day Sugar Ray Leonard defeated Marvelous Marvin Hagler, Curry filed a million dollar lawsuit against Leonard and his attorney Mike Trainer. Curry claimed that he asked Leonard and Trainer for advice concerning his future, and they advised him to stay at welterweight and not to move up in weight to fight junior middleweight champion Mike McCallum or middleweight champion Hagler.

Curry was going to face McCallum on June 23, 1986 but decided to back out and stay at welterweight. Several weeks later, Leonard announced that he was coming out of retirement to fight Hagler. Curry claimed that Leonard and Trainer took "undue and unconscionable advantage of Curry" through fraud, conspiracy, and breach of financial responsibilities.

Curry fought Mike McCallum on July 18, 1987 for the WBA junior middleweight champion. The fight was televised live on HBO. Curry tried to have Sugar Ray Leonard, who worked for HBO as a commentator, removed from the broadcast team. However, HBO decided to include Leonard as part of the telecast.

McCallum, 31-0 with 28 knockouts, was boxing's longest reigning champion. Curry boxed well and was leading on all three scorecards after four rounds. In the fifth, McCallum caught Curry on the chin with a left hook, putting down for the count. "I don't know what he hit me with," Curry said forty minutes after the fight. "I don't know what happened."

HBO commentator Barry Tompkins told his broadcasting partner Sugar Ray Leonard, "You settled a case out of court here."

Curry got another title shot on July 8, 1988. He traveled to Italy to fight Gianfranco Rosi for the WBC super welterweight title. Curry put him down five times, and Rosi retired on his stool after the ninth round. Curry was once again a champion, but his reign didn't last very long. He lost the title in his first defense, dropping a twelve-round unanimous decision to Rene Jacquot on February 11, 1989 in France. Curry built an early lead, but Jacquot came on late. "I just got tired. I just got tired," Curry kept repeating afterward. The fight that was named The Ring magazine Upset of the Year.

He went back to France to fight IBF middleweight champion Michael Nunn on October 18, 1990. Nunn stopped him in ten rounds. Curry's next fight was another title fight. He went back to junior middleweight to fight Terry Norris for the WBC title. The fight took place June 1, 1991 in Palm Springs, California. It was a rough and competitive fight for seven rounds. In the eighth, Norris put Curry down for the count with a series of right hands. Curry retired after the fight.