Joe Egan’s two-year stint as sparring partner for former boxing great Mike Tyson has earned him a lot of respect on the international scene. Valhmor Camilleri met the towering Irishman during his brief stay on the island.
Joe Egan was in Malta for last Friday’s ‘Big Night of Boxing’ at the Sky Club in Paceville with the top card being an EBF-sanctioned title fight between Malta’s Billy Corito and England’s Ian Toby.
These days Egan is fully dedicated to a successful career as an actor but he still finds time for boxing and is involved in the sport as promoter for the UK-based European Boxing Federation.
Dubliner Big Joe, as he is affectionately known, was the eldest of seven children. He made his debut on the ring when still a raw teenager. He fought Ireland amateur junior champion Steve Collins.
Egan took a pounding on that occasion but gradually polished his fighting techniques and by the age of 24 he had recorded over 80 wins that reaped seven Irish titles.
He moved to the US and joined Tyson’s training camp in New York’s Catskill Gym under the charge of legendary trainer Cus D’Amato. Egan was an affable person and he soon established a huge bond with Tyson, becoming his sparring partner for the next two years.
Egan could not develop his boxing talent further, however, as he was involved in a car accident in 1990 that shattered his dreams of pro fighting. He still has fond memories of his time in the US and his experience with Tyson who described the Irishman as the toughest white man on the planet.
“Mike Tyson was a great fighter,” Egan, 46, said.
“When Cus took him under his wings it was clear that he was heading towards greatness. He was a real beast in the ring and a nightmare for his other sparring partners as he battered them during training.
“My biggest pride was the fact that he never managed to knock me down when I was with him on the ring despite the huge barrage of punches he threw at me. Mike did not give me that title for nothing I suppose.”
Egan believes that although Tyson went on to become one of most popular heavyweight champions in the sport’s history, the Brooklyn-born fighter would have enjoyed an even more successful career. When D’Amato died in 1985 things started to change.
“Cus was the reason why Mike Tyson was a sensational boxer from a young age,” Egan said.
“When Cus passed away, Tyson’s career took a slide in my opinion. D’Amato was a great trainer and with him Tyson was always in his best shape. That was not the case when he was not around anymore.
“Tyson’s preparation was never the same after that. In my opinion Tyson would have never lost to Buster Douglas, Evander Holyfield or Lennox Lewis, never. With Cus around, Tyson would have beaten them all... no doubt about that.”
Although he is no longer involved full-time in boxing Egan, who also wrote a book ‘The Toughest White Man on the Planet’, still follows the sport and ponders on how fights have evolved along the years.
He is far from impressed with how boxing is being managed nowadays.
“Boxing has lost much of its allure,” Egan remarked.
“In my time, the best fighters used to be paired against each other but these days it’s no longer the case. For instance, the Klitschko brothers and their agents select their opponents to protect their titles and at the same time make more money.
“The same goes for the Pacquiao-Mayweather fight. That had to be done years ago but the promoters opted otherwise. Unless the real no.1 contenders are given the chance to challenge for the title, the sport will continue to lose fans.”
Egan said that he is relishing his role to promote boxing within the EBF environs.
“The EBF adopts a different approach to other boxing governing bodies,” he said.
“Here, they pair their best fighters against each other and the sport is doing really great, generating a lot of interest also in small places like Malta.
“From the little I heard I’m seeing a lot of enthusiasm here. I know things take their time to evolve but if the Maltese federation would ask for my services in any way I would be more than happy to make myself available.”