Deadspin: tommy+morrison

Tommy Morrison Is A Deep Thinker

Leitch — Tue, 17 Jul 2007 11:10:44 EDT

One would think "boxer" Tommy Morrison's constant claims that AIDS is "an invented virus" making money for the drug industry, and that "heterosexuals can't transmit the virus" would inspire people to stop taking him seriously and no longer listen to him. That hasn't worked, but maybe his new enlightened views on African Americans will finally do the trick.

You see, in prison, Tommy Morrison learned what black people were all about.

"[Blacks are] so tough till you hurt 'em once," he says. "Then you own 'em. I learned patience in prison, Learned the value of time there, too, and that I really don't like black people."

Well, all right then. Fortunately, his chosen profession doesn't require him to come across black people very often. Whew.

Tommy Morrison's Bad Blood [Details]

Get Your Morrison/Harding Tickets FAST

Leitch — Wed, 28 Feb 2007 16:00:49 EST

We are trying to decide which part of this story is the saddest and most indicative of how our planet is in an irreversible downward incline. (Or, you know, "decline," if you want to say that in fewer words.) Tonight, in Brandon, Mo., The Amateur Boxing Club of Branson — such a thing exists — is hosting its monthly Fight Night, and, to "promote" it, there will be a special appearance by both Tommy Morrison and Tonya Harding. We find it unfathomable that Tonya Harding will be attending a boxing event and be the second-biggest freakshow there.

Neither will be fighting — or, for that matter, fighting each other. They will just be standing around, being Tommy Morrison, being Tonya Harding, in Branson.

America!

The Biggest Event In Branson Ever [GO Blog]

Tommy Morrison Most Healthy Undercard Winner Last Night

Leitch — Fri, 23 Feb 2007 11:00:50 EST

Well, they actually let Tommy Morrison — who pretty much everybody knows has HIV, save for himself, a couple of his doctor friends and some West Virginia boxing board members — fight last night, and, lo and behold, he won, knocking out John Castle in his first fight in 11 years. Castle had admitted to being nervous before he stepped into the ring with Morrison, but Morrison said he felt great. So great, in fact, that he pointed out that he was more worried about another boxer on the undercard than he was about himself. And it's difficult to disagree with him; it's Joe Mesi, a fighter heading into the ring with bleeding on the brain.

"That's the guy they should be worried about," Morrison said. "That's a serious thing there. There's not a single documented case of a guy getting into the ring with that."

Seriously, an HIV-infected boxer and a guy with blood on the brain ... and those were the winners! Boxing is so awesome.

Tommy KO's Foes, Doubts [New York Daily News]

Eventually, The Running Man Will Become Reality

Leitch — Tue, 20 Feb 2007 16:00:17 EST

You know, with the freakshow that boxing has become and probably always was, that it was inevitable: ESPN is reporting that Tommy Morrison, the former "Rocky V" boxer who has HIV, will be fighting Thursday night.

Heavyweight Tommy Morrison, who was indefinitely suspended after a positive HIV test on the eve of a 1996 fight in Las Vegas, has been cleared to return to the ring after passing a battery of medical tests, sources told ESPN.com on Tuesday. Morrison (46-3-1, 40 KOs), now 38, returns to the ring after an 11-year layoff. Morrison is in Chester, W.Va., to fight on a card there Thursday night. His opponent in the four-round bout is slated to be John Castle of Indianapolis. Morrison's bout is not scheduled to be part of the Versus-televised coverage of the card.

You know, poor Versus, can't catch a break: They finally get something that rubberneckers would actually want to watch, and they're not even showing it.

We thought we'd look into John Castle, Morrison's opponent. Castle is 35, with a record of 4-2, and doesn't appear to have fought himself in a few years. We found what seems to be one of his fights on YouTube. If you think it's a bad sign when one of your fights is so short that it can fit on YouTube, well, you're right. Though it's probably not as bad a sign as fighting a guy who has HIV. Wait. It has "vanished." We forgot.

Morrison Medically Cleared To Fight [ESPN]
John Castle Fight [YouTube]

Tommy Morrison's Confusing Confusion

Leitch — Thu, 19 Oct 2006 15:45:48 EDT

Far be it from us to deny a guy the opportunity to make a living, and we consider ourselves open-minded ... but we had to say, when there's open debate as to whether or not are HIV-positive, we kind of think maybe you shouldn't be boxing.

Good ole Tommy Morrison, Tommy Gunn, is now 37 years old and trying to get a boxing license in Missouri, among other places. He claims he never was HIV-positive, but his estranged wife — one of the two Dawns he was once simultaneously married to a decade ago — is insistent that he is.

"I don't know why he says [he doesn't have HIV], because it just makes him look like a fool," she says. "If he thinks it's a government conspiracy (and he does) then why is he taking the medicine? He (has said), 'Because it makes my wife happy,' but that medicine runs $1,700 a month.

"He makes his money from Social Security disability," Dawn 2 says. "Because he's disabled because of HIV — it's about $1,800 (a month). And he's on some kind of plan that covers his medication." As for Morrison's boxing comeback, "He told me some friends in Phoenix had hooked him up with some wealthy Arabs," Dawn 2 says. "And they're going to help him get his boxing license back."

Honestly? If this guy is allowed to fight, Tommy Morrison fighting isn't that much of a stretch, we suppose.

Is Morrison Positive He's Negative? [Kansas City Star]

Morrison-Tyson: What Could Possibly Go Wrong?

Leitch — Wed, 19 Jul 2006 13:15:49 EDT

Remember Tommy Morrison? In a more sports world with a little more flair than the one we inhabit, his story would be among the most compelling. Distant relative of John Wayne, co-star with Stallone in Rocky V, briefly heavyweight champion, beat George Foreman, spent 14 months in jail and, oh yeah, was diagnosed with HIV but now says it was a false positive after years of claiming HIV had no connection to AIDS. Quite a lot to pack into 37 years.

And now he's back in the news, claiming he wants to fight again, for the first time in 10 years, against Mike Tyson, of all people. He says Tyson just lives down the road from him and would be potentially up for a fight. We can't imagine what the neighborhood get-togethers are like; Morrison telling Stallone stories while putting Tyson's pet leopard or something.

Anyway, a Morrison-Tyson matchup would be yet another sad final step in the death of boxing, everything that's wrong with ... oh, we'd just all watch it.

Tommy Morrison [Wikipedia]
Morrison-Tyson? [Philly.com]
Tommy Morrison Wants To Fight Mike Tyson [The Mighty MJD]