Barry Michael vs Najib Daho

Australian Barry Michael successfully defended his IBF junior-lightweight championship against Najib Daho at Granada Studios in Manchester on 23 August 1986, gaining a unanimous decision over 12 rounds in a contest which became increasingly favourable to the Australian as it progressed. It was Michael’s third defence of the championship he had won from Lester Ellis in Melbourne the previous year. Michael weighed 129¾ lb and Daho 130 lb. The champion entered with a record of 47 wins, eight defeats and three draws, while Daho, the Moroccan-born Manchester fighter, stood at 30-18-1. The promotion was handled by Jack Trickett and Frank Warren, with Rudy Battle serving as referee.

There was considerable history between the pair. Daho had already beaten Michael earlier in their careers, taking an eight-round decision over him in Wales in 1979. Michael later said that he had boxed that first contest with a broken hand, but whatever the circumstances, the result gave the challenger an unusual distinction when they met again seven years later: he had already defeated the reigning world champion. By 1986 their positions were very different. Michael had developed from an experienced Australian campaigner into a world champion, defeating the unbeaten Lester Ellis over 15 rounds in July 1985 before stopping Jin Shik Choi in four rounds and Mark Fernandez, also in four, in his first two defences. Daho had remained a familiar figure on the British circuit and came into the championship contest after one of the most important victories of his career, a win over Pat Cowdell in Manchester in May.

Daho made a useful beginning, and the early stages were considerably more competitive than the final totals might suggest. Paul Weitzel gave Daho the first round, Michael the second, and then awarded the third, fourth and fifth to the challenger. Joseph Pasquale also gave Daho the opening round and the fourth, although he preferred Michael in the second, third and fifth. Thus, after five rounds Weitzel had Daho ahead four rounds to one, whereas Pasquale had Michael in front three to two. The differing cards indicate a contest in which Daho was doing enough early to make the champion work for control rather than simply yielding ground from the outset.

From the sixth round, however, the balance altered decisively. Weitzel awarded Michael every remaining round, giving him the sixth through the twelfth without interruption. Pasquale gave Michael the sixth and seventh, marked the eighth for Daho, and then awarded the champion each of the last four rounds. Whatever success Daho had found during the first half of the fight was therefore becoming increasingly difficult to sustain. The challenger remained in the contest and completed the full distance, but the scorecards show Michael taking firm command through the later rounds and steadily widening the advantage.

Michael has since recalled that by approximately the tenth or eleventh round he believed he had Daho close to being stopped. According to Michael’s own account, the fight then became rough at close quarters, and Daho’s head opened an old scar over Michael’s left eye during the eleventh. The cut did not prevent the champion continuing, and Michael completed the final round. Pasquale scored the eleventh 10-8 for the champion. Michael’s recollection nevertheless supports the picture contained in the official cards: the champion was finishing the contest much more strongly than the challenger.

At the end of 12 rounds there was no doubt in the official verdict. Al DeVito scored the fight 118-110 for Michael, Pasquale returned 117-110, and Weitzel, despite having Daho well ahead through five rounds, ultimately scored it 116-112 for the champion. All three therefore gave Michael a clear victory. The result revealed the contest’s course. Daho had been competitive enough in the early rounds to win several of them outright, particularly on Weitzel’s card, but Michael’s superiority over the second half allowed him to turn what had initially been an awkward defence into a comfortable decision.

The victory was Michael’s third successful defence of the IBF title and proved to be his last winning appearance. He did not fight again for almost a year, returning in August 1987 to face former WBA champion Rocky Lockridge, retiring after eight rounds and subsequently ending his career. Daho continued boxing and challenged Jean-Marc Renard for the European super-featherweight championship only two months after facing Michael. He later won Commonwealth lightweight honours before finishing his career in 1991. Their Manchester contest therefore stands as the final successful championship performance of Michael’s career, and as a reversal, seven years later, of one of the defeats he had suffered on the long road to becoming world champion.

I remember watching this on ITV and, early on, thinking that Najib Daho had a genuine chance of becoming world champion. Forget the 18 defeats on his record; records can fool you, especially with fighters who learned their trade the hard way. Daho had already beaten Barry Michael years earlier, and he started this one like a man who believed he could do it again. One judge had him four rounds to one up after five.

But Michael was a tough, seasoned professional and gradually took the fight away from him. That’s what good champions do. He didn’t panic, didn’t start forcing things, and once he found his rhythm, Daho’s early success began disappearing. Michael finished much the stronger man, and by the end there was no argument about the decision, winning 118-110, 117-110 and 116-112.

For me, Daho was far better than that losing record suggests, but Michael showed the difference between looking like a world champion for five rounds and actually being one over twelve.