Frank Tate vs Michael Nunn

Michael Nunn won the International Boxing Federation middleweight championship by stopping Frank Tate after 40 seconds of the ninth round at the Caesars Palace Sports Pavilion in Las Vegas on 28 July 1988. Nunn, an unbeaten southpaw from Davenport, Iowa, controlled the contest with his speed and movement before dropping Tate with body punches near the end of the eighth. The champion survived the count but remained in difficulty when the ninth began, and referee Mills Lane intervened after Nunn drove him helplessly against the ropes. Both men weighed 160 pounds. The paid attendance was 1,770.

The meeting brought together two undefeated Americans whose rivalry extended back to their amateur days. Tate had defeated Nunn in two of their three earlier contests and went on to win the light-middleweight gold medal at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. He entered the professional ranks later that year and captured the vacant IBF middleweight title by outpointing Michael Olajide in October 1987. His only previous defence had ended with a tenth-round stoppage of the experienced Tony Sibson. Tate’s professional record stood at 23 victories, 13 inside the distance.

Nunn had won all 30 of his contests, stopping 20 opponents, and had established himself as the leading contender by defeating Alex Ramos and Curtis Parker. His second-round stoppage of Parker in an IBF eliminator made him the mandatory challenger. Tate had initially resisted the match and had previously rejected a reported offer to face Nunn, but the governing body warned that the championship could be withdrawn unless its leading contender received his opportunity. Tate was paid $400,000 for the defence, while Nunn received $100,000.

There was considerable confidence in the champion’s camp. Tate had described Nunn as a boxer without the qualities required to become a world champion and predicted that the challenger would be dealt with easily. Nunn answered that Tate would encounter a more versatile and talented opponent than he expected. Once the bell sounded, it was the challenger who proved better equipped for the occasion.

Nunn immediately used his advantages in height, reach and speed. Standing two inches taller at approximately 6ft 2in, he moved lightly around the orthodox champion, changing direction before Tate could establish his feet. His right jab was quick and persistent, and the straight left followed whenever Tate attempted to close the distance. Tate pressed forward but had difficulty judging the range. He was repeatedly obliged to reset after Nunn stepped outside his lead foot or moved away at an angle.

The challenger took the opening round on all three official cards. Tate enjoyed somewhat greater success in the second, which judges Jerry Roth and Ed Levine awarded to him, but Nunn remained the more fluent boxer. Tate attempted to bring his right hand over the southpaw jab and work closer to the body, yet he could not keep Nunn stationary for any sustained period. Nunn was willing to exchange briefly before moving off, and his punches usually reached the target first.

Nunn strengthened his command in the third and fourth rounds. His jab disturbed Tate’s balance and prevented the champion from beginning his attacks in proper punching position. When Tate lunged, Nunn met him with the straight left or turned him before he could follow with another blow. The southpaw’s movement was not merely defensive. He used it to place Tate where he wanted him, then stopped long enough to deliver fast combinations before disappearing to either side. All three judges gave Nunn the third and fourth.

Tate made a more determined effort in the fifth. He increased his pressure, worked harder to the body and forced Nunn into several closer exchanges. Glen Hamada awarded the champion the round, although Roth and Levine continued to favour the challenger. Tate also had useful moments in the sixth, when Hamada and Levine scored for him. Nunn’s pace had eased slightly, but he remained composed and avoided being trapped against the ropes. Whenever Tate appeared ready to establish a sustained attack, Nunn’s feet carried him back into open space.

The seventh was untidy and difficult to score. Both men received nine points from each official, indicating that a deduction or unusual scoring circumstance was recorded, but Nunn remained ahead overall. Tate was still advancing, although much of his energy was being spent pursuing rather than punching. The champion’s attacks were increasingly predictable, while Nunn continued to see the right hand coming and moved outside it.

Nunn produced the decisive change late in the eighth. Tate had continued pressing and appeared likely to complete another competitive round when the challenger suddenly attacked the body. A left-right combination landed beneath the champion’s elbows and caused him to sink to his knees near the centre of the ring. The knockdown came shortly before the bell. Tate remained down as Lane counted and rose at nine, plainly hurt but just able to demonstrate that he could continue. The bell spared him from an immediate follow-up.

After eight completed rounds, Hamada had Nunn leading 77–73, Roth scored it 78–73 and Levine 77–73. The challenger had established a clear lead through cleaner punching and superior control of distance. Tate had won isolated rounds through pressure, but he had never succeeded in making Nunn fight for long at close quarters.

Nunn left his corner quickly for the ninth and attacked before Tate had recovered from the body blows. He drove the champion backwards with punches to the head and forced him into the ropes. Tate raised his gloves but offered little effective return and could not move away. Lane watched several unanswered blows land before stepping between the fighters at 40 seconds. The stoppage was properly timed. Tate was still standing, but his resistance and balance had not returned sufficiently for him to defend himself.

Nunn’s victory advanced his record to 31–0 and made him the first boxer from Davenport to win a world championship. He had reversed the balance of their amateur rivalry by producing a performance in which Tate was seldom able to impose himself. The champion had not been defeated by one unexpected punch. He had been steadily frustrated, outmanoeuvred and made to expend himself before the body attack brought the contest to its conclusion.

Tate suffered his first professional defeat and lost the championship in his second defence. Nunn went on to establish himself among the leading middleweights of the period, making five successful defences of the IBF title. His reign included victories over Juan Roldan, Iran Barkley, Marlon Starling and Donald Curry, as well as a first-round knockout of Sumbu Kalambay. Against Tate, the qualities which later made Nunn such a difficult champion were already fully displayed: speed, reach, balance, southpaw timing and the confidence to dictate a contest without being drawn into unnecessary exchanges.

I remember looking forward to this fight because they were both quality boxers. Tate had been over to England to defend against former Marvin Hagler title challenger Tony Sibson, winning by 10th-round stoppage.

Tate had the Olympic gold medal, the unbeaten record and two wins over Michael Nunn from their amateur rivalry. He had beaten Michael Olajide for the IBF middleweight title and stopped Tony Sibson in his first defence. Nunn was also unbeaten, but some still questioned whether his elegant southpaw boxing would stand up in a proper championship fight. Those doubts disappeared in Las Vegas.

I thought Nunn gave Tate a boxing lesson. He used his height, long right jab and quick feet to keep the champion turning and reaching. Tate could never set himself long enough to land the right hand properly. Whenever he stepped forward, Nunn changed the angle, punched first and was gone before the reply. Tate had moments in the fifth and sixth, but he was chasing shadows for most of the contest.

The finish showed that Nunn was not merely a clever mover. Late in the eighth, he drove a sharp combination into Tate’s body and dropped him to his knees. Tate rose at nine, but the bell only delayed matters. Nunn attacked immediately in the ninth, drove him helplessly into the ropes and forced Mills Lane to stop it after 40 seconds.

For me, this was the night Nunn became a serious middleweight champion. Tate was not poor, but he had no answer to the speed, distance control or southpaw angles. Nunn took away his confidence before taking away his title. It was a complete performance, and far less competitive than the pre-fight rivalry suggested.