Barry McGuigan Height, Age, Wife, Family, Biography

Some Lesser Known Facts About Barry McGuigan

• Barry McGuigan’s father, Pat McGuigan, often sang the song ‘Danny Boy’ before Barry’s boxing matches.

• This later inspired a song called ‘If Daddy Don’t Sing Danny Boy,’ which was written by Chris Gaffney, a boxer and musician.

• In 1976, Barry McGuigan won the All-Ireland Amateur Championship by defeating Martin Brereton.

• As a teenager, he faced notable boxing opponents like James Coughlan from Dublin (defeated at the age of 15), Gordon McNeil from Newcastle, and Eric Clarke from Hackney, London.

• Barry McGuigan represented Northern Ireland in the 1978 Commonwealth Games in Edmonton.

• He then became a UK citizen to qualify for British boxing titles.

• Barry McGuigan fought on various platforms across Ireland and Britain during his professional career.

• In the mid-1980s, he gained a huge fan following, mainly at the King’s Hall in Belfast, which he often filled.

• Barry McGuigan is a Roman Catholic and married Sandra Mealiff, a Protestant, during The Troubles, a time of conflict between Catholics and Protestants.
  

  An old picture of Barry McGuigan with his wife

• Barry McGuigan started his boxing career at Wattlebridge Amateur Boxing Club in County Fermanagh.

• He later joined the Smithborough Amateur Boxing Club in County Monaghan. Danny McEntee and Frank Mulligan were his boxing trainers.

• Barry McGuigan competed in the featherweight boxing category at the 1980 Moscow Olympics while representing Ireland.

• In round 32, he defeated Issack Mabushi from Tanzania when the referee stopped the contest in the third round.

• In the round of 16, Barry McGuigan lost to Winfred Kabunda of Zambia by a 1-4 decision.

• He began his professional career on 10 May 1981.

• Barry McGuigan won his debut fight against boxer Selvin Bell in Dublin by technical knockout (TKO) in the second round.

• After one more win, he faced his first defeat in a controversial decision against Peter Eubank over eight rounds at the Brighton Dome in England.

• After that, Barry McGuigan earned two more victories, including one against Terry Pizzaro. He also had a rematch with Eubank and won by knockout in the eighth round.

• In 1982, he won eight fights, seven by knockout.

• On 14 June 1982, Barry McGuigan fought with boxer Young Ali and won by knockout in six rounds.

• Ali fell into a coma and died two days later. This tragedy deeply affected McGuigan, making him question whether to continue boxing.
  

  Barry McGuigan covers up as Nigeria’s Young Ali (real name Asymin Mustapha) attacks

• During this time, Barry McGuigan also defeated Paul Huggins and Angelo Licata.

• In 1983, he won four fights, including earning the British Title against boxer Vernon Penprase.

• Barry McGuigan also fought outside Europe for the first time, knocking out Lavon McGowan in the first round in Chicago, U.S.A.

• This period set the base for his initial attempt at winning a European title.

• On 16 November 1983, Barry McGuigan fought against Italy’s boxer Valerio Nati in Belfast for the European Featherweight title.
  

  Barry McGuigan during a fight with boxer Valerio Nati

• He won by knockout in the sixth round and became the European champion.

• This victory made him the WBA’s number-one featherweight challenger.

• Barry McGuigan has featured in an 8-bit computer game titled ‘Barry McGuigan World Championship Boxing.’

• In 1984, he was mentioned in an Irish poem ‘Clones Cyclone,’ written by Johnny McCauley and performed by Big Tom.

• In 1984, Barry McGuigan had six fights, and he won all by knockout. He defeated former world title challengers Jose Caba and Felipe Orozco.

• He then beat contenders Paul DeVorce and Charm Chiteule.

• After that, Barry McGuigan defended his British and European titles against Clyde Ruan.
  

  Barry McGuigan during a fight with boxer Clyde Ruan

• He retained his European title against Esteban Eguia, staying in a dispute for a world title fight.

• Dermot Morgan created a comedy record about Barry McGuigan titled ‘Thank You Very Much Mr Eastwood,’ which imitated his post-fight interviews. The record reached number one on the Irish singles chart in December 1985.

• In 1985, he faced former world featherweight champion Juan Laporte and won after ten rounds.

• After defending his European title against Farid Gallouze, Barry McGuigan earned a chance to fight for a world title.

• In 1985, he faced Eusebio Pedroza, the WBA featherweight champion from Panama, at Loftus Road football stadium in London.

• Barry McGuigan won the fight. He knocked down Pedroza in the seventh round. He secured a unanimous decision after 15 rounds. The fight was refereed by Hall of Fame referee Stanley Christodoulou.
  

  Barry McGuigan during a fight with boxer Eusebio Pedroza

• After the fight, he and his wife were honoured with a massive public reception in Belfast. The reception was attended by thousands of fans.

• Later that year, Barry McGuigan became the first person not born in the UK to win the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award.

• He defended his title against Bernard Taylor from the U.S.A. Barry won by stopping Taylor in the ninth round.

• After that, Barry McGuigan fought against boxer Danilo Cabrera and won by knockout in the 14th round.

• The fight ended controversially when Cabrera bent down to pick up his mouthpiece, a move allowed in some countries but not in Ireland.

• Cabrera was unaware of the rule so he was counted out. Many spectators protested against the decision; however, McGuigan was declared the winner.
  

  Barry McGuigan during a fight with boxer Danilo Cabrera

• Barry McGuigan was remembered in Udo Lindenberg’s 1986 song ‘Jonny Boxer.’

• He fought in Ring Magazine’s 1986 Fight of the Year.

• In June 1986, Barry McGuigan defended his title in Las Vegas.

• His opponent, Steve Cruz from Texas, was a late replacement for Ramon Fernando Sosa, who withdrew due to medical issues (two detached retinas).

• The fight happened in 15 rounds under extreme conditions, with 110-degree heat in the ring.

• Barry McGuigan led in his fight against Steve Cruz but struggled due to extreme heat.

• He suffered dehydration and was knocked down in the 10th and 15th rounds. McGuigan lost his world title and was hospitalized for dehydration after the fight.

• Barry McGuigan retired after the fight, partly due to his father’s death in 1987.

• He returned to boxing in 1988 and 1989 under new manager Frank Warren.
  

  Barry McGuigan with Frank Warren (in blue tie)

• Barry McGuigan defeated former world title challengers Nicky Perez and Francisco Tomas da Cruz. He also beat contender Julio César Miranda.

• He also faced Jim McDonnell, a former EBU featherweight champion and future title challenger. McGuigan lost by TKO in the fourth round due to a cut over his right eye caused by a punch in the second round.

• Barry McGuigan retired permanently after this fight with a record of 32 wins (28 by knockout) and 3 losses.

• He tried to create an association to protect boxers’ rights against powerful managers and promoters.

• Once, during a media discussion, Barry McGuigan shared that he faced challenges with his manager, Barney Eastwood, during his career. Their close relationship broke down, leading to a defamation case against McGuigan by Eastwood years later.

• In 1987, he took part in The Grand Knockout Tournament, a charity TV program.

• In the 1980s, he hosted a chat show on BBC1.

• Barry McGuigan works as a boxing expert for Sky TV.

• Two biographies have been written about McGuigan.

• Barry McGuigan is a founder, boxing manager, and promoter at Cyclone Promotions Limited, a boxing promotional company.
  

  Barry McGuigan while promoting Cyclone Promotions

• He is the founder and president of the Professional Boxing Association (PBA). The organization focuses on educating boxers and teaching them the value of education.

• Barry McGuigan was appointed as a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in 1994.

• Apart from being a boxer, he is also an actor. He appeared in the 2000 film Malicious Intent.

• In 2000, Barry McGuigan acted as a referee in the UK game show Grudge Match, hosted by Nick Weir.

• He was inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame in 2000 and the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2005.

• Barry McGuigan won season 3 of ITV’s television series Hell’s Kitchen in September 2007 after a public vote.
  

  Barry McGuigan in a still from the television reality show Hell’s Kitchen (2007)

• In August 2009, he co-presented the television show Charity Lords of the Ring with Lucy Kennedy on RTÉ One.

• Barry McGuigan was remembered in the song ‘Barry McGuigan’ by the Worry Dolls from their album ‘The Man That Time Forgot’ in 2013.

• His partnership with world champion Carl Frampton ended in 2017, with the dispute settled out of court in 2020.

• In 2023, Barry McGuigan is credited in the film One Night in Millstreet.

• On 3 January 2024, Cyclone Promotions Limited and McGuigan’s Gym Limited, where McGuigan was working as a director, went into liquidation.

• In November 2024, Barry McGuigan participated in the 24th series of the television show I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! which aired on ITV1, STV, and ITVX.
  

  Barry McGuigan in a still from the television reality show I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here

• He and his wife support the children’s cancer charity organisation ‘CLIC Sargent.’
  

  Barry McGuigan while promoting the children’s cancer charity organisation ‘CLIC Sargent’