Danny McAlinden

Danny McAlinden (1 June 1947 – 8 March 2021)[1] was a heavyweight boxer from Northern Ireland who was British and Commonwealth champion in 1972 when he defeated Jack Bodell in two rounds at the Aston Villa football ground.[2] McAlinden nicknamed "Dangerous Dan" was managed by George Middleton.[3] Middleton had led Randolph Turpin to the World Middleweight Championship in 1951.

McAlinden was born in Newry and at the age of 15 he moved to Coventry.[4] In 1966 McAlinden represented Northern Ireland at the Kingston British Empire and Commonwealth Games winning a bronze medal in the heavyweight division. In 1967 he fought at the European Championship in Rome.[5] He turned professional in 1969 and in his second professional fight, he stopped the future British champion Richard Dunn. On the program of the Joe Frazier versus Muhammad Ali I bout on 8 March 1971 at the Madison Square Garden in New York, New York, United States, McAlinden outpointed Ali's brother, Rahman, who was undefeated in seven previous fights, in a contest of prospects, by decision after six rounds.[6] He was at one time considered a potential opponent for the world champion George Foreman's first title defence. However, his form dipped and in 1973 he began to lose fights, eventually losing his title in 1975 to Bunny Johnson in nine rounds. He attempted to win back the title in 1975 when the holder was Richard Dunn, but he lost in round two. He fought on until 1981 and after refusing to face the explosive punching David Pearce he decided to retire. In total he had 45 fights with a 31–12–2 record, winning 28 by knockout.

In 2010 it was reported that he was suffering from cancer of the tongue.[2]