Gary Stretch

Gary Stretch (born 4 November 1965) is a British actor, model, producer, screenwriter and British middleweight boxing champion. During his boxing career, Stretch won 29 of his 31 fights, 20 of those by KO. He became the WBC International Super Welterweight Champion.

Gary Stretch
Statistics
Weight(s)Light-middleweight
Born (1965-11-04) 4 November 1965[1]
St Helens, Lancashire, England
StanceSouthpaw
Boxing record
Total fights31
Wins29
Wins by KO20
Losses2

In his modelling career, Stretch modelled for high-end brands including Calvin Klein and Versace. During his acting career, he starred in such films as The Heavy (directed by Marcus Warren) and Alexander (directed by Oliver Stone). He was also cast in the Shane Meadows’ film Dead Man’s Shoes as the small-time gang leader, Sonny, for which role he was nominated for a British Independent Film Award for Best Supporting Actor.

Early life

Stretch was born in 1965 and brought up in the Haresfinch area of St Helens, Lancashire. His father was a plumber.[2] He attended the town's Cowley High School.[3]

Career

Boxing

A southpaw fighter, Stretch boxed most of his career as a light-middleweight, rising to become British champion in that division.[4]

He won the WBC International Light Middleweight title, beating Ramon Angel Alegre at the London Arena on 14 February 1990, the fight billed as Valentine's Day Massacre. Stretch, aged 24, stopped the Argentine in the 6th round of a very one sided contest. Stretch relinquished the title due to a management dispute with Frank Warren and subsequently sat out his contract.

Stretch's return to the ring came in 1991 when he challenged Chris Eubank for the WBO world middleweight championship in London, in a fight billed as "Beauty V the Best".[5] Stretch suffered a cut behind the ear in the first round and was shaken by an uppercut in the third. Eubank visited the canvas twice in the fight without a count, in the second and third rounds, and was cut badly in the fourth round by a straight left hand from Stretch. The doctor was called at the end of round 5 to look at Eubank (the cut later needed several stitches), advising the referee to stop the fight. The referee gave the Eubank corner the go ahead for "one more round". In the sixth round Stretch had a point deducted for pushing Eubank onto the canvas; Stretch was shaken by a right hand from Eubank and subsequently took a standing eight count. Stretch was then pushed through the ropes. The fight was stopped in Eubank's favor, a stoppage that was controversial. Stretch was through the ropes, struggling to regain his feet when the referee stepped in. All three judges had Stretch ahead on the scorecard at the time of the stoppage.

Stretch fought only once more after his bout with Eubank before retiring with a career record of 29 wins 1 loss and 1 NC (an accidental clash of heads causing Stretch to be cut on the forehead).[4]

Modelling

During his time as a boxer, Stretch also worked as a model. His clients included Calvin Klein and Versace.[4]

Acting

Stretch was cast as Cleitus alongside Anthony Hopkins, Colin Farrell and Angelina Jolie in Oliver Stone's 2004 film Alexander. Stone went on to cast Stretch again in World Trade Center as a paramedic, and in Savages. In 2004, Stretch was cast as psychopathic gangster Sonny in Shane Meadows' gritty cult thriller Dead Man's Shoes (2004), for which Stretch received a BIFA nomination[6][7] alongside fellow English actor Paddy Considine.

Stretch also starred in Freebird in 2008, directed by Jon Ivay. With Stretch appearing alongside Phil Daniels and Geoff Bell, the film followed three bikers across a drug-fueled ride in the Welsh countryside.

Personal life

From 1998 to 2001, Stretch was married to actress Roselyn Sánchez.[5]

Filmography

References
  1. "boxer: Gary Stretch" Archived 31 March 2015 at the Wayback Machine BoxRec.com thisisst-helens.co.uk profile
  2. Sue Mott (21 January 2006). "A long stretch". Daily Telegraph.
  3. "Ex-boxer Gary Stretch to celebrate St Helens' movie magic". St. Helens Star. 7 February 2011.
  4. Gareth A. Davies (27 November 2008). "Mystery of Gary Stretch departure from Khan camp". Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 10 June 2012.
  5. Anna Kessel (3 February 2008). "Sex life: Gary Stretch". The Observer.
  6. ""Dead Man's Shoes Awards and Nominations", IMDb".
  7. "British Independent Film Awards – Gary Stretch". Archived from the original on 6 October 2011.
  8. Mega Shark vs. Crocosaurus Archived 21 September 2010 at the Wayback Machine, The Asylum
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