Mickey Duff facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Mickey Duff
Statistics
Real name	Monek Prager
Nickname(s)	Mickey Duff Adopted as legal name
Rated at	lightweight
Nationality	British
Born	(1929-06-07)June 7, 1929 Tarnów, Poland
Died	March 22, 2014(2014-03-22) (aged 84) South London
Stance	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	45
Wins	33
Wins by KO	4
Losses	8
Draws	4

Mickey Duff (June 7, 1929 – March 22, 2014) was a famous British boxing figure. He was born in Poland. Mickey Duff was a boxer, but he became even more well-known as a matchmaker, manager, and promoter.

Early Life of Mickey Duff

Mickey Duff was born Monek Prager in Tarnów, Poland, on June 7, 1929. His family was Jewish. His father, who was a rabbi, helped them escape from the Nazis. They moved to England in the late 1930s.

Mickey Duff's Boxing Journey

Boxing as a Young Man

Mickey Duff started his professional boxing career when he was just fifteen years old. He boxed for four years. He chose the name "Duff" from a movie character to keep his boxing a secret from his father. His father did not approve of him boxing.

Mickey began fighting after World War II. From September 1945 to May 1946, he had fourteen fights in the London area. He won twelve of these fights, lost only one, and had one draw. Overall, he won about 75% of his fights. He had around fifty fights in total. His last professional fight was on December 7, 1948. He lost this fight to Scottish boxer Neil McCearn.

Becoming a Boxing Promoter and Manager

After a short time selling sewing machines, Duff returned to boxing. He started arranging matches across the UK. In the late 1950s, Jack Solomons was the top boxing promoter in England. As Solomons' power lessened, a new team formed. This team included Duff as the matchmaker, Jarvis Astaire as the manager, and Harry Levene as the promoter. They also worked with Terry Lawless, Mike Barrett, and the British Broadcasting Company (BBC).

Mickey Duff became much more famous as a manager, matchmaker, and promoter than he was as a boxer. He played a very important role in boxing for over forty years, from 1953 to 1997.

Working with Top Boxers

During his time as a promoter and manager, Mickey Duff worked with many great fighters. He helped at least sixteen world champions and many leading British boxers. Some of these famous boxers included:

Duff's strong connections and influence helped boxers quickly rise to championship fights. He was a dominant figure in British boxing throughout the 1960s, 1970s, and most of the 1980s.

Media Recognition

Mickey Duff became well-known in the media. He received awards for his work on HBO Boxing and ESPN Top Rank Boxing. He also worked as a consultant for the movie Triumph of the Spirit.

Mickey Duff's Retirement from Boxing

By the 1990s, a new promoter named Frank Warren became very powerful. Warren had many boxers and made a huge deal with Sky TV, a British television network. He also had connections to the American TV market.

Duff, who was once the main person in London boxing, saw some of his top fighters leave him. Frank Bruno, Joe Calzaghe, and Henry Akinwande moved to Warren for better deals. This hurt Duff's financial position and his share of the boxing market.

Eventually, due to his declining health and the loss of his boxers, Mickey Duff retired. Frank Warren's strong partnerships with ITV and Sky TV led to Warren's dominance in the sport.

Life Outside Boxing and Passing Away

Mickey Duff had one child with his wife, Marie. They remained friends even after they separated.

In 1999, he was honored by being inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame. After suffering from Alzheimer's disease, Mickey Duff passed away on March 22, 2014. He was 84 years old and died in a nursing home in South London.

International Boxing Hall of Fame inductee

See also

In Spanish: Mickey Duff para niños