In the 1980s I dealt with many European boxing promoters on behalf of America's ABC Sports, and while Mickey Duff might not have been the easiest person to do business with, he was the most entertaining. Virtually every negotiation went to the wire; I got him to sign the contract for the McGuigan-Pedroza fight at Loftus Road, west London, in 1985 while we sat at ringside during the preliminary bouts. Unlike many, once the deal was signed, Mickey was as good as his word. He was also the only person to accuse me of telling the truth.
One summer I rang Mickey to see if a certain fighter could fill an opening in a July programme. Mickey said his guy needed more time, but how about August? I told him we had a date in August, but it was tentative and likely to be cancelled. When it was definitely off I rang Mickey out of courtesy. "OK," he told me, "we'll take the July date."
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