Editing Gerald McClellan (section)

==Professional career==
{{quote box|width=12%|align=right|quote="He seems like dynamo."|source=—[[Mike Tyson]] speaks on McClellan.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYgHYNGI9cU Mike Tyson's thoughts on Gerald McClellan] CNN, ''Larry King Live''.</ref>}}
McClellan turned professional in 1988. Trained by [[International Boxing Hall of Fame|hall of fame]] trainer [[Emanuel Steward]], his early career was notable for a propensity for quick victories by knockout: only two of his first 29 fights went beyond the third round, although he lost both of those on the scorecard (in 6 rounds against Dennis Milton, 8 against Ralph Ward, in successive fights.) However, these proved only a momentary check on his career.

In 1991 he captured the vacant [[WBO]] middleweight title by knocking out [[John Mugabi]] in one round. A planned defence against Tyrone Trice set for July 23, 1992 didn't happen and he spend the year in non title bouts at super middleweight before vacating the belt to get his shot at the [[World Boxing Council|WBC]] middleweight title<ref>{{cite news|date=2 April 1993|work=The Philadelphia Inquirer|title=Kalambay to fight Pyatt for the vacant WBO title 
|url=https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/177758302/ |location=Philadelphia, Pennsylvania|access-date=9 November 2021| via=Newspapers.com |url-access=subscription }}</ref>

===Middleweight champion===
{{Main article|Julian Jackson vs. Gerald McClellan|Gerald McClellan vs. Julian Jackson II}}
On May 8, 1993 McClellan became middleweight champion by knocking out [[Julian Jackson (boxer)|Julian Jackson]] after five rounds. McClellan had survived some brutally hard punches from Jackson in the second and third rounds.

McClellan defended the WBC title three times, all first round stoppages, including a rematch with Jackson.

In the fall of 1994, McClellan separated from his long-term trainer Emanuel Steward.

===Benn vs McClellan===
{{Main article|Nigel Benn vs. Gerald McClellan}}
McClellan moved up in weight to challenge WBC super middleweight champion [[Nigel Benn]] in London on February 25, 1995. The fight was watched by an estimated 17 million people on television and 10,300 paying spectators.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Boxing%3A+Benn+bids+to+boost+Gerald.-a0159447238 |title=Boxing: Benn bids to boost Gerald. - Free Online Library |website=Thefreelibrary.com |access-date=2016-12-27}}</ref>

In a savage bout, McClellan knocked Benn out of the ring in round one and scored another knockdown in round eight, but each time Benn was able to work his way back into the fight. Throughout the fight Gerald received several [[Rabbit punch|punches to the back of the head]], known to be especially dangerous, without referee interference. Referee Alfred Azaro was also roundly criticized for his officiating mistakes, which included impeding the challenger's progress when McClellan was trying to finish off Benn in round 1. McClellan was noticeably blinking repeatedly early in round ten, during which, after receiving a single hard blow from Benn who seemed to throw his shoulder into McClellan's eye, he voluntarily went down, taking a knee again.<ref>{{cite web|author=Tim Dahlbergap|url=http://staugustine.com/stories/092703/spo_1833681.shtml |title=Brain-damaged and blind, former boxer McClellan can't fight back |website=StAugustine.com |date=2003-09-27 |access-date=2016-12-27}}</ref> McClellan took the mandatory eight count and the fight was resumed, but he did not throw another punch, and moments later he dropped to his knee for a second time and allowed Azaro to count him out. After the fight was over, McClellan immediately stood up and walked to his corner under his own power. He then sat down on the canvas and leaned against the ring apron, but while being attended to by ring physicians he slumped onto his back and lost consciousness. McClellan was subsequently strapped to a stretcher and rushed to the hospital.

===Aftermath===
McClellan had emergency surgery to remove a blood clot from his brain. He spent eleven days in a coma and was found to have suffered extensive brain damage. He lost his eyesight, the ability to walk unassisted, and was reported as being 80 percent deaf. ''[[Sports Illustrated]]'' ran an article about the fight and its outcome one week after the fight. McClellan's family flew to London to be by his side, and he was later flown back to his home country. He has recently recovered some ability to walk with the assistance of a cane, but he has not recovered his eyesight. In addition to being blind, his short-term memory was also profoundly affected. His three sisters, particularly Lisa McClellan, are responsible for his care. In a 2011 documentary broadcast by [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]] (which originally screened the fight live in the UK), Lisa stated that Gerald is in fact not deaf, but that he has trouble with comprehension when spoken to.

[[Tarick Salmaci]], a [[Kronk Gym]] fighter, claimed later in an interview that he had sparred with McClellan over a year before the Benn fight, and that after McClellan was hit by a [[jab]] thrown by Salmaci, McClellan started to blink hard and the session had to be stopped. McClellan initially claimed that he was thumbed, but later admitted to Salmaci in the locker room that he was in fact seriously hurt. Salmaci said that he found it strange that a fighter with McClellan's [[chin (combat sports)|chin]] wearing [[headgear]] was being hurt by a jab, and that when he noticed McClellan blinking during the Benn fight in the same way, Salmaci was immediately aware that McClellan was in serious trouble. Also notable in hindsight was McClellan complaining of getting regular headaches after his first fight with Julian Jackson in May 1993. In the fight, McClellan's chin resisted Jackson's formidable punching power before McClellan won the fight in round 5, but Jackson's punches may have done some damage to McClellan's brain, such as [[concussion]]s, that were not noticed at the time.<ref>{{cite web |first=Stephen|last=Edwards |title=Daily Bread Fat Tuesday Edition | work=BoxingTalk |date=7 February 2012 |url=http://boxingtalk.com/Daily-Bread-Fat-Tuesday-Edition|access-date=19 March 2016}}</ref>