"Either He Dies, or I Die" The Prophetic Words of Duk Koo Kim Vs Ray Mancini

[AlvinKarpis]

Kim was lightly regarded by the American boxing establishment, but not by Ray Mancini, who believed the fight would be a "war". Kim struggled to lose weight on the days prior to the bout so that he could weigh in under the lightweight's 135-pound limit. Before the fight, Kim was quoted as saying "Either he dies or I die" Prophetically, he wrote the message "live or die" on his Las Vegas hotel lamp shade only days before the bout (Kim wrote "live or die" but a mistaken translation led to "kill or be killed" being reported in the media)

Mancini and Kim met in an arena outside Caesars Palace on November 13, 1982. Mancini and Kim went toe to toe for a good portion of the bout, to the point that Mancini briefly considered quitting. Kim tore open Mancini's left ear and puffed up his left eye, and Mancini's left hand swelled to twice its normal size. After the fight Mancini's left eye would be completely closed. However, by the latter rounds, Mancini began to dominate, landing many more punches than Kim did. In the 11th he buckled Kim's knees. In the beginning of the 13th round Mancini charged Kim with a flurry of 39 punches, but had little effect. Sugar Ray Leonard (working as one of the commentators of the fight) said Kim came right back very strong. Leonard later declared the round to be closely contested. When the fighters came out for the 14th round, Mancini charged forward and hit Kim with a right. Kim reeled back, Mancini missed with a left, and then Mancini hit Kim with another hard right hand. Kim went flying into the ropes, his head hitting the canvas. Incredibly, Kim managed to unsteadily rise to his feet, but referee Richard Green stopped the fight and Mancini was declared the winner by TKO nineteen seconds into the 14th round. Ralph Wiley of Sports Illustrated, covering the fight, would later recall Kim pulling himself up the ropes as he was dying "One of the greatest physical feats I had ever witnessed."

Minutes after the fight was over, Kim collapsed into a coma, and was taken out of the Caesars Palace arena on a stretcher. At the hospital he was found to have a subdural hematoma consisting of 100cc of blood in his brain. Emergency brain surgery was performed at the hospital to try to save him, but that effort proved to be futile, and Kim died 4 days after the bout, on November 17. The neurosurgeon said it was caused by one punch. The week after, Sports Illustrated published a photo of the fight on its cover, under the heading Tragedy in The Ring. The profile of the incident was heightened by the fight having been televised live by CBS in the United States.

Kim had never fought a 15-round bout before. In contrast, Mancini was much more experienced at the time. He had fought 15-round bouts three times and gone on to round 14 once more. Kim compiled a record of 17 wins with 1 losses and 0 draw. Eight of Kim's wins were knockouts.

Mancini went through a period of reflection, as he blamed himself for Kim's death. After friends helped him by telling him that it was just an accident, Mancini went on with his career, though still haunted by Kim's death. His promoter, Bob Arum, said Mancini "was never the same" after Kim's death. Two years later, Mancini lost his title to Livingstone Bramble.[8]
Four weeks after the fatal fight, the Mike Weaver vs Michael Dokes fight at the same Caesars Palace venue ended with a technical knockout declared 63 seconds into the fight. Referee Joey Curtis admitted to stopping the fight early under orders of the Nevada State Athletic Commission to be aware of a fighter's health in light of the Mancini-Kim fight, and a rematch was ordered.
Kim's mother flew from Korea to Las Vegas to be with her son before the life support equipment was turned off. Three months later, she took her own life by drinking a bottle of pesticide. The bout's referee, Richard Green, committed suicide July 1, 1983

[JoeS1981]

It's so tragic that Duk's mom killed herself in such a horrid fashion and the ref did as well, I wonder if it had anything to do with this?

[AmericanIllusions]

Usually never the 1st hit but the 2nd hit when your head hits the ground or canvas that does the most damage. He died a warriors death though. Salute

[AlvinKarpis]

Originally Posted by JoeS1981

It's so tragic that Duk's mom killed herself in such a horrid fashion and the ref did as well, I wonder if it had anything to do with this?

Both Kims mother and Richard Green killed themselfs because of this fight

Green said he couldnt live with himself because he almost stopped the fight a couple times, but bit his tongue and let it continue

He blamed himself for not being man enough and stepping in when he should have and said no more Mancini wins

His suicide makes this already tragic event much much worse

[JoeS1981]

Yes it does make it all the more tragic, it's really sad that the ref blamed himself for not stopping it

[Rusty666]

[BLACKOUTx4500x]

Wow that's really sad.

[khathryn]

I think boxing is one of the stupidest sports. *shakes head* Seriously, how could shit like this EVER have a good outcome for the participants?

[Dark420]

Originally Posted by khathryn

I think boxing is one of the stupidest sports. *shakes head*

Spoken like a true woman.

This has to be the most tragic outcome of a simple boxing match. Kim was such a prospect back in those days, too. It's just so sad to see his death result from something he put his heart and soul into in order to improve and gain more recognition. I've seen a few Mancini interviews after the fact, and you can tell that it really hurt him knowing that his hands caused another man's death in a sport they both love.

Also, to think Kim actually stood up after taking the final blows that would end his life is just stunning and proves he was a true fighter until the end.

[khathryn]

Originally Posted by Dark420

Spoken like a true woman.

I'll cop to that. All woman here!