Biography and tony harrison
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He lived and worked in New York for the next nineteen years. He then won unanimous decisions in 2012 over veterans Calvin Odom and Daniel Urbanski to increase his profile.
With Steward also training heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko, Harrison fought in Europe on the same card as Klitschko four times, including three in 2012 alone, before Steward passed away in October 2012.
Legendary trainer Emanuel Steward helped guide Tony Harrison's career until his death in October 2012.
Continuing Steward’s legacy
It was Steward who gave Harrison the nickname “Superbad,” adopting it from former 160-pound Detroit-based fighter Bernard Mays, who died in 1994 at the age of 33.
Under the guidance of his father, Harrison stopped all five of his opponents in 2013, setting up a clash with veteran Grady Brewer, who won the second season of boxing reality show The Contender.
Fighting at the Masonic Temple in Detroit in February 2014, Harrison gained a second-round TKO of Brewer.
He describes using meter as “like being on a trapeze but having a wire to catch you if you fall”, and it feels here as if the listener is being taken on such a journey.
This recording was made on the 19th March 2007 at the Audio Workshop, London and was produced by Richard Carrington.
Among his film/poems, ‘The Shadow of Hiroshima’ (1995) was screened on Channel 4, the published text won the Heinemann Award and ‘Black Daisies’ won the Prix Italia.
In 1995, he was commissioned by The Guardian to visit Bosnia and write poems about the war.
Tony Harrison
Tony Harrison Fights
WinvsBrian Damian Chaves15-7-0
Dec 20, 2025 • Fox Theater, Detroit, Michigan, USA
Tony Harrison WINS against Brian Damian Chaves by KO in Round 4 of 10
WinvsEdward Ulloa Diaz15-6-0
Jul 26, 2025 • Little Ceasars Arena, Detroit, Michigan, USA
Tony Harrison WINS against Edward Ulloa Diaz by UD in Round 10 of 10
LOSSvsTim Tszyu26-3-0
Mar 12, 2023 • Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney Olympic Park, New South Wales, Australia
Tim Tszyu WINS against Tony Harrison by TKO in Round 9 of 12
LOSSvsTim Tszyu26-3-0
Mar 11, 2023 • Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney, Australia
Tim Tszyu WINS against Tony Harrison by TKO in Round 9 of 12
WinvsSergio Garcia35-3-0
Apr 09, 2022 • The Theatre at Virgin Hotels, Las Vegas
Tony Harrison WINS against Sergio Garcia by UD in Round 10 of 10
DrawvsBryant Perrella17-3-2
Apr 17, 2021 • Shrine Auditorium and Expo Hall, Los Angeles, California
Tony Harrison DRAWS with Bryant Perrella by SD in Round 12 of 12
LossvsJermell Charlo35-2-1
Dec 21, 2019 • Toyota Arena, Ontario, California
Tony Harrison LOSES to Jermell Charlo by KO in Round 10 of 12
WINvsJermell Charlo35-2-1
Dec 22, 2018 • Barclays Center, Brooklyn, New York
Jermell Charlo LOSES to Tony Harrison by UD in Round 12 of 12
WinvsGeorge Sosa15-11-1
Feb 17, 2018 • Don Haskins Convention Center, El Paso, Texas, USA
Tony Harrison WINS against George Sosa by TKO in Round 5 of 8
WinvsPaul Valenzuela Cuesta20-5-0
Oct 14, 2017 • Barclays Center, Brooklyn, New York, USA
Tony Harrison WINS against Paul Valenzuela Cuesta by UD in Round 8 of 8
LossvsTony Harrison25-4-1
Feb 25, 2017 • Legacy Arena, Birmingham, Alabama
Jarrett Hurd LOSES to Tony Harrison by TKO in Round 9 of 12
WINvsSergey Rabchenko30-5-0
Jul 30, 2016 • Barclays Center, Brooklyn, New York, USA
Sergey Rabchenko LOSES to Tony Harrison by TKO in Round 9 of 12
WinvsFernando Guerrero28-4-0
Mar 05, 2016 • Sands Bethlehem Event Center, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, USA
Tony Harrison WINS against Fernando Guerrero by TKO in Round 6 of 10
WinvsCecil McCalla23-4-0
Oct 31, 2015 • NRG Arena, Houston
Tony Harrison WINS against Cecil McCalla by UD in Round 10 of 10
LossvsWillie Nelson23-2-1
Jul 11, 2015 • USF Sun Dome, Tampa, Florida
Tony Harrison LOSES to Willie Nelson by TKO in Round 9 of 10
WinvsTyrone Brunson22-3-1
Dec 20, 2014 • Little Creek Casino Resort, Shelton, Washington, USA
Tony Harrison WINS against Tyrone Brunson by TKO in Round 1 of 8
WinvsBronco McKart56-10-1
May 30, 2014 • Cobo Center Ballroom, Detroit, Michigan, USA
Tony Harrison WINS against Bronco McKart by TKO in Round 1 of 10
WinvsGrady Brewer30-17-0
Feb 07, 2014 • Masonic Temple, Detroit, Michigan, USA
Tony Harrison WINS against Grady Brewer by TKO in Round 2 of 8
WinvsDonald Ward6-2-0
Nov 27, 2013 • Masonic Temple, Detroit, Michigan, USA
Tony Harrison WINS against Donald Ward by TKO in Round 2 of 8
WinvsMarcos Primera20-27-2
Sep 13, 2013 • Masonic Temple, Detroit, Michigan, USA
Tony Harrison WINS against Marcos Primera by RTD in Round 3 of 6
WinvsGilbert Alex Sanchez2-2-0
Aug 03, 2013 • Mohegan Sun Casino, Uncasville, Connecticut, USA
Tony Harrison WINS against Gilbert Alex Sanchez by TKO in Round 2 of 6
WinvsRuben Galvan27-23-4
May 10, 2013 • Masonic Temple, Detroit, Michigan, USA
Tony Harrison WINS against Ruben Galvan by KO in Round 1 of 6
WinvsThomas Amaro2-0-0
Mar 07, 2013 • Motor City Casino, Detroit, Michigan, USA
Tony Harrison WINS against Thomas Amaro by KO in Round 1 of 6
WinvsDaniel Urbanski21-11-3
Nov 10, 2012 • O2 World Arena, Altona, Hamburg, Germany
Tony Harrison WINS against Daniel Urbanski by UD in Round 6 of 6
WinvsMarqus Jackson2-6-0
Oct 12, 2012 • Sportplex, Taylor, Michigan, USA
Tony Harrison WINS against Marqus Jackson by UD in Round 6 of 6
WinvsCalvin Odom15-11-0
Jul 27, 2012 • Pechanga Resort & Casino, Temecula, California, USA
Tony Harrison WINS against Calvin Odom by UD in Round 8 of 8
WinvsFlavio Turelli10-5-2
Jul 07, 2012 • Stade de Suisse, Berne, Switzerland
Tony Harrison WINS against Flavio Turelli by TKO in Round 1 of 6
WinvsIshwar Amador11-9-0
May 11, 2012 • Pechanga Resort & Casino, Temecula, California, USA
Tony Harrison WINS against Ishwar Amador by TKO in Round 2 of 6
WinvsAlfred Hall3-2-2
Mar 10, 2012 • Suburban Collection Showplace, Novi, Michigan, USA
Tony Harrison WINS against Alfred Hall by TKO in Round 2 of 6
WinvsHarun Akcabelen10-4-1
Mar 03, 2012 • ESPRIT arena, Düsseldorf, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany
Tony Harrison WINS against Harun Akcabelen by KO in Round 3 of 6
WinvsDorian Hatcher0-0-0
Oct 06, 2011 • Motor City Casino, Detroit, Michigan, USA
Tony Harrison WINS against Dorian Hatcher by TKO in Round 1 of 4
WinvsAloric Carson0-0-0
Jul 30, 2011 • U.S.
Steel Yard, Gary, Indiana, USA
Tony Harrison WINS against Aloric Carson by RTD in Round 1 of 4
WinvsTony Hervey0-2-0
Jul 15, 2011 • Royal Oak Music Theatre, Royal Oak, Michigan, USA
Tony Harrison WINS against Tony Hervey by TKO in Round 1 of 4
WinvsUwe Tritschler3-4-1
Jul 02, 2011 • Imtech-Arena, Altona, Hamburg, Germany
Tony Harrison WINS against Uwe Tritschler by TKO in Round 1 of 4
Tony “Superbad” Harrison is determined to put Detroit back on the boxing map.
Between 1956 and 1963, Harrison’s work is shown in London at St. George’s Gallery, the Piccadilly Gallery, and the Kaplan Gallery. Since then, he continued with his quest to make poetry a public art through the mediums of television and film.
Harrison’s work is represented in the Brooklyn Museum, New York; the Dallas Museum of Art, Texas; the Victoria & Albert Museum, London; the Museum of Modern Art, New York; the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, California; and the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Tony Harrison passed away at his home in Jersey City, New Jersey, on 20 August 2012.
“She told my dad to put me in the gym.”
Training under the tutelage of both his father and Steward, Harrison thrived as an amateur, compiling a record of 75-12, winning two Michigan Golden Gloves titles and reaching the semifinals of the National Golden Gloves tournament.
Tony Harrison delivers punishment during his win over Daniel Urbanski in Hamburg, Germany, on November 10, 2012.
Strong out of the gate
Harrison, the second youngest of eight children, turned pro in 2011 on Steward’s advice instead of trying to make the 2012 U.S.
Olympic team.
He made his professional debut in July 2011, gaining a first-round technical knockout of Uwe Tritschler in Hamburg, Germany.
Harrison stopped his first eight opponents, including five in the first round. Harrison’s first two collections of poems The Loiners (1970) and From the School of Eloquence (1978), explore the gulf between his own class background and his education and the powerlessness of the inarticulate – in ‘National Trust’ “the tongueless man gets his land took” In an interview for the Guardian he said “I wanted to write the poetry that people like my parents might respond to.” His work demands to be read aloud, and for him rhyme and rhythm, particularly the iamb are inspired by English speech patterns and “keep[s] the connection to the heartbeat”.
Tony Harrison’s success stems from the fact that he was a classicist from the working class; a scholar seeking a mass audience.
He taught part-time at the Central School of Arts and Crafts for eight years.
In 1964 Harrison had a solo exhibition of drawings and prints at the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco and he taught briefly at San Francisco State College. One of the last protégés of late Hall of Fame trainer Emanuel Steward, Harrison is striving to reach the top of the 154-pound division.
Born with a boxing pedigree
Harrison was born with boxing in his blood.
‘A Cold Coming’ speaks up for the burned corpse of an Iraqi soldier in metrical rhyming couplets – a form that seems to keep hold of sense in such troubled times. Although “doubtful, in these dark days what poems can do” (‘Initial Illumination’), Harrison once again gives a voice to the inarticulate though poetry, in what he described as the most ceremonial form of speech.
He showed his work at a number of New York galleries, including the Bertha Schaefer Gallery, the Anita Shapolsky Gallery, Associated American Artists, and the Sylvan Cole Gallery.
In 1983, Harrison moved to Jersey City, New Jersey and converted a small factory into his studio and living space. He wrapped up the year with first-round stoppages of both former world champion Bronco McKart and Tyrone Brunson.
The 6-foot-1 Harrison opened 2015 by stopping Antwone Smith in the second round in Las Vegas in February in the main event on ESPN’s Friday Night Fights.
He then gained his 10th consecutive stoppage in April, scoring a third-round TKO of Mexican southpaw Pablo Manguia at Mohegan Sun Casino in Connecticut in another headlining bout on ESPN.
Tony Harrison, painter, printmaker, and teacher, was born in Truro, England on August 18, 1931.
Hired as a full time instructor in 1970, Harrison installed the first printmaking workshop at Columbia University where he taught etching and engraving for twenty-five years.
Harrison became a citizen of the United States in 1973 and, within the following two years, he received a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship and a Creative Artist Public Service (CAPS) fellowship from the New York State Council on the Arts.
His grandfather Henry Hank won 62 fights during a 19-year pro career, and father Ali Salaam competed professionally at 147 pounds.
Although trained by his father, it was Harrison’s mother who steered him toward boxing after he was suspended from school repeatedly for fighting.
“My dad didn’t want me to box, but my mom got tired of seeing me get suspended,” Harrison said.
Between 1965 and 1971, he taught at the Pratt Graphics Center, New York University, and Robert Blackburn’s Printmaking Workshop. In 2007 he was awarded the Wilfred Owen poetry award.
Hearing Tony Harrison’s own voice on this recording, the cadences and rhythms, his poems come alive in the performing of them – bringing them out from the silence of the page.
See a list of available inventory for Tony Harrison
Tony Harrison
Tony Harrison was Britain’s principal film and theatre poet and famously said “Poetry is all I write, whether for books, or readings, or for the National Theatre, or for the opera house and concert hall, or even for TV.” He was born in Leeds in 1937, won a scholarship to Leeds grammar and read Classics at Leeds University.
His most controversial narrative poem ‘v’, prompted by vandals desecrating his parents’ gravestones during the miner’s strike, achieved front page headlines, was broadcast on Channel 4 in 1987 and won a Royal Television Society Award. He studied architecture at the Northern Polytechnic in London from 1949 to 1951, and then studied painting at the Chelsea School of Art and painting and printmaking at the Central School of Arts and Crafts where his tutors included Peter Cocker.
By December of that year Harrison became a permanent resident of the United States.