Henry Maske celebrates his 60th birthday. The German boxing legend also talks about his controversial victory against Graciano Rocchigiani
His great triumphs were decades ago, but Henry Maske’s memories have by no means faded.
The world title in 1993, the fights against Graciano Rocchigiani, this phenomenal comeback against Virgil Hill in 2007 – and above all the Olympic gold medal in Seoul in 1988 have left a lasting impression on the German boxing icon.
“The Olympic victory is something incredibly significant. It’s in my chest and in my head. I am very happy for this memory, I like to keep it present,” said Maske in an interview with the SID. In the 1990s, he popularized boxing in Germany and was one of the country’s biggest sports stars. In the meantime, things have become quieter around the Brandenburg native, who celebrates his 60th birthday on Saturday
Mask vs. Rocky – a question of honor
And the “gentleman” is spending it “very quietly in a small family circle” in his adopted hometown of Overath near Cologne. The days when tens of millions of viewers cheered him on in front of the TV are over. But Maske has remained a part of boxing
“The sport has left an incredible mark on me. I’m always connected to it in some way. Things that go hand in hand with it are still my companions. The personal development, the profile, the way of dealing with things,” said Maske. Since 2020, he has been a partner in the Aachen-based company ROOQ, which develops boxing technology.
Thanks to the clever marketing of TV station RTL and the Sauerland boxing stable, Maske once wrote an unparalleled success story. Maske’s fights, especially the two against the now deceased Berliner Rocchigiani, drew the masses to the television, with up to 18 million viewers wanting to see Maske fight and win.
“He, up there, will say he won. I say: I have won. It stays that way,” said Maske about the first fight against “Rocky”, which had gone to Maske in an extremely controversial manner.
But otherwise Maske delivered. After 19 victories, he took the IBF light heavyweight crown from US pro Charles Williams in March 1993 and successfully defended his title ten times. Then came the defeat to Hill and with it the (supposed) end of his career
Maske’s successful comeback against Hill
Eleven years later, in March 2007, the two fought each other again in the ring, also in Munich. Maske was already 43 years old and hardly anyone believed he was capable of anything back then. But the gifted southpaw surprised the experts. “My last fight against Virgil Hill was the freestyle, it had nothing to do with my duty,” said Maske.
Today, he says, “we no longer play the big fiddle in amateur and professional boxing.” But he still has memories of the golden age. When Maske looks back on his career, he is “very happy” because: “I got far more than I ever expected. “
