One other thing that must add is this he fought hundreds of hard bastard men for "honor" but when his daughter had her jaw broken by a local man, he seemingly let that man go "for a point of law", my point would be this if the only fight he had ever had was to avenge the dog that attacked his daughter then That would have been "honorable" , whats the point beating up hundreds of men being the Gypsy King and then doing very little in your own town when your own daughter is attacked?

They put an oxygen mask on me and tried to force the dislocated shoulder back in its socket, but couldn't. He challenged infamous London brawlers Lenny McLean and Roy Shaw - neither accepted - and fought down a mineshaft, in a quarry, at horse fairs, on camp sites, in bars and clubs, and on the street. He was a man who, having claimed the crown, had to defend it constantly, often at a moment's notice, against dangerous men who sometimes did not take defeat with grace or aplomb. I was lucky enough to meet Bartley a few times in the early 90's when I interviewed him for my dissertation on the travelling community.BKB among the Travelers, Romany, Tinkers and Gypsies is a grim, savage and serious business whose origins go back to the Middle Ages, and is documented in all of its gory detail in this compulsively readable story about one man's quest to be the most feared fighter in his world, and the world at large.

Bartley Gorman and David Pearce signed to fight for the World unlicensed title after Pearce KO'd former WBA World Heavyweight Champion John Tate in California. For twenty years, legendary hard man Bartley Gorman reigned supreme in the most brutal of all pursuits: illegal bareknuckle prize fighting. The same goes for those seeking revenge for the slightest infraction or a grudge held on someone else's behalf. He had his run in's with the authorities but he was a well respected person and the town he made his home - Uttoxeter even had him on a memorial to the great names of the town.By using the Web site, you confirm that you have read, understood, and agreed to be bound by the Terms and Conditions. Gorman said; "Dave Pearce is the best gorger fighting man in Great Britain and I am King of the Gypsies, If I win I will challenge Muhammed Ali to fight for the title".

Request Rejected This page is unavailable due to either geographic restrictions or other restrictions in place at this time. It does paint their world as a bit Mad Max and even too crazy for Bartley himself in the later years. All in all this was an excellent book on a culture that has survived, in some way or another, for over a thousand years and shows every sign of surviving for a thousand more.

In one horrifying chapter, Gorman and his mates are attacked by a huge mob, beaten with pipes and sticks, hacked with broken bottles, and essentially left for dead. Many stories within this read, a very hard life but one that sounded to be enjoyed and a man who was respected by others with many achievements and many friends. As bareknuckle fighting is poised to steal MMA’s spotlight, its greatest modern-day champion tells his story of rising to the top in the brutal sport. Hard to reconcile the love of Christ and the immature drunkenness and cowardly violence the book portrays as dominant among modern travellers. Gorman, now 56 and retired, lifts the lid on a dark but fascinating underworld, revealing for the first time the top fighting men of today with many never-before-seen photographs.