Belfast boxer Ray Close, who twice fought Chris Eubank, dies aged 57
Ray Close, the Belfast super-middleweight who drew with Chris Eubank in 1993 and lost a split decision in 1994, has died aged 57. Clubs and the press have paid tribute; the two outlets differ on his count of defeats.
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The story, neutrally told
Mixed · 2Ray Close, the Belfast boxer best known for his two fights with Chris Eubank, has died aged 57. BBC NewsN “Ray Close, the Belfast boxer who almost handed Chris Eubank the first defeat of his career, has died at the age of 57.” Read at BBC News ↗ Irish IndependentRC “Ray Close, the former Irish champion boxer, has died at the age of 57.” Read at Irish Independent ↗ Mixed · 2Close was born in 1969 and turned professional in 1988 after a successful amateur career. BBC NewsN “Close was born in 1969 and turned professional in 1988 after a decorated amateur career.” Read at BBC News ↗ Irish IndependentRC “Born in Belfast in 1969, Close emerged as a highly-regarded amateur before turning professional in 1988.” Read at Irish Independent ↗ Mixed · 2In March 1993 he won the European (EBU) super-middleweight title; the Irish Independent says he did so by stopping Vincenzo Nardiello in Italy, and that he had earlier won the Irish super-middleweight title. BBC NewsN “Close won the EBU super-middleweight title on St Patrick's Day in 1993” Read at BBC News ↗ Irish IndependentRC “travelled to Italy and stopped Vincenzo Nardiello to win the European super-middleweight championship” Read at Irish Independent ↗
Mixed · 2In May 1993 he challenged the unbeaten WBO super-middleweight champion Eubank in Glasgow, and the judges could not separate them, so the fight was a draw. BBC NewsN “Close pushed him all the way in Glasgow and the pair could not be separated on the scorecards.” Read at BBC News ↗ Irish IndependentRC “with the judges unable to separate the pair” Read at Irish Independent ↗ Mixed · 2The rematch at King's Hall, Belfast, in 1994 went to Eubank on a split decision. The Irish Independent adds that Close was unfortunate not to be given the win in both fights. BBC NewsN “A rematch took place at a raucous King's Hall in Belfast the following year and Close put in another strong performance but lost on a split decision.” Read at BBC News ↗ Irish IndependentRC “On both occasions, Close was unfortunate not to be awarded the victory.” Read at Irish Independent ↗ Mixed · 2A third fight did not happen because the British Boxing Board of Control withdrew Close's licence after a brain scan; the BBC says an MRI scan showed two lesions on his brain. BBC NewsN “Close's boxing licence was revoked by the British Boxing Board of Control before it could take place after a MRI scan revealed two lesions on his brain.” Read at BBC News ↗ Irish IndependentRC “A third meeting did not materialise after a brain scan led to the British Boxing Board of Control withdrawing Close's licence.” Read at Irish Independent ↗
Mixed · 2Close later obtained permission to box in the United States and won five fights there. The BBC says all were in Illinois, the last a knockout of Larry Willis in June 1997. BBC NewsN “he won all five of his bouts in Illinois, the last of which was a knockout victory over Larry Willis in June 1997.” Read at BBC News ↗ Irish IndependentRC “later obtained permission to box in the United States, where he returned to the ring and won five contests.” Read at Irish Independent ↗ Mixed · 2Both outlets give his professional record as 25 wins and one draw, but the BBC lists three defeats while the Irish Independent lists two. BBC NewsN “His professional record reads as 25 victories, three defeats and one draw” Read at BBC News ↗ Irish IndependentRC “His professional record eventually finished at 25 wins, two defeats and that famous draw against Eubank in Glasgow.” Read at Irish Independent ↗ Centre · 1Ledley Hall Youth and Boxing Club in east Belfast, where he began boxing aged 10, called him a "true gentleman, humble, kind and always willing to give something back". Bangor Abbey Boxing Academy, where he had trained, said he would be a "huge loss to the boxing fraternity of Ireland and across the world". BBC NewsN “"true gentleman, humble, kind and always willing to give something back"”“"huge loss to the boxing fraternity of Ireland and across the world"” Read at BBC News ↗
Right · 1The Irish Independent reports that Close spent his last three years as a resident at the Phoenix Clinic in Newtownards, Northern Ireland's only nursing home offering specialist care to people aged 18 to 65 with physical disabilities. His son Benjamin has raised funds for the clinic, including by running the Belfast Half Marathon in his father's honour. Irish IndependentRC “Close spent the last three years as a resident at the Phoenix Clinic in Newtownards”“Close’s son Benjamin has become a fundraiser for the clinic, running several events, including the Belfast Half Marathon, in his father’s honour.” Read at Irish Independent ↗
Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.
Left0 outlets
No left outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Centre1 outlet
- Framing
- A sports obituary that leads on the near-upset of Eubank and relies on tributes from Close's boxing clubs.
- Emphasis
- Career record, the Eubank fights, the licence revocation and the US comeback, plus tributes from Ledley Hall and Bangor Abbey.
- Leaves out or plays down
- Does not mention his final years at the Phoenix Clinic or his son's fundraising.
- Charged language
- “boxing legend”
- For example
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“One of the most gifted boxers Northern Ireland has produced” — BBC News
Right1 outlet
- Framing
- A tribute-style obituary that stresses his Irish identity, how unlucky he was against Eubank, and his later life in care.
- Emphasis
- The European title win over Nardiello, the view that he deserved to win both Eubank fights, and the Phoenix Clinic and his son's fundraising.
- Leaves out or plays down
- Does not quote the club tributes and does not give the lesion detail or the Illinois location of his US fights.
- Charged language
- “Irish boxing great”“performance of a lifetime”
- For example
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“Close produced the performance of a lifetime over 12 rounds” — Irish Independent
What every side reports
- Ray Close died aged 57.
- He was born in Belfast in 1969 and turned professional in 1988.
- He drew with WBO champion Chris Eubank in Glasgow in 1993 and lost the 1994 rematch in Belfast on a split decision.
- The British Boxing Board of Control withdrew his licence after a brain scan, and he later won five fights in the USA.
- His record included 25 wins and one draw.
Where accounts differ
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Number of professional defeats
- Centre
- The BBC lists 25 wins, three defeats and one draw.
- Right
- The Irish Independent lists 25 wins, two defeats and the draw against Eubank.
Ray Close person
The coverage presents Close as one of Northern Ireland's most gifted boxers, who came close to beating Eubank and was inspirational to young boxers in Belfast.
“"To our young people, Ray was proof of what could be achieved,"” — BBC News
Chris Eubank person
Eubank was unbeaten, with 35 wins, when he drew with Close in 1993, and he kept his WBO title by split decision in the 1994 rematch. The articles do not quote him.
“Eubank, who had won all 35 of his professional bouts, was the defending WBO super-middleweight champion in May 1993” — BBC News
Left0 articles
No coverage yet.
Centre1 article
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Belfast boxing legend Close dies aged 57
Sympathetic Measured obituary built on the record and tributes from Close's clubs.
Right2 articles
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Belfast-born Irish boxing great Ray Close dies aged 57
Sympathetic Tribute that says Close was unlucky not to beat Eubank and describes his last years in care.
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- 2 Oct 15:16 First BBC NewsN Belfast boxing legend Close dies aged 57
- 2 Oct 21:15 +5h 59m Irish IndependentRC Belfast-born Irish boxing great Ray Close dies aged 57
- 2 Oct 21:15 +5h 59m Irish IndependentRC Irish boxing great Ray Close dies aged 57
Times are when each article was published, or when we first saw it if the outlet gave no time.