'Neon Leon' hits Wales

Sean Davies
BBC Sport

One of boxing's most colourful and controversial characters was in laid-back mood as he reflected on the good times.

Spinks defeated Ali after just nine fights as a professional

Leon Spinks, the conqueror of Muhammad Ali and the man whose epic partying earned him the epithet 'Neon Leon', has been in Britain on a low-key tour of boxing hot spots Ruislip, Merthyr Tydfil and Liverpool.

Spinks' remarkable story saw him claim the undisputed heavyweight championship from Ali as a raw 24-year-old who had fought just eight times as a professional.

"I remember everything about that day, 15 February, 1978, in Las Vegas," Spinks told BBC Sport Wales during his stay at the Cardiff home of friend and boxing official Dave Furnish.

"I'd won gold at the Montreal Olympics in 1976 and was given a shot at Ali - no-one gave me a chance.

The Ali fight wasn't the high point of my career Leon Spinks

"But I trained and worked hard, I believed in God, and over 15 rounds I came out on top.

"Ali may have been the greatest but I was the latest! That fight wasn't the high point of my career for me, though, I'd have to say it was representing my country and winning the Olympics."

Ali may have been fading badly by the time of the Spinks fight, but the result remained one of the greatest upsets in boxing history.

It was a win that deserved to be celebrated in style - and on that count Spinks certainly didn't disappoint.

The young fighter went on a six-month spree of drinking and partying, losing touch with trainers and promoters and never seeing the inside of a gym.

He lost the Ali rematch in New Orleans on 15 September, 1978, securing the victor's position as the first man ever to become the three-time heavyweight champion of the world.

Leon's son Cory is the undisputed welterweight champion of the world

Spinks' partying continued unabated and, as his fighting credentials quickly waned, 'Neon Leon' became the butt of a thousand jokes.

The most infamous story was when the fighter was found at a flop house in a Detroit ghetto.

Naked and alone, Spinks had been stripped of his money and possessions - plus his false teeth.

"I don't have regrets, I just look at the time I had and thank God I had it," said Spinks.

At the age of 50 he is now a reformed character, free of drink and drugs and lecturing on their evils in Chicago's social services department.

It's a brutal sport but it brings honour Leon Spinks

"Times change, you're on top one day then on a work programme later, that's the way life is," he added.

"Money it comes, it goes - although it seems to go a lot easier than it comes!

"I guess I was just too friendly - though never in the ring!"

Boxing is still clearly in the blood, a statement highlighted by the fact that his brother, Michael, followed him to the undisputed heavyweight championship of the world and his son, Cory, has recently claimed the undisputed welterweight crown.

"The fight game runs in the family, we all became undisputed champions," said a proud Spinks. "It's a brutal sport but it brings honour.

"There's too much politics in boxing these days, though, it's all about who you know.

"In my day we used to just go out and show what we could do."