Salford’s Infamous Night: Boxing Fans Clash
A world title boxing match featuring one of Britain’s top champions generated significant attention, but the chaotic violence outside overshadowed the action within the ring. On September 9, 1994, Nigel Benn faced Paraguayan Juan Carlos Giminez for the super-middleweight title at Birmingham’s NEC Arena.
With Benn in peak form, the fight was broadcast live on ITV. However, concerns about violent incidents loomed large in the lead-up to the event. The undercard included a British light-middleweight title fight between popular Salford boxer Steve ‘The Viking’ Foster and Birmingham’s Robert McCracken, both of whom had passionate fanbases with troubling links to football hooliganism.
Foster’s supporters, known as ‘The Vikings’, often hailed from areas around Old Trafford, while McCracken’s fans included members from the infamous Birmingham City firm, the Zulu Warriors. An estimated 1,100 fans traveled from Salford to the NEC Arena, with notorious former Manchester United hooligan Tony O’Neill describing it as “the biggest mass exodus since the slum clearance.”
To prevent confrontations, bars were shut early, and for the first time in British boxing, fans were segregated. Nonetheless, clashes broke out in the concourses before escalating into the main arena as Benn and Giminez entered the ring. Spectators scrambled for safety as chairs were hurled and fights erupted among the crowd.
Millions tuned in to watch the unfolding chaos, with presenter Gary Newbon describing it as a ‘promoter’s nightmare’. Fred Adams, a bystander from Solihull, reported, “It was like a volcano ready to erupt.” Authorities even considered canceling the match, but after McCracken’s brother intervened, the fighting eventually subdued.
The fight resumed, with Benn ultimately winning by unanimous decision. Afterward, a visibly upset Benn indicated he might relocate to the US, expressing frustration at the disturbances. He remarked, “I’ve never seen anything like it—neither in boxing nor at a football match.”
Promoter Frank Warren condemned the violence, deeming those involved “low-life scum” disconnected from the sport. The night concluded with seven injuries reported, one serious enough to threaten potential loss of vision. In the aftermath, police sought to identify the perpetrators, ultimately charging eight individuals with violent disorder. This incident has since been marked as one of the most chaotic nights in British boxing history.
