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The Big If: The Life and Death of Johnny Owen
Johnny Owen, the Matchstick Man from Wales, and Lupe Pintor, El Indio from Mexico, met for less than 60 minutes on September 19, 1980. It was Owen's chance to become the world bantam-weight champion, but the Matchstick Man was knocked out in the 12th round, spending 46 days in a coma before he died. The parallel lives of Owen and Pintor form the heart of this incredible story. Extensive interviews with the Owen and Pintor families have resulted in a moving, visceral book that resonates well beyond the boxing ring. Bonded by a shared dream, this story charts the lives of two boxers and two families, and reveals how, 20 years later, Owen's grieving father was reunited with the man who killed his son. Despite its running theme of loss, the tale of these two fighters is ultimately an uplifting story of forgiveness, and how the human spirit can overcome the most terrible troubles.
352 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2006
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About the author
Rick Broadbent
19 books4 followersRick Broadbent is a sports writer for the Times, for whom he covers MotoGP, among other things. He has previously witten books on football, boxing and athletics as well as, most recently, collaborating with motorcycle legend Ron Haslam on his autobiography Rocket Men, published by Bantam Press in July 2008.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
June 7, 2016
I was ten when the ill fated fight took place that took johnny owen away but I can recall his name and the incident due to the fact it featured on the news a lot at the time plus opened or rather reopened the debate on safety within boxing.
That said you don't really read this book and think it's a sad nor wasteful tale in fact there's lots to celebrate here too...Johnnys apparent good nature and pride in his local are and just the fact that he was well on the way to achieving a dream and in many ways had achieved some.
His adversary on the night is also covered within the book and again the tales of the two are inspiring and the differences are manifest.
That said you don't really read this book and think it's a sad nor wasteful tale in fact there's lots to celebrate here too...Johnnys apparent good nature and pride in his local are and just the fact that he was well on the way to achieving a dream and in many ways had achieved some.
His adversary on the night is also covered within the book and again the tales of the two are inspiring and the differences are manifest.
May 10, 2012
Absolutely fantastic book. Would have given it 5 Stars but for the author over flowering the dialogue on occasions however the book moved me to tears so well done.
November 24, 2017
No one has to be told that boxing is a brutal sport, nor do they need it reiterated exactly how dangerous it can be. That said, sometimes it helps to remember the life and death of a particular warrior in the ring, since while the broad outlines in most boxing tales are the same, the details themselves vary from man to man. That Rick Broadbent is a great writer and demonstrates an uncommon insight into fight culture and psychology doesn't hurt, either. Aside from maybe Don McRae's "A Man's World" about the openly bisexual fighter Emile Griffith, "The Big If" may be the best book ever written about death in the ring.
The book follows Johnny "the Matchstick Man" Owen, from a small, lower-middle class coal-mining town in Wales, where he worked the punch bag in tiny gyms above local pubs, and did his roadwork by running up and down the rocky escarpments and highlands around the ruins of old Scottish castles. He also held down a gig working a machine press and showed little interest in the usual blandishments that can sideline a good fight career, like drugs and chasing girls. The picture that emerges of Johnny Owen is of a quixotic, humble, brave and honorable man whose skeletal physique belied a tenacity that let Owen use his swarming style to take him all the way to a world title fight against Mexico's Lupe Pintor.
Mr. Broadbent does a good job of showing Lupe "El Indio" Pintor as a flesh-and-blood man with his own vulnerabilities, fears, failings, and tough background (he ran away from a father who used to beat him with the blunt, non-bladed side of a machete into a gym, where discovered boxing as his salvation and escape from the favelas of Mexico). It would have been easy to make Pintor into a 2D baddie and take his machismo at face value, but the author is no more interested in taking the easy route in his book than Johnny Owen took in his career.
Johnny Owen's journal entries as well as a round-by-round breakdown of the notorious fight are interleaved between the chapters. As the book progresses, a clearer picture of that brutal night in the Olympic Auditorium in LA emerges, as well as the lead-up to the fight in question and the agonizing aftermath for everyone involved, who felt a party to what might be considered a murder (referees have been murdered and committed suicide after such brutalizing events, and tempers can always flare as the blame and recriminations fly).
"The Big If" is one of the best biographies I've read about any subject in a long time. As I read it I couldn't help think that it would translate well to the screen (boxing stories usually do) and that DJ Qualls would make a worthy Johnny Owen in the lead role. Highest recommendation.
The book follows Johnny "the Matchstick Man" Owen, from a small, lower-middle class coal-mining town in Wales, where he worked the punch bag in tiny gyms above local pubs, and did his roadwork by running up and down the rocky escarpments and highlands around the ruins of old Scottish castles. He also held down a gig working a machine press and showed little interest in the usual blandishments that can sideline a good fight career, like drugs and chasing girls. The picture that emerges of Johnny Owen is of a quixotic, humble, brave and honorable man whose skeletal physique belied a tenacity that let Owen use his swarming style to take him all the way to a world title fight against Mexico's Lupe Pintor.
Mr. Broadbent does a good job of showing Lupe "El Indio" Pintor as a flesh-and-blood man with his own vulnerabilities, fears, failings, and tough background (he ran away from a father who used to beat him with the blunt, non-bladed side of a machete into a gym, where discovered boxing as his salvation and escape from the favelas of Mexico). It would have been easy to make Pintor into a 2D baddie and take his machismo at face value, but the author is no more interested in taking the easy route in his book than Johnny Owen took in his career.
Johnny Owen's journal entries as well as a round-by-round breakdown of the notorious fight are interleaved between the chapters. As the book progresses, a clearer picture of that brutal night in the Olympic Auditorium in LA emerges, as well as the lead-up to the fight in question and the agonizing aftermath for everyone involved, who felt a party to what might be considered a murder (referees have been murdered and committed suicide after such brutalizing events, and tempers can always flare as the blame and recriminations fly).
"The Big If" is one of the best biographies I've read about any subject in a long time. As I read it I couldn't help think that it would translate well to the screen (boxing stories usually do) and that DJ Qualls would make a worthy Johnny Owen in the lead role. Highest recommendation.
January 22, 2021
On September 19 1980 Johnny Owen from Merthyr Tydfil in wales challenged Lupe pintor of Mexico for the bantamweight championship of the world in Las Vegas.
It would be the last fight Owen would ever have.
The book tells the story of the likeable young man who tried to look after his family and chase his dreams it also tells the story of Lupe pintor from a hard upbringing at the hands of an abusive father along his journey to that I’ll fated night.
It also tells the story of dick Owens Johnny’s father and his family journey along with him and how the tragedy affected them afterwards.
I have been a fan of boxing from a very young age I have read many books on different boxers and the book does make you think about weather boxing should be allowed.
Although safety standards have improved since Johnny’s death with the introduction of regular brain scans and improved medical treatment at boxing venues tragedies do still occur in modern boxing. Should boxing be banned?
While it is true that boxing is a sport where the intention is to inflict damage on an opponent would banning it make it any safer my feeling is it would drive the sport underground in illegal fights were there would be no regulation requiring brain scans and inadequate medical treatment on site.
When I was a schoolboy I took up boxing as an amateur I enjoyed the sparring and training and the buzz I got from being fit and active and when I stopped boxing I missed it.
Years later my older brother told me that my mother used to cry in private when she saw me coming home with a shiner or blood on my shirt I never felt like I was suffering I felt alive. And yet now that I am a father with a young son would I like it if my son decided to box? Honestly I would have to say no. Certainly after reading this book it would be my worst nightmare to go through what Johnny Owens family have.
These are the thoughts and emotions that this book brings to the fore.
A very interesting read and good insights into boxing in the valleys and characters of the boxing world.
It would be the last fight Owen would ever have.
The book tells the story of the likeable young man who tried to look after his family and chase his dreams it also tells the story of Lupe pintor from a hard upbringing at the hands of an abusive father along his journey to that I’ll fated night.
It also tells the story of dick Owens Johnny’s father and his family journey along with him and how the tragedy affected them afterwards.
I have been a fan of boxing from a very young age I have read many books on different boxers and the book does make you think about weather boxing should be allowed.
Although safety standards have improved since Johnny’s death with the introduction of regular brain scans and improved medical treatment at boxing venues tragedies do still occur in modern boxing. Should boxing be banned?
While it is true that boxing is a sport where the intention is to inflict damage on an opponent would banning it make it any safer my feeling is it would drive the sport underground in illegal fights were there would be no regulation requiring brain scans and inadequate medical treatment on site.
When I was a schoolboy I took up boxing as an amateur I enjoyed the sparring and training and the buzz I got from being fit and active and when I stopped boxing I missed it.
Years later my older brother told me that my mother used to cry in private when she saw me coming home with a shiner or blood on my shirt I never felt like I was suffering I felt alive. And yet now that I am a father with a young son would I like it if my son decided to box? Honestly I would have to say no. Certainly after reading this book it would be my worst nightmare to go through what Johnny Owens family have.
These are the thoughts and emotions that this book brings to the fore.
A very interesting read and good insights into boxing in the valleys and characters of the boxing world.
August 31, 2025
Brilliant story of the life of the Welsh boxer Johnny Owen and of the man who killed him, the great Mexican fighter Lupe Pintor. I read the brilliant Hugh McIlvanney’s articles on the tragic events that led to Owen’s death in Los Angeles in 1980 and wanted to find out more about them. I came across this book in my local library and couldn’t believe how good it was. It’s a sad story but Broadbent tells it with such feeling that you become invested in both of them and wish events could have happened differently.
November 18, 2025
Excellent spurts book. I remember Johnny Owen and the tragedy. He was incredibly skinny and big ears. This book is also to do with family.
You probably need a bit of appreciation for moving, but don’t need to be a boxing nut to fully enjoy it.
You probably need a bit of appreciation for moving, but don’t need to be a boxing nut to fully enjoy it.
April 11, 2020
Like all of his books this is fantastic. It does real justice to Johnny Owen and his family.
January 28, 2021
If not one of the best books about boxing. It's one of the best sport books you read
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April 27, 2014The story of what led to the tragic bantamweight title fight in September 1980 in LA between Johnny Owen of Wales and Lupe Pintor of Mexico. Owen died after being KOed in the 12th round. I saw the fight the next day on tv. Author Broadbent expands this book to include the rough and tumble life of Pintor which shows how similar the two fighters were. He interviews trainers, promoters and the referee for the fight, Marty Denkin, which broadens the picture of what happened. Very nicely handled. It was a pleasurable trip down memory lane for me bumping into names from the 80s like Alberto Davila, Jim Watt, Cornelius Boza-Edwards, Vito Antuofermo and many others, back when boxing was still good.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews