Tunney Hunsaker

Who was Tunney Hunsaker?

Tunney Morgan Hunsaker was the police chief of Fayetteville, West Virginia in 1960 when Hunsaker was Cassius Clay's first opponent in a professional boxing bout. After the fight Hunsaker said, "Clay was as fast as lightning ... I tried every trick I knew to throw at him off balance but he was just too good". In a thumbnail profile of the fight the following January, young Cassius was reported as having remarked that Hunsaker's style was far different from what Clay had been exposed to as an amateur and Olympian; the young fighter admitted to nervousness going in, and that Hunsaker's aforementioned pro style, had given him trouble. This respect appears genuine, as it was lasting—in his autobiography, Ali said Hunsaker dealt him one of the hardest body blows he ever took in his career. Ali and Hunsaker became good friends and stayed in touch over the years. Hunsaker said he did not agree with Ali's decision to refuse military service, but praised him as a great humanitarian and athlete.

In the fight game, Hunsaker was a small heavyweight, perhaps better suited for light-heavy classification; today, he would most likely compete as a cruiserweight. He fought as a boxer-puncher, by his own telling. Hunsaker once appeared on the undercard at Madison Square Garden. Hunsaker ended up with a record of 17 wins with 15 defeats with 8 wins by way of KO. His career ended after a boxing-related head injury suffered on April 6, 1962, in Beckley, West Virginia. Although rushed to a Beckley hospital, Hunsaker was in a coma for nine days and suffered the physical effects for the rest of his life. He was 74 when he died after a long battle with Alzheimer's Disease. He was a Journeyman with more wins than defeats.