"beaten by Pérez), won Japan's first world title, and Hogan Bassey won the first belt for Nigeria. Popular American fighters in the 1950s proved legendary: Sugar Ray Robinson would still win (and lose) world titles, Rocky Marciano became the only heavyweight world champion in history to retire with perfect record. Jersey Joe Walcott the oldest heavyweight champion (until George Foreman regained the title in 1994), Archie Moore broke the all-time knockout record as well as the record for the oldest champion, at 48, for ""any"" division, Ezzard Charles proved to be a reliable substitute for Joe Louis as heavyweight champ,"
"Heavyweight Championship to Orville Brown. After Brown suffered career-ending injuries in an automobile accident on November 1, 1949, the NWA recognised Lou Thesz as the champion. Thesz had earlier won the National Wrestling Association's World Heavyweight Championship on July 10, 1948 from Wild Bill Longson. Thesz traveled to many areas and defeated various champions. He defeated the American Wrestling Association (a Boston-based federation different from Verne Gagne's more famous organization of the same name) World Heavyweight Champion Gorgeous George on July 27, 1950 in a non-title match, and, finally, Baron Michele Leon on May 21, 1952 for the Los Angeles"
"1949. The following year, he outpointed his idol and former World Heavyweight Champion Joe Louis to become the recognized Lineal Champion. Successful defenses against Walcott, Lee Oma and Joey Maxim followed. In 1951, Charles fought Walcott a third time and lost the title by knockout in the seventh round. Charles lost a controversial decision in their fourth and final bout. If Charles had won this fight, he would have become the first man in history to regain the heavyweight championship. Remaining a top contender with wins over Rex Layne, Tommy Harrison and Coley Wallace, Charles knocked out Bob Satterfield in"
"1944, 4 October 1951 and 10 September 1952. Around 25,000 spectators watched international boxing on 1 October 1993, at the National Stadium with a World Boxing Council (WBC) Heavyweight title bout between Lennox Lewis and Frank Bruno. It was the first time that two British-born boxers had fought for the world heavyweight title. Lewis beat Bruno by a technical knockout in the 7th round, in what was called the ""Battle of Britain"". On 30 September 1995, Steve Robinson the World Boxing Organization (WBO) World Featherweight Champion, lost against Prince Naseem Hamed at the rugby ground in 8 rounds. In 1819"
"Joe Louis Joseph Louis Barrow (May 13, 1914 – April 12, 1981), best known as Joe Louis was an American professional boxer who competed from 1934 to 1951. He reigned as the world heavyweight champion from 1937 to 1949, and is considered to be one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time. Nicknamed the ""Brown Bomber"", Louis' championship reign lasted 140 consecutive months, during which he participated in 26 championship fights. The 27th fight, against Ezzard Charles in 1950, was a challenge for Charles' heavyweight title and so is not included in Louis' reign. He was victorious in 25"
"winner in a split decision, the crowd booed. Louis was under no delusion about the state of his boxing skills, yet he was too embarrassed to quit after the Walcott fight. Determined to win and retire with his title intact, Louis signed on for a rematch. On June 25, 1948, about 42,000 people came to Yankee Stadium to see the aging champion, who weighed 213½, the heaviest of his career to date. Walcott knocked Louis down in the third round, but Louis survived to knock out Walcott in the eleventh. Louis would not defend his title again before announcing his"
"Mills. Lou Thesz won the title on May 21, 1952. Thesz unified three championships to become the undisputed world heavyweight champion in wrestling: the National Wrestling Association World Heavyweight Championship (which he won on July 20, 1948 by defeating Bill Longson), the National Wrestling Alliance World Heavyweight Championship (which was awarded to him on November 27, 1949) and the Los Angeles version of the world title (the Los Angeles Olympic Auditorium World Heavyweight Championship, which he won on May 21, 1952 by defeating Baron Michele Leone). Whipper Billy Watson won the title on March 15, 1956 by defeating Thesz by"
"counting on him and that too many of his friends had bet their hard earned money on him. Williams died on September 5, 1994 at his home in the Wilshire District of Los Angeles of natural causes. Williams was ""The Ring"" magazine's Fighter of the Year for 1948, was inducted into ""The Ring"" Boxing Hall of Fame (disbanded in 1987), and was an inaugural 1990 inductee to the International Boxing Hall of Fame. Ike Williams Ike Williams (August 2, 1923 – September 5, 1994) was a lightweight world boxing champion. He took the World Lightweight Championship in April 1945 and"
"become the heaviest world champion in history, weighing as high as 328Ibs during his reign. Carnera still ranks as the second-heaviest, over eighty years after he held the title. Carnera's 1933 title defense against Paulino Uzcudun in Italy was the first Heavyweight title fight to be held in Europe since Jack Johnson's title defence against Frank Moran in Paris in 1913. It would be the last such occasion until Muhammad Ali defended the title against Henry Cooper in London in 1966. Carnera-Uzcudun was the first World Heavyweight championship fight to be contested between two Europeans. It was not until Lennox"
"were crowned before Joe Louis began his legendary run as Heavyweight champion in 1937. He retired in 1949, still holding the title of World Heavyweight Champion. Boxing began expanding into Latin America in the 1930s: Sixto Escobar became the first world champion from Puerto Rico by defeating ""Baby Casanova"", who had also been crowned at the start of the decade. ""Baby Arizmendi"" conquered the first world title for Mexico in 1934. For his part, ""Kid Chocolate"" became the first world champion from Cuba. Three world champions won world titles in three different divisions, a feat no single fighter had accomplished"
"at Veteran's Hospital in Aspinwal and was buried in Pittsburgh's St. Nicholas Cemetery. A stroke had left him speechless around 1982 when he was first hospitalized. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1993. He was survived by his wife Helen, two sons, a daughter, and four grandchildren. Fritzie Zivic Fritzie Zivic (May 8, 1913 in Pittsburgh, United States – May 16, 1984), born as Ferdinand Henry John Zivcich (, known to boxing fans as Fritzie Zivic), was an American boxer who held the world welterweight championship from October 4, 1940, until July 29, 1941. His"
"only boxer to hold titles in three different weight classes at the same time (featherweight, lightweight, and welterweight). His attempt at winning the middleweight title would be thwarted in 1940. The Second World War brought a lull in competitive boxing, and champion Louis fought mostly exhibitions. After the war, Louis continued his reign, but new stars emerged in other divisions, such as the inimitable featherweight Willie Pep, who won over 200 fights, and most notably Sugar Ray Robinson, widely regarded as the greatest pound-for-pound fighter of all time. Robinson held the world welterweight title from 1946 to 1951 and the"
"of 78 in Treviso, Italy, and is buried at the Monumental Cemetery of Milan. Duilio Loi Duilio Loi (19 April 1929 – 20 January 2008) was an Italian boxer who held the Italian and European lightweight and welterweight titles, as well as the world junior welterweight championship. Loi fought from 1948 to 1962, and retired with a record of 115 wins (26 KOs), 3 losses and 8 draws. Loi is considered one of the greatest fighters of all time at his weight and one of the best fighters to come out of Italy. Loi was born in Trieste in 1929,"
"protein powder and other sports supplements. Hepburn died of a perforated ulcer at age 74. Doug Hepburn Douglas Ivan Hepburn (September 16, 1926 – November 22, 2000) was a Canadian strongman and weightlifter. He won weightlifting gold medals in the 1953 World Weightlifting Championships as well as the 1954 British Empire Games in the heavyweight division. He is also known as the first man to bench press 400, 450, and 500 pounds (raw). During the 1950s he was publicly known as the ""world's strongest man"" for his many feats of strength. Hepburn has been inducted into the Canadian Olympic Hall"
"success. After winning his first four bouts, he had little success from then on, retiring the following year having won 5, lost 7, and drawn 1. Hank Herring Horace H. ""Hank"" Herring (June 19, 1922 – May 18, 1999) was an American boxer. Herring was the Welterweight Silver Medalist at the 1948 London Olympic Games. Herring lost in the final to Julius Torma of Czechoslovakia. He was born in St. Petersburg, Florida and died in Lemoore, California. Herring was also a member of the United States Navy. He retired in the early 1970s. Below is the Olympic record of Hank"
"with his title recognition. In 1949 he took on Ezzard Charles, but was TKO'd in the 7th, and retired after the bout. In addition to his various accolades, Lesnevich was named Ring Magazine Fighter of the Year in 1947. Lesnevich served in the United States Coast Guard from 1943 to 1945. Gus Lesnevich Gustav George ""Gus"" Lesnevich (February 22, 1915 – February 28, 1964) was an American boxer who held the World Light Heavyweight Championship. Lesnevich was born and raised in Cliffside Park, New Jersey. Lesnevich turned pro in 1934 and in 1939 took on World Light Heavyweight champion Billy"
"Ingemar Johansson Jens Ingemar ""Ingo"" Johansson (; 22 September 1932 – 30 January 2009) was a Swedish professional boxer who competed from 1952 to 1963. He held the world heavyweight title from 1959 to 1960, and was the fifth heavyweight champion born outside the United States. Johansson won the title by defeating Floyd Patterson via third-round stoppage, after flooring him seven times in that round. For this achievement, Johansson was awarded the Hickok Belt as top professional athlete of the year—the only non-American to do so in the belt's entire 27-year existence—and was named the Associated Press Male Athlete of"
"of boxers claiming to be legitimate champions. On August 23, 1962, the NBA officially became the World Boxing Association and moved their headquarters to Panama City, Panama. A year later NYSAC along with European Boxing Union and BBBofC supported creation of the World Boxing Council. In April 1983, members of United States Boxing Association along with Robert W. Lee (a former WBA vice-president) voted to expand the organisation and form the USBA-International. The organization later changed the name to International Boxing Federation. The inaugural IBF Heavyweight Champion was Larry Holmes, who relinquished the WBC title to accept IBF's recognition, thus"
"the United States Army during World War II, but he did not engage in battle while the war was going on. He mostly visited soldiers in Europe to provide them with motivational speeches and with boxing exhibitions. He kept defending the world heavyweight title until 1949, making twenty five consecutive title defenses – still a world record among all weight divisions. Louis' finances evaporated later in life, and he became involved in the use of illicit drugs. Louis and Schmeling developed a friendship outside the ring, which endured until Louis' death on April 12, 1981. Their rivalry and friendship was"
"Jersey Joe Walcott Arnold Raymond Cream (January 31, 1914 – February 25, 1994), best known as Jersey Joe Walcott, was an American professional boxer who competed from 1930 to 1953. He held the world heavyweight title from 1951 to 1952, and broke the record for the oldest man to win the title, at the age of 37. That record would eventually be broken in 1994 by 45-year-old George Foreman. After retiring from boxing, Walcott did some acting, playing small parts in a few movies and television shows. He also refereed several boxing matches, but after the controversial ending to the"
"the belt on March 5, 1965. He held it until February 6, 1967 when he lost to Muhammad Ali. During this time, most in the boxing world continued to recognize Ali as the legitimate champion, since he had not lost his championship in a boxing match. The WBA's rival, the World Boxing Council, had also continued to recognize Ali as champion. During his reign as WBA Champion, Terrell defended the title twice, beating Doug Jones and George Chuvalo. In February 1967, Ali and Terrell met to end the debate about who was the legitimate heavyweight champion. Before the bout, Terrell"
"world middleweight title a record five times from 1951 to 1960. His notable rivals included Jake LaMotta, Gene Fullmer, and Carmen Basilio. Unfortunately, many fights in the 1940s and 1950s were marred by suspected mafia involvement, though some fighters like Robinson and Basilio openly resisted mob influence. Among the heavyweights, Joe Louis retained his title until his 1949 retirement, having held the championship for an unprecedented eleven years. Ezzard Charles and Jersey Joe Walcott succeeded him as champion, but they were soon outshone by the remarkable Rocky Marciano, who compiled an astounding 49-0 record before retiring as world champion. Among"
"heavyweight categories, which was not reflective of the rest of the United Kingdom. The notable exceptions to this were the Dick Richardson of Newport and Joe Erskine from Cardiff, who, along with England's Henry Cooper and Brian London formed a quartet of promising British heavyweights during the late 1950s and early 1960s. The final decade of the twentieth century saw four Welshmen take World Championship titles. Steve Robinson became the WBO Featherweight Champion in 1993, followed by Robbie Regan (WBO World Bantamweight) in 1996, Barry Jones (WBO World Super-Featherweight) and Joe Calzaghe (WBO Super Middleweight), both in 1997. The first"
"the World Boxing Council recognized Rigoberto Riasco as its champion when he defeated Waruinge Nakayama in eight rounds. The World Boxing Association crowned its first champion in 1977 when Soo Hwan Hong knocked out Hector Carasquilla in three rounds to win the inaugural WBA championship. In 1983 the International Boxing Federation sanctioned the bout between Bobby Berna and Seung-In Suh for its first title. Berna won in the eleventh round. Notable fighters to hold championship titles at this weight have been Wayne McCullough, Guillermo Rigondeaux, Scott Quigg, Wilfredo Gómez, Lupe Pintor, Jeff Fenech, Fabrice Benichou, Daniel Zaragoza, Kennedy McKinney, Érik"
"of it in 1930. The National Boxing Association continued to recognize it until its champion, Barney Ross relinquished the title in 1935 to concentrate on regaining the welterweight championship. A few commissions recognized bouts in the 1940s as being for the light welterweight title, but the modern beginnings of this championship date from 1959 when Carlos Ortiz won the vacant title with a victory over Kenny Lane. Both the WBA and WBC recognized the same champions until 1967, when the WBC stripped Paul Fuji of the title and matched Pedro Adigue and Adolph Pruitt for their version of the championship."
"Athletic Commission. However, it was announced that Baba and Shikat would face each other on May 5, 1936 at the Madison Square Garden for the world title. Baba went on to win the bout and thus be recognized as the World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion. Bronko Nagurski won the title on June 29, 1937. Nagurski was recognized as the undisputed World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion by ""The Ring"" magazine. Londos won the title again on November 18, 1938 and retired as the World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion on January 28, 1946. Londos wrestled his last match on this date by defeating Lord Albert"
"the German heavyweight Max Schmeling and the American Max Baer, who wielded a devastating right hand. Baer was defeated by ""Cinderella Man"" James Braddock, a former light heavyweight contender before a series of injuries and setbacks during the Great Depression and was at one point even stripped of his license. Most famous of all was Joe Louis, who avenged an earlier defeat by demolishing Schmeling in the first round of their 1938 rematch. Louis was voted the best puncher of all time by ""The Ring"", and is arguably the greatest heavyweight of all time. In 1938, Henry Armstrong became the"
"Doug Hepburn Douglas Ivan Hepburn (September 16, 1926 – November 22, 2000) was a Canadian strongman and weightlifter. He won weightlifting gold medals in the 1953 World Weightlifting Championships as well as the 1954 British Empire Games in the heavyweight division. He is also known as the first man to bench press 400, 450, and 500 pounds (raw). During the 1950s he was publicly known as the ""world's strongest man"" for his many feats of strength. Hepburn has been inducted into the Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame (1953), Canada's Sports Hall of Fame (1955), and the B.C. Sports Hall of"
"Jack Johnson (boxer) John Arthur Johnson (March 31, 1878 – June 10, 1946), nicknamed the Galveston Giant, was an American boxer who, at the height of the Jim Crow era, became the first African American world heavyweight boxing champion (1908–1915). Among the period's most dominant champions, Johnson remains a boxing legend, with his 1910 fight against James J. Jeffries dubbed the ""fight of the century"". According to filmmaker Ken Burns, ""for more than thirteen years, Jack Johnson was the most famous and the most notorious African-American on Earth"". Transcending boxing, he became part of the culture and the history of"
"with the following: ""I know Ruby. He calls them as he sees them and that should be good enough for anybody."" What controversy remained, was the kind that builds the gate, and Jersey Joe was rightfully granted a rematch on June 25, 1948. Though dropped again, this time in the 3rd; Louis prevailed by a knockout in round 11. The bout was the first closed-circuit telecast (CCTV) sports broadcast, distributed a theatre television. June 22 of 1949, Walcott got another chance to become world heavyweight champion, when he and Ezzard Charles met for the title left vacant by Louis. However,"
"Vegas, Nevada. <br> Jackie Fields Jackie Fields (Jacob Finkelstein, February 9, 1908 – June 3, 1987) was an American professional boxer who won the World Welterweight Championship twice. Statistical boxing website BoxRec lists Fields as the #19 ranked welterweight of all-time. Fields was elected to the United Savings-Helms Hall of Boxing Fame in 1972, the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 1979, the World Boxing Hall of Fame in 1987, and the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2004. Jackie Fields, who was Jewish, was born Jacob Finkelstein on Maxwell Street, in Chicago, Illinois, on February 9, 1908. His"
"on 14 January 1993. Lewis had previously been the WBCs number one contender by defeating Razor Ruddock. Lewis then became the first British world heavyweight champion since Bob Fitzsimmons lost the title on 9 June 1899. Lewis went on to defend his title by defeating Phil Jackson. Frank Bruno had previously lost to Tim Witherspoon on 19 July 1986 for the World Boxing Association (WBA) Heavyweight title at the old Wembley Stadium and to Mike Tyson on 25 February 1989 for the WBA, WBC, and International Boxing Federation (IBF) titles at the Las Vegas Hilton. The fight was the first"
"would receive a title shot at Joe Louis. In what the Associated Press called ""a savage 10-round scrap"" Burman came out victorious by decision, in a bout in which both contestants bled. Joe Louis was the world Heavyweight champion and 44-1 when he was challenged by Burman, 73-17-1, on January 31, 1941, at the Madison Square Garden in New York City. The referee for the bout, contested for the world Heavyweight title, was Frank Fullam. Burman dropped Louis out of the ring with a right hook in round three, but he was stopped at 2:49 of the fifth round by"