On This Day: 365 Days of Boxing History
Boxing is a sport that has captured the hearts of millions of fans around the world for centuries. From legendary fights to up-and-coming stars, the world of boxing has never failed to deliver excitement and drama. In this blog post, I’ve compiled a list of notable boxing events that have taken place on every day of the year.
Whether you're a casual fan or a die-hard enthusiast, join us on this journey through boxing history and relive some of the most iconic moments in the sport.
January
1935 Baby Arizmendi became the first world champion from Mexico in boxing history.
1892 The longest boxing match under modern rules: 77 rounds between Harry Sharpe and Frank Crosby.
1916 Harry Wills defeated Sam Langford in their 4th fight. They will eventually fight 22 times.
1935 Floyd Patterson was born. He would reign as the world Heavyweight champion twice, and be inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1991.
1953 Dwight Muhammad Qawi was born, world champion in 2 weight classes and inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2004.
1681 The first recorded boxing match in England, arranged by Christopher Monck, 2nd Duke of Albemarle: his butler vs his butcher.
2006 Carlos Baldomir defeated Zab Judah in an upset victory for the WBC Welterweight title.
2010 Roman Karmazin defeated Dionisio Miranda as part of an IBF Middleweight title eliminator.
1942 Joe Louis retained his world Heavyweight title against Buddy Baer.
1939 Henry Armstrong began what would be a run of 20 successful title defences of his world Welterweight title in the same year.
1960 LaMar Clark set a professional boxing record of 44 consecutive knockouts.
1944 Joe Frazier was born in Beaufort, South Carolina. A gold medalist in the 1964 Summer Olympics, he would be the first to defeat Muhammad Ali and reign as undisputed Heavyweight champion from 1970 to 1973.
1941 Anton Christoforidis became the first Greek world boxing champion in history, defeating Melio Bettina.
1979 Wilfred Benítez won his 2nd of 3 world titles, defeating WBC world Welterweight champion Carlos Palomino.
1971 Joe Frazier retained his world Heavyweight title by defeating Terry Daniels.
1950 Willie Pep retained his world Featherweight title with a fifth-round knockout of Charley Riley.
1942 Muhammad Ali was born in Louisville, Kentucky. He would be one of the most significant and celebrated sports figures of the 20th century, and is frequently ranked as the greatest Heavyweight boxer of all time.
1946 Professional boxing was revived following the Second World War, after being frozen for the duration of the war.
2008 Roy Jones Jr. defeated Félix Trinidad by unanimous decision.
2001 Floyd Mayweather Jr defeated Diego Corrales to defend his WBC Super Featherweight title.
2006 Manny Pacquiao defeated Erik Morales for the Super Featherweight title in their second bout in one of the greatest boxing trilogies of all time.
1973 George Foreman became world Heavyweight champion, defeating Joe Frazier in the first fight televised by HBO Boxing.
1967 Emile Griffith retained the world Middleweight title by defeating Joey Archer.
1976 George Foreman defeated Ron Lyle after being knocked down twice in round four.
1939 Joe Louis retained the world Heavyweight title by defeating John Henry Lewis.
2002 Vernon Forrest defeated Shane Mosley in an upset victory for the WBC Welterweight title.
1953 Archie Moore retained his world Light-Heavyweight title over former world champion Joey Maxim.
1974 Muhammad Ali defeated Joe Frazier in their second of three fights by a controversial decision.
1994 Frankie Randall defeated Julio César Chávez for the WBC world Jr Welterweight title, giving Chávez his first defeat in 91 professional bouts.
1982 Wilfred Benítez retained his WBC world Jr. Middleweight title by defeating Roberto Durán.
1983 Rafael Orono retained his WBC world Jr Bantamweight championship over Pedro Romero.
February
1965 Floyd Patterson beat George Chuvalo by unanimous decision in a 12-round non-title clash.
1980 Salvador Sánchez became WBC world Featherweight champion by defeating Danny Lopez.
2006 Laila Ali defeated Gwendolyn O'Neil in her last fight. She would retire with an undefeated record of 24-0.
1979 Alexis Arguello retained his WBC world Jr Lightweight title against Alfredo Escalera.
2009 Joe Calzaghe retired unbeaten in 46 bouts as a two weight champion.
1967 Muhammad Ali unified his WBC world Heavyweight title with the WBA one, defeating the WBA's world champion Ernie Terrell by a fifteen-round unanimous decision.
1921 Jack Britton retained the world Welterweight title with a fifteen-round decision over Ted "Kid" Lewis.
1888 Ad Wolgast, the Michigan Wildcat, was born. He would become the world Lightweight champion from 1910 to 1912.
1991 Terry Norris defeated Sugar Ray Leonard, defending his WBC super welterweight title.
2007 Shane Mosley became WBC Welterweight champion by defeating Luis Collazo.
1990 Buster Douglas defeated Mike Tyson in an upset victory.
2011 Arthur Abraham defeated Stjepan Božić.
2010 Nonito Donaire defeated Manuel Vargas to defend his interim WBA world Super Flyweight title.
1951 St Valentine's Day Massacre: Sugar Ray Robinson defeated Jake LaMotta in their six-fight rivalry, becoming the undisputed world Middleweight champion.
1978 Leon Spinks defeated Muhammad Ali to become undisputed world Heavyweight champion.
1970 Joe Frazier beat Jimmy Ellis to become world Heavyweight champion.
1941 Joe Louis defeated Gus Dorazio for his 14th title defence.
1930 Jack Kid Berg beat Mushy Callahan to become world Jr. Welterweight champion.
2000 Erik Morales defeated Marco Antonio Barrera to unify the WBO and WBC super bantamweight belts.
1933 Battling Shaw beat Johnny Jadick to win the world Jr Welterweight title.
1933 Young Corbett III beat Jackie Fields to become the world Welterweight champion.
2020 Tyson Fury defeated Deontay Wilder in their rematch by seventh-round technical knockout.
2008 Wladimir Klitschko unified the IBF and WBO heavyweight titles as he defeated Sultan Ibragimov.
1989 Roberto Durán made history by becoming the 3rd fighter to win world titles in 4 different divisions.
1964 Muhammad Ali (then Cassius Clay) defeated Sonny Liston in an upset victory to become world Heavyweight champion.
1943 Jake LaMotta fought Sugar Ray Robinson for a 3rd time.
1937 Doug Jones the American heavyweight boxer was born. He is best known for his 1963 fight with Muhammad Ali (then Cassius Clay) that resulted in a challenged loss.
2009 Juan Manuel Márquez defeated Juan Díaz via 9th-round TKO to bag the WBA and WBO lightweight titles.
March
1949 Joe Louis retired after the longest single reign as champion of any boxer in history.
1985 Tony Jeffries was born. He would win Bronze at the 2008 Summer Olympics.
2006 Joe Calzaghe defeated Jeff Lacy for the IBF-WBO Super Middleweight unification.
1961 Gene Fullmer retained the National Boxing Association's world Middleweight title against Sugar Ray Robinson. It would be Robinson’s last world title attempt.
1934 Barney Ross retained his world Lightweight title against Frankie Klick.
1976 Wilfred Benitez became the youngest world champion in boxing history, winning the WBA Light Welterweight championship at age 17.
1987 Mike Tyson unified the WBC and WBA world Heavyweight titles by defeating James Smith.
1971 Joe Frazier defeated Muhammad Ali in their first of three fights. It would be the most anticipated and publicized sporting event in boxing history.
1987 Thomas Hearns became the ninth boxer in history to win world titles in three divisions, and the first American to do so since Henry Armstrong, by defeating Dennis Andries.
2007 Wladimir Klitschko defended his IBF Heavyweight title against Ray Austin.
1947 Manuel Ortiz regained the world Bantamweight title with a fifteen-round decision over Harold Dade.
2011 Miguel Cotto defeated Ricardo Mayorga to retain his WBA world Light Middleweight title.
1999 Evander Holyfield and Lennox Lewis meet in a unification heavyweight bout at Madison Square Garden, and the fight ends in a controversial draw.
2009 Amir Khan defeated Marco Antonio Barrera.
2008 Manny Pacquiao became the Ring Magazine and WBC Super Featherweight champion by beating Juan Manuel Márquez.
1876 Nelly Saunders and Rose Harland fight in the first female boxing match.
2007 Juan Manuel Márquez beat Marco Antonio Barrera to become the WBC Super Featherweight champion.
2006 James Toney fought Hasim Rahman for the WBC Heavyweight title, and the fight ended in a draw.
2005 Erik Morales defeated Manny Pacquiao by unanimous decision.
2010 Wladimir Klitschko knocked out Eddie Chambers with five seconds left in the fight.
1988 Mike Tyson travelled to Japan to beat Tony Tubbs and retain his undisputed world Heavyweight title.
1967 Muhammad Ali retained his world Heavyweight title by beating Zora Folley.
1948 Rinty Monaghan unified the world Flyweight title with a win over Jackie Patterson.
1975 Muhammad Ali retained his world Heavyweight title over underdog Chuck Wepner. With a young Sylvester Stallone watching at home, the fight would inspire the movie, Rocky.
1962 Davey Moore passed away in Los Angeles. His passing lead to Bob Dylan's song Who Killed Davey Moore?
1974 George Foreman retained his world Heavyweight title with a second-round knockout over Ken Norton.
2010 Erik Morales returned from a 32-month retirement to beat José Alfaro and win the WBC international welterweight title.
1998 Lennox Lewis defeated Shannon Briggs to retain his WBC Heavyweight Championship and win the Lineal Heavyweight title.
1966 Muhammad Ali retained his WBC world Heavyweight title by defeating George Chuvalo.
1965 José Torres became the first Hispanic Light-Heavyweight champion in history by knocking out Willie Pastrano in nine rounds.
1973 Ken Norton became the second boxer to defeat Muhammad Ali, breaking Ali's jaw in a twelve-round split decision.
April
1939 Sixto Escobar defeated KO Morgan to retain the world Bantamweight title.
2011 Giovanni Segura defeated Iván Calderón in a repeat of 2010's fight of the year.
2010 Bernard Hopkins defeated Roy Jones Jr in a rematch of their May 1993 fight, in which Jones Jr won the vacant IBF Middleweight title.
1961 Ray Mercer was born. He would win the heavyweight gold medal at the 1988 Summer Olympics and later hold the WBO Heavyweight title from 1991 to 1992.
1915 Jess Willard defeated Jack Johnson after 26 rounds to win the Heavyweight title.
1987 Sugar Ray Leonard returned after three and a half years without fighting to defeat Marvin Hagler and win the undisputed world Middleweight championship.
2001 Marco Antonio Barrera defeated Naseem Hamed.
2006 Floyd Mayweather Jr. defeated Zab Judah by unanimous decision to win the IBF Welterweight title.
1988 Evander Holyfield unified his WBA and WBC world Cruiserweight titles by defeating Carlos De León.
2010 Evander Holyfield, at 47 years of age, knocked out Francois Botha in the eighth round to win the World Boxing Federation Heavyweight title.
1750 The first international price fight: Jack Slack retained his title as Champion of England by beating Frenchman Jean Petit in 7 rounds.
1997 Oscar De La Hoya defeated Pernell Whitaker to win the Lineal & WBC Welterweight championship.
2014 Manny Pacquiao defeated Timothy Bradley to regain his WBO Welterweight boxing title.
2007 Ruslan Chagaev became the new WBA Heavyweight champion after defeating Nicolay Valuev.
1985 Marvin Hagler defeated Thomas Hearns in what many consider the greatest three rounds in boxing history.
1952 Sugar Ray Robinson retained his world Middleweight title with a third-round knockout of former world champion Rocky Graziano.
1967 Nino Benvenuti won the world Middleweight title by defeating Emile Griffith.
1913 Ted ‘Kid’ Lewis became the first boxer to use a mouth guard in the ring.
2008 Joe Calzaghe defeated Bernard Hopkins to gain the Ring Light Heavyweight championship.
1902 Jack Marles invented the first mouth guard for boxers.
1962 Carlos Ortiz became world Lightweight champion with a win over Joe Brown.
2006 Wladimir Klitschko won the IBF world Heavyweight title from Chris Byrd.
1977 Carlos Zarate defeated WBA world champion Alfonso Zamora in four rounds in a non-title fight.
1961 Roger Mayweather was born. He would become a two-division champion and later coach Floyd Mayweather Jr to become one of the biggest names in boxing history.
1950 Sugar Ray Robinson knocked out Jose Basora in 48 seconds, a record for a championship fight that stood for 37 years.
1975 George Foreman staged an exhibition fight against five different boxers. He beat all five men by knockout.
1956 Rocky Marciano announced his retirement and became the only Heavyweight champion to finish his career undefeated, 49-0.
1967 Muhammad Ali refused induction into army and was stripped of his boxing title.
2017 Anthony Joshua stopped Wladimir Klitschko in the 11th round.
1976 Muhammad Ali retained the world Heavyweight title with a highly disputed fifteen round unanimous decision over Jimmy Young.
May
2010 Floyd Mayweather Jr beat Shane Mosley to continue his undefeated career streak.
2015 Floyd Mayweather Jr defeated Manny Pacquiao in the highest grossing fight in boxing history.
2014 Floyd Mayweather Jr beat Marcos Maidana by majority decision.
2019 Saul Alvarez defeated Daniel Jacobs, defending his WBA (Super), WBC, Ring and lineal Middleweight titles whilst obtaining the IBF Middleweight title.
2007 Floyd Mayweather Jr. defeated Oscar De La Hoya, taking the WBC Junior Middleweight title.
1995 Oscar De La Hoya unified the WBO and IBF Lightweight titles in his win against Rafael Ruelas.
2016 Canelo Alvarez knocked out Amir Khan in the 6th round.
2004 Manny Pacquiao defeated Juan Manuel Márquez for the Featherweight championship.
1971 Carlos Monzón retained his title with a three-round knockout of Nino Benvenuti.
1935 Tony Canzoneri recovered the world Lightweight title over Lou Ambers.
1977 Ken Norton knocked out Duane Bobick in the first round.
2001 Félix Trinidad defeated William Joppy to take the WBA Middleweight title.
2010 Manny Pacquiao was officially proclaimed congressman of the lone district of Sarangani.
2011 Andre Ward defeated Arthur Abraham to retain his WBA Super World Super Middleweight title.
2004 Antonio Tarver defeated Roy Jones Jr in an upset victory for the WBC, WBA and WBO Light Heavyweight titles.
1975 Muhammad Ali retained the world Heavyweight title with an eleventh-round knockout of Ron Lyle.
1989 Carlos De León became the first boxer to win the world Cruiserweight title four times when he knocked out Sammy Reeson in 9 rounds.
1956 Sugar Ray Robinson beat Bobo Olson for the fourth time.
1952 Yoshio Shirai became Japan's first world champion in boxing history, defeating Dado Marino by a fifteen-round decision for the world Flyweight title.
1978 José Cuevas retained his WBA world Welterweight title with a first-round knockout of former world champion Billy Backus.
2011 Bernard Hopkins became the oldest boxer in history to win a world championship at the age of 46. He later broke his own record in 2013 and again in 2014 by winning titles at ages 48 and 49 respectively.
1993 Roy Jones Jr. beat Bernard Hopkins to win the vacated IBF middleweight title.
1981 Wilfred Benítez became the first Hispanic and Puerto Rican to be a three time world champion when he defeated Maurice Hope.
1968 Bob Foster won the world Light-Heavyweight title by defeating Dick Tiger.
1965 Muhammad Ali won against Sonny Liston a second time in the most controversial fight in boxing history.
1972 Joe Frazier retained his world Heavyweight title with a five-round knockout over Ron Stander.
1719 James Figg became the first English bare-knuckle boxing champion.
1934 Barney Ross became the third man in boxing history to win world titles in three divisions.
1913 Tony Zale was born. He held the world Middleweight title multiple times and earned the nickname 'Man of Steel' for his ability to take fearsome punishment and still rally to win.
1923 Jack Bernstein won the world Junior Lightweight title with a 15-round decision over Johnny Dundee.
1938 Henry Armstrong became the first man in boxing history to hold world titles in 3 divisions at the same time.
June
2019 Andy Ruiz Jr beat Anthony Joshua in an upset victory to become the first Mexican world heavyweight champion.
1947 Len Wickwar fought for the 473rd time in his career, more than any other boxer in history.
2016 Muhammad Ali passed away at the age of 74. He would forever be remembered as ‘The Greatest’.
2005 Ricky Hatton defeated Kostya Tszyu for the IBF Light-Welterweight title.
1999 Roy Jones Jr defeated Reggie Johnson and unified the Light Heavyweight division.
1988 Iran Barkley defeated Thomas Hearns for the WBC world Middleweight title.
1946 Willie Pep unified the world Featherweight title with a victory over Sal Bartolo.
2002 Lennox Lewis beat Mike Tyson in an eighth-round knockout.
2007 Miguel Cotto defended his WBA Welterweight title against Zab Judah by technical knockout in the 11th.
2006 Bernard Hopkins defeated Antonio Tarver to take the Light Heavyweight world championship.
1930 Max Schmeling won the undisputed World Heavyweight title, defeating Jack Sharkey by a four-round disqualification, after a low blow, and also became the first boxer to win the title by disqualification.
1986 Evander Holyfield won his first world title, the WBA's Cruiserweight championship, with a 15-round decision over Dwight Muhammad Qawi.
1935 James J Braddock, with 24 losses, produced one of the biggest upsets in world Heavyweight championship history, defeating world champion Max Baer to take the world title, by a 15-round unanimous decision.
1934 Max Baer won the world Heavyweight title, dropping Primo Carnera eleven times to an eleventh-round knockout.
1984 Thomas Hearns retained his WBC world Junior Middleweight title with a second-round knockout over Roberto Durán.
1983 Roberto Durán became the seventh fighter in history to be a 3 division world champion, knocking out WBA Junior Middleweight champion Davey Moore in 8 rounds.
1954 Rocky Marciano defeated Ezzard Charles by a 15-round unanimous decision.
1923 Pancho Villa became the first world boxing champion in history from the Philippines, knocking out Jimmy Wilde in 7 rounds.
1936 Max Schmeling gave Joe Louis his first defeat with a 12-round knockout.
1980 Roberto Durán defeated Sugar Ray Leonard for the WBC world Welterweight title.
2003 Lennox Lewis defended his title by defeating Vitali Klitschko by technical knockout due to a cut in Klitschko's left eye. Klitschko was up on all the scorecards at the time of the stoppage.
1937 Joe Louis became Heavyweight champion and defended the title until his retirement in 1949, becoming the longest reigning champion in history.
2007 Ricky Hatton defended his Ring Light Welterweight championship by defeating José Luis Castillo.
1957 Hogan Bassey became Nigeria's first world boxing champion in history, winning the vacant world Featherweight title with a tenth-round knockout of Cherif Hamia.
1948 Joe Louis retained his world Heavyweight title for the 25th and final time, a record for any division in boxing history.
1934 Sixto Escobar became Puerto Rico's first world champion in history, knocking out Baby Casanova in 9 rounds.
1988 Mike Tyson retained his undisputed world Heavyweight title with a first-round knockout of former world champion Michael Spinks.
1997 Evander Holyfield won by disqualification over Mike Tyson after Tyson tried to bite his ear twice.
1956 Mario D'Agata became boxing's first deaf-mute world champion in history, defeating Robert Cohen by knockout in 6 rounds for the world Bantamweight title.
1966 Mike Tyson was born. He would become the youngest Heavyweight champion and one of the biggest names in boxing history.
July
1967 Carlos Ortiz once again knocked out Sugar Ramos to retain the world Lightweight title.
1921 Jack Dempsey fought Georges Carpentier in the first million-dollar fight in boxing history.
1931 Max Schmeling retained the world Heavyweight title, with a fifteenth-round knockout of Young Stribling.
1910 Jack Johnson defeated James J. Jeffries by TKO in 15 rounds to retain his world heavyweight boxing title.
1704 Jack Broughton is born in Cirencester, England. He would be an English bare knuckle boxer and the publisher of the first ever boxing code.
1946 Sylvester Stallone was born. He would write and star in Rocky, perhaps the most culturally, historically and aesthetically significant boxing film in boxing history.
2007 Nonito Donaire defeated Vic Darchinyan for the IBF and IBO flyweight titles.
1989 John Mugabi defeated René Jacquot to win the WBC Light Middleweight Championship.
1974 Rubén Olivares defeated Zensuke Utagawa for the vacant WBA world Featherweight championship.
1951 Randy Turpin won the world Middleweight title by defeating Sugar Ray Robinson.
1949 Sugar Ray Robinson retained the world Welterweight title with a 15-round unanimous decision over Kid Gavilán.
1975 José Nápoles retained his world Welterweight title with a 15-round decision over Armando Muniz.
2001 Micky Ward defeated Emanuel Augustus by 10-round decision.
2007 Paul Williams became the WBO welterweight champion as he defeated Antonio Margarito.
1931 Kid Chocolate became Cuba's first world boxing champion in history by defeating Benny Bass.
2011 Kevin Mitchell defeated John Murray for the vacant WBO Inter-Continental lightweight title.
1974 Bob Foster retained his world Light-Heavyweight title with a draw with Jorge Ahumada.
1951 Jersey Joe Walcott became the oldest heavyweight champion at the age of 37, a record that would eventually be broken in 1994 by 45-year-old George Foreman.
1996 Muhammad Ali lit the Olympic Flame during the Opening Ceremony in Atlanta in what many consider the most inspiring, poignant and emotional moments in Olympic history.
2019 Manny Pacquaio beat Keith Thurman by split decision, becoming the oldest Welterweight champion at the age of 40.
2007 Bernard Hopkins beat Winky Wright by unanimous decision.
1963 Sonny Liston again defeated Floyd Patterson by a knockout in the first round, this time retaining the world Heavyweight title.
2011 Amir Khan defeated Zab Judah in the fifth round.
1902 Joe Gans defeated Rufe Turner to defend his World Lightweight Championship.
1921 Pete Herman regained the world Bantamweight title with a 15-round decision over Joe Lynch.
2008 Antonio Margarito defeated Miguel Cotto to gain the WBA Welterweight title - with a hand wrap controversy surrounding Margarito later calling the victory into question.
1921 Johnny Wilson retained the world Middleweight title with a seventh round disqualification win over William Bryan Downey.
2001 Roy Jones Jr defended the WBC, WBA, and IBF Light Heavyweight titles against Julio César González.
1751 The first international world title prize fight: Jack Stack of England defeated challenger M. Petit of France in 29 mins.
1977 Carlos Monzón retained his world Middleweight championship against Rodrigo Valdez in their rematch.
2010 Juan Manuel Márquez defeated Juan Díaz for a second time to retain his WBO Lightweight title and to win the WBA super world Lightweight title.
August
1987 Mike Tyson defeated Tony Tucker to become undisputed world Heavyweight champion.
1980 Thomas Hearns became WBA world Welterweight champion, knocking out Pipino Cuevas in two rounds.
1966 Eric Esch was born in Jasper, Alabama. He would later be remembered as 'Butterbean'.
1936 Henry Armstrong became world champion for the first time by defeating Baby Arizmendi.
1931 Maxie Rosenbloom retained his world Light Heavyweight title over Jimmy Slattery.
1956 After going bankrupt in 1955, the American national broadcaster DuMont Television Network made its final broadcast: a boxing match from St. Nicholas Arena.
1997 Roy Jones Jr regained his WBC Light Heavyweight title by first-round knockout in his rematch against Montell Griffin.
2010 Devon Alexander won a decision over Andriy Kotelnyk.
2012 Nicola Adams became the first female Olympic boxing champion after winning gold at London Olympics.
1949 Ezzard Charles retained his world Heavyweight title, knocking out Gus Lesvenich.
1990 Pernell Whitaker defeated Juan Nazario to unify the WBA, WBC, IBF belts and become the undisputed Lightweight champion of the world.
2000 Evander Holyfield defeated John Ruiz for the WBA Heavyweight title, making Holyfield the only heavyweight in boxing history to win a portion of the title 4 times.
2011 Kimbo Slice made his boxing debut with a 17-second knockout of James Wade.
2010 Jean Pascal defeated Chad Dawson by a technical decision due to an accidental headbutt.
2009 Roy Jones Jr defeated Jeff Lacy in round 10.
1743 Jack Broughton, Champion of England, published the earliest boxing code: 'Rules of the Ring'
1938 Henry Armstrong won his 3rd concurrent boxing championship.
1967 Carlos Ortiz retained his world Lightweight title against Ismael Laguna.
1995 Mike Tyson defeated Peter McNeeley in his first comeback fight.
1931 Don King was born in Cleveland, Ohio. An American boxing promoter, he would be best known for his association with Mike Tyson and for his unusual hairstyles.
1939 Lou Ambers defeated Henry Armstrong to regain the world Lightweight title.
1969 Rubén Olivares became world Bantamweight champion for the first time, knocking out Lionel Rose.
1933 The first televised boxing match: a 6-round middleweight exhibition at Broadcasting House in London, between Archie Sexton and Lauri Raiteri, aired by BBC-TV
1956 Joe Brown won the world Lightweight title with a 15-round split decision over Bud Smith.
1941 All major titles were frozen until 1946, as four thousand professional boxers joined the military.
2017 Floyd Mayweather Jr stops UFC fighter Conor McGregor in the 10th round to become 50-0.
1943 Sugar Ray Robinson beat his childhood hero, Henry Armstrong, by a 10-round unanimous decision.
1959 Gene Fullmer won the National Boxing Association's world Middleweight title over Carmen Basilio.
1885 Boxing's first Heavyweight title fight with 3-oz gloves and 3-minute rounds: John L. Sullivan vs. Dominick McCaffrey.
1921 Angelo Dundee was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He would be remembered as the boxing trainer and cornerman of Muhammad Ali.
1936 Sixto Escobar unified the world Bantamweight title with a knockout victory over Tony Marino.
September
1973 George Foreman retained his world Heavyweight title with a first-round knockout over José Roman.
2016 ‘Bleed for This’ was released: an American biographical sports film directed by Ben Younger on the life of former world champion Vinny Pazienza.
1906 Joe Gans defeated Battling Nelson via disqualification in round 42 to regain the world Lightweight title.
2010 Ricky Burns gave Román Martínez his first defeat and won the WBO super Featherweight title.
1960 Muhammad Ali (then Cassius Clay) won gold at the Summer Olympics in Rome in the Light Heavyweight division.
1920 Jack Dempsey defeated Billy Miske in 3 rounds for the Heavyweight title in the first radio broadcast of a prize fight.
1996 Mike Tyson defeated Bruce Seldon in 1 round for the WBA heavyweight title, unifying it with the WBC heavyweight title he already held. American rapper Tupac Shakur watched the fight but was fatally shot later that night.
1950 Sandy Saddler regained the world Featherweight title against Willie Pep in their third of four fights.
1944 Willie Pep retained the world Featherweight title with a 15-round decision over Chalky Wright.
1973 Muhammad Ali avenged his loss to Ken Norton, beating him by a 12-round split decision.
2010 Yuriorkis Gamboa defeated Orlando Salido to unify the WBA world and vacant IBF Featherweight titles.
1951 Sugar Ray Robinson recovered the world Middleweight title with a 10-round knockout of Randy Turpin.
2003 Shane Mosley beat Oscar De La Hoya in their rematch to unify the WBC and WBA Light Middleweight title belts.
2013 Floyd Mayweather Jr beat Canelo Álvarez by majority decision.
1978 Muhammad Ali made history by becoming the first boxer to be world Heavyweight champion three times.
2017 Gennady Golovkin fought Canelo Alvarez, which ended in a controversial draw.
1934 Jimmy McLarnin recovered the world Welterweight title over Barney Ross.
1999 Félix Trinidad defeated Oscar De La Hoya by a close, controversial majority decision.
2009 Floyd Mayweather Jr defeated Juan Manuel Márquez in a comeback after retiring 21 months earlier.
1972 Muhammad Ali beat Floyd Patterson by a knockout in round 7 of their rematch.
1985 Michael Spinks made history by becoming the first boxer to go from world Light-Heavyweight champion to world Heavyweight champion, defeating IBF champion Larry Holmes.
1927 Gene Tunney defeated contender Jack Dempsey again.
1952, Rocky Marciano defeated Jersey Joe Walcott to become the Heavyweight champion of the world.
1922 Battling Siki became Senegal's first world boxing champion.
1962 Sonny Liston became world Heavyweight champion by knocking out Floyd Patterson in the first round.
1945 Jake LaMotta fought Sugar Ray Robinson for the fifth and final time.
1980 Marvin Hagler became world Middleweight champion, scoring a technical knockout over Alan Minter on cuts in 3 rounds.
1976 Muhammad Ali retained the world Heavyweight championship with a disputed 15 round unanimous decision over Ken Norton in the last fight of their trilogy.
2001 Bernard Hopkins defeated Félix Trinidad to successfully unify the WBA, WBC, and IBF titles and become the undisputed Middleweight champion.
1977 Muhammad Ali retained the world Heavyweight championship with a 15-round unanimous decision over Earnie Shavers.
October
1975 Muhammad Ali fought Joe Frazier a third and final time in one of the biggest fights in boxing history.
1942 Jake LaMotta fought Sugar Ray Robinson in Robinson's middleweight debut, their first of five fights.
2001 Kostya Tszyu became the undisputed Light Welterweight champion by defeating Zab Judah.
1930 Panama Al Brown retained the world Bantamweight title with a 15-round decision over Eugene Huat.
2013 Wladimir Klitschko beat Alexander Povetkin to retain his WBA, WBO, IBF, IBO heavyweight titles.
2007 Manny Pacquiao defeated Marco Antonio Barrera by unanimous decision.
1932 Benny Leonard's last fight, the former world Lightweight champion would be knocked out in six rounds by Jimmy McLarnin.
1818 Jack Broughton designed the first boxing glove to be used in a boxing match.
2021 Tyson Fury beat Deontay Wilder in their third and final fight via 11th round knockout in what is widely regarded as one of the greatest heavyweight fights of all time.
1962 Fighting Harada became world Flyweight champion, knocking out Pone Kingpetch in 11 rounds.
2008 Vitali Klitschko defeated Sam Peter after 4 years of inactivity.
2013 Timothy Bradley defeated Juan Manuel Márquez by split decision.
1936 Sixto Escobar retained the world Bantamweight title, with a first-round knockout over Indian Quintana.
2006 Mikkel Kessler unified the WBC and WBA Super middleweight titles after knocking out Markus Beyer.
2005 Reggie Strickland lost for the 276th time, a record for the most professional defeats.
1942 National Boxing Association froze the titles of those serving in the armed services.
2009 Arthur Abraham defeated Jermain Taylor with less than 10 seconds left in the fight as part of the Super Six Tournament.
2008 Bernard Hopkins defeated Kelly Pavlik via unanimous decision.
1923 Ban Johnson persuaded American League owners to prohibit boxing in their parks.
1947 Rinty Monaghan regained the world Flyweight title with a 15-round decision over Dado Marino.
1953 Carl Olson became world Middleweight champion over Randy Turpin.
1966 Carlos Ortiz beat Sugar Ramos to retain his world Lightweight title.
1964 Joe Frazier defeated German Hans Huber and won the Olympic Heavyweight gold medal in Tokyo.
1894 Ted ‘Kid’ Lewis was born. He would win the World Welterweight Championship twice and be regarded as one of the all time greats.
1996 When We Were Kings is released: the documentary film directed by Leon Gast about the heavyweight championship between George Foreman and Muhammad Ali
1951 Joe Louis fought for the last time, losing to Rocky Marciano.
1931 Panama Al Brown retained his world Bantamweight title with a 15-round decision over Eugene Huat.
1927 the National Boxing Association (NBA) became the first sanctioning body to govern the sport.
1987 Thomas Hearns made history by becoming the first to win world titles at 4 different divisions, knocking out Juan Roldán in 4 rounds.
1974 Muhammad Ali fought George Foreman in what many consider the greatest sporting event of the 20th century.
1992 Lennox Lewis defeated Razor Ruddock to defend his Commonwealth heavyweight title.
November
1922 Mickey Walker became world Welterweight champion, defeating Jack Britton by a 15-round decision.
1944 Michael Buffer, the great ring announcer, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
1973 Arnold Taylor survived 4 knockdowns to knock out Romeo Anaya in 14 rounds, winning the WBA world Bantamweight title.
2006 Floyd Mayweather Jr became the WBC and linear Welterweight champion, defeating Carlos Baldomir.
1994 George Foreman at 45 years old became the oldest Heavyweight champion by defeating Michael Moorer via knockout in round 10 after being behind in all the scorecards.
1993 Evander Holyfield recaptured the WBA and IBF heavyweight championships from Riddick Bowe at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas. The fight was temporarily stopped in the 7th round when a parachutist landed near the ring.
1988 Sugar Ray Leonard became the second 4 division world champion and the first 5 division world champion by defeating Donnie Lalonde.
2008 Joe Calzaghe defeated Roy Jones Jr by unanimous decision to retain the Ring Magazine Light Heavyweight title.
1996 Evander Holyfield won by technical knockout against Mike Tyson to win the WBA heavyweight title.
1978 Larry Holmes retained his WBC world Heavyweight title with a seventh-round knockout over Uruguayan Alfredo Evangelista.
1965 Sugar Ray Robinson announced his retirement with a record of 173-19-6. Many sportswriters, boxers and trainers regard him as the greatest boxer in history irrespective of weight class.
1982 Aaron Pryor retained his WBA world Junior Welterweight title with a 14-round knockout of Alexis Arguello.
2010 Manny Pacquiao defeated Antonio Margarito for the WBC super welterweight title, making Pacquiao the first boxer to win world titles in 8 different weight classes.
2009 Manny Pacquiao defeated Miguel Cotto to become the first boxer to win a world title in seven different weight divisions.
2003 Manny Pacquiao defeated Marco Antonio Barrera to earn the Ring Magazine featherweight title.
1961 Frank Bruno was born. He would win the WBC Heavyweight championship in 1995 and be known for his exceptional punching power, scoring 38 knockouts in 40 wins.
2001 Lennox Lewis recaptured the Heavyweight title as he avenged his loss against Hasim Rahman.
1990 Chris Eubank wins the WBO Middleweight title by defeating Nigel Benn.
2015 Creed was released: the sequel and spin-off to the Rocky franchise, starring Michael B. Jordan.
1942 Willie Pep won the world Featherweight championship over Chalky Wright.
1976 Rocky was released: the highest-grossing film of that year and winner of three Academy Award nominations.
1986 Mike Tyson became the youngest world Heavyweight champion in history by defeating Trevor Berbick by knockout in round 2.
1974 Alexis Arguello won the first of 3 world titles, knocking out Ruben Olivares.
1933 Tony Canzoneri defeated Kid Chocolate in their second fight, giving Kid Chocolate his first KO loss.
1980 A frustrated Roberto Duran walked out in Round 8 of his rematch with Sugar Ray Leonard.
1954 Pascual Pérez became Argentina's first world boxing champion, defeating Yoshio Shirai to take the world Flyweight championship.
1985 Rocky IV was released, starring Sylvester Stallone and Dolph Lundgren. It would be the highest grossing sports film of all time for 24 years.
2015 Tyson Fury defeated Wladimir Klitschko, ending Klitschko’s almost decade-long reign as the Heavyweight Champion of the world.
1946 The International Boxing Association (AIBA) was established.
1956 Floyd Patterson won the vacant world Heavyweight championship over Archie Moore.
December
2018 Tyson Fury fought Deontay Wilder for the first time in a controversial draw.
2000 Félix Trinidad defeated Fernando Vargas to unify the WBA and IBF Light Middleweight titles.
1960 Gene Fullmer and Sugar Ray Robinson fought for the third time. Fullmer retained the NBA world Middleweight title with a 15-round draw.
1999 Fernando Vargas defeated Winky Wright by majority decision to retain his IBF Light Middleweight championship
1947 Joe Louis retained his world Heavyweight title for the 24th time by defeating Jersey Joe Walcott.
2008 Manny Pacquiao defeated Oscar De La Hoya after 8 rounds.
1734, James Figg was born. He would be the first recognised boxing champion of England.
2007 Floyd Mayweather Jr defended his WBC and Ring Welterweight titles, defeating Ricky Hatton.
1955 Sugar Ray Robinson joined the exclusive group of fighters who have been world champion 3 or more times in one division.
1958 Archie Moore knocked out Yvon Durelle to retain his world Light Heavyweight title in what many consider to be one of the greatest fights in boxing history.
1981 Muhammad Ali's last fight. He would lose a 10-round unanimous decision to future WBC World Heavyweight Champion Trevor Berbick.
1968 Nicolino Locche won the world Jr Welterweight championship, knocking out Paul Fujii.
1981 Muhammad Ali announced his retirement from boxing.
1967 Hiroshi Kobayashi dropped Yoshiaki Numata 4 times before knocking him out to win the world title in the first world title fight in history between two Japanese fighters.
1968 Jess Willard passed away at age 86. He would be remembered as the world Heavyweight champion between 1915 and 1919.
1940 Joe Louis defeated Al McCoy for the Heavyweight boxing title.
1978 Manny Pacquiao was born in Kibawe, Philippines. He would be the first and perhaps only champion of 8 different weight classes.
2006 Manny Pacquiao knocked out Erik Morales in the 3rd round of their third and final match.
1926 the ‘Chicago Tribune’ arranged the ‘Golden Gloves’ amateur competitions with the status of national championship.
1946 Sugar Ray Robinson became world champion for the first time, defeating Tommy Bell by a 15-round unanimous decision.
1908 Sam Langford defeated Jim Flynn in a first round KO.
1912 Henry Armstrong was born in Columbus, Mississippi. He would be world champion at featherweight, lightweight, and welterweight with 19 title defences.
1909 Barney Ross was born in NYC, New York. He would be world champion in 3 weight divisions and a decorated veteran of WWII.
1899 Bobby Dobbs defeated Pete Sheenan.
1923 Harry Greb defeated Tommy Loughman in a rare case of Christmas boxing.
1908 Jack Johnson won the world Heavyweight title.
1957 Tom Witherspoon was born. He would become a two-time heavyweight champion, and work regularly as a sparring partner for Muhammad Ali.
1936 Billy Conn defeated Fritzie Zivic in Round 10.
1881 Jess Willard was born. He would defeat Jack Johnson for the world Heavyweight title in 1915 and eventually lose the title against Jack Dempsey in 1919.
1970 Sonny Liston passed away. He was the world heavyweight champion in 1962 after knocking out Floyd Patterson in the first round and repeating the knockout the following year to become the inaugural WBC Heavyweight champion.
1952 Danny Nardico defeated Jake LaMotta in a Light Heavyweight non-title fight.
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References
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