Archie Moore
Titles: World Light Heayweight champion 1952-1962
Record: 183-24-10 with 1 NC
Born: December 13, 1913 in Benoit, Mississippi (USA)
Years active: 1936-1963
Nickname: The Old Mongoose, Ageless Archie
Born as Archibald Lee Wright we would come to know him as Archie Moore. Moore was best
described as "a peaceful, happy man who made a violent living". Archie successfully
fought the battle with father time longer than any other boxer and holds a boxing record
with 141 career knockouts which will never be broken. His career knockouts total is a
achievement in ferocity that totally contradicts this gentle mans personality outside of
the ring. This record is even more impressive when you know that Moore was not a big
knockout puncher but counted on accuracy, he also knew when and what punch to throw to
do the most damage. His opponents simply wilted under the mental and physical pressure
of facing a master boxer. Moore's little tricks eventually found their way into the
repertory of boxers like Muhammad Ali, Ken Norten and George Forman and are even found
in many of today's fighters like Floyd Mayweather, Montell Griffin and James Toney.
Things like tilting his shoulder in front of his chin, the ability to hit with one hand
while his other dangled at his side, and then backpedal when the opponent threw his
volley of punches. That lashing style, along with his ring savvy, earned him the
nickname of "The Mongoose". Archie never compromised his defensive, somewhat
conservative style in order to please a crowd, instead waiting for his opponent to make
the mistake on which to capitalize on. Moore, a defensive specialist, was too subtle for
some tastes, But that is precisely the reason why Archie Moore was able to hold the
world light-heavyweight title until he was 49 years old. It was something George Foreman
emulated (not as successfully) with his curious, arms-crossed defensive style which was
lifted directly from Moore, and Moore's ability to go into a shell-like defense. But as
his opponents were looking for a opening that right arm would come out of there so
sneaky they often couldn't see it. Moore said "I knew how to duck punches and stop
punches before they started. My nose was never broken; the only thing I ever broke was
my hands, beating on guys." Moore also never had a cauliflower ear. No one rolled with
punches better than Moore! Moore seemed to always be ahead of his time, his trademarks
were a ready smile and knee-length boxing trunks and he was the first boxer to
incorporate himself. Moore loved to show up for weigh-ins dressed in a tuxedo, black
homburg and silver-tipped walking stick, and he had a way with the language that defied
description. Instead of slipping punches, Archie said he practiced "escapeology." Archie
traveled the world to places like Argentina, Africa, Brazil, Mexico, Germany, England,
Italy and even Tasmania in the Australian outback as an ambassador for boxing. He also
spent much of his retirement lecturing young boys about the evil of drugs and gangs,
Moore had a soft spot for children ever since he had to do a 22-month stretch in a boys
reformatory for theft. It was here that Moore learned to box and discipline himself. His
expertise out of the ring was even sought by President Eisenhower, who invited Moore to
the White House to join a group fighting against juvenile delinquency. Eisenhower aides
quoted the president as saying Moore should be a congressman. Eisenhower asked "Are you
a Republican or a Democrat?", Moore responded "Neither," with a laugh. "I'm a
diplomat." Maybe Boxing Historian Bert Sugar said it best "As heavy as he was with his
punch in the ring, he was that light with his quick wit and thought processes," But it
is his boxing that earned him fame and fortune the world over. This stocky slugger with
the tricky defense never seemed to have trouble making the 175 pound limit (Moore
reportedly did 250 push-ups a day and handstands as part of his fitness regimen) but
also always had a bit of a belly. Moore's early life is a bit mysterious (many things
are unconfirmed including even his birth year 1913 or 1916?) but we do know that his
father deserted his mother when Archie was an infant and he was brought up in St. Louis
by an uncle and aunt from which he took the surname of Moore. As a young man Kid
Chocolate and Joe Gans were his fistic hero's. Moore's 27-year pro career began at age
23 well before World War II when he defeated Murray Allen in Quincy, Illinois via 6
round decision and lasted into the television age. Moore would fight an average of
almost once a month, most for small paydays. Early in his pro career Moore would often
hop on freight trains to get to club fights in saloons and alleys in America's southern
states. It was known as the "Chittlin Circuit," and there Moore went through eight
managers (which also held him back from getting title shots) because he refused to take
a dive or allow himself to be exploited. Early on he fought in St. Louis before moving
out to San Diego and even fighting in Australia looking for better competition, on his
return from Australia Moore had a 40-3-2 record. Along the way, he overcame any number
of ailments acute appendicitis, organic heart disorder, a severed tendon in the wrist, a
perforated ulcer that necessitated surgery. Sometimes, Moore was not supposed to win,
which could explain some of the losses on his record. It was this hard life that gave
him the fistic education no others of his or any other generation could match. But there
were other problems for Moore in his boxing career. Moore a black man in a segregated
America and should have been a champion way before he finally reached champion status.
Archie was much too good for his own good and thus avoided by the champions of his time.
In 1940, now five years a pro, Archie Moore was the world's fifth-ranked middleweight
but still washing dishes at $4 a day on a train between Oakland and Ogden, Utah, to earn
money for food. Moore was beating good fighters and finally receiving recognition when
he briefly announced his retirement following several operations for stomach ulcers.
Moore later claimed this caused his weight to drop from 160 pounds to 100. But after
visits to doctors and his improving fitness Moore decided to keep boxing. That was also
the year of his Australian travels and the secret diet that Moore contended allowed him
to balloon in weight and then, miraculously, shed the pounds. The key, he liked to say,
was chewing meat and extracting the juices but not the fiber. He spit that out. He
claimed that he saw the aborigine eating beef jerky that way. "Have you ever seen a fat
Australian?" Moore would ask rhetorically. There was another strange component to his
diet. In the morning he drank sauerkraut juice flavored with lemon juice. For another 3
years Moore fought on before winning his first title of any kind when he defeated Jack
Chase for the California light heavyweight title, only to loose it back to Chase 2
fights later. This was followed by another loss, this one to Aaron Wade. The losses
however were few and far between from here on. Other than a KO loss to Eddie Booker they
all came against top notch boxers. On his long road to his title shot Moore would fight
and defeat many other great boxers like Lloyd Marshall, Holman Williams, Bob
Satterfiled, and Jimmy Bivins all of which were good enough to be avoided by the champs
of the day. But his rise to the crown would start with a loss to the great Charley
Burley on April 21 in Hollywood California via 10 round decision. After that fight Moore
reeled of 13 wins with the most noteworthy ones being two wins over tough Lloyd
Marshall before Moore would again taste defeat at the hands of another oft avoided black
fighter of his time..... Jimmy Bivins. Bivins would fight Moore in 6 pretty even rounds
before the end came suddenly when Bivins caught Moore with a uppercut. Over the next
three years Moore would dominate his opposition with the exception of a 10 round loss in
1946 to Ezzard Charles in Pittsburgh. Ezzard Charles was the one man Moore could not
seem to defeat (Moore was definitely not alone in this matter) as he would loose to him
2 more times over the next 3 years while twice avenging his loss to Jimmy Bivins. Moore
also lost 4 times to Charley Burley (Moore said Burley was his toughest foe) but on the
great Burley Archie said "There were six knockdowns in those (Burley) fights and none
of 'em were mine." Moore had some of his greatest battles with Harold Johnson. They
fought five times (once with the title at stake with Moore wining KO 14) from 1949 to
1954 with Moore the victor all but once. In 1951 Johnson beat Moore (W 10) who was at
the time on a 25 fight winning streak. Six weeks later Moore avenged that defeat with a
10 round win. There were many other long forgotten names but worthy boxers who were
defeated between 1949 and 1951. Among those defeated were Bob Satterfiled, Jimmy Bivins,
Harold Johnson and John Thomas. All this added up to Moore being rated as a top light
heavyweight in the unbiased "The Ring" magazine rankings from 1945-1951. Still Moore was
being passed up as a challenger, so he traveled South America fighting the best of that
continent. By 1952, now fighting as a light-heavyweight, Archie was still searching for
a title bout but Joey Maxim, the light-heavyweight king, declined to face Moore. So
Moore began a letter-writing campaign. He started to correspond with well-known
journalists like Red Smith, demanding to meet Maxim, a cautious, cagey fighter. Finally,
Maxim agreed but only if Moore guaranteed Maxim a $100,000 cut of the purse. Moore's
manager, Doc Kearns, cut the deal. Moore was 39 years old when he finally met Maxim on
Dec. 17, 1952. Finally in his 174th bout Moore won the world title when he outpointed
Joey Maxim in his hometown of St. Louis to win the world light heavyweight title which
was worth much more than his meager purse of $800.00. 12,610 fans came out to watch
Moore dominate Maxim in every department. Maxim was tough and went the distance but that
is the best which could be said of him in this event. Maxim was rocked in the first
round and Moore was able to get inside any time he wanted and cut Maxim over both eyes
and his cheekbone. Now at a age when most boxers have retired Moore was a champion and
would never loose his title inside the ring and he married Joan Hardy, a sister-in-law
of the actor Sidney Poitier. She was his fifth wife. After the fight Moore said "I made
up in 15 rounds what I missed in 16 years". In the subsequent two rematches with Maxim,
Moore would dominate and show himself the better boxer. After winning the title Moore
would fight 43 times over the next six years, taking on all comers, regardless of weight
class or race. He won all but three of those 43 bouts, 25 by knockout, with his only
defeats coming in bids for the heavyweight title Rocky Marciano, 21 year old Floyd
Patterson and against a young up and coming Muhammad Ali (Moore was the only man to
fight Ali and Marciano). Archie was nearly 50 and just months from retirement when he
lost to Muhammad Ali. Angelo Dundee, the longtime trainer who worked with many
champions, including Ali said of Moore, "He was slick, he was smart, he was his own PR
man. The media loved him because he gave them something, plus he could fight like hell."
All told, Moore reigned over the light-heavyweight division for nine years, 52 days, the
longest string of dominance ever by a 175-pounder. How amazing is it that Archie held
part of the world light heavyweight title for 11 years of his pro career, exceedingly
amazing when you consider it took him 26 years just to get his first title shot! On
August 11, 1954 Moore made his long overdue debut at The Madison Square Garden when he
fought his old rival Harold Johnson for the fifth time (going 3-1 in the first 4 fights)
and was a 2-1 favorite. Johnson knew Moore would bob and weave so he concentrated on his
jab while Moore tried to work his way inside and bang the body. After 13 pretty dull
rounds Johnson was ahead on every scorecard. But in the 14th Moore caught Johnson with a
overhand right and the follow-up flurry put Johnson down, ever the finisher Moore jumped
on Johnson after the 8 count forcing the referee to stop the fight. Now Moore began his
forays into the heavyweight division, Archie was not very successful but did put scares
into the champions. When he felt that the heavyweight champion, Rocky Marciano, was
ducking him, Moore spent $50,000 on a letter-writing and advertising campaign, including
a "wanted" poster of the champion to embarrass Marciano into a title defense. Moore had
positioned himself as a prime challenger to Rocky Marciano's throne by outpointing
highly regarded Cuban heavyweight Nino Valdes on May 2, 1955 before coming back on June
22 to defend the light-heavyweight crown on a third-round stoppage of Bobo Olson. Moore
lost 21 pounds to make the light heavyweight limit in that bout. Bobo did well for two
rounds before a left hook at the end of a flurry put Olsen down for the count. Now Moore
was set up to fight heavyweight champion Rocky Marciano. Fighting an undefeated Marciano
the heavyweight king 10 years his junior on Sept. 21, 1955 in front of 61,574 spectators
in Yankee Stadium, Moore dropped The Rock with a short right hand in the second round.
But referee Harry Kessler apparently forgot that the standing eight-count had been
waived, and his enforcement of a rule that was not in effect gave Marciano six precious
seconds to recover against one of boxing's most accomplished finishers. Moore, who was
stopped in the ninth round, complained that it was only Kessler's intervention that had
prevented him from taking out the dazed, wobbly Marciano. Rocky eventually wore Moore
down, to the point where the referee wanted to stop the fight after eight rounds. "Oh,
no," an exhausted Moore protested. "I want to be counted out. I'm a champion, too."
After Rocky, Moore fought 40 more times. Even more incredibly, he lost only three more
times, including stoppages by a couple of 20-year-olds, Floyd Patterson and Cassius
Clay. The Patterson fight was also for the heavyweight (vacated by Marciano) and as with
many older boxers he could not cope with the speed of his younger foe. Moore had
defeated Howard King to get his second heavyweight title shot. But Patterson knocked
Moore out in the 5th round after a short rally in the fourth. But Moore's bloodiest
fight was not his loss to Marciano, or his wars with Johnson and Maxim. It came in 1958
(3 days before Moore's 45 birthday), in the first of his title defenses against the
Canadian Yvon Durelle. Moore, who was to win on an 11th-round knockout, was floored four
times. "The first time he put me down ... I thought 'Wow, this guy can hit,' " Moore
recalled. "They said Marciano was a house wrecker, and he was, but it took him a volley
to get the job done. This guy ... one punch." Moore used to carry a 16mm film of the
Durelle fight with him, Caplan said, and used it as part of his inspirational
speeches. "He'd show it and say, no matter how out you are, you can always get up and
come back and emerge victorious." Moore came back from the 4 knockdowns to put out
Durelle with 3 knockdowns. After the 5th round Durelle visibly tired and Moore took over
the bout. A rematch in 1959 was a easy 3rd round knockout win for Moore. The NBA
withdrew recognition of Moore as champion in 1960 and his other title was taken away in
1962 by the New York and European sanctioning bodies. In 1961 Moore made his last title
defense when he defeated Italian Guilio Rinaldi after he was previously outpointed by
Rinaldi. In a boring bout Moore showed that experience can overcome youth as Rinaldi
failed to take advantage of Moore's slow start. The second half of the bout was all
Moore as he countered the younger man at will having timed him in the previous rounds.
After this title defense Moore was fully stripped of his title, but even after that
Moore defeated fighters like Pete Rademacher, Alejandro Lvaronte, Howard King and was
unlucky to only get a draw with future champion Willie Pastrano. After this he lost a
fight with Muhammad Ali (who he had previously trained) when he again could not cope
with the speed of his younger opponent. His last fight was a three-round knockout of
Mike DiBiase on March 15, 1963, nine months before what the record book says was his
50th birthday. Moore retired at age 49 in 1963 after a career considered one of the most
amazing examples of longevity in any sport. After retiring as a fighter in 1965, Archie
instituted his "Any Boy Can" program. "His program was one of the earliest and most
effective mentoring programs for at-risk kids," said California Governor Pete
Wilson. "It taught them a lot more about life than how to box. It taught them about
competition and sportsmanship. It taught them self-reliance and self-discipline,
confidence and courage. Moore also played the role of Jim in the 1960 film version
of "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. He studied books on slavery and attempted to
avoid stereotyping in playing the part. "I didn't have time to read when I was a kid,"
he said, "so I didn't know anything about Huck Finn and those cats. I read the book
before playing the part. Now that I've found books, I'm really living." Four decades
later, Mr. Moore was still visiting local gyms. "I was training James 'Hooks'
Williamson," Jason Anderson said. "Archie was sitting in a chair with this old African
hat on. "Mr. Moore stood up twice to tell Williamson to use his jab more. Finally, the
ex-champ, then well into his 70's leaped into action. "He went over and pinched the meat
on Hooks' side and said, "When I tell you to use the jab, young man, you use the jab!"
And he just went back and sat down again. Hooks' eyes got so big. He said to me, 'Sarge,
who was that? He scared me!'" Boxing historian Hank Caplan said "In my view, he was the
greatest light heavyweight in the history of boxing and one of the greatest boxers in
any division," Former light-heavyweight champ Jose Torres, who never fought Moore
said "What he accomplished after he was 30 years of age was unbelievable. He became
greater and greater the older he got." Archie would have turned 85 in just four days
before he died and ironically he died on the eve of the 40th anniversary of his most
thrilling fight. His Dec. 10, 1958, knockout of Yvonne Durelle. Archie Moore passed away
on December 9, 1998.
Archie Moore
Career Record: 183 W, 24 L, 10 D, 1 NC (141 K.O's)
1936
Jul 14 Murray Allen Quincy, IL W 6
--- Speedy Schaeffer Quincy, IL D 6
Sep 30 Murray Allen Keokuk, IA KO 2
Oct 9 Sammy Jackson St. Louis W 5
Dec 8 Sammy Jackson St. Louis D 5
1937
Jan 5 Dynamite Payne St. Louis KO 1
Jan 18 Johnny Davis Quincy, IL KO 3
Feb 2 Joey Huff St. Louis KO 3
Mar 23 Ham Pounder Ponca City, AR KO 2
Apr 9 Charlie Dawson Indianapolis KO 5
Apr 23 Karl Martin Indianapolis KO 1
--- Frank Hatfield MO KO 1
--- Al Dublinsky MO KO 3
Aug 19 Nathan "Deacon" Logan St. Louis KO 3
Sep 1 Billy Adams Cinncinnati L 8
Sep 9 Sammy Slaughter Indianpolis W 10
Nov 16 Sammy Christian St. Louis W 5
--- Sammy Jackson Jackson, MO KO 8
1938
Jan 7 Carl Lautenschlger St. Louis KO 2
Feb 22 Frank Rowsey San Diego KO 2
May 20 Jimmy Brent San Diego KO 1
May 27 Ray Vargas San Diego KO 3
Jun 24 Johnny "Bandit" Romero San Diego L 10
Jul 22 Johnny Sikes San Diego KO 4
Aug 5 Lorenzo Pedro San Diego W 10
Sep 2 Johnny "Bandit" Romero San Diego KO 8
Sep 27 Tom Henry San Diego KO 4
Oct 1 Bobby Yannes San Diego KO 2
Nov 22 Ray Lyle St. Louis KO 2
Dec 7 Irish Bob Turner St. Louis KO 2
1939
Jan 20 Jack Moran St. Louis KO 1
Mar 2 Domenic Ceccarelli St. Louis KO 1
Apr 1 Marty Simmons Minneapolis W 10
Apr 20 Teddy Yarosz St. Louis L 10
Jul 21 Jack Coggins San Diego NC 8
Sep 22 Bobby Seaman San Diego KO 7
Dec 7 Honeyboy Jones St. Louis W 10
Dec 29 Shorty Hogue San Diego L 6
1940
Mar 30 Jack McNamee Melbourne KO 4
Apr 18 Ron Richards Sydney KO 10
May 9 Artilio Sabatino Sydney KO 5
May 12 Joe Delaney Adelaide, Australia KO 7
Jun 2 Frank Lindsay Tasmania, Australia KO 4
Jun 27 Fred Henneberry Sydney KO 7
Jul 11 Ron Richards Sydney W 12
Oct 18 Pancho Ramirez San Diego KO 5
Dec 5 Shorty Hogue San Diego L 6
1941
Jan 17 Clay Rowan San Francisco KO 1
Jan 31 Shorty Hogue San Diego L 10
Feb 1 Clay Rowan San Diego KO 1
Feb 26 Eddie Booker San Diego D 10
1942
Jan 28 Bobby Britt Phoenix KO 3
Feb 27 Guero Martinez San Diego KO 2
Mar 17 Jimmy Casino San Francisco KO 5
Oct 30 Shorty Hogue San Diego KO 2
Nov 6 Tabby Romero San Diego KO 2
Nov 27 Jack Chase San Diego W 10
Dec 11 Eddie Booker San Diego D 10
1943
May 8 Jack Chase San Diego W 15
(Won California Middleweight Title)
Jul 1 Big Boy Hogue San Diego KO 5
Jul 28 Eddie Cerda San Diego KO 3
Aug 2 Jack Chase San Francisco L 15
(Lost California Middleweight Title)
Aug 16 Aaron Wade San Francisco L 10
Nov 5 Kid Hermosillo San Diego KO 5
Nov 26 Jack Chase San Diego W 10
1944
Jan 7 Amado Rodriguez San Diego KO 1
Jan 21 Eddie Booker Hollywood, CA KO by 8
Mar 24 Roman Starr Hollywood, CA KO 2
Apr 21 Charley Burley Hollywood, CA L 10
May 19 Kenny LaSalle San Diego W 10
Aug 11 Louis Mays San Diego KO 3
Aug 18 Jimmy Hayden San Diego KO 5
Sep 1 Battling Monroe San Diego KO 6
Dec 18 Nate Bolden New York W 10
1945
Jan 11 Joey Jones Boston KO 1
Jan 29 Bob Jacobs New York KO 9
Feb 12 Nap Mitchell Boston KO 6
Apr 2 Nate Bolden Baltimore W 10
Apr 23 Teddy Randolph Baltimore KO 9
May 21 Lloyd Marshall Cleveland W 10
Jun 18 George Kochan Baltimore KO 6
Jun 26 Lloyd Marshall Cleveland KO 10
Aug 22 Jimmy Bivins Cleveland KO by 6
Sep 17 Cocoa Kid Baltimore KO 8
Oct 22 Holman Williams Baltimore L 10
Nov 12 Odell Riley Detroit KO 6
Nov 26 Holman Williams Baltimore KO 11
Dec 13 Colion Chaney St. Louis KO 5
1946
Jan 28 Curtis Sheppard Baltimore W 12
Feb 5 Georgie Parks Washington KO 1
May 2 Verne Escoe Orange, NJ KO 7
May 20 Ezzard Charles Pittsburgh L 10
Aug 19 Buddy Walker Baltimore KO 4
Sep 9 Shamus O'Brien Baltimore KO 2
Oct 23 Billy Smith Oakland D 12
Nov 6 Jack Chase Oakland D 10
1947
Mar 18 Jack Chase Los Angeles KO 9
Apr 11 Rusty Payne San Diego W 10
May 5 Ezzard Charles Cincinnati L 10
Jun 16 Curtis Sheppard Washington DC W 10
Jul 14 Bert Lytell Baltimore W 10
Jul 30 Bobby Zander Oakland W 12
Sep 8 Jimmy Bivins Baltimore KO 9
Nov 10 George Fitch Baltimore KO 6
1948
Jan 13 Ezzard Charles Cleveland KO by 8
Apr 12 Dusty Wilkerson Baltimore KO 7
Apr 19 Doc Williams Newark, NJ KO 7
May 5 Billy Smith Cincinnati W 10
Jun 2 Leonard Morrow Oakland KO by 1
Jun 28 Jimmy Bivins Baltimore W 10
Aug 2 "Tiger" Ted Lowry Baltimore W 10
Sep 20 Billy Smith Baltimore W 10
Oct 15 Henry Hall New Orleans L 10
Nov 1 Lloyd Gibson Washington DC LDQ 4
Nov 15 Henry Hall Baltimore W 10
Dec 6 Bob Amos Washington DC W 10
Dec 27 Doc Williams Baltimore KO 7
1949
Jan 10 Alabama Kid Toledo, OH KO 4
Jan 31 Bob Satterfield Toledo, OH KO 3
Mar 4 Alabama Kid Columbus, OH KO 3
Mar 23 Dusty Wilkerson Philadelphia KO 6
Apr 11 Jimmy Bivins Toledo, OH KO 8
Apr 26 Harold Johnson Philadelphia W 10
Jun 13 Clinton Bacon Indianapolis LDQ 6
Jun 27 Bob Sikes Indianapolis KO 3
Jul 29 Esco Greenwood North Adams, MA KO 2
Oct 2 Phil Muscato Toledo, OH W 10
Oct 4 Bob Amos Toledo, OH W 10
Dec 6 Doc Williams Hartford KO 8
Dec 13 Leonard Morrow Toledo, OH KO 10
1950
Jan 31 Bert Lytell Toledo, OH W 10
Jul 31 Vernon Williams Chicago KO 2
1951
Jan 2 Billy Smith Portland, OR KO 8
Jan 28 John Thomas Panama City KO 1
Feb 21 Jimmy Bivins New York KO 9
Mar 13 Abel Cestac Toledo, OH W 10
Apr 26 Herman Harris Flint, MI KO 4
May 14 Art Henri Baltimore KO 4
Jun 9 Abel Cestac Buenos Aires KO 10
Jun 23 Karel Sys Buenos Aires D 10
Jul 8 Alberto Lovell Buenos Aires KO 1
Jul 15 Vincente Quiroz Montevideo, Uruguay KO 6
Jul 26 Victor Carabajal Cordoba, Argentina KO 3
Jul 28 Americo Capitanelli Tucuman, Argentina KO 3
Aug 5 Rafael Miranda Argentine, Argentina KO 4
Aug 17 Alfredo Lagay Bahia Blanca, Arg. KO 3
Sep 5 Embrell Davison Detroit KO 1
Sep 24 Harold Johnson Philadelphia W 10
Oct 29 Chubby Wright St. Louis KO 7
Dec 10 Harold Johnson Milwaukee L 10
1952
Jan 29 Harold Johnson Toledo, OH W 10
Feb 27 Jimmy Slade St. Louis W 10
May 19 Bob Dunlap San Francisco KO 6
Jun 26 Clarence Henry Baltimore W 10
Jul 25 Clint Bacon Denver KO 4
Dec 15 Joey Maxim St. Louis W 15
(Wins World Light Heavyweight Title)
1953
Jan 27 Toxie Hall Toledo, OH KO 4
Feb 16 Leonard Dugan San Francisco KO 8
Mar 3 Sonny Andrews Sacramento, CA KO 5
Mar 11 Nino Valdes St. Louis W 10
Mar 17 Al Spaulding Spokane, WA KO 3
Mar 30 Frank Buford San Diego KO 9
Jun 24 Joey Maxim Ogden, UT W 15
(Retains World Light Heavyweight Title)
Aug 22 Reinaldo Ansaloni Buenos Aires KO 4
Sep 12 Dogomar Martinez Buenos Aires W 10
1954
Jan 27 Joey Maxim Miami W 15
(Retains World Light Heavyweight Title)
Mar 9 Bob Baker Miami Beach KO 9
Jun 7 Bert Whitehurst New York KO 6
Aug 11 Harold Johnson New York KO 14
(Retains World Light Heavyweight Title)
1955
May 2 Nino Valdes Las Vegas W 15
Jun 22 Carl "Bobo" Olson New York KO 3
(Retains World Light Heavyweight Title)
Sep 21 Rocky Marciano New York KO by 9
(For World Heavyweight Title)
1956
Feb 20 Howard King San Francisco W 10
Feb 27 Bob Dunlap San Diego KO 1
Mar 17 Frankie Daniels Hollywood, CA W 10
Mar 27 Howard King Sacramento, CA W 10
Apr 10 Willie Bean Richmond, VA KO 5
Apr 16 George Parmetntier Seattle KO 3
Apr 26 Sonny Andrews Edmonton, Alberta KO 4
Apr 30 Gene Thompson Tucson, AZ KO 3
Jun 5 Yolande Pompey London KO 10
(Retains World Light Heavyweight Title)
Jul 25 James Parker Toronto KO 9
Sep 8 Roy Shire Ogden, UT KO 3
Nov 30 Floyd Patterson Chicago KO by 5
(For World Heavyweight Title)
1957
May 1 Hans Kalbfell Essen, Germany W 10
Jun 2 Alain Cherville Stuttgart, Germany KO 6
Sep 20 Tony Anthony Los Angeles KO 7
(Retains World Light Heavyweight Title)
Oct 31 Bob Mitchell Vancouver, BC KO 5
Nov 5 Eddie Cotton Seattle W 10
Nov 29 Roger Rischer Portland, OR KO 4
1958
Jan 18 Luis Ignacio Sao Paulo, Brazil W 10
Feb 1 Julio Neves Rio de Janeiro KO 3
Mar 4 Bert Whitehurst San Bernadino, CA KO 10
Mar 10 Bob Albright Vancouver, BC KO 7
May 2 Willie Besmanoff Louisville, KY W 10
May 17 Howard King San Diego W 10
May 26 Charlie Norkus San Francisco W 10
Jun 9 Howard King Sacramento, CA W 10
Aug 4 Howard King Reno D 10
Dec 10 Yvon Durelle Montreal KO 11
(Retains World Light Heavyweight Title)
1959
Mar 9 Sterling Davis Odessa, TX KO 3
Aug 12 Yvon Durelle Montreal KO 3
(Retains World Light Heavyweight Title)
1960
May 25 Willie Besmanoff Indianapolis KO 10
Sep 13 George Abinet Dallas KO 4
Oct 25 Stripped By NBA of Lightheavyweight Title
Oct 29 Giulio Rinaldi Rome L 10
Nov 28 Buddy Turman Dallas W 10
1961
Mar 25 Buddy Turman Manila W 10
May 12 Cliff Gray Nogales, Mexico KO 4
Jun 10 Giulio Rinaldi New York W 15
(Retains World Light Heavyweight Title)
Oct 23 Pete Rademacher Baltimore KO 6
1962
Mar 20 Alejandro Lavorante Los Angeles KO 10
May 7 Howard King Tijuana, Mexico KO 1
May 28 Willie Pastrano Los Angeles D 10
Nov 15 Cassius Clay Los Angeles KO by 4
1963
Mar 15 Mike DiBiase Phoenix KO 3