Boxing World Champs from Brooklyn

Author:
SI Staff
Publish date:
Oct 18, 2012

Boxing World Champs from Brooklyn

Mike Tyson

Saturday night's fight card at the Barclays Center marks the return of world championship boxing to Brooklyn for the first time since 1931, a place that's generated a high volume of great pugilists through the years including former heavyweight kingpin Mike Tyson. Here's a look at 13 other world champions to hail from the borough.

Riddick Bowe

"Big Daddy" Bowe represented the United States at the 1988 Olympic Games, winning a super heavyweight silver medal. In 1992, Bowe defeated Evander Holyfield for the undisputed heavyweight crown, holding the title until a rematch with Holyfield the following year. Bowe would add the WBO Heavyweight title with a 1995 knockout of Herbie Hide and became the first man to stop Holyfield in their third and final fight later that year.

Mark Breland

Breland won the gold medal at welterweight at the 1984 Olympic Games. In 1987, he stopped Harold Volbrecht in seven rounds to win the WBA Welterweight title and regained vacant WBA title in 1989 with a first round knockout of Seung-Soon Lee.

Shannon Briggs

The big punching Briggs defeated George Foreman for the 'linear' heavyweight crown in 1997 and won the WBO Heavyweight belt with a dramatic twelfth round knockout of Sergiy Lyakhovich in 2006.

Paddy DeMarco

DeMarco won two out of three against the great Sandy Saddler in non-title affairs and won a decision over Jimmy Carter for the World Lightweight title in 1954.

Joey Giardello

While much of his fighting glory would come in Philadelphia, Giardello's toughness and guile were born on the streets of Brooklyn. Giardello won the World Middleweight title from Dick Tiger in 1963 and was elected to the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1993.

Junior Jones

"Poison" got off the canvas to win a decision over Jorge Eliecer Julio in 1993 to win the WBA Bantamweight title. In 1996, he became the first man to defeat Marco Antonio Barrera and won the WBO Super Bantamweight crown in the process, dropping the Mexican great and forcing his corner to enter the ring for a forfeit/disqualification in the fifth round.

Zab Judah

Judah won the IBF Junior Welterweight title in 2000 with a fourth-round knockout of Jan Bergman. In 2003, a decision over DeMarcus "Chop Chop" Corley gave him the WBO Junior Welterweight crown. Judah's finest hour came in 2005 when he knocked out Cory Spinks to win the undisputed welterweight title. Since then Judah, added one more title belt to his collection in knocking out Kaizer Mabuza in seven rounds for the vacant IBF Junior Welterweight title in 2011.

Solly Krieger

Born Danny Auerbach, Krieger claimed the National Boxing Association Middleweight crown with a majority decision win over Al Hostak in 1938. Krieger also had a huge rivalry with the great Billy Conn, dropping Conn en route to a decision win in their first of three bouts.

Paulie Malignaggi

When Malignaggi defends against Cano it will be as a two-division champion. Malignaggi won a decision over Lovemore N'Dou for the IBF Junior Welterweight title in 2007.

Eddie "Cannonball" Martin

Martin won recognition from the New York State Athletic Commission as the world bantamweight champion with a split-decision victory over Abe Goldstein in 1924. Martin would later lose a pair of 1928 Junior Lightweight title shots to Todd? Morgan, the second at the famed Ebbets Field in Brooklyn.

Michael Moorer

Moorer was born in Brooklyn and grew up in Pennsylvania before coming under the tutelage of Emanuel Steward at the famed Kronk Gym in Detroit. Moorer stopped Ramzi Hassan in five for the vacant WBO Light Heavyweight title in 1988. Moving to Heavyweight, Moorer stopped Bert Cooper in 1992 to win the WBO Heavyweight belt. A decision over Evander Holyfield in 1994 made him the first southpaw universally recognized as heavyweight world champion. Moorer would later win a vacant IBF belt with a decision over Axel Schultz in 1996.

Eddie Mustafa Muhammad

Born Eddie Gregory, Muhammad knocked out Marvin Johnson in 1980 to win the WBA Light Heavyweight title. Muhammad is famed today as a trainer of multiple world champions.

Lou Salica

A Flyweight bronze medalist at the 1932 Olympics, Salica won the New York State Athletic Commission World title at bantamweight with a decision over Tony Olivera in 1939. He added the National Boxing Association title in 1940 with a decision over Georgie Pace to earn universal recognition as the champion.