History of World Heavyweight Championship Fights (WBC, WBA, IBF)
Updated September 27, 2017 |
Infoplease Staff
(Bouts in which a new champion was crowned)
| Date | Where held | Winner, weight (age) | Loser, weight (age) | Rounds | Referee |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sept. 7, 1892 | New Orleans, La. | James J. Corbett, 178 (26) | John L. Sullivan, 212 (33) | 21 | Prof. John Duffy |
| March 17, 1897 | Carson City, Nev. | Bob Fitzsimmons, 167 (34) | James J. Corbett, 183 (30) | KO 14 | George Siler |
| June 9, 1899 | Coney Island, N.Y. | James J. Jeffries, 206 (24)1 | Bob Fitzsimmons, 167 (37) | KO 11 | George Siler |
| July 3, 1905 | Reno, Nev. | Marvin Hart 190 (28) | Jack Root 171 (29) | TKO 12 | James J. Jeffries |
| Feb. 23, 1906 | Los Angeles | Tommy Burns, 180 (24)2 | Marvin Hart, 188 (29) | 20 | James J. Jeffries |
| Dec. 26, 1908 | Sydney, Australia | Jack Johnson, 196 (30) | Tommy Burns, 176 (27) | KO 14 | Hugh McIntosh |
| April 5, 1915 | Havana, Cuba | Jess Willard, 230 (33) | Jack Johnson, 2051/2 (37) | KO 26 | Jack Welch |
| July 4, 1919 | Toledo, Ohio | Jack Dempsey, 187 (24) | Jess Willard, 245 (37) | KO 3 | Ollie Pecord |
| Sept. 23, 1926 | Philadelphia | Gene Tunney, 189 (28)3 | Jack Dempsey, 190 (31) | 10 | Pop Reilly |
| June 12, 1930 | New York | Max Schmeling, 188 (24) | Jack Sharkey, 197 (27) | WF 4 | Jim Crowley |
| June 21, 1932 | Long Island City | Jack Sharkey, 205 (29) | Max Schmeling, 188 (26) | 15 | Gunboat Smith |
| June 29, 1933 | Long Island City | Primo Carnera, 2601/2 (26) | Jack Sharkey, 201 (30) | KO 6 | Arthur Donovan |
| June 14, 1934 | Long Island City | Max Baer, 2091/2 (25) | Primo Carnera, 2631/4 (27) | KO 11 | Arthur Donovan |
| June 13, 1935 | Long Island City | Jim Braddock, 1933/4 (29) | Max Baer, 2091/2 (26) | 15 | Jack McAvoy |
| June 22, 1937 | Chicago | Joe Louis, 1971/4 (23) | Jim Braddock, 197 (31) | KO 8 | Tommy Thomas |
| June 22, 1949 | Chicago | Ezzard Charles, 1813/4 (27)4 | Joe Walcott, 1951/2 (35) | 15 | Davey Miller |
| Sept. 27, 1950 | New York | Ezzard Charles, 1841/2 (29)5 | Joe Louis, 218 (36) | 15 | Mark Conn |
| July 18, 1951 | Pittsburgh | Joe Walcott, 194 (37) | Ezzard Charles, 182 (30) | KO 7 | Buck McTiernan |
| Sept. 23, 1952 | Philadelphia | Rocky Marciano, 184 (29)6 | Joe Walcott, 196 (38) | KO13 | Charley Daggert |
| Nov. 30, 1956 | Chicago | Floyd Patterson, 1821/4 (21) | Archie Moore, 1873/4 (42) | KO 5 | Frank Sikora |
| June 26, 1959 | New York | Ingemar Johansson, 196 (26) | Floyd Patterson, 182 (24) | KO 3 | Ruby Goldstein |
| June 20, 1960 | New York | Floyd Patterson, 190 (25) | Ingemar Johansson, 1943/4 (27) | KO 5 | Arthur Mercante |
| Sept. 25, 1962 | Chicago | Sonny Liston, 214 (28) | Floyd Patterson, 189 (27) | KO 1 | Frank Sikora |
| Feb. 25, 1964 | Miami Beach, Fla. | Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali), 210 (22)7 | Sonny Liston, 218 (30) | KO 7 | Barney Felix |
| March 4, 1968 | New York | Joe Frazier, 2041/2 (24)8 | Buster Mathis, 2431/2 (23) | KO 11 | Arthur Mercante |
| April 27, 1968 | Oakland, Calif. | Jimmy Ellis, 197 (28)9 | Jerry Quarry, 195 (22) | 15 | Elmer Costa |
| Feb. 16, 1970 | New York | Joe Frazier, 205 (26)10 | Jimmy Ellis, 201 (29) | KO 5 | Tony Perez |
| Jan. 22, 1973 | Kingston, Jamaica | George Foreman, 2171/2 (24) | Joe Frazier, 214 (29) | KO 2 | Arthur Mercante |
| Oct. 30, 1974 | Kinshasa, Zaire | Muhammad Ali, 2161/2 (32) | George Foreman, 220 (26) | KO 8 | Zack Clayton |
| Feb. 15, 1978 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Leon Spinks, 197 (25) | Muhammad Ali, 2241/2 (36) | 15 | Howard Buck |
| June 9, 1978 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Larry Holmes, 212 (28)11 | Ken Norton, 220 (32) | 15 | Mills Lans |
| Sept. 15, 1978 | New Orleans | Muhammad Ali, 221 (36)12 | Leon Spinks, 201 (25) | 15 | Lucien Joubert |
| Oct. 20, 1979 | Pretoria, S. Africa | John Tate, 240 (24)13 | Gerrie Coetzee, 222 (24) | 15 | Carlos Berrocal |
| March 31, 1980 | Knoxville, Tenn. | Mike Weaver, 2071/2 (27) | John Tate, 232 (25) | KO 15 | Ernesto Magana Ansorena |
| Dec. 10, 1982 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Michael Dokes, 216 (24) | Mike Weaver, 2091/2 (30) | KO 1 | Joey Curtis |
| Sept. 23, 1983 | Richfield, Ohio | Gerrie Coetzee, 215 (28) | Michael Dokes, 217 (25) | KO 10 | Tony Perez |
| March 9, 1984 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Tim Witherspoon, 2201/2 (26)14 | Greg Page, 2391/2 (25) | 12 | Mills Lane |
| Aug. 31, 1984 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Pinklon Thomas, 216 (26) | Tim Witherspoon, 217 (26) | 12 | Richard Steele |
| Nov. 9, 1984 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Larry Holmes, 2211/2 (35)15 | James Smith, 227 (31) | KO 12 | Dave Pearl |
| Dec. 1, 1984 | Sun City, S. Africa | Greg Page, 236 (25)16 | Gerry Coetzee, 217 (29) | KO 8 | unavailable |
| April 29, 1985 | Buffalo, N.Y. | Tony Tubbs, 229 (26)16 | Greg Page, 2391/2 (26) | 15 | unavailable. |
| Sept. 21,1985 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Michael Spinks, 200 (29) | Larry Holmes, 221 (35) | 15 | Carlos Padilla |
| Jan. 17, 1986 | Atlanta, Ga. | Tim Witherspoon, 227 (28) | Tony Tubbs, 229 (27) | 15 | unavailable |
| Nov. 23, 1986 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Mike Tyson, 217 (20)17 | Trevor Berbick, 220 (29) | KO 2 | unavailable |
| Dec. 12, 1986 | New York | James Smith, 230 (33)16 | Tim Witherspoon, 218 (29) | KO 1 | unavailable |
| March 7, 1987 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Mike Tyson, 217 (20)16 | James Smith, 230 (33) | 12 | unavailable |
| Feb. 10, 1990 | Tokyo | James “Buster” Douglas, 2311/2 (29)18 | Mike Tyson, 220 (23) | KO 10 | Octavio Meyrom |
| Oct. 25, 1990 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Evander Holyfield, 208 (28) | James “Buster” Douglas, 246 (30) | KO 3 | Mills Lane |
| Nov. 13, 1992 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Riddick Bowe, 235 (25)19 | Evander Holyfield, 205 (30) | 12 | Joe Cortez |
| Nov. 6, 1993 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Evander Holyfield, 217 (30) | Riddick Bowe, 246 (26) | 12 | Mills Lane |
| April 22, 1994 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Michael Moorer, 214 (26) | Evander Holyfield, 214 (31)20 | 12 | unavailable |
| Sept 24, 1994 | London | Oliver McCall, 228 (29)21 | Lennox Lewis, 238 (28) | 2 | Lupe Garcia |
| Nov. 5, 1994 | Las Vegas, Nev. | George Foreman, 250 (45)22 | Michael Moorer, 222 (26) | 10 | unavailable |
| April 8, 1995 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Bruce Seldon, 232 (28)23 | Tony Tucker, 238 (36) | 7 | unavailable |
| Dec.9, 1995 | Stuttgart, Ger. | Frans Botha, 227 (28)24 | Axel Schulz, 222 (27) | 12 | unavailable |
| March 16, 1996 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Mike Tyson, 220 (29)25 | Frank Bruno, 247 (34) | 3 | Mills Lane |
| June 22, 1996 | Dortmund, Ger. | Michael Moorer, 222 (28) | Axel Schulz, 222 (27) | 12 | unavailable |
| Sept. 7, 1996 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Mike Tyson, 219 (30) | Bruce Seldon, 229 (29) | 1 | unavailable |
| Nov. 9, 1996 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Evander Holyfield, 215 (34)23 | Mike Tyson, 222 (30) | 11 | Mills Lane |
| Feb. 7, 1997 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Lennox Lewis, 251 (31)25 | Oliver McCall, 237 (30) | 5 | unavailable |
| Nov. 8, 1997 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Evander Holyfield, 214 (35)26 | Michael Moorer, 223 (30) | 8 | Mitch Halpern |
| Nov. 13, 1999 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Lennox Lewis, 240 (33)23, 27 | Evander Holyfield, 217 (36) | 12 | |
| Aug. 12, 2000 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Evander Holyfield, 221 (37)23 | John Ruiz, 224 (24) | 12 | |
| March 3, 2001 | Las Vegas, Nev. | John Ruiz, 227 (27)23 | Evander Holyfield, 217 (38) | 12 | |
| Apr. 21, 2001 | South Africa | Hasim Rahman, 237 (28)25, 26 | Lennox Lewis, 253 (35) | KO 5 | |
| Nov. 17, 2001 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Lennox Lewis, 246 (36)25, 26, 28 | Hasim Rahman, 236 (29) | KO 4 | |
| Dec. 14, 2002 | Atlantic City, N.J. | Chris Byrd, 214 (32)26 | Evander Holyfield, 220 (40) | 12 | |
| March 1, 2003 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Roy Jones, Jr., 193 (34)23 | John Ruiz, 226 (31) | 12 | |
| April 17, 2004 | New York | John Ruiz, 240 (32)23 | Fres Oquendo, 222 (31) | 11 | |
| April 24, 2004 | Los Angeles, Calif. | Vitali Klitschko, 245 (33)25, 29 | Corrie Sanders, 235 (32) | 8 | |
| April 30, 2005 | New York | James Toney, 233 (37)30 | John Ruiz, 241 (33) | 12 | |
| Dec. 17, 2005 | Berlin, Germany | Nikolay Valuev, 323 (32)23 | John Ruiz, 238 (33) | 12 | |
| Apr. 22, 2006 | Mannheim, Ger. | Wladimir Klitschko, 240 (30)26 | Chris Byrd, 210 (35) | 7 | |
| Aug. 12, 2006 | Las Vegas, Nev. | Oleg Maskaev, 238 (37)25 | Hasim Rahman, 235 (33) | TKO 12 | |
| Nov. 4, 2006 | Phoenix, Ariz. | Shannon Briggs, 268 | Sergei Liakhovich, 238 | TKO 12 | Robert Ferrara |
| Apr. 15, 2007 | Stuttgart, Ger. | Ruslan Chagaev, 228¼ | Nicolay Valuev, 319 | 12 | Luis Pabon |
| Jun. 2, 2007 | Atlantic City, N.J. | Sultan Ibragimov, 221 | Shannon Briggs, 273 | 12 | Eddie Cotton |
| Feb. 23, 2008 | New York City, N.Y. | Wladimir Klitschko, 238 | Sultan Ibragimov, 219 | 12 | Wayne Kelly |
| Mar. 8, 2008 | Cancun, Mex. | Samuel Peter, 250¾ | Oleg Maskaev, 243 | TKO 6 | Guadalupe Garcia |
| Aug. 30, 2008 | Berlin, Ger. | Nikolay Valuev, 317¾ | John Ruiz, 239 | 12 | Derek Milham |
| Oct. 11, 2008 | Berlin, Ger. | Vitali Klitschko, 247 | Samuel Peter, 253½ | 9 | Massimo Barrovecchio |
1. Jeffries retired as champion in March 1905. He named Marvin Hart and Jack Root as leading contenders and agreed to referee their fight in Reno, Nev., on July 3, 1905, with the stipulation that he would term the winner the champion. Hart, 190 (28), knocked out Root, 171 (29), in the 12th round.
2. Burns claimed the title after defeating Hart.
3. Tunney retired as champion after defeating Tom Heeney on July 26, 1928.
4. After Louis announced his retirement as champion on March 1, 1949, Charles won recognition from the National Boxing Association as champion by defeating Walcott.
5. Charles gained undisputed recognition as champion by defeating Louis, who came out of retirement.
6. Retired as champion April 27, 1956.
7. The World Boxing Association (WBA) later withdrew its recognition of Clay as champion and declared the winner of a bout between Ernie Terrell and Eddie Machen would gain its version of the title. Terrell, 199 (25), won a 15-round decision from Machen, 192 (32), in Chicago on March 5, 1965. Clay, 2121/4 (25) and Terrell, 2121/2 (27), met in Houston on Feb. 6, 1967, Clay winning a 15-round decision.
8. Winner recognized by N.Y., Mass., Maine, Ill., Tex. and Pa. to fill vacated title when Clay was stripped of championship for failing to accept U.S. Induction.
9. Bout was final of eight-man tournament to fill Clay's place and is recognized by World Boxing Association.
10. Bout settled controversy over title.
11. Holmes won World Boxing Council title after WBC had withdrawn recognition of Spinks, March 18, 1978, and awarded its title to Norton. WBC said Spinks had reneged on agreement to fight Norton.
12. Ali regained World Boxing Association championship.
13. Tate won WBA title after Ali retired and left it vacant.
14. Tim Witherspoon and Greg Page fought for the WBC heavyweight title vacated by Larry Holmes, who could not come to agreement on a deal to fight Page, the No. 1 contender. Holmes declared he would fight under the banner of the International Boxing Federation (IBF). Several dates were set and postponed for fights between Holmes and Gerry Coetzee, the WBA champ, the latest being Nov. 16, 1984.
15. First fight under banner of International Boxing Federation.
16. New WBA champion.
17. New WBC champion.
18. New undisputed champion.
19. The WBC stripped Bowe of its version of the title in December 1992 and named Lennox Lewis champion.
20. After the loss, Holyfield retired.
21. New WBC champion. Lennox Lewis had been named champion in 1992 and had won three title defenses before losing to McCall.
22. For combined WBA/IBF titles. Later WBA stripped Foreman of title for failing to fight no. 1 contender Tony Tucker. IBF also stripped Foreman on June 29, 1995.
23. New WBA champion.
24. Botha later tested positive for steroids and was stripped of the title.
25. New WBC champion.
26. New IBF champion.
27. Surrendered WBA title to fight Michael Grant in unsanctioned bout.
28. Lewis surrendered his IBF title in 2002.
29. Vitali Klitschko retired in Nov. 2005. Hasim Rahman was named interim champion.
30. Originally a unanimous decision in Toney's favor, the bout was changed to “no contest” after Toney tested positive for a banned substance. Ruiz retained the title.
See also Muhammad Ali page.
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