By Ken Hissner: This is all about those southpaws that no one wanted to fight. It was difficult to get left-handed sparring partners to prepare against opponents.
Heavyweight champion Michael “Double M” Moorer, 52-4-1 with 40 stops from Monessen, Pennsylvania, won the title in April 1994. He won a majority decision over Evander “The Real Deal” Holyfield, 30-1, at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.
He was short-lived in his first defense in November, losing to 45-year-old former champion “Big” George Foreman. He could still see Teddy Atlas putting a cell phone in his face in a fight, saying that he was a family member calling him. He was a former WBO light heavyweight champion.
As a member of the Flathead tribe, Marvin Camel of Missoula, Montana became the first cruiserweight champion by defeating Mate Parlov, 24-2-2, of Croatia, in March 1980 at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas.
George “Johnny” Nichols, 82-32-11, won the NBA world title by beating David Maier, 21-2-1, by split decision at Chicago Stadium, Chicago, IL, in March 1932.
Italian Graciano “Rocky” Rocchigiani, 41-6-1, won the IBF super middleweight title by defeating Vincent Boulware, 19-1, in March 1988. He would go on to win the light heavyweight title.
Al McCoy of Brooklyn, New York, won the middleweight title by knocking out George Chip, 43-23-9, in April 1914 in Brooklyn, New York.
Maurice Hope of the United Kingdom won the WBC super welterweight title, defeating Italy’s Rocky Mattioli, 53-4-2, in San Remo, Italy. In a rematch in the UK, he again stopped Mattioli.
Italian Young Corbett III won the welterweight title by defeating Fred Apostoli, 29-2, in February 1938, in San Francisco. In November, he lost the rematch.
Italian 1960 Olympic silver medalist Sandro Lopopolo, 58-10-7, won the light welterweight title by majority decision over Carlos Hernandez, 39-5, in Rome, Italy.
Juan Zurita of Mexico, 131-23-1, won the lightweight title in March 1944, defeating Sammy Angott, 73-18-6, in LA
Flash Elorde, 89-27-2, of the Philippines, won the super featherweight title by knocking out Harold Gomes, 48-5, in March 1960 in the first round at the Cow Palace in California. In 1966 my favorite boxer of all time, world lightweight champion Carlos Ortiz, knocked him out in the fourteenth round.
Freddie Miller, 184-29-5, won the featherweight title by defeating Abbie Israel, 54-11-5, in July 1933, at the Ice Arena in Seattle.
Wilfredo “Bazooka” Gomez of Puerto Rico, 44-3-1, won the super bantamweight title by defeating Dong Kyun Yum, 50-2-6, in San Juan, Puerto Rico, in May 1977. He would go on to win the title. featherweight and super featherweight.
Australian Jimmy Carruthers, 21-4, won the bantamweight title by knocking out Vic Toweel, 26-1-1, in March 1953 in South Africa. Japan’s Jiro Watanabe, 26-2, won the super flyweight world title by defeating Panama’s Rafael Pedroza, 19-7-1, in Osaka, Japan.
Hiroyuki Eibihara of Japan, 62-5-1, won the flyweight title by knocking out Pone Kingpetch of Thailand, 26-4, in the first round, in Tokyo, Japan, in September 1963.
Yoko Gushikin of Japan won the light flyweight title by knocking out Sang Il Jung of South Korea, 8-2-2, in October 1978 in Tokyo, Japan.
