Bunny Johnson (born 10 May 1947 in Jamaica) [1] is a Jamaican-born former boxer who was The British heavyweight Champion in 1975 beating Danny McAlinden by knockout. He also competed in the light heavyweight division and won a Lonsdale belt.
He finished his boxing career with a record of 55 wins – 17 losses – 1 draw.
Lennox Claudius Lewis is a boxing commentator and former professional boxer who competed from 1989 to 2003. He is a three-time world heavyweight champion, a two-time lineal champion, and held the undisputed championship. Holding dual British and Canadian citizenship, Lewis represented Canada as an amateur at the 1984 and 1988 Olympics; in the latter, he won a gold medal in the super-heavyweight division.
John Arthur Johnson, nicknamed the "Galveston Giant", was an American boxer who, at the height of the Jim Crow era, became the first black world heavyweight boxing champion (1908–1915). His 1910 fight against James J. Jeffries was dubbed the "fight of the century". Johnson defeated Jeffries, who was white, triggering dozens of race riots across the U.S. According to filmmaker Ken Burns, "for more than thirteen years, Jack Johnson was the most famous and the most notorious African American on Earth". He is widely regarded as one of the most influential boxers in history. Transcending boxing, he became part of the culture and history of racism in the United States.
Tommy Burns was a Canadian professional boxer. He is the only Canadian-born World Heavyweight Boxing Champion. The first to travel the globe in defending his title, Burns made 13 title defences against 11 different boxers, despite often being the underdog due to his size. Burns took on all challengers as Heavyweight Champion, leading to his legendary bout with the African American Jack Johnson. According to his biographer, Burns insisted, "I will defend my title against all comers, none barred. By this I mean white, black, Mexican, Indian, or any other nationality. I propose to be the champion of the world, not the white, or the Canadian, or the American. If I am not the best man in the heavyweight division, I don't want the title."
Michael Spinks is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1977 to 1988. He held world championships in two weight classes, including the undisputed light heavyweight title from 1983 to 1985, and the lineal heavyweight title from 1985 to 1988. As an amateur he won a gold medal in the middleweight division at the 1976 Summer Olympics.
Archie Moore was an American professional boxer and the longest reigning World Light Heavyweight Champion of all time. He had one of the longest professional careers in the history of the sport, competing from 1935 to 1963. Nicknamed "The Mongoose", and then "The Old Mongoose" in the latter half of his career, Moore was a highly strategic and defensive boxer. As of December 2020, BoxRec ranks Moore as the third greatest pound-for-pound boxer of all time. He also ranks fourth on The Ring's list of "100 greatest punchers of all time". Moore was also a trainer for a short time after retirement, training Muhammad Ali, George Foreman, Bob Foster, Eddie Mustafa Muhammad, Earnie Shavers and James Tillis.
Trevor Berbick was a Jamaican professional boxer who competed from 1976 to 2000. He won the WBC heavyweight title in 1986 by defeating Pinklon Thomas, then lost it in his first defense in the same year to Mike Tyson. Berbick was the last boxer to fight Muhammad Ali, defeating him in 1981 by unanimous decision.
Harold Johnson was a professional boxer. He held the NYSAC, NBA/WBA, and The Ring light heavyweight titles from 1962 to 1963.
Glengoffe Donovan Bartholomew Johnson is a Jamaican former professional boxer who competed from 1993 to 2015. He held the IBF, IBO and Ring magazine light heavyweight titles between 2004 and 2005, and challenged once each for world titles at middleweight and super middleweight.
Michael Bentt is a British-born American film and television actor, and former professional boxer who competed from 1989 to 1994. Of Jamaican heritage, he was born in East Dulwich, London, but raised in the Cambria Heights section of Queens in New York City. Bentt won the WBO heavyweight title from Tommy Morrison in 1993, losing the title in his first defense in 1994 to Herbie Hide.
Donovan "Razor" Ruddock is a Jamaican-born Canadian former professional boxer who competed from 1982 to 2001 and in 2015. He is known for his two fights against Mike Tyson in 1991, a fight against Lennox Lewis in 1992, and a fight with Tommy Morrison in 1995. Ruddock was also known for his exceptionally heavy punching; some of the best examples of his left hand and overall power was his knockouts of former WBA heavyweight champions James Smith in 1989, Michael Dokes in 1990, and Greg Page in 1992. His favoured weapon at the ring proved to be a highly versatile half-hook, half-uppercut left-handed punch he called "The Smash" which accounted for the majority of his knockout wins -- it also happened to be his major downside throughout his career. Being a left-handed puncher fighting out of the orthodox stance, he didn't throw right handed punchs during most knockout flurries.
Peter Jackson was an Australian heavyweight boxer who had a significant international career. Jackson was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in the inaugural 1990 class, as well as being the 2004 inductee for the Australian National Boxing Hall of Fame in the Pioneers category.
Fabrice Tiozzo is a French former professional boxer who competed from 1988 to 2006. He is a world champion in two weight classes, having held the WBC light-heavyweight title from 1995 to 1997, the WBA cruiserweight title from 1997 to 2000, and the WBA light-heavyweight title from 2004 to 2006. He is the younger brother of former super middleweight world champion of boxing, Christophe Tiozzo.
Ramón Garbey is a heavyweight boxer from Cuba, who won the world title as an amateur in light heavyweight division at the 1993 World Amateur Boxing Championships in Tampere, Finland. In the final he defeated Nigeria's Jacklord Jacobs. Prior to that Garbey captured the gold medal at the 1991 Pan American Games in the middleweight division.
Peter Boddington was a British boxer.
Kid Norfolk was an American professional boxer who fought as a Light Heavyweight and Heavyweight from 1910 through 1926, holding wins over many notable boxers of his day including Joe Jeanette, Billy Miske, Jack Blackburn, Harry Greb, Tiger Flowers, Battling Siki, and Gunboat Smith. Norfolk was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2007.
Daniel McAlinden was a boxer from Northern Ireland. He won the British and Commonwealth heavyweight championship in 1972 when he defeated Jack Bodell in two rounds at Aston Villa football ground. Nicknamed "Dangerous Dan", he was managed by George Middleton who had managed Randolph Turpin when he was world middleweight champion in 1951. McAlinden was born in Newry and, at the age of 15, moved to Coventry. In 1966, McAlinden represented Northern Ireland at the Kingston British Empire and Commonwealth Games, winning a bronze medal in the heavyweight division. In 1967, he fought at the European Championship in Rome. He turned professional in 1969 and, in his second fight, stopped future British champion Richard Dunn. On the program of the Joe Frazier versus Muhammad Ali I bout on 8 March 1971 at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York, McAlinden outpointed Ali's brother, Rahaman, undefeated in seven fights, after six rounds in a contest for rising boxers. McAlinden was at one time considered a potential opponent for world champion George Foreman's first title defence. However, in 1973 his form dipped and he eventually lost his title in 1975 to Bunny Johnson in nine rounds. He attempted to win back the title in 1975 against champion Richard Dunn but lost in round two. He fought on until 1981. In total he had 45 fights with a 31–12–2 record, winning 28 by knockout.
Dennis Jeffrey Avoth was an Egyptian-born British heavyweight boxer. Avoth was a promising amateur boxer who turned professional in 1967. He held the Welsh Heavyweight Championship title from 1971 to 1973. He was the brother of Eddie Avoth, who was also a boxer and who became British, and Commonwealth Light-heavyweight champion, and European Light-heavyweight challenger. Dennis Avoth died in Glamorgan on 20 December 2023, at the age of 76.
George Leslie "Bunny" Grant was a Jamaican professional feather/super feather/light/light welter/welterweight/light middleweight boxer of the 1950s, '60s and '70s who won the Jamaican lightweight title, Jamaican welterweight title, Central American light welterweight Title, Latin American junior welterweight title, and British Commonwealth lightweight title, and was a challenger for the World Boxing Council (WBC) light welterweight title and World Boxing Association (WBA) World light welterweight title against Eddie Perkins, Commonwealth welterweight title against Clyde Gray, his professional fighting weight varied from 125+1⁄2 pounds (56.9 kg), i.e. featherweight to 152+1⁄2 pounds (69.2 kg), i.e. light middleweight. Bunny Grant was managed by Jacques Deschamps, and Pancho Rankine, and trained by Harry Wiley. He died on 1 November 2018.
Mark Rowe is an English amateur light middleweight and professional light middle/middle/light heavyweight boxer of the 1960s and '70s.
Tim Wood was a British boxer who was British light heavyweight champion between 1976 and 1977.