Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Henry Bruseles

Last updated
Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Henry Bruseles
Mayweather vs Bruseles.jpg
DateJanuary 22, 2005
Venue American Airlines Arena, Miami, Florida, U.S.
Title(s) on the line WBC Super Lightweight title eliminator
Tale of the tape
Boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. Henry Bruseles
Nickname Pretty BoyEl Nitro
Hometown Grand Rapids, Michigan, U.S. Gurabo, Puerto Rico
Pre-fight record 32–0 (21 KO) 21–2–1 (13 KO)
Age 27 years, 10 months 24 years, 7 months
Height 5 ft 8 in (173 cm) 5 ft 7 in (170 cm)
Weight 139 lb (63 kg) 139 lb (63 kg)
Style Orthodox Orthodox
Recognition WBC
No. 1 Ranked Light Welterweight
WBA/IBF/The Ring
No. 3 Ranked Light Welterweight
The Ring
No. 2 ranked pound-for-pound fighter
2-division world champion
WBO
No. 3 Ranked Light Welterweight
WBC
No. 17 Ranked Light Welterweight
Result
Mayweather wins via 8th-round technical knockout

Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Henry Bruseles was a professional boxing match contested on January 22, 2005. [1]

Contents

Background

Floyd Mayweather Jr. had made his debut at super lightweight eight months prior on May 22, 2004, defeating DeMarcus Corley in a WBC super lightweight title eliminator to become the WBC's number-one contender and mandatory challenger to super lightweight champion Arturo Gatti, whom Mayweather had heavily pursued. [2] Two months later, Gatti successfully defended his title against Leonard Doroftei. Though Gatti had remained non-committal about facing Mayweather before defeating Doroftei, instead mentioning Paul Spadafora as a possible opponent, he answered "Mayweather, of course" when asked who he would like to face next immediately after defeating Doroftei. [3] [4] In June 2004, Mayweather was convicted on two counts of battery stemming from an incident between him and two women at a Las Vegas nightclub. Mayweather was given a one-year suspended sentence, ordered to undergo counseling and was inactive for the remainder of the year. [5] In December, it was announced that Mayweather would return to boxing to face little-known Puerto Rican fighter Henry Bruseles on January 22 at the American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida. Officially recognized as a WBC super lightweight title eliminator, the bout was expected to be a tune-up for Mayweather prior to facing Gatti later in June 2005. [6] Gatti would face aging former super featherweight champion Jesse James Leija in a tune-up bout of his own a week after the Mayweather–Bruseles fight. [7]

The fight

Mayweather dominated the overmatched Bruseles, winning every round and landing combinations almost at will throughout the fight. The end came in eighth round after Mayweather forced Bruseles to take a knee after landing a right uppercut to the body. Bruseles was able to get back up, took a standing eight-count and continued the fight, but Mayweather went on the attack and again sent Bruseles to his knees after landing a combination to his head. Bruseles again answered referee Jorge Alonso's standing eight-count and was about to continue the fight, but his trainer Evangelista Cotto jumped onto the ring apron signifying he wanted the fight stopped. Alonso then called the fight with five seconds left in the round, giving Mayweather the victory by technical knockout. [8]

Fight card

Confirmed bouts: [9]

Weight ClassWeightvs.MethodRoundNotes
Super Lightweight140 lbs. Floyd Mayweather Jr. def. Henry Bruseles TKO8/12 note 1
Heavyweight200+ lbs. Samuel Peter def. Yanqui Díaz TKO5/12 note 2
Welterweight147 lbs.Terry Lantzvs.Jose Angel RomanD6/6
Heavyweight200+ lbs. Albert Sosnowski def.Tommy ConnellyTKO2/6
Lightweight135 lbs.Daniel Jiménezdef.Isidro TejedorTKO4/6
Heavyweight200+ lbs. Victor Bisbal def.Douglas RobertsonUD4/4

^Note 1 WBC Super Lightweight Title Eliminator
^Note 2 For IBF USBA Heavyweight Title

Broadcasting

CountryBroadcaster
Flag of the United States.svg United States HBO

References

  1. "Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Henry Bruseles". boxrec.com. BoxRec. Retrieved 28 January 2025.
  2. Mayweather Jr. wins junior welterweight debut, ESPN article, 2004-05-22 Retrieved on 2025-01-26
  3. Gatti: I'll Fight Floyd, N.Y. Post article, 2004-05-26 Retrieved on 2025-01-26
  4. After Showing Polish, Gatti Has Eyes on Mayweather, N.Y. Times article, 2004-07-26 Retrieved on 2025-01-26
  5. Mayweather gets suspended sentence, ESPN article, 2004-06-12 Retrieved on 2025-01-28
  6. Undefeated Mayweather will fight at 140 lbs., ESPN article, 2004-12-09 Retrieved on 2025-01-28
  7. Leija happy to play the spoiler, ESPN article, 2005-01-25 Retrieved on 2025-01-28
  8. Referee stops fight in eighth, ESPN article, 2005-01-23 Retrieved on 2025-01-28
  9. "BoxRec - event".
Preceded by Floyd Mayweather Jr.'s bouts
22 January 2005
Succeeded by
Preceded by Henry Bruseles's bouts
22 January 2005
Succeeded by
vs. Armando Cordoba