Ray Anderson (born August 31, 1944, in Anniston, Alabama) was a boxer in the light heavyweight division who fought from 1965 to 1977. Anderson became the first challenger to last fifteen rounds against Bob Foster for the world Light Heavyweight title, but he lost what was his only world title try by decision. Anderson currently lives in Anniston.
Anderson began his rise to prominence in 1966. As a light heavyweight he took on and beat a formidable heavyweight journeyman named Amos Johnson in a ten-rounder at The Akron Armory in Akron, Ohio. As an amateur, Anderson was one of the few men to beat the young Cassius Clay (known later as Muhammad Ali) who went on to become the Heavyweight Champion of the world. Ray's career continued as he fought Joe Byrd of Flint, Michigan, in 1969, knocking Joe out in round 1. Ray also knocked out Canton's Marion Conner in Round 2, sealing his stature as Ohio's best light heavyweight. He fought John Griffin of Syracuse, New York twice, losing both in close decisions.
Ray Anderson was credited by Joe Frazier, who long used him as a sparring partner because of his tall rangy Ali-like style as assisting him in his preparation to unify the heavyweight title in 1970, with his win over WBA heavyweight titleholder Jimmy Ellis at Madison Square Garden. Later in 1970, Anderson was to bite off more than he could chew when he decided to fight a young prospect at the Cleveland Arena in Cleveland, Ohio named Ted Gullick, after providing Gullick with a boxing lesson in rounds 1 through 4, toward the end of the fourth Gullick scored a knockdown with a sharp left hook. Anderson rose and was in part saved by the bell. Later Gullick dominated the fight and finished Anderson in the 9th round by knocking him out. Anderson beat Gregorio Peralta by a ten-round decision in Spain in 1972.
The pinnacle of Ray's career was his challenge to the former Light Heavyweight Champion of the World Bob Foster. Anderson was a tall light-heavyweight of his era, standing 6 feet 1 inch. However, Foster was 6 feet 31⁄2 inches and could punch very hard. Anderson was not used to giving away height; he prided himself in being both handsome and fast. He was not willing to risk being hit by Foster, thus he chose to dance and defend for most of the fight, thus losing a fifteen-round decision. To Anderson's credit he was one of the few men that would last all 15 rounds with Foster. The late Yank Durham, Joe Frazier's trainer, worked Anderson's corner during the Foster fight felt that Anderson should have eliminated the Ali style tactics and take it to Foster and was upset by the outcome. Anderson had proven to be a very respected fighter early on and once joining promoter Don King, seemed to start an altered course in his career which can't be explained. It is thought that King wanted to use Anderson to promote other upcoming boxers in order to propel himself into the limelight instead of using Anderson's talent to help him reach the top of the rankings. Anderson's children Deric and Eric (twins), and Brigitte Anderson were last known to reside in Ohio. In the early 90's one (or both) of Anderson's twin sons; were known for his athletic abilities and had shown glimpses of skills that would advance him into professional football. However, details of his efforts are not recorded.
| 2 fights | 0 wins | 0 losses |
|---|---|---|
| Non-scored | 2 | |
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | — | 0–0 (2) |  Muhammad Ali | — | 2 | Oct 11, 1972 | Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts U.S. | Non-scored bout |
| 1 | — | 0–0 (1) | Muhammad Ali | — | 2 | Aug 24, 1972 | Baltimore Civic Center, Baltimore, Maryland U.S. | Non-scored bout |
Larry Holmes is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1973 to 2002 and was world heavyweight champion from 1978 until 1985. He is often considered to be one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time. He grew up in Easton, Pennsylvania, which led to his boxing nickname of the "Easton Assassin".
George Edward Foreman is an American former professional boxer, entrepreneur, minister, and author. In boxing, he competed between 1967 and 1997 and was nicknamed "Big George". He is a two-time world heavyweight champion and an Olympic gold medalist. As an entrepreneur, he is known for the George Foreman Grill.
Joseph William Frazier, nicknamed "Smokin' Joe", was an American professional boxer who competed from 1965 to 1981. Widely regarded as one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time, he was known for his strength, durability, formidable left hand, and relentless pressure fighting style and was the first boxer to defeat Muhammad Ali. Frazier won a gold medal at the 1964 Summer Olympics as an amateur, held the NYSAC heavyweight title from 1968 to 1973, and was the undisputed heavyweight champion from 1970 to 1973.
Robert Wayne Foster was an American professional boxer who fought as a light heavyweight and heavyweight. He won the world light heavyweight title from Dick Tiger in 1968 via fourth-round knockout, and went on to defend the title fourteen times against thirteen different fighters in total from 1968 to 1974. Foster challenged Joe Frazier and Muhammad Ali during his career, but was knocked out by both. He was named to Ring's list of 100 Greatest Punchers of all time. He was also named to Ring's list of the 80 Best Fighters of the Last 80 Years, ranking at No. 55. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in the inaugural class of 1990.
Earnie Dee Shaver, best known as Earnie Shavers, was an American professional boxer who competed between 1969 and 1995. A two-time world heavyweight championship challenger, he is known as one of the hardest punchers in heavyweight boxing history. He scored 70 knockout wins, including 23 in the first round, for a 76.7% overall knockout rate.
Ronald David Lyle was an American professional boxer who competed from 1971 to 1980, and in 1995. He challenged unsuccessfully for the world heavyweight championship, losing to Muhammad Ali in 1975. Known for his punching power, crowd-pleasing fighting style, and his courage and determination in the ring, Lyle defeated Buster Mathis, Oscar Bonavena, Jimmy Ellis, Vicente Rondón, Earnie Shavers, Joe Bugner, Gregorio Peralta and Scott LeDoux, but is best known for his fight against George Foreman in 1976, which was voted Fight of the Year by The Ring magazine.
Jerry Quarry, nicknamed "Irish" or "The Bellflower Bomber", was an American professional boxer. During the peak of his career from 1968 to 1971, Quarry was rated by The Ring magazine as the most popular fighter in the sport. His most famous bouts were against Muhammad Ali. He is regarded as being one of the best heavyweight boxers never to win a title. He beat former world heavyweight champion Floyd Patterson and top contenders Ron Lyle, Earnie Shavers, Brian London, Thad Spencer, Buster Mathis, Randy Neumann, Jack Bodell, Mac Foster and Eduardo Corletti. The damage he accumulated from lack of attention to defense against larger men at the top level, no head guard sparring, and attempted comebacks in 1977, 1983, and 1992 resulted in Quarry developing an unusually severe case of dementia pugilistica.
Arnold Raymond Cream, best known as Jersey Joe Walcott, was an American professional boxer who competed from 1930 to 1953. He held the NYSAC, NBA, and The Ring heavyweight titles from 1951 to 1952, and broke the record for the oldest man to win the title, at the age of 37. That record would hold for over three decades until it was eventually broken in 1994 by 45-year-old George Foreman. Despite holding the world heavyweight title for a relatively short period of time, Walcott was regarded among the best heavyweights in the world during the 1940s and 1950s.
During the 1970s, boxing was characterized by dominating champions and history-making rivalries. The decade had many superstars, who also had fierce rivals. Alexis Argüello, for example, who won the world Featherweight and Jr. Lightweight titles in the '70s, had to overcome Alfredo Escalera twice before the decade was over.
During the 1960s, boxing, like mostly everything else around the world, went through changing times. Notable was the emergence of a young boxer named Cassius Clay, who would, in his own words shock the world, declare himself against war, and change his name to Muhammad Ali.
Muhammad Ali vs. Joe Frazier II, billed as Super Fight II, was a professional boxing match contested on January 28, 1974, for the NABF heavyweight title. The second of the three Ali–Frazier bouts, it took place at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
James Albert Ellis was an American professional boxer. He won the vacant WBA heavyweight title in 1968 by defeating Jerry Quarry, making one successful title defense in the same year against Floyd Patterson, before losing to Joe Frazier in 1970.
Tim Witherspoon is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1979 to 2003. He was a two-time world heavyweight champion, having held the WBC title in 1984, and the WBA title in 1986. He beat Heavyweight World Champions Greg Page, James Smith, Tony Tubbs, Frank Bruno and Cruiserweight World Champions Alfonzo Ratliff and Al Cole. He is best known for his fight against undefeated Heavyweight World Champion Larry Holmes in which he lost by Split decision. Witherspoon also worked as a regular sparring partner for Muhammad Ali.
Gregorio Manuel Peralta, better known as Gregorio "Goyo" Peralta, was a top Argentine boxer. Peralta enjoyed success as both a light heavyweight and a heavyweight, one of a small group Latin American Heavyweights to attain world-class status. Greg Peralta was a popular performer during the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s.
Edward Mills "Eddie" Machen was an American professional boxer. He was one of six children of a rural mail carrier. Machen dropped out of high school and became an amateur boxer. However, after just three bouts he was arrested and convicted of armed robbery. After his release, he became a professional boxer, determined never to return to prison again. His 64-bout career began on March 22, 1955, and he went on to win his first 24 bouts. He was highly rated and fought most of the big names of his era and he defeated many of the important names of his period such as Bob Baker, Jerry Quarry, Niño Valdés, Joey Maxim, Willi Besmanoff, Tommy Jackson, Brian London, Howard King and Doug Jones (boxer)
Doug Jones was an American heavyweight boxer. He was the number-one contender in early 1964 and beat top contenders Zora Folley, Light Heavyweight Champion Bob Foster, Middleweight World Champion Bobo Olson and World Heavyweight title challengers Pete Rademacher and Tom McNeeley in his career. He was best known for his 1963 fight with Cassius Clay which he lost by Unanimous decision.
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.
Muhammad Ali vs. Bob Foster, billed as The Sound and the Fury, was a professional boxing match contested on November 21, 1972, for the NABF heavyweight championship.
Muhammad Ali was a boxer who mastered the rope-a-dope fighting technique. He is widely regarded by many boxing commentators and historians as the greatest heavyweight boxer of all time. Boxing magazine The Ring named him number one in a 1998 ranking of greatest heavyweights from all eras. In 1999, The Associated Press voted Ali the number one heavyweight of the 20th century.
Anthony Perez was an American boxing referee and judge of Puerto Rican descent. During his career, he refereed many major boxing fights and participated in a number of boxing related documentaries.
