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Barry Alan Audia (born August 1, 1957) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1980 to 1987. He began his boxing career in the early 1970s and turned professional in 1980. His ranking as a boxer peaked in the mid-1980s at number 7 middleweight in the world. [1] He just recently won a VHLS golf championship with Lee High School as a coach
A native of Pennington Gap, Virginia, Audia had about 100 fights as an amateur. [2] He turned pro in 1980. Audia fought notable boxers such as Errol Christie, Giovanni Bovenzi, and Thomas Hearns as an amateur.[ citation needed ]
On May 24, 1984, he defeated an undefeated Thomas Smith in the main event of a nationally televised card on ESPN to improve to a 21–0 record. [3] He suffered his first defeat in his following fight against Giovanni Bovenzi in July. [4]
After his last successful fight against Gary Thomas in Bristol, Tennessee, Audia officially resigned as a professional boxer. He now runs and operates Audia’s Boxing Gym in Pennington Gap, VA. [5]
In 1989, he met his present wife Paula. The couple married in 1991. They had a son, Barry Alan Audia II. [6] He is now a 6th grade science teacher and high school golf coach in Lee County, Virginia, where Audia was born and has resided for most of his life.[ citation needed ]
Marvelous Marvin Hagler was an American professional boxer. He competed in boxing from 1973 to 1987 and reigned as the undisputed champion of the middleweight division from 1980 to 1987, making twelve successful title defenses, all but one by knockout. Hagler also holds the highest knockout percentage of all undisputed middleweight champions at 78 percent. His undisputed middleweight championship reign of six years and seven months is the second-longest active reign of the 20th century. He holds the record for the sixth longest reign as champion in middleweight history. Nicknamed "Marvelous" and annoyed that network announcers often did not refer to him as such, Hagler legally changed his name to "Marvelous Marvin Hagler" in 1982.
Pennington Gap is a town in Lee County, Virginia, United States. The population was 1,624 at the 2020 census.
Thomas Hearns is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1977 to 2006. Nicknamed the "Motor City Cobra", and more famously "The Hitman", Hearns's tall, slender build and oversized arms and shoulders allowed him to move up over fifty pounds in his career and become the first boxer in history to win world titles in five weight divisions: welterweight, light middleweight, middleweight, super middleweight and light heavyweight.
Emanuel "Manny" Steward was an American boxer, trainer, and commentator for HBO Boxing. He was also called the Godfather of Detroit Boxing. Steward trained 41 world champion fighters throughout his career, most notably Thomas Hearns, through the famous Kronk Gym and later heavyweights Lennox Lewis and Volodymyr Klytschko. Emanuel trained over two dozen boxers who turned out to be champions in the course of his career. His heavyweight fighters had a combined record of 34-2-1 in title fights. He was an inducted of the International Boxing Hall Of Fame, and the World Boxing Hall of Fame. Steward was also known for his charity work in Detroit, Michigan, helping youth to attain an education.
Finbar PatrickMcGuigan MBE is an Irish boxing promoter and former professional boxer. Born in Clones, Ireland, McGuigan was nicknamed The Clones Cyclone and held the WBA and lineal featherweight titles from 1985 to 1986. At regional level he also held the British and European featherweight titles between 1983 and 1985. In 1985, McGuigan became BBC Sports Personality of the Year. In 2005 he was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
Teófilo Stevenson Lawrence was a Cuban engineer and an amateur boxer who competed from 1966 to 1986.
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.
Pernell Whitaker Sr. was an American professional boxer who competed from 1984 to 2001, and subsequently worked as a boxing trainer. He was a four-weight world champion, having won titles at lightweight, light welterweight, welterweight, and light middleweight; the undisputed lightweight title; and the lineal lightweight and welterweight titles. In 1989, Whitaker was named Fighter of the Year by The Ring magazine and the Boxing Writers Association of America. He currently holds the longest unified lightweight championship reign in boxing history at six title defenses. Whitaker is generally regarded as one of the greatest defensive boxers of all-time.
Ricardo López Nava is a Mexican former professional boxer who competed from 1985 to 2001. He was a two-weight world champion, having held the WBC mini flyweight title from 1990 to 1998, defending it against a record-breaking 21 opponents; the WBA and WBO mini flyweight titles between 1997 and 1998; and the IBF junior flyweight title from 1999 until his retirement in 2001. He is one of just fifteen world boxing champions to retire without a loss. He is the father of undefeated former boxer Alonso López.
Mark Anthony Breland is an American former boxer. A Gold Medal winner at the 1984 Summer Olympics, Breland compiled a 110-1 record as an amateur and is regarded among the greatest amateur fighters ever. He competed as a professional from 1984 to 1997, and held the WBA welterweight title twice between 1987 and 1990. He later became an actor with a wide range of movie and television credits, having made his debut in The Lords of Discipline, and also appeared in the music video for The Pointer Sisters' 1985 hit single, "Dare Me."
Edward Thomas MBE was a Welsh professional boxer and boxing manager. He was born in Merthyr Tydfil. After a highly successful amateur boxing career, he turned professional in 1946. He won the Welsh welterweight title in 1948 and the British welterweight title in 1949, becoming the first Welsh fighter to hold the belt for more than 30 years. He won the European welterweight title in 1951, retaining it for only four months. He held the British Empire title for a period in the same year.
Takeshi Fuji is a Hawaiian-born Japanese former professional boxer. He is a former Lineal, WBA and WBC super lightweight champion.
Errol Christie was an English professional boxer and boxing trainer. He was the captain of the English amateur boxing team from 1980 to 1983 and European amateur champion in 1983. After turning professional he was a regular fixture on ITV Fight Night in the 1980s. After retiring from boxing he became a trainer in white-collar boxing.
Clinton Jackson is an American former professional boxer. As an amateur, he competed in the 1976 Summer Olympics. He also won a silver medal at the 1974 World Championships and a gold at the 1975 Pan American Games.
Brian Brunette is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1980 to 1986, challenging for the WBA light welterweight title in 1986.
Michael Gene Lee is an American professional boxer. He turned pro in February 2010.
Barry Jones is a Welsh former boxing world champion. He won the WBO super featherweight championship in 1997, but was stripped of the title when his license was revoked by the British Boxing Board of Control after an anomaly was discovered during a brain scan.
Timothy Homes VanNewhouse is an American boxing manager and former boxer.
Johnny A Clark was a British boxer who won the British and European bantamweight titles in 1973.
George Chaplin is a retired American heavyweight boxer from Baltimore, Maryland.