 | This article needs additional citations for verification .(August 2014) |
Light heavyweight, is a weight class in combat sports.
| | This article needs additional citations for verification .(August 2014) |
Light heavyweight, is a weight class in combat sports.
In professional boxing, the division is above 168 pounds (76 kg) and up to 175 pounds (79 kg), falling between super middleweight and cruiserweight.
The light-heavyweight class has produced some of boxing's greatest champions: Bernard Hopkins (who, upon becoming champion, broke the record for oldest man to win a world title), Tommy Loughran, Billy Conn, Joey Maxim, Archie Moore, Michael Moorer, Bob Foster, Ann Wolfe, Michael Spinks, Dariusz Michalczewski, Roy Jones Jr., Sergey Kovalev and Zsolt Erdei.
Many light heavyweight champions unsuccessfully challenged for the heavyweight crown until Michael Spinks became the first reigning light heavyweight champion to win the heavyweight championship. Bob Fitzsimmons captured the light-heavyweight championship after losing his heavyweight championship. Two all-time great heavyweight champions, Ezzard Charles and Floyd Patterson, started out as light heavyweights. Charles defeated Archie Moore and Joey Maxim several times in non-title bouts before becoming heavyweight champion and Patterson lost an eight-round decision to Joey Maxim before becoming heavyweight champion himself. Evander Holyfield successfully moved up from the light-heavyweight division to the cruiserweight division and eventually the heavyweight division and became undisputed champion of the latter two.
| Sanctioning body | Reign began | Champion | Record | Defenses |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WBA | September 18, 2017 | Dmitry Bivol | 22–0 (11 KO) | 11 |
| WBC | October 18, 2019 | Artur Beterbiev | 20–0 (20 KO) | 5 |
| IBF | November 11, 2017 | Artur Beterbiev | 20–0 (20 KO) | 8 |
| WBO | June 18, 2022 | Artur Beterbiev | 20–0 (20 KO) | 2 |
1. Jack Root (1903) USA
2. George Gardner (1903) USA
3. Bob Fitzsimmons (1903 - 1905) UK
4. Philadelphia Jack O’Brien (1905) Vacated USA
5. Jack Dillon (1914 - 1916) USA
6. Battling Levinsky (1916 - 1920) USA
7. Georges Carpentier (1920 - 1922) France
8. Battling Siki (1922 - 1923) Senegal
9. Mike McTigue (1923 - 1925) Ireland
10. Paul Berlenback (1925 - 1926) USA
11. Jack Delaney (1926 - 1927) Vacated Canada
12. Tommy Loughran (1927 - 1929) Vacated USA
13. Maxie Rosenbloom (1932 - 1934) USA
14. Bob Olin (1934 - 1935) USA
15. John Henry Lewis (1935 - 1938) Vacated USA
16. Melio Bettina (1939) USA
17. Billy Conn (1939 - 1941) Vacated USA
18. Gus Lesnevich (1941 - 1948) USA
19. Freddie Mills (1948 - 1950) UK
20. Joey Maxim (1950 - 1952) USA
21. Archie Moore (1952 - 1962) USA
22. Harold Johnson (1962 - 1963) USA
23. Willie Pastrano (1963 - 1965) USA
24. Jose Torres (1965 - 1966) Puerto Rico
25. Dick Tiger (1966 - 1968) Nigeria
26. Bob Foster (1968 - 1974) Retired USA
27. Michael Spinks (1983 – 1985) Vacated USA
28. Virgil Hill (1996 - 1997) USA
29. Dariusz Michalczewski (1997 - 2003) Poland
30. Julio Cesar Gonzalez (2003 - 2004) Mexico
31. Zsolt Erdei (2004 - 2009) Vacated Hungary
32. Jean Pascal (2010 - 2011) Canada
33. Bernard Hopkins (2011 - 2012) USA
34. Chad Dawson (2012 - 2013) USA
35. Adonis Stevenson (2013 - 2018) Canada
36. Oleksandr Gvozdyk (2018 - 2019) Ukraine
37. Artur Beterbiev (2019 - Present) Russia
As of June 20, 2023. [1]
Keys:
| Rank | Name | Record (W–L–D) | Title(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| C | vacant | ||
| 1 | Dmitry Bivol | 22–0 (11 KO) | WBA |
| 2 | Artur Beterbiev | 20–0 (20 KO) | IBF, WBC, WBO |
| 3 | Callum Smith | 29–2 (21 KO) | |
| 4 | Gilberto Ramírez | 44–1 (30 KO) | |
| 5 | Joe Smith Jr. | 28–4 (22 KO) | |
| 6 | Anthony Yarde | 22–3 (21 KO) | |
| 7 | Joshua Buatsi | 17–0 (13 KO) | |
| 8 | Dan Azeez | 19–0 (13 KO) | |
| 9 | Oleksandr Gvozdyk | 19–1 (15 KO) | |
| 10 | Michael Eifert | 12–1 (4 KO) |
As of 24 May 2022 [update] . [2]
| Rank | Name | Record (W–L–D) | Points | Title(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dmitry Bivol | 20–0 (11 KO) | 591.9 | WBA |
| 2 | Artur Beterbiev | 18–0 (18 KO) | 194.0 | WBC, IBF, WBO |
| 3 | Callum Smith | 28–1 (20 KO) | 188.5 | |
| 4 | Gilberto Ramirez | 43–0 (29 KO) | 144.2 | |
| 5 | Joe Smith Jr. | 28–3 (22 KO) | 127.2 | |
| 6 | Maxim Vlasov | 46–4 (26 KO) | 70.65 | |
| 7 | Jean Pascal | 36–6–1 (20 KO) | 63.58 | |
| 8 | Marcus Browne | 24–2 (16 KO) | 58.90 | |
| 9 | Joshua Buatsi | 15–0 (13 KO) | 38.34 | |
| 10 | Sullivan Barrera | 22–4 (14 KO) | 29.16 | |
Below is a list of longest reigning light heavyweight champions in boxing measured by the individual's longest reign. Career total time as champion (for multiple time champions) does not apply.
| Name | Title reign | Title recognition | Successful defenses | Beaten opponents | Fights | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Archie Moore | 9 years, 4 months, 24 days | NYSAC, NBA | 9 | 7 | [3] [4] |
| 2. | Dariusz Michalczewski | 9 years, 1 months, 8 days | IBF, WBA, WBO | 23 | 20 | [5] |
| 3. | Gus Lesnevich | 7 years, 2 months, 2 days | NYSAC, NBA | 5 | 3 | [6] |
| 4. | Dmitry Bivol | 6 years, 7 months and 2 weeks | WBA | 11 | 11 | [7] |
| 5. | Artur Beterbiev | 6 years, 5 months and 3 weeks | IBF, WBC, WBO | 8 | 8 | [8] |
| 6. | Bob Foster | 6 years, 0 months, 23 days | WBC, WBA | 14 | 13 | [9] |
| 7. | Zsolt Erdei | 5 years, 9 months, 27 days | WBO | 11 | 10 | [10] |
| 8. | Adonis Stevenson | 5 years, 5 months, 24 days | WBC | 9 | 9 | [11] |
| 9. | Charles Williams | 5 years, 4 months, 21 days | IBF | 8 | 8 | [12] |
| 10. | Roy Jones Jr. | 5 years, 2 months, 25 days | WBC, IBF, WBA (Super) | 11 | 11 | [13] |
| 11. | Virgil Hill | 4 years, 9 months, 15 days | WBA | 10 | 10 | [14] |
| 12. | Maxie Rosenbloom | 4 years, 4 months, 22 days | NYSAC, NBA | 7 | 6 | [15] |
| 13. | Michael Spinks | 4 years, 2 months, 3 days | IBF, WBA, WBC | 10 | 10 | [16] |
| 14. | Battling Levinsky | 3 years, 11 months, 19 days | World | 1 | 1 | [17] [18] |
| 15. | Victor Galindez | 3 years, 9 months, 8 days | WBA | 10 | 7 | [19] [20] |
In amateur boxing, light heavyweight is a weight division above 165 pounds (75 kg) and up to 178 pounds (81 kg), falling between middleweight and heavyweight.
Eddie Eagan (USA)
Harry Mitchell (GBR)
Víctor Avendaño (ARG)
David Carstens (RSA)
Roger Michelot (FRA) George Hunter (RSA) Norvel Lee (USA) James Boyd (USA)
Muhammad Ali (USA)
Cosimo Pinto (ITA)
Danas Pozniakas (URS)
Mate Parlov (YUG) Leon Spinks (USA) Slobodan Kacar (YUG) Anton Josipović (YUG) Andrew Maynard (USA)
Torsten May (GER)
Vassiliy Jirov (KAZ)
Aleksandr Lebziak (RUS) Andre Ward (USA)
Zhang Xiaoping (CHN) Egor Mekhontsev (RUS)
Julio César La Cruz (CUB) Arlen López (CUB)The limit of light heavyweight generally differs among promotions in bare-knuckle boxing:
In MMA, the light heavyweight division is from 186 lb (84 kg) to 205 lb (93 kg).
Georges Carpentier was a French boxer, actor and World War I pilot. A precocious pugilist, Carpentier fought in numerous categories. He fought mainly as a light heavyweight and heavyweight in a career lasting from 1908 to 1926. A French professional champion on several occasions, he became the European heavyweight champion before the First World War. A sergeant aviator during the Great War, he was wounded before returning to civilian life. He then discovered rugby union, playing as a winger.
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.
Dariusz Tomasz Michalczewski is a Polish-German professional boxer who competed from 1991 to 2005. He held multiple world championships in two weight classes, including the WBA, IBF, WBO and lineal light heavyweight titles between 1994 and 2003, and the WBO junior-heavyweight title from 1994 to 1995.
Julio César González Ibarra was a Mexican professional boxer who competed from 1997 to 2011, and held the WBO and lineal light heavyweight titles from 2003 to 2004.
Middleweight is a weight class in combat sports.
Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling.
Lightweight is a weight class in combat sports and rowing.
Bantamweight is a weight class in combat sports and weightlifting. For boxing, the range is above 115 lb (52.2 kg) and up to 118 lb (53.5 kg). In kickboxing, a bantamweight fighter generally weighs between 53 and 55 kilograms. In MMA, bantamweight is 126–135 lb (57.2–61.2 kg).
Featherweight is a weight class in the combat sports of boxing, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, and Greco-Roman wrestling.
Virgil Eugene Hill is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1984 to 2007, and in 2015. He is a two-weight world champion, having held the WBA light heavyweight title twice, from 1987 to 1997; the IBF and lineal light heavyweight titles from 1996 to 1997; and the WBA cruiserweight title twice, from 2000 to 2002 and 2006 to 2007. As an amateur, Hill won a silver medal in the middleweight division at the 1984 Summer Olympics. In 2013, he was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
Flyweight is a weight class in combat sports.
Cruiserweight, also referred to as junior heavyweight, is a weight class in professional boxing between light heavyweight and heavyweight. Before the advent of the current cruiserweight class, "light heavyweight" and "cruiserweight" were sometimes used interchangeably in the United Kingdom.
Super middleweight, or light cruiserweight, is a weight class in combat sports.
Zsolt Erdei is a Hungarian former professional boxer who competed from 2000 to 2014. He held world championships in two weight classes, including the WBO and lineal light-heavyweight titles from 2004 to 2009, and the WBC cruiserweight title from 2009 to 2010. Erdei is the first boxer from Hungary to win world titles in two weight divisions. As an amateur, he won a bronze medal in the middleweight division at the 2000 Olympics. He also competed at the 1996 Summer Olympics.
Graciano Rocchigiani was a German professional boxer who competed from 1983 to 2003. He held world championships in two weight classes, including the IBF super-middleweight title from 1988 to 1989, and the WBC light-heavyweight title in 1998. At regional level he held the European light-heavyweight title from 1991 to 1992. He was the younger brother of former cruiserweight world champion of boxing, Ralf Rocchigiani.
Drake Thadzi is a Malawian former professional boxer who competed from 1984 to 1998, twice challenging for a light heavyweight world title in 1995 and 1998. As am amateur, he competed at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
DeAndrey Abron was an American professional boxer who competed from 2004 to 2011 and challenged for the WBO light heavyweight title in 2008. He served in the United States Army and won gold in the All Army/Armed Forces Championship from 1998 to 2003. Abron was team captain for the World Championships in 2001 and was an Olympic Team alternate in 2000.
Daren Tomas Zenner was a Canadian professional boxer that competed in the super middleweight and light heavyweight weight divisions. He challenged once for the WBO light heavyweight title in 1997.
In combat sports where champions are decided by a challenge, the lineal championship in a weight class represents an intangible world title initially held by the victor of a bout between top contenders in the division, as commonly interpreted. An alternative, less mainstream perspective suggests that vacancies in divisional championships can only be filled by an undisputed champion. A fighter who defeats the reigning champion in a match within that weight class becomes the next lineal champion. In professional boxing, the informal term for the lineal champion is "the man who beat the man."