Following his death on February 2, 1918, his New York Times obituary called him the world’s "most popular ring gladiator." Not until Babe Ruth, Red Grange and Bobby Jones dominated the sports scene in the 1920s, did an athlete command the country’s attention as John L. Sullivan. And it was not until Joe Louis captured the heavyweight crown in 1937 that a fighter’s reign lasted longer. For a time, Sullivan was bigger than life. He had transcended sport, a symbol for the entire nation awakening to its status as a world power.
The development of weight classes in boxing can be traced back to the early 19th century, when the need for fair competition and safety led to the establishment of categories based on a fighter's weight. Over time, these divisions have evolved and expanded to accommodate a wider range of weights and styles.
These champions, among others, have cemented the heavyweight division's legacy as a platform for showcasing power and determination. Their careers serve as compelling examples of what can be achieved within this weight class.
Someone can train under the masters boxing umbrella and never compete in a tournament. There are myriad benefits that come from boxing training and competition is not required. For those who want to compete, the masters organization does a phenomenal job of trying to match boxers with similarly skilled opponents.
The light-flyweight division was first introduced to the boxing scene in the 1920s with some match-ups fought on a lesser scale. But the weight class became more widely recognised in 1975 with the emergence of more high profile names.
Vintage illustration of a no-holds-barred, bare-knuckle boxing match from 1868. The woman on the right is grabbing the hair of her opponent in her right hand while punching her with her left hand. That’s gotta hurt!
Rehydration clauses are sometimes added as a way of limiting the potential gulf in size between boxers after a weigh-in has taken place. Sometimes a fighter goes through an extreme weight cut to make the limit, then they can gain in excess of 10 pounds or more before fight night.
Wilkinson became a fixture in the boxing venues of James Figg. Both Figg and Wilkinson were skilled self-promoters, and Wilkinson frequently engaged in trash-talk in her printed challenges. For example, in a published acceptance of a challenge from Ann Field, an ass-driver from Stoke Newington, Wilkinson declared that "the blows which I shall present her with will be more difficult for her to digest than any she ever gave her asses". By 1726, Wilkinson also frequently fought at James Stokes' boxing amphitheatre.
A rehydration clause is an agreement between boxers before the bout that sets a limit on how much weight they can regain after weigh-in day. In many boxing contracts, fighters agree to not cut more than 10% of their overall body weight. This ensures that boxers aren’t cutting a huge amount of weight to gain a large size advantage.
Sullivan deserved a rest. At 31 he had accomplished more than any man could expect, rising from a working-class Boston Irish upbringing to become the nation’s first sports hero. "I’m getting too old," he said at the time. Like most fighters, he hated to train, finding it increasingly grueling to drop weight as he got older—self-denial was never among the man’s natural attributes.
It was during classical pugilism where many famous boxing techniques were invented. Samuel Elias was the first to invent a punch that would later become known as the uppercut. Tom Spring popularized the use of the left hook and created a technique called the "Harlequin Step" where he would put himself just within reach of his opponent, then avoiding the instinctive punch while simultaneously delivering one himself, basically inventing the boxing feint. Daniel Mendoza would become the inventor of the outboxer-style of boxing.
According to TMZ Sports in early July 2017, it was reported that Davis would feature in the co-main event of Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Conor McGregor on August 26, 2017, at the T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada. On July 29, The Ring magazine reported that Davis would likely defend his IBF title against former WBO champion Román Martínez, whose last fight was a KO loss to Vasyl Lomachenko in June 2016. On August 10, Ringtv reported that Davis would instead fight unbeaten prospect Francisco Fonseca (19–0–1, 13 KOs), who at the time was ranked number 7 by the IBF. According to some sources, the potential fight with Martínez was dropped due to notice and Martínez would not have had enough time to make the 130-pound limit. Prior to the fight being announced, the IBF had ordered Fonseca to fight their number 3 ranked Billy Dib (42–4, 24 KOs) in a final eliminator, as they were the two highest ranked available. At the weigh in, Fonseca came in at the 130-154 pound division boxing limit. Davis showed up an hour late and came in at 132 pounds, 2 pounds over the weight limit. Davis declined to weigh in after two hours, forcing the IBF to strip him of the title. The title was declared vacant, but the title would be still up for grabs if Fonseca secured victory. In what was billed as an easy fight for Davis, he won the fight via KO in round eight, with the ending being controversial. The final punch appeared to be an illegal punch to the back of the head to Fonseca and referee Russell Mora counted him out 39 seconds into the round. After the fight, Davis mocked Fonseca. Fonseca appeared hurt before the knockout blow, which Davis, who was being booed by the crowd, explained to Jim Gray of Showtime in the post fight interview, "I actually caught him with a body shot before that and he was hurt. So he took advantage of me hitting him in the back of his head and went down." With the win, Davis scored his tenth-straight KO victory. Due to Davis winning the fight, the IBF title remained vacant. For the fight, Davis earned a purse of $600,000 compared to the amount $35,000 that Fonseca received.
The development of weight classes in boxing can be traced back to the early 19th century, when the need for fair competition and safety led to the establishment of categories based on a fighter's weight. Over time, these divisions have evolved and expanded to accommodate a wider range of weights and styles.
These champions, among others, have cemented the heavyweight division's legacy as a platform for showcasing power and determination. Their careers serve as compelling examples of what can be achieved within this weight class.
Someone can train under the masters boxing umbrella and never compete in a tournament. There are myriad benefits that come from boxing training and competition is not required. For those who want to compete, the masters organization does a phenomenal job of trying to match boxers with similarly skilled opponents.
The light-flyweight division was first introduced to the boxing scene in the 1920s with some match-ups fought on a lesser scale. But the weight class became more widely recognised in 1975 with the emergence of more high profile names.
Vintage illustration of a no-holds-barred, bare-knuckle boxing match from 1868. The woman on the right is grabbing the hair of her opponent in her right hand while punching her with her left hand. That’s gotta hurt!
Rehydration clauses are sometimes added as a way of limiting the potential gulf in size between boxers after a weigh-in has taken place. Sometimes a fighter goes through an extreme weight cut to make the limit, then they can gain in excess of 10 pounds or more before fight night.
Wilkinson became a fixture in the boxing venues of James Figg. Both Figg and Wilkinson were skilled self-promoters, and Wilkinson frequently engaged in trash-talk in her printed challenges. For example, in a published acceptance of a challenge from Ann Field, an ass-driver from Stoke Newington, Wilkinson declared that "the blows which I shall present her with will be more difficult for her to digest than any she ever gave her asses". By 1726, Wilkinson also frequently fought at James Stokes' boxing amphitheatre.
A rehydration clause is an agreement between boxers before the bout that sets a limit on how much weight they can regain after weigh-in day. In many boxing contracts, fighters agree to not cut more than 10% of their overall body weight. This ensures that boxers aren’t cutting a huge amount of weight to gain a large size advantage.
Sullivan deserved a rest. At 31 he had accomplished more than any man could expect, rising from a working-class Boston Irish upbringing to become the nation’s first sports hero. "I’m getting too old," he said at the time. Like most fighters, he hated to train, finding it increasingly grueling to drop weight as he got older—self-denial was never among the man’s natural attributes.
It was during classical pugilism where many famous boxing techniques were invented. Samuel Elias was the first to invent a punch that would later become known as the uppercut. Tom Spring popularized the use of the left hook and created a technique called the "Harlequin Step" where he would put himself just within reach of his opponent, then avoiding the instinctive punch while simultaneously delivering one himself, basically inventing the boxing feint. Daniel Mendoza would become the inventor of the outboxer-style of boxing.
According to TMZ Sports in early July 2017, it was reported that Davis would feature in the co-main event of Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Conor McGregor on August 26, 2017, at the T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada. On July 29, The Ring magazine reported that Davis would likely defend his IBF title against former WBO champion Román Martínez, whose last fight was a KO loss to Vasyl Lomachenko in June 2016. On August 10, Ringtv reported that Davis would instead fight unbeaten prospect Francisco Fonseca (19–0–1, 13 KOs), who at the time was ranked number 7 by the IBF. According to some sources, the potential fight with Martínez was dropped due to notice and Martínez would not have had enough time to make the 130-pound limit. Prior to the fight being announced, the IBF had ordered Fonseca to fight their number 3 ranked Billy Dib (42–4, 24 KOs) in a final eliminator, as they were the two highest ranked available. At the weigh in, Fonseca came in at the 130-154 pound division boxing limit. Davis showed up an hour late and came in at 132 pounds, 2 pounds over the weight limit. Davis declined to weigh in after two hours, forcing the IBF to strip him of the title. The title was declared vacant, but the title would be still up for grabs if Fonseca secured victory. In what was billed as an easy fight for Davis, he won the fight via KO in round eight, with the ending being controversial. The final punch appeared to be an illegal punch to the back of the head to Fonseca and referee Russell Mora counted him out 39 seconds into the round. After the fight, Davis mocked Fonseca. Fonseca appeared hurt before the knockout blow, which Davis, who was being booed by the crowd, explained to Jim Gray of Showtime in the post fight interview, "I actually caught him with a body shot before that and he was hurt. So he took advantage of me hitting him in the back of his head and went down." With the win, Davis scored his tenth-straight KO victory. Due to Davis winning the fight, the IBF title remained vacant. For the fight, Davis earned a purse of $600,000 compared to the amount $35,000 that Fonseca received.