These were men of men and some of the GREATEST fighters in Boxing History. All of them deserve to have their memories and contributions to Boxing kept alive.
These great fighters deserve to be remembered for more than all being Knocked Out by the Great Rocky Marciano aka Rocky Mack who retired as undisputed, undefeated Heavyweight Champion of the World after an unbeatable record of 54 professional fights without a defeat or draw.
All these fighters should be given a pass on being viciously KO'd by Rocky Marciano, because even as the GREAT Muhammad Ali states in this video, "Marciano would hit you so hard he'd jar your kin-folk in Africa"
let's take a look at these great fighters and their incredible accomplishments!
Joe Louis
Joseph Louis Barrow (May 13, 1914 – April 12, 1981), best known as Joe Louis and nicknamed the "Brown Bomber", was an American professional boxer who competed from 1934 to 1951. He reigned as the world heavyweight champion from 1937 to 1949, and is considered to be one of the greatest heavyweights of all time. Louis' championship reign lasted 140 consecutive months, during which he participated in 26 championship fights. The 27th fight, against Ezzard Charles in 1950, was a challenge for Charles' heavyweight title and so is not included in Louis' reign. Louis was victorious in 26 title defenses, a world record second only to Julio César Chávez with 27. In 2005, Louis was ranked as the best heavyweight of all time by the International Boxing Research Organization, and was ranked number one on The Ring magazine's list of the "100 greatest punchers of all time".
Louis' cultural impact was felt well outside the ring. He is widely regarded as the first African American to achieve the status of a nationwide hero within the United States, and was also a focal point of anti-Nazi sentiment leading up to and during World War II. He was instrumental in integrating the game of golf, breaking the sport's color barrier in America by appearing under a sponsor's exemption in a PGA event in 1952.
Detroit's Joe Louis Arena, former home of the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League, and the Forest Preserve District of Cook County's Joe Louis "The Champ" Golf Course, situated south of Chicago in Riverdale, Illinois, are named in his honor.
Jersey Joe Walcott
Arnold Raymond Cream (January 31, 1914 – February 25, 1994), best known as Jersey Joe Walcott, was an American professional boxer who competed from 1930 to 1953. He held the world heavyweight title from 1951 to 1952, and broke the record for the oldest man to win the title, at the age of 37. That record would eventually be broken in 1994 by 45-year-old George Foreman.
After retiring from boxing, Walcott did some acting, playing small parts in a few movies and television shows. He also travestyny refereed several boxing matches, but after the controversial ending to the second fight between Muhammad Ali and Sonny Liston, Walcott was not asked to referee again. From 1971 to 1974, Walcott held the elected position of Camden County, New Jersey, sheriff, the first African-American to do so. From 1975 to 1984, he was the chairman of the New Jersey State Athletic Commission.
Archie Moore
Archie Moore (born Archibald Lee Wright; December 13, 1916 – December 9, 1998) was an American professional boxer and the longest reigning World Light Heavyweight Champion of all time (December 1952 – May 1962). He had one of the longest professional careers in the history of the sport. Nicknamed "The Mongoose", and then "The Old Mongoose" in the latter half of his career. Moore was a highly strategical and defensive boxer, with a great chin and bludgeoning power, he ranks #4 on The Ring's list of "100 greatest punchers of all time". Moore is rated by prominent boxing website BoxRec as the 3rd greatest pound-for-pound boxer of all-time. Moore was also a trainer for a short time after retirement. He trained boxers such as Muhammad Ali, George Foreman and James Tillis.
A native of Benoit, Mississippi, Moore was raised in St. Louis, Missouri. A victim of racism for much of his career, Moore was an important figure in the American black community, and became involved in African American causes once his days as a fighter were over. He also established himself as a successful character actor in television and film. Moore died in his adopted home of San Diego, California. He was 81 years old.
Ezzard Charles
zzard Mack Charles (July 7, 1921 – May 28, 1975) was an American professional boxer and former World Heavyweight Champion.
Charles defeated numerous Hall of Fame fighters in three different weight classes. He retired with a record of 95 wins, 25 losses and 1 draw.
He was born in Lawrenceville, Georgia, but is commonly thought of as a Cincinnatian. Charles graduated from Woodward High School in Cincinnati where he was already becoming a well-known fighter.Known as "The Cincinnati Cobra", tjones1989 Charles fought many notable opponents in both the light heavyweight and heavyweight divisions, eventually winning the World Championship in the latter. Although he never won the Light Heavyweight title, The Ring has rated him as the greatest light heavyweight of all time.