Lineal Light Heavyweight World Champions

[175lbs]

Reigning Light Heavyweight World Champion: Artur Beterbiev (2019 - Present)

 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

The Light Heavyweight Division

Lou Houseman (manager of Jack Root), noted that his fighter was struggling to make the Middleweight limit, but was also aware of the size disadvantage that relatively small boxers faced when making the jump to Heavyweight – the Heavyweight champion at the start of the 20th century Jim Jeffries, usually tipped the scales at around 220lbs. Houseman’s suggestion that a new, intermediate weight division was needed, was met with positivity from the leading Middleweights and the press. On April 22, 1903, he held bout between Jack Root and Kid McCoy to determine the new division’s inaugural World Champion.

Some of the sport’s finest ever boxers have held prestigious Light Heavyweight World Championship - men such as boxing’s first triple weight world champion, Bob Fitzsimmons, The “Pittsburgh Kid” Billy Conn, knockout kings, Archie Moore and Michael Spinks, and more recently, Philadelphia’s ageless wonder, Bernard Hopkins.

2010/Current Lineage

Jean Pascal defeated Chad Dawson via 11th round technical decision, August 14, 2010 - The Ring rated Dawson and Pascal as the #1 and #3 ranked fighters, respectively, at 175lb at the time of the bout. As Dawson had already beaten #2 ranked, Glen Johnson, the vacant Ring belt was on the line. In 2012, the TBRB recognised Dawson as the TBRB titlist based on the lineage following Pascal/Dawson filling the vacancy in 2010. Bernard Hopkins - Chad Dawson – Stevenson – Gvozdyk. Artur Beterbiev defeated Oleksandr Gvozdyk via 10th round TKO, October 18, 2019.

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