Britain vs USA-a historical match

When you count all the great fights that took place between British and American boxers, who is ahead in that race? Let's take a look. Bob Fitszimmons is of course the first great British fighter (then living in New Zealand) who fought in USA for the world title against a famous, great American. It was 1897 when he beat James J. Corbett by KO14 to win the heavyweight title. He then lost it to another American, the great James J. Jeffries, by KO11. That makes it 1-1 so far. But for some reason, British fighters had more luck winning a world title, or keeping it even, on American soil than it was the case the other way around. Next big fight between a Brit and American was in 1918 in Newark, New Jersey, between defending world welterweight champion from England, Ted "Kid" Lewis and the American great Benny Leonard. It was only an 8-rounder and ended as a draw. 1-1-1. In 1931, English Jack "Kid" Berg, another English Jew called Kid, challenged the world lightweight champ Tony Canzoneri. It was actually a title unification, as Berg held the NBA super lightweight title and Canzoneri the lightweight version of it. Canzoneri was victorious when he knocked out Berg in round 3. 1-2-1. Canzoneri also won the rematch later that year on points and that makes it 1-3-1. We then jump all the way to 1946 and Harringay Arena where the American world light heavy champion Gus Lesnevich was making his defense against the Bournemouth-born battler "Fearless" Freddie Mills. Lesnevich is the first American in this story to win a world title fight in England and he halted Mills by TKO10 after a hard fight. 1-4-1. However, Mills would get revenge later in 1948 and he beat Lesnevich by decision in 15 rounds to win the world belt. 2-4-1

We then don't have to jump so far ahead in history to find the next great British-American showdown; in 1951, the great Sugar Ray Robinson was defending his world middleweight title against the young Englishman Randolph Randy Turpin. It was in Earls Court Arena in Kensington that the younger Turpin, despite being the shorter and less experienced of the two, outpunched and outfought Robinson to bring the world middle title to Britain for the first time since Bob Fitzsimmons himself won it in 1891, 60 years before. 3-4-1. Anyway, the rematch between the two happened only 2 months later and this time Robinson would reclaim the title by TKO10. 3-5-1 for USA so far. Terry Downes was the next British middleweight world champ, but first he had to suffer a 7th round stoppage in his first attempt against Paul Pender, the American, in January 1961 in Boston. He then stopped Pender by TKO10 in the rematch at Wembley, to become only the third British-born middleweight world champion. He again lost the title next year on points to Pender, which makes the score 4-7-1. We then have to go to 1980 to find the next great fight between UK and USA, when Alan Minter from Sussex came to Las Vegas to fight the American champion of Italian extraction, Vito Antuofermo. Minter was victorious after 15 rounds and thus became only the fourth middleweight champion from the Isles. He also won the rematch with Antuofermo by TKO8, in England, before losing it to Marvin Hagler, also in England, by TKO3. Hagler would be one of the last Americans to win a world title in England. That makes the score 6-8-1.

In 1986, a man dubbed as "The Ragamuffin Man" came to America to fight the undisputed welterweight champion Donald Curry, aka "Lone Star Cobra". Nobody gave Lloyd Honeyghan, a Bermondsey-born fighter of Jamaican heritage, any chance against one of the best fighters p4p back then. But he produced an incredible display when he stopped Curry after 6 rounds of beating, when Curry retired in his corner. 7-8-1. He lost his title first by a controversial technical decision to Mexican Jorge Vaca, before reclaiming it against the same man, until he lost it to the American Marlon "Magic Man" Starling in 1989, when he was stopped by TKO9. 7-9-1. That same year, the strong and promising English heavyweight Frank Bruno took on Mike Tyson for the world heavyweight title and was stopped in 5 rounds after a promising start. 7-10-1. The next Briton to make his country proud in USA was Nigel DARK DESTROYER Benn, who went there in 1990 to stop the American toughman Doug "Cobra" DeWitt by TKO8 to win the WBO middle title. 8-10-1. This time, Benn would be one of the few Britons to lose his world title to a countryman, Chris Eubank, at the end of that same year. But Benn's saga doesn't end there. In 1995 he was defending his WBO super middle title against the former WBC middle champion Gerald "G-Man" McCllelan, a fearsome puncher with speed. Although Benn was famously knocked out of the ring after less than a minute, he showed great resilience and spirit when he climbed back and gave McClellan a beating, which eventually led to the stoppage in the 10th round. 9-10-1. That same year, after 3 failed attempts, Frank Bruno finally won the world title against the American Oliver McCall, who had knocked out Lennox Lewis to win it. Bruno decisioned McCall in London to finally win that great title. 10-10-1. McCall also sensationally knocked out Lewis in 1994, as I mentioned, making the score 10-11-1.

Naseem Hamed became the next great British pride when in 1997 he went to USA to defend his WBO featherweight title against hard-punching American Kevin Kelley. Both fighters were down more than once, but in the end Hamed was left standing victorious after stopping Kelley in round 4. 11-11-1. And then Lennox Lewis...in March 1999, he first had the great world title unification match against the WBA/IBF champion Evander Holyfield, with himself holding the WBC belt. However, the fight was unjustly scored as a draw, after Lewis won most of the rounds and had Holyfield in serious trouble in round 5. 11-11-2. They had a rematch in November and although the fight was a little closer this time, Lewis got the nod and so became the first undisputed British heavyweight champ since Fitzsimmons. 12-11-2. He also beat Tyson later on but I will not count this match since Tyson was far from his best shape. In 2007, Ricky Hatton came to America to fight Floyd Mayweather, the WBC welter champ and after a good start, got caught and knocked out in round 10. 12-12-2. In 2008, Joe Calzaghe went over the pond to fight the Ring light heavyweight champion Bernard Hopkins and despite getting knocked down in the first round, won the fight on the scorecards by outboxing Hopkins. 12-12-2. In 2009, it was Carl Froch's turn to make a sensational victory and performance against the American Jermain Taylor, again in the States. Taylor was the better man in the early going and put Froch down in round 3, but Froch came on strong and stopped Taylor in the 12th round, thus defending his newly won WBC super middle title. He lost the title to Danish Mikkel Kessler. 14-12-2.

Few would have expected Kell Brook to score a great victory for Britain in the boxing ring in USA. In 2014, he was chosen as the second title defense for the IBF welter champ Shawn Porter. Porter was the 2-1 favorite before the fight, but Brook surprised everyone when he put on a magnificent boxing display and clearly outboxed the boxer Porter to win by MD. One judge scored it a draw, but all the true experts had no doubt that Brook was a clear winner. 15-12-2. Brook unwisely chose to move up to middleweight in 2016 to take on the best middleweight of today, Gennady Golovkin. After a good start, he was stopped in round 5. He then lost his title to the American up and comer Errol Spence jr in 2017 when he was worn down by the younger and faster and perhaps also harder-hitting Spence and stopped by TKO11. 15-13-2.

Well, that is the final result...Britain wins by two points, 15-13-2. I didn't cover absolutely ALL the world title fights here, that would take too long and would be too tiresome, only the most interesting and important ones.

Re: Britain vs USA-a historical match

Well, that is the final result...Britain wins by two points

Boz lights the blue touch paper and we all stand well back.... :haha:

Good article mate :thumb:

Re: Britain vs USA-a historical match

--- OK, Boz, gonna have to call you out on a few things.

First as I recall Fitz was moved to New Zealand when he was about a year old, so to call him a Brit when he spoke in an OZ accent and was American by citizenship is a stretch.

Second, Brook's performance against Porter on a scale of 1-10 was about a 3 or a 4, it was a miserable display of hometown clinch had he been the hometown fighter, and his offensive output was equally miserable and incompetent.

Finally, you probably missed a hundred or more bouts...just sayin...

:smiley-signs154:

Re: Britain vs USA-a historical match

--- OK, Boz, gonna have to call you out on a few things.

 

First as I recall Fitz was moved to New Zealand when he was about a year old, so to call him a Brit when he spoke in an OZ accent and was American by citizenship is a stretch.

Second, Brook's performance against Porter on a scale of 1-10 was about a 3 or a 4, it was a miserable display of hometown clinch had he been the hometown fighter, and his offensive output was equally miserable and incompetent.

Finally, you probably missed a hundred or more bouts...just sayin...

:smiley-signs154:

I disagree there, it was a fine performance, the rest is fair enough. :thumb:

Re: Britain vs USA-a historical match

I'm not sure of the criteria you're using. There's plenty of important USA-UK world title clashes missing. Louis-Farr, Leonard-Green or any of the challenges to Ali spring immediately to mind.

Re: Britain vs USA-a historical match

I'm not sure of the criteria you're using. There's plenty of important USA-UK world title clashes missing. Louis-Farr, Leonard-Green or any of the challenges to Ali spring immediately to mind.

Louis-Farr could have been there but I didn't think of it. Green isn't big enough, wasn't big enough to be considered.