Did you know that the origins of boxing can be traced back to Ancient Egypt?
Or that the shortest boxing match of all time lasted for about four seconds?
Want to learn more fascinating facts about boxing? You’re in the right place.
Let’s get ready to rumble.
Boxing History Facts
1. When did boxing start?
Boxing is one of the oldest sports known today. In fact, people boxed as far back as 5,000 years ago, as indicated by the stone carvings of the Sumerians (who lived in present-day Iraq) and the 2,000-year-old drawings found on the walls of Egyptian tombs.
Nevertheless, Greece was the first country to introduce boxing as a sport in 688 BC. Called Pygmachia, boxing was considered one of the deadliest combat sports in Ancient Greece.
2. Boxing resurfaced in the late 16th century in London.
The sport was actually abolished in 393 AD because it was considered too violent. It didn’t regain its popularity until the late 16th century when the English aristocracy became interested in recovering all things from ancient history.
Boxing soon became a popular way for the rich to settle disputes. Namely, they would support the fighters and put substantial bets on their fights —giving birth to the term “prizefighter”.
3. Boxing has been an Olympic event since 1904.
Since its debut in the program at the 1904 Summer Olympics, boxing has been contested at every Summer Olympic Games., and now boxing is among the most popular Olympic sports.
4. John ‘Jack’ Broughton is known as the father of English boxing.
The reigning champion from 1734 through 1758, Jack Broughton, was the first to establish a boxing school.
He was also the inventor of mufflers, the predecessors of modern boxing gloves.
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5. Salamo Arouch survived the Holocaust by boxing.
Salamo Arouch was a Jewish Greek boxer. During the Holocaust, he was kept in Auschwitz and was forced to fight other prisoners for the amusement of German Nazi officers.
The losers of these fights were sent to the gas chambers or shot. After two years and 200 fights, Arouch was finally released when the camp was liberated.
There is also a movie called “Triumph of the Spirit” based on Arouch’s story at the concentration camp.
Facts About Boxer Fighters
6. Who has the most KOs in boxing?
Billy Bird holds the record for the most KOs in boxing. According to boxing facts and statistics, a professional boxer from the United Kingdom holds the record for most KOs.
Billy Bird, who fought from 1920 to 1948, was one of the most active fighters of his time, recording 356 bouts and a whopping 138 knockouts under his belt.
7. Who has the most professional boxing matches?
Len Wickwar from the UK holds the record for the most professional boxing matches. In his career of 19 years, Wickwar fought in more professional fights than any other boxer in Great Britain, or 470 to be exact. From 1928 to 1947, Len Wickwar earned 340 victories, 93 of which were by knockouts.
However, he also suffered the most losses, having lost 127 matches in total.
8. Mike Tyson is one of the most controversial heavyweight boxers in the world.
From exotic pets to cannabis-themed theme parks, there are numerous Mike Tyson fun facts boxing fans would be interested in. Still, topping the list is the 1997 fight when Tyson famously bit Evander Holyfield’s ear.
He was disqualified for this move, and Holyfield won the match, but it is still remembered as one of the most controversial and memorable moments in the history of boxing.
9. Mike Tyson’s lifestyle led him to bankruptcy in 2003.
Iron Mike was the highest-paid athlete in the world in 1990, earning $28.6 million at the height of his career.
However, due to his extravagant lifestyle, he was forced into bankruptcy in 2003 and currently has a net worth of only $3 million.
10. Floyd Mayweather’s professional boxing record stands at 50-0.
His nickname as an amateur boxer was “Pretty Boy” due to his incredible defensive techniques, which resulted in him receiving far fewer scratches, cuts and bruises on the face.
In his amateur boxing career, he had an 84-6 win-loss record. However, Floyd Mayweather boxing stats indicate that back in 2017, he retired with a perfect 50-0 record and millions in the bank.
Related: The most famous sporting moments
11. Who is the richest boxer in the world?
Earning over $1.2 billion over the course of his career, Mayweather currently has a net worth of $450 million and is the richest boxer in the world. He is also not shy about showing off his enormous wealth.
12. Muhammad Ali battled Parkinson’s disease his entire post-boxing life.
Although the public observed changes in Ali’s speed and speech in the late 1970s, he wasn’t diagnosed with Parkinson’s until 1984 at 42 years of age.
13. George Foreman made more from his grills than he ever did as a boxer.
Despite being a two-time heavyweight champion and a famous athlete, George Foreman profited more from the sale and endorsement of his grills than his boxing career.
Salton Inc. paid Foreman $138 million to use his name; the famous boxer also earned an unbelievable $4.5 million a month in payouts at the grills’ peak.
14. Anthony Joshua is the second British boxer to win both a gold medal at the Olympics and a world title.
British-born Anthony Joshua has a record of 24 wins, one loss and 0 draws, and his current knockout-to-win ratio stands at 91%. Joshua is also the first British heavyweight to win a gold medal at the Olympic games and a world title issued by a major professional sanctioning body.
Boxing Industry Statistics
15. The Mayweather vs Manny Pacquiao fight was the highest-grossing match in the history of boxing.
Called the “Fight of the Century”, the richest boxing match took place in May 2015 and raked in a whopping £678 million in revenue.
Mayweather alone earned £223.5 million from the fight, while his opponent made £122 million.
16. “The Money Fight” generated 4.3 million pay-per-view buys.
Floyd Mayweather also participated in the second highest-grossing match of all time—this time agains one of the highest-paid UFC fighters, Conor McGregor.
Labelled “The Money Fight”, the match generated 4.3 million PPV buys, the second-highest number on record, sports viewership statistics show.
This fight made £223.5 million for Mayweather, who won in ten rounds, and another £70 million for McGregor, whose net worth skyrocketed after his spectacular boxing debut.
Related: How much do UFC referees make?
17. How popular is boxing in 2022?
The phrase “boxing” is searched 225,000 times each month on Google.
Boxing is one of the highest-paid sports and is widely popular on social media, too, especially on Tik Tok.
18. How much do boxing tickets cost in 2022?
The average boxing ticket price is $209.
The hefty price of over $200 dollars for an average boxing match is the result of the multiple fights included on one card.
Boxing Viewership Statistics
19. The biggest fight in boxing history was 2015’s Floyd Mayweather vs Manny Pacquiao.
Also known as the ‘Fight of the Century’, Mayweather vs Pacquiao sold an unprecedented 4.6 million pay-per-view subscriptions; live tickets even went from $1,500 to a rumoured $200,000 (front row seats).
Ultimately, this incredible fight generated a total of £678 million, with £333 million going for the PPV subscriptions and £58.7 million for gate sales.
20. Canelo vs Saunders attracted the largest boxing crowd in U.S. history.
Boxing fans in the U.S. swarmed the AT&T Stadium in Texas on May 8, 2021, in a record-breaking number: 73,126.
While around 60,000 were planned to arrive, the fight’s popularity brought over 13,000 more to shatter the previous record of 63,352, set in 1978 during the Ali vs Spinks fight.
21. Boxing is the fourth-most-popular sport in the U.S. in 2021.
According to a recent survey among U.S. adults, around 33% of all respondents answered they are boxing fans. Football (62%) and basketball and baseball (49% each) were the only sports more popular than Sweet Science.
However, while the sport’s popularity is on the rise, name recognition worsened.
Facts and Statistics on Injuries Related to Boxing
22. How many boxers die in the ring every year?
Boxing is one of the best solo sports but is also a very da dangerous sport, as statistics show that 13 boxers die in the ring each year.
According to a survey conducted by Manuel Velazquez, 1,876 fighters died as a result of boxing-related injuries between 1890 and 2019.
23. Concussions are more common among professional boxers.
The Association of Neurological Surgeons estimates that nearly 90% of all boxers will suffer from some sort of brain injury during their career, making them prone to diseases like Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s later in life.
24. 15 to 40% of former fighters have some symptoms of chronic brain injury, boxing brain damage statistics suggest.
Seeing as how the force of a professional boxer’s fist equals 52 times the force of gravity, it’s no wonder that brain injury, whether chronic or a simple concussion, is part of almost every fighter’s life and career.
25. Who was the first boxer to die in the ring?
Jimmy Doyle was the first boxer to die in a world title fight since the 1800s.
The death of Jimmy Doyle in the fight against Sugar Ray Robinson in 1947 was tragic as well as shocking as he was the first fighter to die in a world championship bout since the 1800s.
Fun Facts About Boxing
26. The official name of boxing is pugilism, not boxing.
Pugilism is defined as “the practice and art of fighting with fists”.
27. Muhammad Ali used to abstain from sex before his fights.
Muhammad Ali reportedly would go for almost two months without sleeping with his wife before a fight.
He believed that saving energy and testosterone made him invincible in the ring.
28. Women’s boxing has been a part of the Olympic program since the 2012 Summer Games.
Women’s boxing was not an official Olympic sport until the London 2012 Olympic Games.
Women’s amateur boxing follows the same regulations as men’s boxing; the biggest difference is that the rounds are shorter, and women wear breast and head protectors protectors.
Related: The Best female boxers
29. A man and a bear fought in a boxing contest. The bear won.
In 1949 boxer Gus Waldorf fought a bear in an official boxing match. This fight took place under the direct supervision of judges and specialists, just like any other match.
Shortly after the beginning of the first round, though, the bear hit a hard right on the man, knocking him down and effectively winning the fight.
30. Chess-boxing is an actual sport.
A hybrid sport, chess-boxing is exactly what it sounds like: a combination of chess and boxing.
Players rotate between chess and boxing rounds until a winner is declared by checkmate, knockout, or technical stoppage.
31. The longest boxing match ever went for 110 rounds.
Andy Bowen and Jack Burke fought in the world’s longest-gloved boxing battle. The fight took place in New Orleans in April 1893 and lasted a whopping 110 rounds, which took about seven hours to finish.
The prize was the Lightweight Championship of the South and a purse of $2,500.
However, by the 110th round, the judge declared the match a tie and suggested the two men split the prize money.
32. The shortest boxing match lasted for only 4 seconds.
The match that took place on November 4, 1947, in the USA between Michael Collins and Pat Brownson was so short that it even got listed in Guinness World Records. Collins won the fight by flooring Brownson with the first punch —just four seconds into the match.
33. The first mouthguard was invented by a London dentist.
The first mouthguard, boxing history facts point out, was made of a rubbery sap called gutta-percha and created by English dentist Woolf Krause in 1890.
The design was later perfected by another British dentist named Jack Marles, who created a reusable mouthguard to protect the fighters’ teeth during training sessions.
Boxing Statistics
34. In 2021, over 493.000 people took part in boxing in England.
Boxing is a popular sport in the United Kingdom, with an estimated 775,000 people taking part (including boxing fitness programs) in 2020.
35. Joe Louis holds the record for the most heavyweight title defences.
Joe Louis, also known as the Brown Bomber in the boxing world, is recognized as one of the greatest heavyweight boxing champions of all time.
He held the title for over 11 years and successfully defended it 25 times, a record that still stands today.
37. The youngest boxing world champion was just 17 years old.
The youngest boxer to ever win a World Title is Wilfred Benitez.
He defended the title three times before moving up in weight, fighting Sugar Ray Leonard, Thomas Hearns and the great Roberto Durán.
However, after much controversy, his career went downward, and he finished with a 53-8-1 record.
The Final Round
Boxing is watched by millions around the world, while people of all ages, genders and nationalities are using it to get in shape and improve their health and self-confidence.
So, which of these facts about boxing did you find the most interesting?
Did any inspire you to pick up a pair of boxing gloves and get in the ring yourself?
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