Champs at Multiple Weight Classes

[Ambling Alp]

Made a list of champions of multiple weight classes. It has gotton progressively easier to do this; so I only went up to 1990. Came up with 37 guys. I am sure I am missing a few.
Who up to 1990 is missing?

Any that seem particularly interesting that you don't hear much about?


Alexis Arguello
Henry Armstrong
Carmen Basilio
Benny Bass
Wilfred Benitez
Nino Benvenuti
Lou Broulliard
Hector Camacho
Tony Canzoneri
Bobby Chacon
Julio Cesar Chavez
Kid Chocolate
Donald Curry
George Dixon
Johnny Dundee
Roberto Duran
Jeff Fenech
Bob Fitzsimmons
Wilfredo Gomez
Emile Griffith
Fighting Harada
Thomas Hearns
Evander Holyfield
Soo-Hwan Hong
Harry Jeffra
Eder Jofre
Santos Laciar
Ray Leonard
Roger Mayweather
Mike McCallum
Terry McGovern
Dwight Muhammad Qawi
Azumah Nelson
Ruben Olivares
Carlos Ortiz
Dodie Boy Penalosa
Lupe Pintor
Ray Robinson
Barney Ross
Tommy Ryan
Sandy Saddler
Kuniaki Shibata
Michael Spinks
Dick Tiger
Mickey Walker
Hilario Zapata
Daniel Zaragoza

Am adding anyone else that won two or more that people can think of.

[chucktaylor]

Henry Armstrong.
Maybe I'm missing something about the requirements...

[Jaclem]

...chuck.....i join you in my bewilderment.....

[Ambling Alp]

Henry Armstrong.
Maybe I'm missing something about the requirements...

Wow, that was quite an oversight! I edited it.

I guess Kid McCoy could be added. Three different books have different findings:
One lists him only as a middleweight champ.
One only lists him as a welterweight champ.
Another lists him as both!

Who else is missing?

[raylawpc]

Henry Armstrong.
Maybe I'm missing something about the requirements...

Wow, that was quite an oversight! I edited it.

I guess Kid McCoy could be added. Three different books have different findings:
One lists him only as a middleweight champ.
One only lists him as a welterweight champ.
Another lists him as both!

Who else is missing?

McCoy never held the welterweight title. Nat Fleischer screwed up and listed Tommy Ryan's March 2, 1896 fight with McCoy as for Ryan's world welterweight title. It wasn't. If you read newspaper accounts of the fight, both were well over the welterweight limit. So it was a non-title fight.

[SaadOffTheDeck]

Henry Armstrong.
Maybe I'm missing something about the requirements...

Wow, that was quite an oversight! I edited it.

I guess Kid McCoy could be added. Three different books have different findings:
One lists him only as a middleweight champ.
One only lists him as a welterweight champ.
Another lists him as both!

Who else is missing?

Here are a few.

Hilario Zapata
Fidel LaBarba
Joe Gans
Santos Laciar

[raylawpc]

Henry Armstrong.
Maybe I'm missing something about the requirements...

Wow, that was quite an oversight! I edited it.

I guess Kid McCoy could be added. Three different books have different findings:
One lists him only as a middleweight champ.
One only lists him as a welterweight champ.
Another lists him as both!

Who else is missing?

Here are a few.

Hilario Zapata
Fidel LaBarba
Joe Gans
Santos Laciar

What second title do you have for LaBarba? Did Gans ever claim the welterweight title after beating Mike Twin Sullivan?

[SaadOffTheDeck]

LaBarba won the Jr Lightweight title to the best of my recollection and I thought Gans claimed the Welter strap, but I surely could be wrong.

Edit: looks like Labarba only claimed that strap in my dreams. LOL

[NazNaci1]

Daniel Zaragoza, if you are to consider the 'Super' Divisions.

[Ambling Alp]

Yes, Zaragoza would qualify. I am editing the list at the top and will add him,Laciar,Zapata, and Penalosa. As per raylaw's post I am not going to count McCoy unless someone can come up with compelling evidence that he should be listed.

btw-I did include Johnny Coulon; which I was on the fence on. Most record books only conisder him a bantamweight champion, but it is a bit of a cloudy issue. He was described as the champion at 105, 108, and at 112.

Anyone else that is missing?

[SaadOffTheDeck]

You want guys that were retired by 1990, right?

I believe Lou Brouillard & Kuniaki Shibata fit the bill.

[raylawpc]

btw-I did include Johnny Coulon; which I was on the fence on. Most record books only conisder him a bantamweight champion, but it is a bit of a cloudy issue. He was described as the champion at 105, 108, and at 112.

Why? I don't think any of those weight divisions were universally recognized when Coulon claimed those titles.

[raylawpc]

You want guys that were retired by 1990, right?

I believe Lou Brouillard & Kuniaki Shibata fit the bill.

Good catches!

[klompton]

Unless Im mistaken most of Coulon's multi title claims can be attributed directly to Herb Goldman who basically went back and retroactively awarded titles to a bunch of fighters (like calling Choynski a LHW champ) after the fact. Its part of the reason why he and Bert Sugar hate each other today. Bert Sugar (despite his claims to being a historian) didnt know any better and published such rubbish when Goldman (who did know better) put it out their under his banner.

[raylawpc]

Back at the turn of the century, a lot of fighters claimed various titles. Goldman didn't just invent it out of whole cloth. Choynski did fight in a bout billed as for the light-heavyweight champion (I think in 1899; I've seen the article but don't have a copy of it); but unlike Jack Root he didn't have a manager who was also a prominent sportswriter - i.e., Lou Houseman - so the claim never caught on.

I don't doubt Coulon claimed those titles, but they weren't universally recognized. The bantamweight class was the lightest division universally recognized when Coulon was champion.

I think Alp is standing on shaky ground if he adds Coulon to his list.

[Ambling Alp]

Well I don't be on shaky ground. I was skeptical of Coulon. I took took him off.
Added Shibata and Broulliard.
Came up with four more; Soo-Hwan Hong, Harry Jeffra, Bobby Chacon and Lupe Pintor.
This has been kind of fun. We may be getting close to everyone now; though I keep thinking we are still missing someone from the 1980s.

[SaadOffTheDeck]

Well I don't be on shaky ground. I was skeptical of Coulon. I took took him off.
Added Shibata and Broulliard.
Came up with four more; Soo-Hwan Hong, Harry Jeffra, Bobby Chacon and Lupe Pintor.
This has been kind of fun. We may be getting close to everyone now; though I keep thinking we are still missing someone from the 1980s.

There are more if you're including guys like Pintor and Zaragoza. Once again, is it retired in 90? What is your actual criteria for a timeline here?

[SaadOffTheDeck]

Leo Gamez
Vinny Pazienza
Pernell Whitaker
Evander Holyfield
Iran Barkley
Dingaan Thobela
Raul Perez

[Ambling Alp]

Well I don't be on shaky ground. I was skeptical of Coulon. I took took him off.
Added Shibata and Broulliard.
Came up with four more; Soo-Hwan Hong, Harry Jeffra, Bobby Chacon and Lupe Pintor.
This has been kind of fun. We may be getting close to everyone now; though I keep thinking we are still missing someone from the 1980s.

There are more if you're including guys like Pintor and Zaragoza. Once again, is it retired in 90? What is your actual criteria for a timeline here?

The critieria is that they had to do it it by 1990. Doesn't matter when they retired.
I am adding Holyfield, who we all somehow missed.

[Crease]

Champions at Mulitple Weights? There have been a few, hasn't there?
Even if we all pulled together, we still probably won't be able to name them all.

[Ambling Alp]

I think we are pretty close. We are up to 47. Of this being boxing, occasionally there is a dispute. There can't be too many more; though perhaps somebody can think of someone else.