BoxRec

From featherweight prelim fighter to world heavyweight contender. Finished his career as World Lightheavyweight Champion.
Did anybody else jump that trick?
Young Stribling had a "boy-career", and another Englishman (who?) the same. Guess it was flyweight to heavyweight.
Hit Man Hearns made welterweight to cruiserweight championships.
James Tooney, light middleweight to beating Real Deal Holyfield.
Would be interesting to know about other division climbers, don't you think?
Norweigan Wood

I think it was Englishman Len Harvey who fought from lightweight to lt. heavyweight.

British legend Ted Kid Lewis started his career as a flyweight and fought at all weights up to Light-heavy weight..... he won British titles at Feather, Welter (also Europeon title) and Middleweight... and ofcourse twice held the world Welter weight title..... he also fought George Carpenter for the world Light-heavyweight title.
Carpernter himself turned pro as a Flyweight and fought at every division including Heavyweight..... Won World Light-heavy title and ofcourse fought Dempsey for the heavyweight crown.

Two-time WBC super-middleweight champion Markus Beyer won a European junior Gold at flyweight in 1988.

1910's Heavyweight and conqueror of Jack Dempsey, Willie Meehan fought from Bantamweight to Heavyweight.

silkov wrote: Carpernter himself turned pro as a Flyweight and fought at every division including Heavyweight..... Won World Light-heavy title and ofcourse fought Dempsey for the heavyweight crown.

Can't beat that!

Roberto Duran made his pro debut as a bantamweight, and of course won belts at lightweight, welter, jr middle and middleweight. He also fought for the supermiddleweight belt, although by that time his true fans would have rather see him retired.

Wasn't Sam Langford a big weight climber as well? I know he fought from lightweight to heavyweight. Did he fight even lower than lightweight?

Two recent examples are Thobela (from 135 to 168) and Guillermo Jones (from 154 to 195).

Other recent examples are Pazienza (lightweight to super-middle) and Iran Barkley (middle to heavy).

Jimmy Ellis started his pro career as a Middleweight and ended up a top Heavyweight!......

ezzard charles won most of his amateur medals as a welter...turned pro as a middleweight and of course was heavyweight champion. now, this isn't nearly as impressive as the feats of carpentier and others here, but i had to squeeze in one more ezzard charles reference before the year ends.

ROBERT DANIELS, WHOM I MANAGED IN HIS EARLY YEARS, STARTED OUT AS AN AMATEUR FLYWEIGHT -HE WON AND LOST TO STEVE WHETSTONE- AND HAS NOW GROWN TO FULL FLEDGED HEAVYWEIGHT. JOSE RIBALTA ALSO STARTED OUT AS AN AMATEUR FLYWEIGHT AND GREW UP TO FIGHT MIKE TYSON AND BONECRUSHER SMITH.

Enrique, that's a pretty amazing tidbit about Ribalta. He's a huge guy! How tall was he in his flyweight days?