Howard Davis Jr.
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Name: Howard Davis Jr
Hometown: New York, New York, USA
Birthplace: Glen Cove, New York, USA
Died: 2015-12-30 (Age:59)
Stance: Orthodox
Height: 173cm
Reach: 184cm
Pro Boxer: Record
Amateur Boxer: Record
Amateur Achievements
- Record: 125 wins, 5 losses
- 1973 New York Daily News Golden Gloves Champion (126 lbs Novice). Defeated Carlos Gonzalez.
- 1973 National AAU Champion (125 lbs) in Boston, MA. Defeated Leroy Veasley of Detroit, MI.
- 1973 North American Champion (125 lbs) in New York, NY. Defeated Dale Anderson of Canada.
- 1974 New York Daily News Golden Gloves Champion (126 lbs Open). Defeated Fernando Rodriguez.
- 1974 National AAU Semifinalist (125 lbs) in Knoxville, TN. Defeated by Mike Hess of Albany, OR.
- 1974 World Champion (125 lbs) in Havana, Cuba.
World Championship Results:- Defeated Roberto Andino (Puerto Rico) on points 5-0.
- Defeated Rumen Peshev (Bulgaria) on points 5-0.
- Defeated Eddie Ndukwu (Nigeria) on points 5-0.
- Defeated Mariano Alvarez (Cuba) on points 3-2.
- Defeated Boris Kuznetsov (Soviet Union) on points 3-2.
- 1975 New York Daily News Golden Gloves Champion (126 lbs Open). Defeated Richard Flores.
- 1976 New York Daily News Golden Gloves Champion (135 lbs Open). Defeated Robert Rodriguez.
- 1976 National AAU Champion (132 lbs) in Las Vegas, NV. Defeated Thomas Hearns of Detroit, MI.
- 1976 Olympic Trials Champion (132 lbs).
Olympic Trials Results:- Defeated Adolph Kincaid by RSC.
- Defeated Billy Turner by KO 3.
- Defeated Aaron Pryor on points.
- 1976 Olympic Box-Offs Winner (132 lbs) in Burlington, VT. Defeated Aaron Pryor of Cincinnati, OH, on points 3-2.
- 1976 Olympic Gold Medalist (132 lbs) in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Davis dedicated his Olympic gold medal to his mother, who passed away from a heart attack three days before his first Olympic bout. The medal was stolen from his New York home in 1981. More than a decade later, it was returned to him by a worker who found it while cutting grass on the Long Island Expressway, where it was apparently tossed when the thief was pursued by police.)
Olympic Results:- 1st round bye
- Defeated Yukio Segawa (Japan) on points 5-0.
- Defeated Leonidas Asprilla (Colombia) by RSC 2.
- Defeated Tzvetan Tzvetkov (Bulgaria) by RSC 3.
- Defeated Ace Rusevski (Yugoslavia) on points 5-0.
- Defeated Simion Cutov (Romania) on points 5-0.
- Awarded the Val Barker Trophy as the outstanding boxer of the 1976 Olympic Games.
- Named the Boxing Writers Association of America Fighter of the Year for 1976, along with his fellow U.S. Olympic Gold Medalists (Sugar Ray Leonard, Leon Spinks, Michael Spinks, and Leo Randolph).
Professional Career
- Record: 36 wins, 6 losses, 1 draw, 14 knockouts
- After winning the Olympics, Davis signed a $1.5 million contract with CBS television.
- Davis fought for a world title three times. All three title shots were in Olympic years.
Results:- Lost a 15-round unanimous decision to Jim Watt for the WBC Lightweight Title on June 7, 1980.
- Lost a 12-round split decision to Edwin Rosario for the WBC Lightweight Title on June 23, 1984.
- Knocked out in one round by James (Buddy) McGirt for the IBF Junior Welterweight Title on July 31, 1988.
Halls of Fame
- Inducted into the New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame on November 12, 1998.
- Inducted into the Florida Boxing Hall of Fame on June 23, 2013.
- Inducted into the New York State Boxing Hall of Fame on March 30, 2014.
- Inducted into the New York Daily News Golden Gloves Hall of Fame on April 17, 2014.
Post-Boxing Career
- After living in New York and New Jersey most of his life, Davis moved to Florida in 2003 after American Top Team, a mixed martial arts academy, asked him to become their Boxing Director. "There wasn't a pure boxing guy teaching MMA before he got involved in it. He had to study and figure out how boxing could be incorporated in MMA. He did that," said professional MMA fighter Jeff Monson, who was primarily a ground fighter before Davis taught him stand-up striking techniques. Davis also worked with former UFC light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell, who said Davis "helped my foot work and defense a lot."
- Davis and his wife founded Fight Time Promotions, an MMA Promotional company, in 2010.
Death
- Davis, a non-smoker, was diagnosed with Stage IV lung cancer in February 2015. The disease eventually moved to his liver, lower back, right shoulder and right hip. He passed away at age 59 on December 30, 2015. He was survived by his wife, 11 children (including professional boxer Dyah Davis) and nine siblings.