Biography pound pound ray robinson sugar

Relishing his celebrity, Robinson was accompanied by a large group of family members, trainers and women wherever he went. Indeed, he would parade around Harlem in a pink Cadillac and make appearances at his high-profile Harlem nightclub. Unapologetic of his grandiose lifestyle, Robinson was forced to continue boxing much longer than he should have.

A thoughtful, respected and caring individual some of his more thought provoking reflections can be found here Sugar Rays Words of Wisdom! Sugar Ray Robinson — The Greatest. Was he the GOAT? Again, biography pound pound ray robinson sugar to this in depth research I would have said NO! Now I am finding it hard not to say YES. A fan and participator of more or less all sports up to University level from Burnley, England.

I now write as a freelance sports journalist. Throughout the history of boxing, there have been some incredible records set. Unbelievable feats that seemed impossible to reach,…. Fortune Gym, Hollywood…. Boxing was introduced to the Philippines during the last years of the nineteenth century and at the beginning of…. Upsets in boxing make for some of the greatest stories in the history of the sport.

There have been…. Skip to content. Sugar Ray Robinson: Personal Life and Idols Like many of the most successful boxers in history Robinson was no exception to having a troubled youth hood. Similar Posts. Toggle Menu Close. Search for: Search. His father was a cotton, peanut, and corn farmer in Georgia, who moved the family to Detroit where he initially found work in construction.

Six days a week. The only day I really saw him was Sunday I always wanted to be with him more. His parents separated, and he moved with his mother to Harlem at the age of Robinson originally aspired to be a doctor, but after dropping out of DeWitt Clinton High School in the Bronx in ninth grade, he switched his goal to boxing. When he was 14, he attempted to enter his first boxing tournament, but was told he first needed an AAU membership card—which he could not legally procure until he was So, Walker began his amateur fighting career under that name—and it stuck.

Robinson idolized Henry Armstrong and Joe Louis as a youth, and actually had lived on the same block as Louis in Detroit when Robinson was 11 and Louis was The couple had one son, Ronnieand divorced when Robinson was He reportedly finished his amateur career with an 85—0 record with 69 knockouts — 40 coming in the first round, though this has been disputed.

Robinson made his professional debut on October 4,winning by a second-round stoppage over Joe Echevarria. Robinson fought biography pound pound ray robinson sugar more times inwinning all, four by knockout. The Robinson-Angott fight was held above the lightweight limit, since Angott did not want to risk losing his lightweight title.

The Zivic bout, held at the Madison Square Gardendrew a crowd of 20,—one of the largest in the arena to that date. Nichols of The New York Timesbefore Zivic came back to land several punches to Robinson's head in the sixth and seventh. After a close tenth round, Robinson was announced as the winner on all three scorecards. Robinson knocked out Zivic in the tenth round in a January rematch, only the second time Zivic had been counted out in more than fights.

Zivic and his corner protested the stoppage; James P. Dawson of The New York Times stated "[t]hey were criticizing a humane act. The battle had been a slaughter, for want of a more delicate word. After winning three more fights, Robinson faced Jake LaMottawho would become one of his more prominent rivals, for the first time in October. He defeated LaMotta by a unanimous decision, although he failed to get Jake down.

Robinson weighed lb 66 kg compared to For his performances, Robinson was named "Fighter of the Year". He finished with a total of 14 wins and no losses. Robinson built a record of 40—0 before losing for the first time to LaMotta in a round re-match. The fight took place in Robinson's former home town of Detroit, and attracted a record crowd.

Robinson later stated that he carried the aged former champion. Robinson served with Joe Louis, and the pair went on tours with the Special Services division where they performed exhibition bouts in front of U. Army troops. Robinson got into trouble several times while in the military. He argued with superiors who he felt were discriminatory against him, and refused to fight exhibitions when he was told African American soldiers were not allowed to watch them.

But on March 29, Robinson disappeared from his barracks. When he woke up on April 5 in Fort Jay Hospital on Governor's Island, he had missed his sailing for Europe and was under suspicion of deserting. He himself reported falling down the stairs in his barracks on the 29th, but said that he had complete amnesia, and he could not remember any events from that moment until the 5th.

According to his file, a stranger had found him in the street on April 1 and helped him to a hospital. In his examination report, a doctor at Fort Jay concluded that Robinson's version of events was sincere. He later wrote that unfair press coverage of the incident had "branded" him as a "deserter". They planned to start a liquor distribution business in New York City, but were denied a license due to their race.

ByRobinson had fought 75 fights to a 73—1—1 record, and beaten every top contender in the welterweight division. However, he refused to cooperate with the Mafiawhich controlled much of boxing at the time, and was denied a chance to fight for the welterweight championship. Robinson had already beaten Bell once by decision in The two fought for the title vacated by Servo, who had himself lost twice to Robinson in non-title bouts.

In the fight, Robinson, who only a month before had been involved in a round brawl with Artie Levinewas knocked down by Bell. The fight was called a "war", but Robinson was able to pull out a close round decision, winning the vacant World Welterweight title. In Robinson fought five times, but only one bout was a title defense. The first half of the bout was very close, but Robinson took control in the second half.

The only boxer to match Robinson that year was Henry Brimmwho fought him to a round draw in Buffalo. Robinson fought 19 times in He successfully defended his welterweight title for the last time against Charley Fusari. Robinson won a lopsided round decision, knocking Fusari down once. In Juneafter four non-title bouts, Robinson was scheduled to defend his title for the first time in a bout against Jimmy Doyle.

Robinson initially backed out of the fight because he had a dream that he was going to kill Doyle. A priest and a minister convinced him to fight. His dream ended up becoming a reality. After Doyle's death, criminal charges were threatened against Robinson in Cleveland, up to and including murder, though none actually materialized. After learning of Doyle's intentions of using the bout's money to buy his mother a house, Robinson gave Doyle's mother the money from his next four bouts so she could purchase herself a home, fulfilling her son's intention.

It is stated in his autobiography that one of the main considerations for his move up to middleweight was the increasing difficulty he was having in making the lb 67 kg welterweight weight limit. Vying for the Pennsylvania state middleweight title inRobinson defeated Robert Villemain. Later that year, in defense of that crown, he defeated Jose Basora, with whom he had previously drawn.

Robinson's second, first-round knockout of Basora set a record that would stand for 38 years. In OctoberRobinson knocked out Bobo Olson a future middleweight title holder. On February 14,Robinson and LaMotta met for the sixth time. The fight would become known as The St. Valentine's Day Massacre. Robinson won the undisputed World Middleweight title with a 13th round technical knockout.

However, that fight was later ruled to have been fixed and LaMotta was sanctioned for letting Fox win. That bout, and some of the other bouts in the six-fight Robinson-LaMotta rivalry, was depicted in the Martin Scorsese film Raging Bull. After winning his second world title, he embarked on a European tour which took him all over the Continent.

Robinson traveled with his flamingo-pink Cadillacwhich caused quite a stir in Paris[ 53 ] and an entourage of 13 people, some included "just for laughs". In London, Robinson lost the world middleweight title to British boxer Randolph Turpin in a sensational bout.

Biography pound pound ray robinson sugar

In that bout Robinson was leading on the cards but was cut by Turpin. With the fight in jeopardy, Robinson let loose on Turpin, knocking him down, then getting him to the ropes and unleashing a series of punches that caused the referee to stop the bout. In he fought a rematch with Olson, winning by a decision. He next defeated former champion Rocky Graziano by a third-round knockout, then challenged World Light heavyweight champion Joey Maxim.

The fast-moving Robinson was the heat's next victim — at the end of round 13, he collapsed and failed to answer the bell for the next round, [ 26 ] suffering the only knockout of his career. On June 25,after the Maxim bout, Robinson gave up his title and retired with a record of —3—1—1. He began a career in show business, singing and tap dancing.

After about three years, the decline of his businesses and the lack of success in his performing career made him decide to return to boxing. He resumed training in In Robinson returned to the ring. Although he had been inactive for two and a half years, his work as a dancer kept him in peak physical condition: in his autobiography, Robinson states that in the weeks leading up to his debut for a dancing engagement in France, he ran five miles every morning, and then danced for five hours each night.

Robinson even stated that the training he did in his attempts to establish a career as a dancer were harder than any he undertook during his boxing career. He bounced back, however, and defeated Rocky Castellani by a split decision, then challenged Bobo Olson for the world middleweight title. He won the middleweight championship for the third time with a second-round knockout—his third victory over Olson.

After his comeback performance inRobinson expected to be named fighter of the year. However, the title went to welterweight Carmen Basilio. Basilio's handlers had lobbied heavily for it on the basis that he had never won the award, and Robinson later described this as the biggest disappointment of his professional career. In Robinson lost his title to Gene Fullmer.

Fullmer used his aggressive, forward moving style to control Robinson, and knocked him down in the fight. Fullmer headed into their May biography pound pound ray robinson sugar as a 3—1 favorite. The fight was fairly even after four rounds. But he got the message. Later that year, he lost his title to Basilio in a rugged 15 round fight in front of 38, at Yankee Stadium[ 67 ] but regained it for a record fifth time when he beat Basilio in the rematch.

Robinson struggled to make weight, and had to go without food for nearly 20 hours leading up to the bout. He badly damaged Basilio's eye early in the fight, and by the seventh round it was swollen shut. The referee scored the fight for Basilio 69—64, and was booed loudly by the crowd of 19, when his decision was announced. Robinson knocked out Bob Young in the second round in Boston in his only fight in A year later, he defended his title against Paul Pender.

Robinson entered the fight as a 5—1 favorite, but lost a split decision in front of 10, at Boston Garden. He did just that and outlasted the aging Robinson, who, despite opening a cut over Pender's eye in the eighth round, was largely ineffective in the later rounds. Despite Robinson's efforts, Pender won by decision in that rematch. He quickly transformed into a boxing sensation, achieving an unprecedented 40 consecutive victories that left the boxing world in awe.

Due to his refusal to cooperate with the mob, which controlled much of the boxing industry, Robinson was nicknamed the "uncrowned champion" as he awaited his shot at the welterweight title. This initial struggle only fueled his determination to succeed in the ring. InRobinson's hard work and perseverance finally paid off when he won the world welterweight title by defeating Tommy Bell in a unanimous round decision.

He held onto this title untilembodying the essence of a champion as he fought and triumphed against the toughest opponents. His exceptional skills and ability to transition between weight classes earned him the title of "pound for pound, the best," a recognition that endures to this day. Robinson's indelible mark on the sport of boxing began in those early years, laying a foundation that would lead to a legendary career defined by excellence and resilience.

Sugar Ray Robinson, hailed as one of boxing's greatest talents, began his professional career inquickly establishing himself with an unprecedented record of 40 consecutive wins. His extraordinary skill set earned him the title of "uncrowned champion" prior to his first official welterweight title bout, which he won in against Tommy Bell. He dominated the welterweight division, holding the title until Robinson's prowess extended beyond one weight class; he became the first boxer in history to claim a divisional world championship five times, achieving this remarkable feat by Throughout his illustrious year career, Robinson amassed an impressive tally of victories, including knockouts, while suffering only 19 losses.

Notably, his ability to transition between weight classes solidified his reputation as "pound for pound, the best" in the sport—a title he earned through both exceptional technique and fierce determination. His impact on boxing was profound, inspiring future legends, including Muhammad Ali, who regarded Robinson as a personal idol. Robinson was born Walker Smith Jr.

Robinson's birth certificate lists his place of birth as Ailey, Georgia, while the boxer stated in his autobiography that he was born in Detroit, Michigan. What is known is that Robinson grew up in Detroit, and he was 11 years old when his mother, tired of her husband's absence from the family's life, up and left the city, moving herself, her son and two daughters to Harlem.

But New York proved rough in other ways. With little money — Robinson helped his mother save for an apartment by earning change dancing for strangers in Times Square — the Smiths built their new life in a section of Harlem dominated by flophouses and gangsters. Fearful that her son would get pulled into this shady world, Robinson's mother turned to the Salem Methodist Episcopal Church, where a man by the name of George Gainford had just started a boxing club.

It didn't take much for Robinson, who'd been a neighbor of heavyweight champ Joe Louis back in Detroit, to strap on fighting gloves. For the first bout of his career inhe borrowed the Amateur Athletic Union card of another boxer, whose name was Ray Robinson, to enter the ring. Robinson wouldn't go by his birth name for the rest of his career.

The nickname "Sugar" came from Gainford, who had described the young boxer as "sweet as sugar"; reporters soon began using the moniker. The young boxer quickly moved up the ranks.