Davey Moore (1980s)
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Davey Moore (1962-1988) was an American world champion boxer, the second of two of them who shared those names in the late 20th century, and whose respective careers each ended with death by trauma near the age of thirty.
This Davey Moore was born in New York, during the championship reign of the first Davey Moore. As a boxer, he rose quickly through the junior middleweight ranks -- perhaps too quickly, according to some boxing writers and critics. After winning eight professional fights, five by knockout, the WBA named him their #1 challenger, and in February of 1982, he travelled to Japan, where he knocked out defending champion Tadashi Mihara in six, winning the WBA world junior middleweight title.
In April of that year he defended it against Charlie Weir, taking five rounds to knock him out, and in July former world champion Ayub Kalule, whom he stopped in ten.
Moore started 1983 by beating challenger Gary Guiden, again by knockout, in four. Next, he defended against former two-time world champion Roberto Duran. Moore was perhaps overconfident, thinking that he could easily defeat the aging 'Hands of Stone' Duran. However, the match was decidedly lopsided, with Duran hammering shut one of Moore's eyes, dropping him in eight rounds at Madison Square Garden. Moore won his next two fights, including one in Monte Carlo over Wilfredo Benitez, but then he was disqualified in the ninth round against Louis Acaries in Paris. In 1985, he won one more fight and was in line to challenge Carlos Santos for the IBF World Junior Middleweight title. That fight did not materialize, but eventually he did get to challenge for the IBF title, going against Buster Drayton in August 1986. Inexplicably, Moore seems to have lost his will to fight during this bout, and lost by TKO in the tenth. After that, Moore would fight just a few more times, compiling a mediocre record.
One morning in early June 1988, as Moore was leaving his home, he stepped out of his car to open his garage door. He failed to put the car in park, leaving it in reverse. The car lurched backwards, pinning him against the door of his garage. He died at the scene. The untimely deaths of both Davey Moores has led many boxing observers to wonder if the name is cursed.
| Preceded by Tadashi Mihara |
WBA Light Middleweight boxing champion 2 Feb 1982– 16 Jun 1983 |
Succeeded by Roberto Duran |
[edit] Amateur Highlights
Davey Moore won four New York Golden Gloves Championships. Moore won the 1976 135lb Sub-Novice Championship. Moore also won the 1977, 1978 and 1979 147lb Open Championships. He was defeated in the 1980 147lb Open division by Pedro Vilella himself a three time New York Golden Gloves Champion. Moore was trained at the Morrisania Youth Center in the Bronx, New York by Leon Washington a former professional Middleweight.
