Cathy Davis
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Cathy Davis (born c 1959 in Poughkeepsie, New York) is a former female boxer who caused sensation in the sport of boxing during the late 1970s. Her nickname was "Cat".
Davis became a household name in the United States by fighting on television many times, in various areas of the country, including Nevada, California, and much of the Northwest. Her only bouts that would ultimately be officially recognized, however, would be five bouts which were held in the Northeast.
[edit] Career
Davis made history in 1977, by becoming the first, and, so far, only woman to be on the cover of Ring Magazine. Some of her fights were televised by ABC or NBC, and she sort of became a symbol for those women who were involved in the feminist movement of the era.
She suffered a devastating personal defeat, however, when a scandal broke out, revealing that most of her fights had been fixed. According to investigation, she may have been involved herself on the process of fixing some of her fights. It is because of that, that only five of her fights are currently recognized as legitimate bouts.
Many boxing fans thought that women's boxing would end there, because Davis was, by far, the best known woman boxer in the world. Some fans even called her the Muhammad Ali of women's boxing. However, after the resurfacing of women's boxing during the middle 1990s with figures such as Christy Martin, Delia Gonzalez, Mia St. John, Laila Ali and Deirdre Gogarty, among others, now Davis is seen by many boxing fans as a pioneer, despite the fact women have been boxing for over a century.
[edit] Later life
Officially, her first fight occurred on November 11, 1977, when she knocked out Margie Dunson in the first round, in North Carolina. On June 7, 1978, she and Ernestine Jones fought to a no contest in a bout that was scheduled for four rounds. She won two more fights before the end of the 1970s.
Probably shaken by the scandal that surrounded her, she decided to retire after her last win, in 1979. But in 1981, she had a one fight comeback, against Lavonne Ludian, knocking her out in three rounds on April 10.
Cathy Davis officially had a record of four wins, no defeats and one no contest, with all four wins coming by knockout.
Currently, Davis dedicates herself to running a website which is entirely dedicated to covering women's boxing news, as well as being a way for women boxers to e-mail each other and talk about possible, future fights. Her website also features the professional records of a large number of women boxers.
