| Boone Kirkman | |
|---|---|
| Statistics | |
| Real name | Daniel Victor Kirkman |
| Nickname(s) |
"Boone" "Boom Boom" |
| Rated at | 210 lbs |
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.8 m) |
| Nationality | American |
| Born | February 6, 1945 Vallejo, California |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Boxing record | |
| Wins | 36 |
| Wins by KO | 25 |
| Losses | 6 |
| Draws | 0 |
| No contests |
0 |
Daniel Victor "Boone" Kirkman (born February 6, 1945 in Vallejo, California)[3] is a former amateur and professional Heavyweight boxer.[4] He fought during the same era as George Foreman, Muhammad Ali, and Joe Frazier, which has been credited as being one of the greatest heavyweight eras of all time.[5]
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Kirkman was born in Vallejo, California in 1945 to Oehm and Margarite Kirkman.[6][3] His father, a naval officer, was stationed there at the time. When his father was discharged from the Navy, the family moved back to Renton, Washington, where Kirkman's grandfather initially settled.[6][3]
From a young age, Kirkman's favorite activities were hunting, fishing, and hiking throughout the state of Washington with his father. He frequently stopped to view plant and animal life, earning him his lifelong nickname of "Boone".[3]
Growing up in Renton, a working-class community, Kirkman joined a group of 20 teenagers called the "Buds". The group drank and smoked, among other unethical activities. This concerned Kirkman's father, however, the "gang" did not engage in any street crime activities such as drag racing, robberies, or fighting.[3]
Kirkman was inspired to box by his older brother, Steve, whom he frequently sparred with for fun. A school friend who noticed his lack of interest in reading suggested the book Somebody Up There Likes Me to him. In a short time, he had finished the book. Shortly thereafter, the book was made into a self-titled film, to which Kirkman was elated to discover.[3] The duo convinced Kirkman that his future lay in boxing. Kirkman's first training sessions at age 14 involved traveling to a south Seattle gymnasium to work out from his school in Renton, Washington. The venue was suggested to him by former professional Joey Velez. Kirkman took a year-long hiatus from boxing due to injury, but returned to the gym and won several local Golden Gloves events afterward, slowly building a reputation.[7]
His popularity exploded in March 1965 when he won the AAU Heavyweight Boxing national title in Toledo, Ohio. Following the event, he was signed by Seattle-area fight manager Jack Hurley. Kirkman assumed co-ownership of his family's pub; The Melrose Tavern, shortly after his signing. Between bar tending shifts, Kirkman incorporated training, and spent most nights punching a speed bag, entertaining spectators.[7]
Boone Kirkman's professional career lasted from 1966 to 1978. He finished with a record of 36—6 with a 59.52 knockout percentage. His peak ranking was seventh.[4]
His first match, held in Boise, yielded a win and knockout over Lou Phillips. Kirkman managed to go undefeated in his first eleven matches, including a win over Eddie Machen until stepping up in opposition in New York he faced skilled Doug Jones in a featured fight held in Seattle. Jones caused a cut over Kirkman's left eye in the first round, but Kirkman managed to keep the veteran at bay with a deluge of heavy punches, eventually knocking Jones to the ropes in Round 7. Thinking he had won the fight, Kirkman prepared for the referee to raise his hand in victory. However the ring physician stopped the fight in due to worsening conditions in Kirkman's eye, sparking controversy.[3] Six weeks later, Kirkman would return the favor, winning their rematch, to Jones at the start of a winning streak.
Kirkman won his ensuing ten bouts, and Hurley scheduled a match between Kirkman and George Foreman at the Madison Square Garden in downtown New York.
The Foreman fight was scheduled for November 18, 1970. Foreman was the most heavily favored opponent Kirkman would ever face.
From the start, Kirkman was overmatched by Foreman's superior quickness and power. Foreman pummeled Kirkman with a combination of powerful punches, knocking him to the canvas three times in the first two rounds. The bout ended after 3:40, when Kirkman failed to answer the bell, giving Foreman the win and knockout.[7]
Following the fight, Kirkman elected to opt out of his contract with Hurley, who died several years later.[4]
Following the fight with Foreman, Kirkman won yet another 10 consecutive bouts. Strangely enough, only half were knockouts, whereas his knockout average was much higher. One of his more notable victories during this stretch came against Jack O'Halloran via points. He also encountered his second opponent ranked in the Ring Magazine Top 10 in Jimmy Ellis, whom he defeated by split decision.
On April 9, 1974, Kirkman fought Memphis Al Jones in what Kirkman considered a "tune-up fight".[7] The fight was stopped abruptly when Kirkman, having knocked Jones down four times in the first two rounds, was knocked unconscious by a right hook from Jones.[7] This was Kirkman's first loss in over three and a half years.
Following the loss, Kirkman immediately scheduled several ranked opponents in an attempt to recover his sinking ranking. As a result, Kirkman experienced consecutive losses for the first time in his career after losing to Ken Norton, on his return to Seattle in June 1974. Norton was known as "the guy that broke Ali's jaw", doing it the previous year as a 7-1 underdog[8]. The Kirkman-Norton fight was stopped by the referee when Kirkman failed to answer the bell for the eighth round.[2]
In September, Kirkman fought Ron Lyle, who the following year was beaten controversially by Ali for the WBA and WBC titles.[9] The fight was stopped as a technical knockout due to a cut on Kirkman's cheek.[2]
| 36 Wins (24 knockouts, 12 decisions), 6 Losses (3 knockouts, 2 decisions), 0 Draws[2] | |||||||
| Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Date | Location | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 36-6 | Charles Atlas | TKO | 26 January 1978 | Seattle, Washington | ||
| Win | 35-6 | Pedro Agosto | PTS | 25 October 1977 | Seattle, Washington | ||
| Win | 34-6 | Ron Stander | TKO | 19 July 1977 | Seattle, Washington | ||
| Win | 33-6 | Jose Roman | UD | 26 April 1977 | Seattle, Washington | ||
| Loss | 32-6 | Randy Neumann | UD | 5 September 1975 | Las Vegas, Nevada | ||
| Loss | 32-5 | Ron Lyle | TKO | 17 September 1974 | Seattle, Washington | ||
| Loss | 32-4 | Ken Norton | RTD | 25 June 1974 | Seattle, Washington | ||
| Loss | 32-3 | Al Jones | KO | 9 April 1974 | Dallas, Texas | ||
| Win | 32-2 | Larry Renaud | TKO | 6 March 1974 | Reno, Nevada | ||
| Win | 31-2 | Jimmy Ellis | SD | 12 December 1973 | Seattle, Washington | ||
| Win | 30-2 | George Johnson | PTS | 23 October 1973 | Seattle, Washington | ||
| Win | 29-2 | Lou Bailey | PTS | 4 October 1973 | Denver, Colorado | ||
| Win | 28-2 | Robie Harris | KO | 20 September 1973 | Stockton, California | ||
| Win | 27-2 | Jack O'Halloran | PTS | 12 July 1973 | Seattle, Washington | ||
| Win | 26-2 | Steve Carter | PTS | 16 May 1973 | Stockton, California | ||
| Win | 25-2 | Bill Drover | KO | 28 April 1973 | Seattle, Washington | ||
| Win | 24-2 | Dick Gosha | TKO | 15 March 1973 | Seattle, Washington | ||
| Win | 23-2 | Fred Lewis | TKO | 30 January 1973 | Seattle, Washington | ||
| Loss | 22-2 | George Foreman | TKO | 18 November 1970 | Madison Square Garden, New York, New York | ||
| Win | 22-1 | Amos Lincoln | KO | 9 July 1970 | Seattle, Washington | ||
| Win | 21-1 | Bill McMurray | TKO | 28 April 1970 | Seattle, Washington | ||
| Win | 20-1 | Ollie Wilson | KO | 17 March 1970 | St. Paul, Minnesota | ||
| Win | 19-1 | Mike Bruce | KO | 26 January 1970 | Seattle, Washington | ||
| Win | 18-1 | Bill McMurray | UD | 9 September 1968 | Seattle, Washington | ||
| Win | 17-1 | Everett Copeland | TKO | 25 April 1968 | Spokane, Washington | ||
| Win | 16-1 | Mike Lanum | KO | 29 February 1968 | St. Louis, Missouri | ||
| Win | 15-1 | Archie Ray | KO | 12 December 1967 | St. Louis, Missouri | ||
| Win | 14-1 | Wayne Heath | KO | 17 November 1967 | Spokane, Washington | ||
| Win | 13-1 | Bill Nielson | TKO | 3 October 1967 | Portland Oregon | ||
| Win | 12-1 | Doug Jones | TKO | 10 August 1967 | Seattle, Washington | ||
| Loss | 11-1 | Doug Jones | TKO | 29 June 1967 | Seattle, Washington | ||
| Win | 11-0 | Eddie Machen | TKO | 26 May 1967 | Seattle, Washington | ||
| Win | 10-0 | Lars Olof Norling | TKO | 22 April 1967 | Spokane, Washington | ||
| Win | 9-0 | Wayne Heath | UD | 21 March 1967 | Portland, Oregon | ||
| Win | 8-0 | Leroy Birmingham | TKO | 28 February 1967 | Spokane, Washington | ||
| Win | 7-0 | Bowie Adams | KO | 24 January 1967 | Seattle, Washington | ||
| Win | 6-0 | Archie Ray | PTS | 20 October 1966 | Boise, Idaho | ||
| Win | 5-0 | Archie Ray | UD | 22 September 1966 | Boise, Idaho | ||
| Win | 4-0 | Al Carter | TKO | 23 June 1966 | Los Angeles, California | ||
| Win | 3-0 | John Collins | TKO | 2 June 1966 | Boise, Idaho | ||
| Win | 2-0 | Gail Wright | KO | 5 May 1966 | Boise, Idaho | ||
| Win | 1-0 | Lou Phillips | KO | 1 April 1966 | Boise, Idaho | ||
After retiring from boxing at age 33, Kirkman became a Boeing delivery truck driver, and retired from Boeing in 2010].
Kirkman lives with his wife Teese, a retired nurse. The two have been married since 1988. He has two children, Erik and Nina (from a previous marriage), and two grandchildren.
In his spare time, Kirkman enjoys hiking and mountaineering. He has scaled four of the five highest peaks in Washington: Mount Rainier (8 times), Mount Saint Helens (3 times), Mount Adams, and Mount Baker.[7]
In interviews, Kirkman has said he and Jack Hurley never got along during their partnership.[3][4] While Hurley was a good presenter, Kirkman felt he was never given the chance to prepare for the Foreman fight, as all of his previous opponents were not nearly as highly ranked. This led to Kirkman releasing Hurley.
Hurley never scheduled a fight with Muhammad Ali, which angered Kirkman, particularly while he was in his prime.[4] This has caused Kirkman to speculate about the possible result of a fight with Ali. Kirkman has also criticized Hurley for being completely uninvolved in his training regimen, and stated that Hurley gave short notice of upcoming fights.[4]
Harry Matthews and Pete Radarmacher, both former boxers who were signed by Hurley, experienced similar scenarios in which they were also placed in fights with highly ranked opponents before they were prepared to do so.[10]