John Conteh
John Conteh | ||||||||||
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Statistics | ||||||||||
Real name | John Conteh | |||||||||
Rated at | Light Heavyweight | |||||||||
Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | |||||||||
Reach | 76 in (193 cm) | |||||||||
Nationality | English | |||||||||
Born |
Liverpool, Merseyside, England | 27 May 1951|||||||||
Stance | Orthodox | |||||||||
Boxing record | ||||||||||
Total fights | 39 | |||||||||
Wins | 34 | |||||||||
Wins by KO | 24 | |||||||||
Losses | 4 | |||||||||
Draws | 1 | |||||||||
No contests | 0 | |||||||||
Medal record
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John Conteh (born 27 May 1951) is a British former boxer who was world light-heavyweight boxing champion.
Career
At his peak in the mid-to-late 1970s he was considered good enough that he was touted as a possible opponent of Muhammad Ali. He enjoyed great fame in Britain and was often on the front as well as the back pages of the leading dailies.. Conteh said that his excessive lifestyle brought about a premature decline in his talents. He started boxing at age 10 at the Kirkby club that was a training ground for some of the best amateur boxers, Joey Singleton, Tucker Hetherington and Stuart Morton were only a few. At 19, he won the middleweight gold medal at the 1970 British Commonwealth Games. He won the WBC Light Heavyweight crown in October 1974 by defeating Jorge Ahumada and held the title until 1977 when he was stripped for not going through with a mandated defence.[1] He was the loser in a fifteen round split decision to the Yugoslavian fighter Mate Parlov in an attempt to regain the title.[2] He failed twice in further efforts to win back his old crown in 1979 and then again seven months later in 1980 – both against the American Matthew Saad Muhammad. Muhammad won both bouts but his first victory was declared void because his cornermen used an illegal substance on a cut.[3]
He retired from professional boxing in 1980. His professional record is 34 wins, 1 draw, and 4 losses.
In 1973, Conteh was one of the celebrities featured dressed in prison gear on the cover of the Wings album Band on the Run.
Conteh also has the distinction of being British Superstars competition champion in 1974, the second year of the televised sporting event. Conteh is now an after-dinner speaker and speaks at venues all across the country.
Conteh appeared on the BBC television programme Sporting Legends which was presented by Eamonn Holmes. On the show Conteh spoke at length at how he started out in the fight game and how Ali persuaded him to fight at Light-Heavyweight instead of Heavyweight as Ali believed that Conteh was too small to be a heavyweight, and how his lifestyle led to alcoholism and a charge of assault, he stated that at the time he appeared on Sporting Legends he had been dry for nine years. Conteh also made a starring appearance in the television show Boon in 1989, as a washed-up boxer. He more recently appeared on a boxing special of The Weakest Link in 2009, where he came in third place. His most recent TV acting appearance was in the crime drama "Justice", in which he again played an ex-boxer.
Professional boxing record
34 Wins (23 knockouts, 11 decisions), 4 Losses (1 knockout, 3 decisions), 1 Draw | |||||||
Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round | Date | Location | Notes |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 12–14–1 | James Dixon | TKO | 5 | 31 May 1980 | Liverpool, Merseyside, United Kingdom | Referee stopped the bout at 2:49 of the fifth round. |
style="background: #ffdddd; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="table-no2" |Loss | 24–3–2 | Matthew Saad Muhammad | TKO | 4 | 29 March 1980 | Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States | WBC World Light Heavyweight Title. Referee stopped the bout at 2:27 of the fourth round. |
style="background: #ffdddd; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="table-no2" |Loss | 23–3–2 | Matthew Saad Muhammad | UD | 15 | 18 August 1979 | Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States | WBC World Light Heavyweight Title. 142–146, 143–144, 141–146. |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 19–6 | Ivy Brown | PTS | 10 | 4 June 1979 | Liverpool, Merseyside, United Kingdom | |
Draw | 18–8–1 | Jesse Burnett | PTS | 10 | 19 April 1979 | Piccadilly, London, United Kingdom | |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 8–2 | Leonardo Rodgers | KO | 7 | 26 September 1978 | Wembley, London, United Kingdom | Rodgers knocked out at 1:15 of the seventh round. |
style="background: #ffdddd; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="table-no2" |Loss | 21–1–1 | Mate Parlov | SD | 15 | 17 June 1978 | Belgrade, Serbia | WBC World Light Heavyweight Title. |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 20–7–1 | Joe Cokes | PTS | 10 | 7 February 1978 | Islington, London, United Kingdom | 100–90. |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 26–2–1 | Len "Stinger" Hutchins | TKO | 3 | 5 March 1977 | Liverpool, Merseyside, United Kingdom | WBC World Light Heavyweight Title. |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 31–3 | Yaqui Lopez | UD | 15 | 9 October 1976 | Copenhagen, Denmark | WBC World Light Heavyweight Title. 149–145, 149–145, 148–146. |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 11–3–3 | Willie "Bull" Taylor | PTS | 10 | 16 August 1975 | Scranton, Pennsylvania, United States | |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 24–2 | Lonnie Bennett | TKO | 5 | 11 March 1975 | Wembley, London, United Kingdom | WBC World Light Heavyweight Title. Referee stopped the bout at 1:10 of the fifth round. |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 41–5–2 | Jorge Ahumada | SD | 15 | 1 October 1974 | Wembley, London, United Kingdom | WBC World Light Heavyweight Title. |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 26–5–1 | Chris Finnegan | TKO | 6 | 21 May 1974 | Wembley, London, United Kingdom | EBU/Commonwealth/BBBofC British Light Heavyweight Titles. |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 74–5–1 | Tom Bogs | TKO | 7 | 12 March 1974 | Wembley, London, United Kingdom | EBU Light Heavyweight Title. |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 17–2 | Les "Is More" Stevens | PTS | 10 | 12 February 1974 | Kensington, London, United Kingdom | |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 37–15–1 | Fred "Airman" Lewis | TKO | 3 | 14 December 1973 | Liverpool, Merseyside, United Kingdom | |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 33–7–2 | Baby Boy Rolle | PTS | 15 | 23 October 1973 | Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, United Kingdom | Commonwealth Light Heavyweight Title. |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 39–11–1 | Vicente Rondon | TKO | 9 | 10 September 1973 | Wembley, London, United Kingdom | |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 25–4–1 | Chris Finnegan | PTS | 15 | 22 May 1973 | Wembley, London, United Kingdom | EBU/Commonwealth/BBBofC British Light Heavyweight Titles. |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 29–3–3 | Rudiger Schmidtke | TKO | 12 | 13 March 1973 | Wembley, London, United Kingdom | EBU Light Heavyweight Title. |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 28–9–1 | Terry "TX" Daniels | KO | 7 | 14 February 1973 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 16–1–1 | Dave "The Band" Matthews | PTS | 10 | 15 January 1973 | Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, United Kingdom | 50–48.25. |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 12–2–1 | Sam "Diamond Ray" McGill | TKO | 9 | 5 December 1972 | Kensington, London, United Kingdom | |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 14–13–5 | "Big" John Hudgins | KO | 2 | 14 November 1972 | Wembley, London, United Kingdom | |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 32–11–3 | Bill Drover | KO | 7 | 31 October 1972 | Kensington, London, United Kingdom | |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 3–11–1 | Ferenc Kristofcsak | DQ | 1 | 10 October 1972 | Kensington, London, United Kingdom | |
style="background: #ffdddd; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="table-no2" |Loss | 5–1–1 | Eddie "Big E" Duncan | PTS | 10 | 26 September 1972 | Wembley, London, United Kingdom | 49–49.25. |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 7–14 | Johnny "Big" Mac | TKO | 2 | 19 July 1972 | Dublin, Ireland | |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 12–3–1 | Billy Aird | TKO | 8 | 6 June 1972 | Kensington, London, United Kingdom | |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 8–6–1 | Joe "Top Cat" Gholston | KO | 5 | 25 April 1972 | Kensington, London, United Kingdom | |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 5–7 | Ruben Figueroa | KO | 2 | 28 March 1972 | Wembley, London, United Kingdom | |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 2–1 | Larry "Legend" Sykes | KO | 1 | 15 February 1972 | Kensington, London, United Kingdom | |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 11–2 | Wilhelm Janco | TKO | 1 | 25 January 1972 | Kensington, London, United Kingdom | |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 6–16–2 | Emilio Okee | TKO | 5 | 7 December 1971 | Kensington, London, United Kingdom | |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 4–19–2 | Tony Burwell | PTS | 8 | 24 November 1971 | Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, United Kingdom | |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 9–11 | Frank Bullard | TKO | 2 | 16 November 1971 | Wembley, London, United Kingdom | |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 25–17–2 | Pierre Minier | TKO | 5 | 8 November 1971 | Mayfair, London, United Kingdom | |
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win | 8–3–1 | Okacha Boubekeur | KO | 1 | 18 October 1971 | Piccadilly, London, United Kingdom |
See also
References
- ↑ Conteh Stripped of Title. United Press International via Star-News. 19 May 1977
- ↑ Parlov Decisions Conteh. Daytona Beach Morning Journal. 17 June 1978
- ↑ Controversial ending to cruiserweight fight. The Montreal Gazette. 10 December 1979
External links
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