Harold Johnson (boxer)

Harold Johnson (August 9, 1928 – February 19, 2015) was an American professional boxer. He held the NYSAC, NBA/WBA, and The Ring light heavyweight titles from 1962 to 1963.

Boxing career

Johnson was born in Manayunk, Philadelphia. He started boxing while serving in the United States Navy and turned professional in 1946. He won his first twenty-four fights before losing a ten-round decision to Archie Moore in 1949. Moore would be Johnson's biggest career rival. Johnson rebounded with four straight victories, including a ten-round decision win against future Hall of Fame inductee Jimmy Bivins.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Johnson's father, Phil Johnson, was also a professional boxer. Phil and Harold Johnson became the first father/son combination to not only fight the same fighter, but lose to him as well. Both suffered third-round knockout defeats at the hands of future World Heavyweight Champion Jersey Joe Walcott in 1936 and 1950, respectively. Harold lost after suffering an injury to the intervertebral disc in the small of his back.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

After five consecutive wins, Johnson resumed his rivalry with Archie Moore, fighting Moore three times in a row between September 1951 and January 1954. All three went the ten-round distance. Johnson lost the rematch, won the rubber match and lost the fourth bout.

In 1952, Johnson split two fights with Bob Satterfield, losing the first by decision and winning the second by knockout, and won a decision over heavyweight contender Nino Valdez. The following year, he defeated former World Heavyweight Champion Ezzard Charles by a split decision. Johnson would finally get a title shot eight years into his career in his fifth and final fight against Archie Moore in 1954. Moore was making the third defense of the World Light Heavyweight Championship. In an exciting fight, Johnson knocked Moore down in the 10th round and was ahead on the scorecards after 13 rounds. But Moore rallied, knocking Johnson down and stopping him in the 14th round.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Johnson outpointed Julio Mederos over ten rounds in 1954. The following year, they had a rematch in Philadelphia. Johnson collapsed after the second round and was carried from the ring on a stretcher. Tests later revealed that Johnson had been drugged with a barbiturate. As a result, the Governor of Pennsylvania suspended boxing in the state for 114 days and instructed the Pennsylvania Athletic Commission to launch a probe. Johnson said he started feeling ill in his dressing room after eating an orange that had been given to him by a stranger who said he was a long-time admirer. A chemical analysis of a piece of the orange showed no trace of a drug or barbiturate. The probe never did uncover who drugged Johnson or how the drug was administered. However, the commission ruled that Johnson knew he was not in condition to fight and should've reported that fact to commission officials on duty that night. He was suspended for six months and his purse was forfeited.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}Template:Dead link</ref>

When the National Boxing Association (NBA) withdrew recognition of Archie Moore as World Light Heavyweight Champion for failure to defend, Johnson defeated Jesse Bowdry in 1961 by a ninth-round technical knockout to capture the vacant NBA title. In his first title defense, Johnson stopped Von Clay in two rounds. After defeating second-ranked heavyweight contender Eddie Machen by a ten-round decision in a non-title bout, Johnson successfully defended his title for a second time with a split decision victory over 4th-ranked light heavyweight contender Eddie Cotton.

Johnson gained universal recognition as World Light Heavyweight Champion when he defeated Doug Jones in 1962 by a decision in fifteen rounds. He successfully defended the undisputed title once, outpointing Gustav Scholz in Berlin, then lost it to Willie Pastrano by a fifteen-round split decision in 1963.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Johnson would never fight for a title again and retired in 1971 with a record of 76–11 with 32 knockouts.

Johnson was inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame in 1992 and the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1993.

Johnson was named the 7th greatest light heavyweight of the 20th century by the Associated Press in 1999.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Three years later, The Ring magazine ranked Johnson 7th on the list "The 20 Greatest Light Heavyweight of All-Time" and 80th on the list "The 80 Best Fighters of the Last 80 Years."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Johnson died at the age of 86 on February 19, 2015.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Professional boxing record

Template:Abbr	Result	Record	Opponent	Type	Round	Date	Location	Notes
87	Template:No2Loss	76–11	Herschel Jacobs	TKO	3 (10)	Mar 30, 1971	Template:Small
86	Template:Yes2Win	76–10	Johnny Alford	UD	10	Jun 11, 1968	Template:Small
85	Template:Yes2Win	75–10	Lothar Stengel	PTS	10	Feb 3, 1968	Template:Small
84	Template:Yes2Win	74–10	Eddie Jones	PTS	10	Aug 7, 1967	Template:Small
83	Template:Yes2Win	73–10	Herschel Jacobs	UD	10	May 1, 1967	Template:Small
82	Template:Yes2Win	72–10	Pekka Kokkonen	PTS	10	Dec 6, 1966	Template:Small
81	Template:No2Loss	71–10	Johnny Persol	UD	10	Jan 7, 1966	Template:Small
80	Template:Yes2Win	71–9	Hank Casey	KO	8 (10)	Apr 20, 1964	Template:Small
79	Template:Yes2Win	70–9	Henry Hank	UD	10	Dec 6, 1963	Template:Small
78	Template:No2Loss	69–9	Willie Pastrano	SD	15	Jun 1, 1963	Template:Small	Template:Small
77	Template:Yes2Win	69–8	Tommy Merrill	TKO	9 (10)	Mar 19, 1963	Template:Small
76	Template:Yes2Win	68–8	Gustav Scholz	UD	15	Jun 23, 1962	Template:Small	Template:Small
75	Template:Yes2Win	67–8	Doug Jones	UD	15	May 12, 1962	Template:Small	Template:Small
74	Template:Yes2Win	66–8	Eddie Cotton	SD	15	Aug 29, 1961	Template:Small	Template:Small
73	Template:Yes2Win	65–8	Eddie Machen	PTS	10	Jul 1, 1961	Template:Small
72	Template:Yes2Win	64–8	Von Clay	TKO	2 (15)	Apr 24, 1961	Template:Small	Template:Small
71	Template:Yes2Win	63–8	Jesse Bowdry	TKO	9 (15)	Feb 7, 1961	Template:Small	Template:Small
70	Template:Yes2Win	62–8	Clarence Floyd	UD	10	May 4, 1960	Template:Small
69	Template:Yes2Win	61–8	Sonny Ray	TKO	10 (10)	Nov 11, 1959	Template:Small
68	Template:Yes2Win	60–8	Johnny York	TKO	6 (10)	Aug 4, 1959	Template:Small
67	Template:Yes2Win	59–8	Rudy Watkins	KO	6 (10)	Dec 15, 1958	Template:Small
66	Template:Yes2Win	58–8	Howard King	UD	10	Dec 3, 1958	Template:Small
65	Template:Yes2Win	57–8	Ollie Wilson	TKO	2 (10)	Apr 15, 1958	Template:Small
64	Template:Yes2Win	56–8	Bert Whitehurst	UD	10	Jan 17, 1958	Template:Small
63	Template:Yes2Win	55–8	Sid Peaks	KO	5 (10)	Dec 17, 1957	Template:Small
62	Template:Yes2Win	54–8	Wayne Bethea	UD	10	Sep 10, 1957	Template:Small
61	Template:Yes2Win	53–8	Clarence Hinnant	KO	1 (10)	May 31, 1957	Template:Small
60	Template:Yes2Win	52–8	Bob Satterfield	UD	10	Mar 12, 1957	Template:Small
59	Template:Yes2Win	51–8	Bert Whitehurst	PTS	10	Dec 8, 1956	Template:Small
58	Template:No2Loss	50–8	Julio Mederos	TKO	2 (10)	May 6, 1955	Template:Small	Template:Small
57	Template:Yes2Win	50–7	Paul Andrews	KO	6 (10)	Feb 11, 1955	Template:Small
56	Template:Yes2Win	49–7	Marty Marshall	UD	10	Dec 22, 1954	Template:Small
55	Template:Yes2Win	48–7	Julio Mederos	UD	10	Dec 7, 1954	Template:Small
54	Template:No2Loss	47–7	Oakland Billy Smith	KO	2 (10)	Oct 8, 1954	Template:Small
53	Template:No2Loss	47–6	Archie Moore	TKO	14 (15)	Aug 11, 1954	Template:Small	Template:Small
52	Template:Yes2Win	47–5	Paul Andrews	MD	10	Mar 17, 1954	Template:Small
51	Template:Yes2Win	46–5	Charley Doc Williams	TKO	8 (10)	Feb 15, 1954	Template:Small
50	Template:Yes2Win	45–5	Jimmy Slade	SD	10	Jan 29, 1954	Template:Small
49	Template:Yes2Win	44–5	Chubby Wright	UD	10	Nov 19, 1953	Template:Small
48	Template:Yes2Win	43–5	Henry Hall	UD	10	Nov 7, 1953	Template:Small
47	Template:Yes2Win	42–5	Ezzard Charles	SD	10	Sep 8, 1953	Template:Small
46	Template:Yes2Win	41–5	Toxie Hall	UD	10	May 11, 1953	Template:Small
45	Template:Yes2Win	40–5	Billy Gilliam	UD	10	Mar 21, 1953	Template:Small
44	Template:Yes2Win	39–5	Jimmy Slade	UD	10	Jan 16, 1953	Template:Small
43	Template:Yes2Win	38–5	Niño Valdés	UD	10	Nov 24, 1952	Template:Small
42	Template:Yes2Win	37–5	Bob Satterfield	KO	2 (10)	Oct 6, 1952	Template:Small
41	Template:Yes2Win	36–5	Leonard Morrow	KO	3 (10)	Sep 16, 1952	Template:Small
40	Template:No2Loss	35–5	Bob Satterfield	SD	10	Aug 6, 1952	Template:Small
39	Template:Yes2Win	35–4	Clarence Henry	SD	10	Mar 17, 1952	Template:Small
38	Template:No2Loss	34–4	Archie Moore	UD	10	Jan 29, 1952	Template:Small
37	Template:Yes2Win	34–3	Archie Moore	UD	10	Dec 10, 1951	Template:Small
36	Template:No2Loss	33–3	Archie Moore	UD	10	Sep 24, 1951	Template:Small
35	Template:Yes2Win	33–2	Chubby Wright	UD	10	Jul 23, 1951	Template:Small
34	Template:Yes2Win	32–2	Elkins Brothers	TKO	10 (10)	Jun 18, 1951	Template:Small
33	Template:Yes2Win	31–2	Chuck Hunter	PTS	8	Feb 9, 1951	Template:Small
32	Template:Yes2Win	30–2	Dusty Wilkerson	KO	4 (10)	Jan 22, 1951	Template:Small
31	Template:Yes2Win	29–2	Harry Daniels	KO	2 (10)	Dec 18, 1950	Template:Small
30	Template:No2Loss	28–2	Jersey Joe Walcott	KO	3 (10)	Feb 8, 1950	Template:Small
29	Template:Yes2Win	28–1	Bert Lytell	PTS	10	Dec 7, 1949	Template:Small
28	Template:Yes2Win	27–1	Jimmy Bivins	UD	10	Oct 26, 1949	Template:Small
27	Template:Yes2Win	26–1	Henry Hall	UD	10	Jul 25, 1949	Template:Small
26	Template:Yes2Win	25–1	Henry Hall	UD	10	Jun 16, 1949	Template:Small
25	Template:No2Loss	24–1	Archie Moore	UD	10	Apr 26, 1949	Template:Small
24	Template:Yes2Win	24–0	Arturo Godoy	UD	10	Feb 23, 1949	Template:Small
23	Template:Yes2Win	23–0	Willie Brown	KO	7 (8)	Dec 14, 1948	Template:Small
22	Template:Yes2Win	22–0	Jim Holden	PTS	8	Nov 9, 1948	Template:Small
21	Template:Yes2Win	21–0	Agostinho Guedes	TKO	3 (10)	Sep 28, 1948	Template:Small
20	Template:Yes2Win	20–0	Vernon Williams	PTS	8	May 13, 1948	Template:Small
19	Template:Yes2Win	19–0	Kenny Harris	UD	10	Mar 29, 1948	Template:Small
18	Template:Yes2Win	18–0	Kenny Harris	UD	8	Mar 1, 1948	Template:Small
17	Template:Yes2Win	17–0	Kid Wolfe	PTS	8	Dec 11, 1947	Template:Small
16	Template:Yes2Win	16–0	Herbie Katz	KO	1 (8)	Nov 24, 1947	Template:Small
15	Template:Yes2Win	15–0	Jimmy Moore	KO	5 (8)	Nov 6, 1947	Template:Small
14	Template:Yes2Win	14–0	Eddie Beazley	TKO	1 (6)	Oct 6, 1947	Template:Small
13	Template:Yes2Win	13–0	Al Pinel	PTS	6	Aug 4, 1947	Template:Small
12	Template:Yes2Win	12–0	Tommy Ruth	KO	6 (8)	Jul 8, 1947	Template:Small
11	Template:Yes2Win	11–0	Fred Lester	TKO	8 (8)	May 26, 1947	Template:Small
10	Template:Yes2Win	10–0	Leon Szymurski	TKO	3 (6)	Apr 28, 1947	Template:Small
9	Template:Yes2Win	9–0	Tony Gillo	PTS	6	Mar 10, 1947	Template:Small
8	Template:Yes2Win	8–0	Joe Van Loan	TKO	2 (6)	Feb 17, 1947	Template:Small
7	Template:Yes2Win	7–0	Jim Holden	KO	4 (6)	Feb 10, 1947	Template:Small
6	Template:Yes2Win	6–0	Chappie Manning	PTS	6	Jan 24, 1947	Template:Small
5	Template:Yes2Win	5–0	Frank Lowry	TKO	2 (6)	Jan 10, 1947	Template:Small
4	Template:Yes2Win	4–0	Randy Ingram	KO	4 (6)	Oct 25, 1946	Template:Small
3	Template:Yes2Win	3–0	Jimmy Kennedy	PTS	6	Sep 9, 1946	Template:Small
2	Template:Yes2Win	2–0	Ted Simmons	KO	2 (4)	Aug 13, 1946	Template:Small
1	Template:Yes2Win	1–0	Dick Brewster	KO	2 (4)	Jun 18, 1946	Template:Small

Titles in boxing

Major world titles

• NYSAC light heavyweight champion (175 lbs)
• NBA (WBA) light heavyweight championTemplate:Efn (175 lbs)
• WBC light heavyweight championTemplate:Efn (175 lbs)

The Ring magazine titles

• The Ring light heavyweight champion (175 lbs)

Undisputed titles

• Undisputed light heavyweight champion

See also

• List of light heavyweight boxing champions

External links

• Template:Boxrec
• Harold Johnson – CBZ Profile

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