Jimmy Young

Jimmy Young was a heavyweight American professional boxer born on November 14th, 1948, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. He had a professional career that lasted more than 20 years, that is, from 1969 to 1990. During his career, Young contested a total of 57 fights, recording 35 wins (12 Knockout wins, 23 wins by decision), 19 losses (2 via KO, 17 losses by decision), and 2 draws without any no-contests.

He made his professional debut on October 28th, 1969, at the age of 20, defeating Jim Jones via 1st round TKO. After his debut, he went on to fight some legendary boxers like Muhammad Ali, Earnie Shavers, George Foreman, Ron Lyle, Ken Norton, among others. His first World title fight was against Muhammad Ali, the WBA, WBC, and The Ring titleholder in 1976, where he lost to Ali via a unanimous decision.

However, Young's career boasted some significant moments. Jimmy Young had a notable victory in March 1977 over George Foreman via a 12th round unanimous decision. Young's career also featured two fights that earned him a place in the spotlight. In his first world-title fight, Young faced Muhammad Ali, whom he lost to by unanimous decision for the WBA, WBC, and The Ring heavyweight titles. The fight was close, controversial, and the result drew outrage from many of Young's fans.

Although he lost, Young's performance in the Muhammad Ali fight earned him critical acclaim, and he became a well-known name in the boxing world. Young's victory over George Foreman in March 1977 saw him win a 12-round unanimous decision. Young fought against Foreman, who boasted of a five-fight winning streak since dropping his title to Muhammad Ali in the "Rumble in the Jungle," and whom Young had already sparred with twice.

Young was known for his awkward, defensive style and counterpunching. He was considered a ring technician and a skilled defensive fighter who was adept at anticipating his opponents' moves. However, his defense could sometimes come up as unnecessary movements and footwork perceived as avoiding the fight entirely. He used a strategy focusing on fighting aggressively from a distance, landing several light blows while dodging and parrying Ali's counterpunches, and threw body blows, which had little power but effective in scoring points. During close-quarters, Young would turn passive while retreating and kept his head ducked low to deter Ali from landing blows to his head, risking censure from the referee for "rabbit punching."

On several occasions, when Ali was inside and Young had his back to the ropes, Young intentionally put his head or upper body out of the ring beyond the ropes to compel the referee to step in and separate the fighters. This divided opinions on its being an effective way of neutralizing Ali's game or its unsportsmanlike way of causing tactical stoppages every time Ali had an advantage.

Jimmy Young's professional career spanned over 21 years, with his last professional fight taking place at 41 years of age against Carl Porter on September 22nd, 1990. Young won the fight via 2nd round TKO. He eventually retired from professional boxing with a record of 35-19-2, which included 12 knockout wins and two losses via knockout.

Young faced some setbacks during his career that ended sooner than expected. Young lost one title bout and 18 non-title bouts, with his first defeat coming against Clay Hodges by a six-round unanimous decision on April 3rd, 1970. He was stopped twice and lost 17 times via decision. Although he had several setbacks, he was able to emerge victorious against some of boxing's biggest names like George Foreman and Ron Lyle.

In total, Jimmy Young fought 57 professional fights during his career, recording 35 wins (23 wins by decision, 12 wins by KO), 19 losses (17 losses by decision, 2 losses by KO), and 2 draws, without any no-contest bouts. He had some exceptional moments during his boxing career, as his victory over George Foreman in March 1977 and his fight with Muhammad Ali, which earned him good reputation as a skilled defensive fighter.

Jimmy Young will always be remembered as a skillful fighter who gave his all in the ring. His boxing style was unique, which helped him outsmart his opponents. He was a noteworthy contender of his generation who faced some of the best boxers to grace the sport within his era, and though his record is blemished, Young's boxing style and skill placed him among the all-time heavyweight greats.

Jimmy Young Fight Record