Marvin Johnson

Marvin "Pops" Johnson was a three-time light-heavyweight champion of the world, born in Indianapolis, Indiana, on April 12, 1954. Johnson fought as an amateur in the 1972 Olympics in Munich where he won a bronze medal before moving up the ranks in the light heavyweight division as a professional. He established himself as a force to reckon with by winning his first 15 professional fights, including a nationally televised 4th round knockout over Tom "The Bomb" Bethea. However, Johnson lost his first professional bout in his next fight against Matthew "Saad" Muhammad, a rising contender, by 12th round knockout in a furious battle for the NABF light heavyweight title.

After the loss, Johnson rallied, impressively winning several fights, until losing against Lottie Mwale via decision. He faced off against Mate Parlov of Yugoslavia and won the WBC light heavyweight crown via a 10th-round KO in Italy in December 1978. For his first title defense, in April 1979, Johnson chose Matthew Franklin, the very man who had beaten him in an epic war two years earlier. In front of his hometown Indianapolis fans, Johnson engaged Franklin in a rematch of such intensity and drama that it is considered among boxing historians as one of the greatest title fights in history.

After he won his 16th straight fight, Johnson faced off against Argentinian Victor Galindez in New Orleans for the WBA version of the light heavyweight title. Johnson controlled the early rounds, but Galindez hung on gamely, and the two boxers turned in a see-saw battle through the first ten rounds before Johnson nailed—and floored—Galindez, and the title changed hands when the champion's corner surrendered after the Argentine hit the canvas.

However, Johnson again went up against the strongest available contender to challenge for his belt and lost to Eddie Mustafa Muhammad. Things looked bleak when Johnson fought against up-and-coming Michael Spinks in early 1981, losing in the fourth round. Showing the resilience that would mark his career, Johnson went on to win 16 straight fights and defeated good fighters like Charles Williams. In February 1986, before his hometown Indianapolis fans, Johnson fought Leslie Stewart of Trinidad and Tobago for the WBA light heavyweight title, becoming the first-ever three-time champion in the division. He then won a defense against Jean-Marie Emebe of Cameroon and left the ring as the champion in September of that year.

The then WBA champion Johnson went up against Trinidadian boxer Leslie Stewart on May 23, 1987, in a light-heavyweight title defense bout. However, it was Stewart who dominated Johnson, flooring him several times in the first few rounds. While Johnson always regained his feet and was never counted out, he did tell his cornermen after eight rounds that 'enough was enough,' and by doing so became an ex-champ for a third time. Johnson retired from professional boxing with a record of 43-6, which included 35 knockout wins and five losses via knockout, and three title wins.

Johnson made his professional boxing debut against Sylvester Wilder at the age of 19 on May 22, 1973, defeating Wilder via 2nd round KO. He went on to win 14 more consecutive fights after the debut, which included 11 wins by stoppage. Johnson had his first world title fight at the age of 24 on December 2, 1978, after 23 professional fights against Mate Parlov for the light-heavyweight WBC title. He defeated Parlov via 10th round TKO to become the light-heavyweight champion of the world. Johnson's professional boxing career spanned more than 14 years — from 1973 to 1987.

Johnson had a total of six losses in his professional boxing career — three of them in title bouts and three in non-title bouts. He suffered his first loss against Matthew Saad Muhammad via 12th round TKO on July 26, 1977, which ended his 15-fight win streak. He has been stopped five times and lost once via decision.

In terms of his physical attributes, Johnson stood at 5'10 1/2" with a height of 179cm, had a reach of 72 1/2" with a stance of Southpaw. He competed in the light heavyweight weight class.

Throughout his career, some of Johnson's best fights and notable victories came against Hall-of-Famer Víctor Galíndez, Leslie Stewart, Mate Parlov, Eddie Davis, Jean Marie Emebe, Ray Anderson, and Charles Williams.

Johnson ended his career with a record of 43 wins, six losses, and no draws or no-contests, with 35 wins coming via knockout. He won a total of three world titles at light-heavyweight, with one title defense and four title-fight KO wins. His last professional fight was a light-heavyweight title defense bout against Trinidadian boxer Leslie Stewart on May 23, 1987, which he lost via 8th round RTD — losing his WBA title. It has been 35 years, ten months, and eight days since this fight.

Marvin "Pops" Johnson was inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame in 2008 alongside Lennox Lewis and Pernell Whitaker. His nickname was "Pops".

Marvin Johnson Fight Record