Floyd Patterson is widely viewed as one of the better heavyweight champion boxers of all time, and not without some solid reasoning.
Patterson made his professional debut on September 12, 1952. In just a little over five years later, Patterson had compiled an impressive record of 30-1. It was then on November 30, 1956 when Patterson first got the opportunity to fight for a world championship when he squared off against Archie Moore for the vacant heavyweight world championship that had become vacant after the retirement of Rocky Marciano. Patterson stopped ‘The Old Mongoose’ in just 5 rounds to become the youngest ever heavyweight world champion at that time – Patterson was just shy of 21 years and 11 months old.
Nearly twelve years later on September 14, 1968, Patterson had his final championship contest when he was unsuccessful in his bid for the WBA strap when he challenged Jimmy Ellis. That one was a somewhat controversial referee decision where many observers believed Patterson deserved to win. Patterson however remained a top contender for several more years before he ultimately called it a career.
When all was said and done, Patterson finished his career with a rather impressive record. In 64 contests Floyd had 55 victories, with 8 defeats, 1 draw, and 40 of those 55 victories coming by way of knockout. Out of those 64 professional bouts, 13 of those were world championship bouts, and of those 13, 12 of Patterson’s championship contests ended decisively with a stoppage. Whether he ultimately won or whether he lost, Patterson’s championship fights usually brought a lot of excitement, a lot of crowd pleasing action, and a lot of knock downs.
This edition of Rummy’s Corner will provide a brief chronological recap of all 13 heavyweight world championship contests that featured the one and only Floyd Patterson. This is part 4 of a new ongoing series of Complete Championship Profiles. Please watch and enjoy the video!