Howard Davis Jr.

Howard Edward Davis Jr. (February 14, 1956 – December 30, 2015) was an American professional boxer. Growing up on Long Island as the eldest of 10 children, Davis first learned boxing from his father. After being inspired by a movie about Muhammad Ali, Davis embarked on his amateur career. He won the 1976 Olympic gold medal one week after his mother died. He was also awarded the Val Barker Trophy at the Olympics, beating out such boxers as Sugar Ray Leonard, Michael Spinks and Leon Spinks.^[1]

Howard Davis

Davis with Chuck Liddell, 2009
Personal information
Full name	Howard Edward Davis Jr.
Born	(1956-02-14)February 14, 1956 Glen Cove, New York, U.S.
Died	December 30, 2015(2015-12-30) (aged 59) Plantation, Florida, U.S.
Height	1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)
Weight	60 kg (132 lb)
Sport
Sport	Boxing
Weight class	Lightweight and Featherweight
Medal record Men's boxing Representing the  United States Olympic Games 1976 Montreal Lightweight World Amateur Championships 1974 Havana Featherweight

He turned professional after the Olympics and went on to compile a professional record of 36–6–1 with 14 knockouts. He retired in 1996.^[1] After retirement he became a trainer. Eventually he worked as boxing director at American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Florida, where he trained both amateur and professional boxers and MMA fighters. He was also a motivational speaker and a musician.

Amateur career

As an amateur, Davis was trained by his father, a former boxer. He had an outstanding amateur career. In 1976, Davis won the Olympic gold medal in the lightweight division in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Davis was also named the Outstanding Boxer of the 1976 Olympics and given the Val Barker Trophy. His Olympic teammates included Sugar Ray Leonard, Michael Spinks and Leon Spinks.

His Olympic victory came just one week after his mother died of a heart attack.

Davis had an amateur record of 125–5.

Amateur accomplishments include:

• 1973 National AAU Champion (125 lb)
  • Defeated Leroy Veasley of Detroit in the final
• 1974 World Championships (125 lbs) in Havana, Cuba
  • Defeated Roberto Andino (Puerto Rico) on points
  • Defeated Rumen Peshev (Bulgaria) on points
  • Defeated Eddie Ndukwu (Nigeria) on points
  • Defeated Mariano Álvarez (Cuba) on points
  • Defeated Boris Kuznetsov (Soviet Union) on points
• 1976 National AAU Champion (132 lbs)
  • Defeated Thomas Hearns on points.
• 1976 Olympic Trials
  • Defeated Aaron Pryor to qualify at 132 pounds
• 1976 Summer Olympics – Gold Medal (132 lbs) and Val Barker Award winner for Most Outstanding Boxer of the Games
  • Round of 32: Defeated Yukio Segawa (Japan) won on points
  • Round of 16: Defeated Leonidas Asprilla (Colombia) won by KO 2
  • Quarterfinal:; Defeated Tsvetan Tsvetkov (Bulgaria) won by TKO 3
  • Semifinal: Defeated Ace Rusevski (Yugoslavia) won on points
  • Final: Defeated Simion Cuţov (Romania) won on points

Professional career

Davis turned professional in 1977. After winning his first thirteen fights, he challenged Jim Watt for the WBC lightweight title in 1980. Watt won by a fifteen-round unanimous decision. In 1984, with a record of 26–1, Davis fought Edwin Rosario for the WBC lightweight title. Rosario retained his title with a twelve-round split decision. His final attempt to win a world title came in 1988. Davis was stunningly knocked out in the first round by IBF junior welterweight champion Buddy McGirt. He retired after the fight. In 1994, Davis launched a comeback as a middleweight. He retired for good after losing by second-round knockout to Dana Rosenblatt on April 13, 1996.

He finished with a professional record of 36–6–1 with 14 KO's.^[2]

Honors

In August 1976, Davis' hometown of Glen Cove, New York honored Davis with a parade for his Olympic achievement, which was attended by Lt. Governor Mary Anne Krupsak.

In July 2009, Glen Cove honored Davis by naming a street after him. The Mayor also proclaimed July 10 as Howard Davis Day in honor of both father and son.^[3]

Personal life

In 1981, Davis had his Olympic Gold Medal stolen from his home, only to be found years later by a landscaper on the side of the road. After discovering the true value of the medal, the landscaper returned the medal to Davis.^[4]

Davis served as a boxing trainer to MMA fighters, including Chuck Liddell and fighters from American Top Team. He also worked as a sports commentator, a public speaker, and a promoter for Fight Time Promotions. Davis was a boxing coach/trainer for Chuck Liddell on The Ultimate Fighter 11.^[5] Davis' wife Karla Guadamuz-Davis served as his Publicist and Business Manager.

Davis followed a strict vegetarian diet.^[6]

Davis' son Dyah is also a former professional boxer, who transitioned to a coaching career and is a boxing coach at the American Top Team.^[7]

Death

In the summer of 2015 Davis learned that he had incurable, late-stage lung cancer.^[8] He died on December 30, 2015, from the disease at the age of 59.^[9]

Professional boxing record

43 fights	36 wins	6 losses
By knockout	14	2
By decision	22	4
Draws	1

No.	Result	Record	Opponent	Type	Round, time	Date	Location	Notes
43	Loss	36–6–1	Dana Rosenblatt	KO	2 (12), 2:00	13 Apr 1996	TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, US	For the WBU Middleweight Championship.
42	Win	36–5–1	Humberto Aranda	PTS	10	29 Jun 1995	Ukrainian Cultural Center, Somerset, New Jersey, US
41	Win	35–5–1	Glenn Odem	UD	10	4 May 1995	Ukrainian Cultural Center, Somerset, New Jersey, US
40	Win	34–5–1	Joaquin Velasquez	UD	10	19 Jan 1995	Ukrainian Cultural Center, Somerset, New Jersey, US
39	Win	33–5–1	Rip Rettig	TKO	7 (10)	17 Nov 1994	Ukrainian Cultural Center, Somerset, New Jersey, US
38	Loss	32–5–1	Buddy McGirt	KO	1 (15), 2:45	31 Jul 1988	Felt Forum, New York, New York, US	For the IBF Super Lightweight Championship.
37	Win	32–4–1	Ron Johnson	UD	10	28 Apr 1988	Teachers Union Hall, Dorchester, Boston, US
36	Win	31–4–1	Shelton LeBlanc	UD	10	25 Mar 1988	Felt Forum, New York, New York, US
35	Win	30–4–1	Ali Kareem Muhammad	TKO	9 (10), 2:15	21 Jan 1988	Felt Forum, New York, New York, US
34	Loss	29–4–1	Héctor Camacho	UD	10	2 May 1987	Convention Center, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US
33	Win	29–3–1	Othal Dixon	UD	10	27 Feb 1987	Trump Casino Hotel, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US
32	Draw	28–3–1	Meldrick Taylor	SD	10	16 Aug 1986	Sands Hotel Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US
31	Loss	28–3	Joe Manley	UD	10	28 Feb 1986	Golden Nugget Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US
30	Win	28–2	Sammy Matos	TKO	4 (10)	16 Oct 1985	New Brunswick High School, New Brunswick, New Jersey, US
29	Win	27–2	Bobby Johnson	UD	10	14 Dec 1984	Nassau Coliseum, Uniondale, New York, US
28	Loss	26–2	Edwin Rosario	SD	12	23 Jun 1984	Roberto Clemente Coliseum, San Juan, Puerto Rico	For the WBC Lightweight Championship.
27	Win	26–1	Darrell Stovall	TKO	2 (10), 1:48	16 May 1984	Showboat Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada, US
26	Win	25–1	Connie Swift	RTD	8 (10), 3:00	3 Mar 1984	Bally's Park Place Hotel Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US
25	Win	24–1	Greg Coverson	TKO	8 (10), 2:36	18 Jun 1983	Resorts Casino Hotel, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US
24	Win	23–1	George Feeney	UD	10	10 Apr 1983	Sanremo, Italy
23	Win	22–1	Tony Baltazar	UD	10	27 Feb 1983	Resorts Casino Hotel, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US
22	Win	21–1	Claude Noel	UD	10	12 Nov 1982	Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida, US
21	Win	20–1	Ezequiel Cocoa Sanchez	UD	10	16 Oct 1982	Golden Nugget Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US
20	Win	19–1	James Martinez	TKO	6 (10)	26 Aug 1982	Sands Hotel Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US
19	Win	18–1	Anthony Collins	RTD	3 (10)	22 Jul 1982	Sands Hotel Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US
18	Win	17–1	Julio Valdez	UD	10	3 Jun 1982	Sands Casino Hotel, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US
17	Win	16–1	Angel Cruz	UD	10	16 Apr 1981	Felt Forum, New York, New York, US
16	Win	15–1	Larry Stanton	RTD	8 (10), 3:00	26 Jun 1981	Colonie Hill Catering Hall, Hauppauge, New York, US
15	Win	14–1	Johnny Lira	UD	10	6 Dec 1980	Caesars Tahoe, Stateline, Nevada, US
14	Loss	13–1	Jim Watt	UD	15	7 Jun 1980	Ibrox Park, Glasgow, Scotland, UK	For the WBC Lightweight Championship.
13	Win	13–0	Vilomar Fernandez	UD	12	23 Feb 1980	Resorts Casino Hotel, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US
12	Win	12–0	Maurice Watkins	UD	10	14 Sep 1979	The Summit, Houston, Texas, US
11	Win	11–0	Jose Hernandez	KO	7 (10), 2:50	17 Jun 1979	Convention Center Arena, San Antonio, Texas, US
10	Win	10–0	Giancarlo Usai	KO	3 (10), 0:28	20 Apr 1979	Felt Forum, New York, New York, US
9	Win	9–0	Luis Davila	UD	10	4 Nov 1978	Resorts International Hotel & Casino, Superstar Theatr, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US
8	Win	8–0	Norman Goins	UD	10	9 Jul 1978	Indiana Convention Center, Indianapolis, Indiana, US
7	Win	7–0	Larry Stanton	SD	10	13 May 1978	Orlando Sports Stadium, Orlando, Florida, US
6	Win	6–0	Jose Fernandez	UD	8	4 Feb 1978	Aladdin Theater, Las Vegas, Nevada, US
5	Win	5–0	Arturo Pineda	TKO	4 (8)	13 Sep 1977	Grand Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US
4	Win	4–0	Domenick Monaco	TKO	8 (8), 2:17	17 Jul 1977	Miami Beach Convention Center, Miami Beach, Florida, US
3	Win	3–0	Carlos Rico Gonzalez	UD	6	11 May 1977	Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, US
2	Win	2–0	Rick Craney	KO	3 (6), 1:35	20 Mar 1977	Kentucky Exposition Center, Louisville, Kentucky, US
1	Win	1–0	Jose Resto	UD	6	15 Jan 1977	The Aladdin, Las Vegas, Nevada, US	Professional debut

References

1. "HOWARD DAVIS JR". howarddavisjr.com. Archived from the original on 2008-08-22.
2. "Howard Davis Jr.: Boxing Let's Talk" Archived 2017-02-27 at the Wayback Machine
3. "Olympic Champ Howard Davis Jr. is honored in Hometown of Glen Cove, NY"
4. Kay, Jennifer (2016-01-01). "Howard Davis Jr., boxer who won Olympic gold while in mourning, dies at 59". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2020-11-29.
5. ""The Ultimate Fighter 11" debut". mmajunkie.com. Archived from the original on 2010-03-06. Retrieved 2010-03-08.
6. Wong, Nick. (2016). "Boxing Gold Medalist and MMA Coach Howard Davis Jr. Dies at Age 59". Vice Sports. Retrieved 6 Feb. 2019.
7. Mike Straus (May 2, 2019). "ATT boxing coach Dyah Davis opens up on his work with Dustin Poirier". bjpenn.com.
8. "Boxing great Howard Davis Jr. calls cancer battle 'fight time'". The Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved 2015-12-31.^{[permanent dead link‍]}
9. "Howard Davis, most outstanding boxer at 1976 Olympics, dead at 59". Yahoo Sports. 31 December 2015. Retrieved 2015-12-31.

External links

• Boxing record for Howard Davis Jr. from BoxRec (registration required)
• Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Howard Davis Jr". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 2011-05-20.