1931 - 2015
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Born |
21 Jul 1931 |
Gender |
Male |
Died |
27 Apr 2015 |
Buried |
South Jordan, cemetery, South Jordan, UT |
Notes |
- “The Ring Remembers Gene Fullmer”
Former two-time middleweight champion and 1991 International Boxing Hall of Fame inductee Gene Fullmer died Tuesday at his home in West Jordan, Utah. Fullmer was 83.
His brutally physical ring style powered Fullmer to a 55-6-3 (24) record during a 12-year-career that saw him defeat Sugar Ray Robinson (twice), Carmen Basilio (twice), Paul Pender, Gil Turner (twice), Rocky Castellani, Ralph “Tiger” Jones (twice), Charles Humez, Chico Vejar, Ellsworth “Spider” Webb (twice), Florentino Fernandez and Benny “Kid” Paret while closing out his career by going 0-2-1 against fellow Hall-of-Famer Dick Tiger. He is only one of two men ever to defeat Robinson twice in championship fights (Pender was the other) and his first fight with Basilio was named THE RING’s “Fight of the Year” in 1959.
Fullmer was born July 21, 1931 in West Jordan, Utah and began boxing after his father, Tuff, brought Gene and his younger brothers, Don and Jay, to a gym run by longtime Utah politician and boxing manager Marv Jenson. Fullmer turned pro in June 1951 with a first round knockout over Glen Peck and the man nicknamed “Cyclone” proceeded to blow through his early competition by scoring 11 straight knockouts to begin his career and 18 in his first 21 bouts, 16 in the first four rounds. But as he raised his level of opposition, Fullmer’s true strengths began to emerge – relentless pressure, vicious body punching, painfully clubbing blows over the top, a fierce competitive drive and an excellent chin. Those attributes carried him to 29 straight wins before Philadelphia’s Gil Turner outpointed Fullmer at Brooklyn’s Eastern Parkway Arena in April 1955. Fullmer went on to avenge that loss twice over by winning a unanimous decision in his very next fight, then a split nod six fights later.
Back-to-back decision defeats to Bobby Boyd and Argentine strongman Eduardo Lausse temporarily stalled Fullmer’s progress but he zoomed up the rankings by defeating Turner in their rubber match, Jones and Humez, then the number-two contender. Following a third-round KO over Moses Ward in a tune-up, Fullmer met Robinson for the middleweight title on Jan. 2, 1957 at Madison Square Garden.
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Person ID |
I37429 |
Moon Anderson Family History & Genealogy |
Last Modified |
31 Oct 2018 |
Father |
Lawrence William Fullmer, b. 23 Dec 1908, Bellevue, Blaine, ID , d. 5 Jun 1984, Salt Lake City, Salt lake, UT |
Mother |
Mary Emma Iff, b. 4 Dec 1905, South Jordan, Salt Lake, UT , d. 24 Jul 2000, West Jordan, Salt Lake, UT |
Family ID |
F12709 |
Group Sheet |
Family 1 |
Dolores Holt, b. 14 Jul 1931, Murray, Salt Lake, UT , d. 2 Jan 1983, Murray, Salt Lake, UT |
Married |
13 Oct 1955 |
Last Modified |
13 Oct 2017 |
Family ID |
F12710 |
Group Sheet |
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