A History of NZ Boxing World Title Holders
On December 10, Joseph Parker takes on Andy Ruiz Jr for the WBO World Heavyweight Title. Being boxing and all, title belts can be pretty convoluted but this one is legit. Win this fight and Smoking Joe can call himself a champion. Win this fight and he’ll always be remembered as one. It’s an honour bestowed way too often in the boxing world, what with four major belts out there and a host of interim, secondary and mandatory challenger titles scattered around the place too, still it’s an honour that only a rare few New Zealanders have ever carried before.
Four of them in fact. Two men and two women.
Here we go now in chronological order…
‘TORPEDO’ BILLY MURPHY
The story of Torpedo Bill is a pretty wild one and to be honest he probably deserves his own feature all to himself. He was born in Auckland in 1862 where he began his career fighting on the regular against a bunch of similarly delightfully named blokes such as Richard ‘Deerfoot’ Rose, Sammy Heckles, Johnny The Stranger and a few ‘Local Amateurs’. Making a bit of a name for himself as a rising featherweight (he was only about 169cm tall), Murphy moved to Australia where he continued to pummel folks, winning the NZ lightweight title. Then in 1889 he moved to America.
Following a couple high profile bouts there, he eventually got himself a shot against Ike Weir in early 1890 for the World Featherweight title. Weir was an Irish-born fighter and a bit of a showman at times. The dude was recognised for his superb technique and with that he was able to fight well above his weight despite a lack of power. He won the featherweight title in 1887 and had defended it ever since (in some ruthless scraps too, check out his wiki) and by accounts he had the better of the fight with Murphy too. However in the 13th round (of 14), Murphy went all out for the KO realising that it was his only chance of winning. He thrashed at Weir and had him down several times, but the Irishman survived, getting back up every time, and he even began the final round with a backflip just to show how much he had left in the tank.
He maybe shouldn’t have done that. Murphy absolutely crushed him with a right hand as Weir came down from the flip, remembered through time as The Torpedo Punch, and that was that. Weir was left in agony while the ref gave him the ten-count and the title belonged to Billy Murphy.
Torpedo Billy fought a couple more times in America before heading to Australia towards the end of the year, which many claimed meant he’d forfeit his title. Didn’t matter, he lost his next fight anyway, going down in the fifteenth to Albert ‘Young Griffo’ Griffiths. Murphy knocked him down twice in the early rounds but he threw in the towel in the 15th after a crushing blow to the jaw. Although the American officials had already effectively stripped him of his title, the UK, AUS & NZ still recognised him as the champ, thus Griffo took his throne. Ten months later Murphy fought Young Griffo again to try win his title back but was disqualified in the 22nd round (In those days, they’d often have what they called ‘finish fights’, which are exactly what they sound like: a fight to the finish. With that, some of Murphy’s fights went as many as 30 or 40 rounds).
He’d head back to America in 1892 where he’d lose a rematch with Ike Weir. This time Weir danced a highland jig during the bout but this time Weir also won with a comprehensive knockout. There was one more Featherweight title shot against George Dixon in 1897 but Murphy was comfortably beaten.
BOB FITZSIMMONS
Born in England in 1863 but moved to Timaru as a nine year old, Fitzsimmons was an old fashioned brawler in every way. He built up his strength as a blacksmith and learned his stuff in part as a bare-knuckle fighter. By the time he’d moved to Aussie and made his name, Fitzsimmons was known as one of the hardest punchers in all of boxing. During a public demonstration, he once hit the boxing bag so hard it split.
He moved to America to fight in 1890 and following a few brutal knockouts he earned himself a shot at the world middleweight title… against Jack Dempsey. ‘Nonpareil’ Jack Dempsey, that is. Not the legendary heavyweight champ of the early 1920s. Although that Jack Dempsey started calling himself Jack in admiration of this Jack Dempsey.
Fitzy demolished him. He had Dempsey on the canvas so many times that he actually begged the bloke to quit. But Dempsey wouldn’t quit, so Fitzsimmons dropped him clean once more and then carried his unconscious opponent back to his corner.
For the next few years, Fitzy mostly only took on exhibition fights. He had trouble keeping his weight down which made it hard to defend his belt, although he did so in early 1892 against Jim Hall – albeit with both men weighing in well over their limits. Eventually he had to forfeit the title and began fighting as a heavyweight instead.
Again, Fitzsimmons is an absolutely fascinating guy but to go through it all would take far too long. He won the heavyweight title with a first round KO of Peter Maher in late-1896 but it was disputed as to whether the title should have been on the line at all despite the retirement of Gentleman Jim Corbett (although they did recreate the fight in an episode of the 1950s TV show ‘Annie Oakley’) so in his next fight, also billed as a HW title clash, he took on Irishman Tom Sharkey in California.
The fight was a huge deal, one of the most hyped fights of the year in America, however they were having trouble finding a referee. So who did they call in to do the duties? Wyatt Earp. Not even kidding you here, the same sonovabitch who along with Doc Holliday and Earp’s brothers formed one side (the lawful side) of the legendary Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. There’s so much else to this fight but that’s a story for another day. The stuff that matters is that Fitzsimmons had dominated the fight only to be called up by Earp in the eighth round for hitting Sharkey while he was down. Pretty much nobody in attendance has agreed with Earp’s ruling but the ref is the ref and Fitzsimmons was disqualified.
Gentleman Jim came out of retirement after that (he’d taken leave to appear in a play about a boxer) and with that his first fight was deemed for the World Heavyweight title and Bob Fitzsimmons got the gig. Despite being almost 8kg lighter than Corbett and having been out-boxed for more or less the entire bout, Fitzy never gave in and would shock the crowd with a legendary 14h round KO. It was the first fight ever recorded to film and would see a cinema release.
Fitzsimmons lost the title two fights later when he was beaten by James J. Jeffries, though soon after the turn of the century the powers that be (/were) introduced a light heavyweight division and, after losing another challenge against Jeffries, Fitzy eventually claimed that new division title with a victory over George Gardner in 1903 (aged 40). He was the first fighter to win world titles in three divisions. Again, he’d defend the title once before losing it and only fought sporadically after that – including a second round knockout defeat against an up and comer named Jack Johnson.
Fitzy lived on in America after he retired and fought under the British flag, so his kiwi status is a little tenuous. However it was in Aotearoa that he spent his formative years as a fighter and in 1910 he returned to New Zealand to a hero’s welcome. They’ve got a statue of him in Timaru. Whether or not you count him as an NZ sportsman, he's definitely an icon of New Zealand sport.
DANIELLA SMITH
That’s it for the fellas, we’re over a century without a world title holder there. But in recent times a few of the local ladies have been up to some supreme things on the global stage. Women’s boxing has never really been a sport that’s gotten much respect and you can kinda tell with the situations that Smith and also Gentiane Lupi up next have dealt with in their careers. Hopefully one day we’re looking on them as trailblazers – there’s definitely a lot of heat in the sport in the US these days after two-time Olympic gold medallist Claressa Shields’ professional debut now.
Daniella Smith became the first kiwi woman to win a world title in 2010 when she defeated Jennifer Retzke to claim the inaugural IBF women’s welterweight title. Smith had Retzke on the deck in the eighth round and won by unanimous decision after ten. She’d seek to defend her title in South Africa against Noni Tenge but lost by TKO in the fourth.
In 2013, Smith got herself a bout for the vacant WIBA Super Lightweight and the WBA Welterweight titles against Australian Arlene Blencoe. That one took place in Hamilton on the undercard of Joseph Parker’s fight against Francois Botha, however Smith was comfortably beaten by UD in what was considered a huge upset. Of Maori heritage and hailing from Kaikohe, Smith would fight only three more times after that. The last two were defeats against the next lady on this list, Gentiana Lupi. These days Smith co-owns a gym in Parnell and is doing great work as a spokesperson against domestic violence with Women’s Refuge.
GENTIANE LUPI
Officially the third NZ-born fighter to hold a world title, Lupi has one hell of a resume. As well as being a pro boxer, she’s also the reigning kiwi champion light welterweight kickboxing champ (defending her title the day after this was published so no spoilers) and has twice fought professionally as a mixed martial artist. Oh, and she’s also a mother of three and a fairly well-known actress/stuntwoman – having appeared in local films Eagle vs Shark and Second Hand Wedding, as well as having roles on NZ TV series such as Love Bites and Nothing Trivial. She did some behind the scenes work on the third Lord of the Rings film too.
But we’re talking boxing here and Lupi happens to be a former WIBA super bantamweight title holder as well. She took on Thailand’s Anrey Onesongchaigym on May 2015 for the interim honours in Wellington and had the fight stopped in the sixth round. Soon after she was promoted to full-champ as Australia’s Shannon O’Connell was stripped of the title. O’Connell had beaten Lupi by mixed decision in Lupi’s first ever pro fight in 2014.
Following that win, injury forced her to miss six months and when she returned, she did so as a featherweight, having a go at the vacant WBC Silver title against Ronica Jeffrey of America, though she lost by UD. That one was on the undercard of the Joseph Parker vs Kali Meehan fight.
Lupi’s latest fight was a fifth round TKO of Nurshahidah Roslie for the vacant WBA Oceania super featherweight title in Singapore. If you’re noticing the trend of Lupi fighting all over different divisions, you should know that her chosen nickname is AAA – as in ‘Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime’. It makes sense.
And that’s the complete list, at least for now. There have been a fair few challengers over the years, David Tua most famously as he lost out to Lennox Lewis back in 2000. Jimmy Thunder was a Samoan heavyweight who grew up in Auckland and won gold at the 1986 Commonwealth Games, he held several lesser titles throughout his career. Bob Fitzsimmons took on Invercargill’s Dan Creedon for his middleweight title in 1894 but despite an impressive candidacy, Creedon was destroyed in the second round.
Then there was Tom Heeney, who took on Gene Tunney for the world heavyweight title in 1928 in New York. More specifically, at Yankee Stadium with 46000 fans in attendance. But Heeney, who entered the ring in a Maori cloak, was never considered a genuine challenge and the fight was stopped in the third. Until Joe Parker takes the ring in December, Heeney will remain one of only two NZ-born heavyweights to fight for a world title - the other being a chap by the name of Herbert Augustus Slade, also known as 'Maori' Slade. Born in the great town on Kaeo, Slade fought John L. Sullivan at Madison Square Garden, NY in 1883 for the heavyweight title, though he was exhaustively beaten in the third round. Slade was not only the first kiwi heavyweight to fight for a world title but the first non-white boxer at all. (BTW, David Tua was born in Samoa, if you were wondering).
And of course we shouldn’t ignore Wellingtonian heavyweight Ted Morgan, who was born in London but lived in New Zealand from when he was a toddler and in 1928 he won NZ’s first ever Olympic gold medal. Morgan’s pro career never really turned out.
Which brings us to Joseph Parker. His fight against Ruiz will be the first world title fight held within Aotearoa’s shores and, unless you include Bob Fitzsimmons, he could become the first New Zealander to win one in the heavyweight division. But as rare as a kiwi champion would be, it’s not quite unprecedented thanks to the legends above.