Ray Robinson was born Walker Smith, Jr. on May 3, 1921 in Alley, Georgia, and moved to Detroit, Michigan as a youth. At age 12, his parents separated, and he moved to Harlem with his mother. Ray quit high school in ninth grade to focus on boxing instead,
At 14, Ray tried to join an AAU tournament, but was told he had to be 16 to do so. He used an ID card from a guy named Ray Robinson, who had quit boxing. He liked the name, and kept it as his own from then on. The name ‘Sugar’ was added when a fan commented “He’s as sweet as sugar!” Thus the name ‘Sugar’ Ray Robinson was born.
Ray finished his amateur career with an amazing record of 85-0, with 60 knockouts-40 coming in the first round. Ray began his professional career in 1940 at 19, and built up a record that is unmatched to this day. By 1951, he had a record of 129-1-2 with 85 knockouts. That included a 91 fight unbeaten streak , which is mind boggling to me even now.
Ray won his first title at welterweight in 1946, and kept if for five years. He also was middleweight champion five times from 1951 to 1960. Unfortunately, he hung around way too long, and fought until 1965. He finished with an amazing record of 174-19-6. Fourteen of those losses came after the age of 40 however, when Ray was way past his prime. The moniker ‘Pound for Pound’ was given to him in the 50’s, and he was and is the idol of many champions, including Muhammad Ali and
Sugar Ray Leonard. In my mind, there’s no doubt the greatest fighter to ever lace up the gloves. Sugar Ray Robinson.
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