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JCWeb · 03-08-2006, 04:32 PM

Lightweight Division -- The First Quarter-Century

48 Title Bouts
6 Times Changed Hands
5 Different Champions

WBA Title Lineage (number of successful defenses in parens)

1888 - 1897 Jack McAuliffe (23)
1897 - Joe Gans (0)
1897 - 1898 Frank Erne (0)
1898 - George Lavigne (0)
1898 - 1905 Joe Gans (19) - vacated title to compete as WW
1905 - Jack Blackburn (0)

A lot more stability than in any other division thus far, mainly due to the stellar records of McAuliffe and Gans. McAuliffe ran his record to a perfect 45-0 before moving up to WW and losing a non-title clash with Paddy Duffy; his loss to Gans in '97 was only his second defeat. Gans had only three losses while campaigning as a LW, thus far he has found it tougher after moving up (not rated as WW, am using his LW numbers with the appropriate penalty). So far everyone who has held the title IRL managed to take the belt, albeit very briefly in the cases of Erne and Lavigne. Blackburn beat Jewey Cooke for the vacant title, although others in the Division (like Battling Nelson, for one) are hankering for a shot at the crown now that Gans is not around to defend it.

Jan 1906 Rankings
WBA Champ: Jack Blackburn (USA) 19-3-1 (10)
1. Jewey Cooke 43-8-1 (28)
2. Battling Nelson 37-6 (28)
3. Joe Gans 52-5 (34)
4. Frank Erne 36-15-3 (26)
5. Arthur Douglas 17-5-1 (9)
6. Kid Fredericks 18-9-1 (14)
7. Tim Callahan 37-15-3 (10)
8. Matty Baldwin 15-3 (12)
9. Kid McPartland 12-18-1 (11)
10. Chicago Dave Barry 18-7-1 (12)

Lesser Titles
NABF: Cooke (USA)
USBA: Barry (USA)
CBU: Mike Ward (Canada) 20-5-1 (14) ranked 14
GBU: Art Singletary (UK)* 13-11-4 (2) ranked 13

Everyone in Top Ten with 20 fights in is at Prime except for McPartland who is set to retire after one bout in '06. Ward, who was killed in the ring in 1906, is being set to post-prime at the start of the year. A bit surprised at how well Cooke has fared in a division that is rapidly filling up with some name opponents.

Retired LW Boxers to date (only two, both champions):

Jack McAuliffe (IRL) 1884-1902 57-7-1 (49) WBA Champ
George Lavigne (USA) 1886-1904 46-25-3 (34) WBA Champ

Once a Division with just a few active boxers, the Lightweight Division now boasts around 30 or so contenders so look for the action to pick up.

03-08-2006, 04:32 PM	#8
JCWeb Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 2,042	Part 5 of 7- Lightweights Through 1905 Lightweight Division -- The First Quarter-Century 48 Title Bouts 6 Times Changed Hands 5 Different Champions WBA Title Lineage (number of successful defenses in parens) 1888 - 1897 Jack McAuliffe (23) 1897 - Joe Gans (0) 1897 - 1898 Frank Erne (0) 1898 - George Lavigne (0) 1898 - 1905 Joe Gans (19) - vacated title to compete as WW 1905 - Jack Blackburn (0) A lot more stability than in any other division thus far, mainly due to the stellar records of McAuliffe and Gans. McAuliffe ran his record to a perfect 45-0 before moving up to WW and losing a non-title clash with Paddy Duffy; his loss to Gans in '97 was only his second defeat. Gans had only three losses while campaigning as a LW, thus far he has found it tougher after moving up (not rated as WW, am using his LW numbers with the appropriate penalty). So far everyone who has held the title IRL managed to take the belt, albeit very briefly in the cases of Erne and Lavigne. Blackburn beat Jewey Cooke for the vacant title, although others in the Division (like Battling Nelson, for one) are hankering for a shot at the crown now that Gans is not around to defend it. Jan 1906 Rankings WBA Champ: Jack Blackburn (USA) 19-3-1 (10) 1. Jewey Cooke 43-8-1 (28) 2. Battling Nelson 37-6 (28) 3. Joe Gans 52-5 (34) 4. Frank Erne 36-15-3 (26) 5. Arthur Douglas 17-5-1 (9) 6. Kid Fredericks 18-9-1 (14) 7. Tim Callahan 37-15-3 (10) 8. Matty Baldwin 15-3 (12) 9. Kid McPartland 12-18-1 (11) 10. Chicago Dave Barry 18-7-1 (12) Lesser Titles NABF: Cooke (USA) USBA: Barry (USA) CBU: Mike Ward (Canada) 20-5-1 (14) ranked 14 GBU: Art Singletary (UK)* 13-11-4 (2) ranked 13 Everyone in Top Ten with 20 fights in is at Prime except for McPartland who is set to retire after one bout in '06. Ward, who was killed in the ring in 1906, is being set to post-prime at the start of the year. A bit surprised at how well Cooke has fared in a division that is rapidly filling up with some name opponents. Retired LW Boxers to date (only two, both champions): Jack McAuliffe (IRL) 1884-1902 57-7-1 (49) WBA Champ George Lavigne (USA) 1886-1904 46-25-3 (34) WBA Champ Once a Division with just a few active boxers, the Lightweight Division now boasts around 30 or so contenders so look for the action to pick up. Last edited by JCWeb; 03-08-2006 at 04:35 PM.