Floyd Patterson

At 71 years old, Floyd Patterson has this physical status:

Floyd Patterson (January 4, 1935 – May 11, 2006) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1952 to 1972, and twice reigned as the world heavyweight champion between 1956 and 1962.

He became the first heavyweight to recover the title after losing it at the age of 21, and was also the first heavyweight to regain the crown after losing it.

He earned a gold medal in the middleweight division at the 1952 Summer Olympics as an amateur. The Ring magazine and the Boxing Writers Association of America selected Patterson as Fighter of the Year in 1956 and 1960.

In 1991, he was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

Early life

Patterson, who was born in 1935 in Waco, North Carolina, was one of eleven children. Savannah Joe Patterson was his first cousin from Arkansas, and he returned and visited during the early summer months. He had an insular and troubled childhood. Floyd and his family migrated to Brooklyn, New York, where he was a truant and a petty thief. He was admitted to the Wiltwyck School for Boys, a reform School in West Park, New York, which he credited with turning his life around at age 10. He was there for almost two years. He attended high school in New Paltz, New York, where he excelled in all sports.

Patterson started boxing at the age of fourteen and was attending the Bedford-Stuyvesant Boxing Association Gym. He earned the gold medal in the 1952 Helsinki Olympics as a middleweight three years later. In 1952, he won the National Amateur Middleweight Championship and the New York Golden Gloves Middleweight Championship. He was spotted by Cus D'Amato and trained at the Gramercy Gym at the time.

Raymond (born 1942) Patterson's younger brother Raymond (born 1942) became a qualified heavyweight boxer and has lived in Gothenburg, Sweden, since 1965, and has worked as a truck driver at Volvo Lastvagnar after his boxing career.

Patterson's amateur record was 40 victories (37 by knockout) and four losses.

In front of his face, Patterson held his hands higher than most boxers. Patterson's style was described as a "peek-a-boo" position by sportswriters.

Retired life

He and Ingemar Johansson became good friends who travelled around the Atlantic to visit each other every year, and he served two terms as chairman of the New York State Athletic Commission in retirement. In 1991, he was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

Patterson and his second wife, Janet Seaquist, lived in New Paltz, New York, for many years. Jennifer and Janene were their two children. He ran the Stockholm Marathon with Ingemar Johansson in 1982 and 1983. In 3:35:27, he completed the 1983 New York City Marathon in 3:35:27.

Tracy Harris Patterson, his adopted son, was a world champion boxer in the 1990s and was trained by Floyd during a portion of his career. They are the first father and son to win world championships in boxing. Floyd also trained Canadian heavyweight Donovan "Razor" Ruddock in 1992 for his fights with Greg Page, Phil Jackson, and Lennox Lewis.

In 1985, the New Paltz High School football field was called "Floyd Patterson Field."

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Professional career

Patterson stayed in the ranks for the first time, his only loss was an eight-round decision to former Light Heavyweight Champion Joey Maxim on June 7, 1954, in Brooklyn, New York.

Although Patterson suffered at the light heavyweight mark for a portion of his youth, he and his manager, Cus D'Amato, have always wanted to compete for the Heavyweight Championship. In fact, D'Amato made these intentions clear as early as 1954, when he told the world that Patterson was aiming for the heavyweight championship. Patterson, who resigned as the World Heavyweight Champion on April 27, 1956, was ranked as the best light heavyweight contender by The Ring magazine. Jim Norris of the International Boxing Club announced that Patterson was one of the six fighters selected in the elimination tournament to crown Marciano's replacement after Marciano's name. Patterson was later promoted to the top of the heavyweight rankings, ranking at number five.

Patterson defeated Tommy "Hurricane" Jackson in an elimination fight, and the World Heavyweight Championship was held on November 30, 1956. In five rounds, he defeated Moore, becoming the youngest World Heavyweight Champion in history at the age of 21 years, 10 months, 3 weeks, and 5 days. He was the first Olympic gold medalist to win a championship in a professional heavyweight division.

Patterson met Ingemar Johansson of Sweden, the first of three combatants, after a string of defenses against fringe candidates (Hurricane Jackson, Pete Rademacher, Roy Harris, and Brian London). On June 26, 1959, Johansson defeated Patterson, with referee Ruby Goldstein stopping the match in the third round after the Swede had knocked Patterson down seven times. Johansson became Sweden's first World Heavyweight Champion, as the first European to defeat an American for the first time since 1933.

Patterson beat Johansson in the fifth round of their rematch on June 20, 1960, becoming the first man to regain the Undisputed World Heavyweight Championship in history. Johansson struck the canvas hard, nearly out before he landed flat on his back. He was counted out, with glazed eyes, blood leaking from his throat, and his left foot quivering. Johansson lay unconscious for five minutes before being led to a stool.

Patterson was beaten twice and Johansson was barred from playing on March 13, 1961, but Patterson regained his honor by losing in the sixth round to take the rubber match in which Patterson was decked twice and Johansson once in the first round. Johansson had both right hands over Floyd's left jab. Floyd got up from his second bout and connected with a left hook that knocked down Johansson. Patterson went for a good body workout that wore down Johansson. Johansson caught Patterson with a solid right in the 6th round. However, the power in Ingemar's punches had been shattered. Patterson was beaten in the 6th round of the competition and was deemed not to win the game.

Patterson defended the title in Toronto against Tom McNeeley on December 4 before losing the fourth round. However, he did not face number one contender Sonny Liston, who was not ranked one. This was due in part to Cus D'Amato, who didn't want Patterson to be in the ring with a boxer with mob links. As a result, D'Amato dismissed any claims concerning the IBC. Patterson eventually ruled against Liston due to a monetary dispute with Jimmy Jacobs.

Liston was the leading betting line favorite in the fight, though Sports Illustrated predicted that Patterson would prevail in 15 rounds. Jim Braddock, Jersey, Ezzard Charles, Rocky Marciano, Ingemar Johansson picked Patterson to win. The conflict had also broader societal implications. Liston's links with the mob were well-known, and the NAACP was worried that a Liston victory would tarnish the civil rights movement. Patterson said John F. Kennedy did not want him to fight Liston.

Patterson lost his championship to Liston in Chicago on September 25, 1962, when the first-round was defeated in front of 18,894 supporters. The two fighters were a striking contrast. Liston's size and strength were too much for Patterson's guile and agility in the ring. Patterson did not use his speed to his advantage, though. Patterson did not punch enough and often attempted to clinch with Liston, according to Sports Illustrated writer Gilbert Rogin. Liston battered Patterson with body shots and then shortened to connect with two double hooks high on the head. The conclusion at the time was the third-fastest knockout in boxing history. Patterson returned to New York after being knocked out, wearing dark glasses and a fake beard. Following the match, concerns were raised over whether the fight was rigged to bring a more profitable match. Patterson seemed to lose his public esteem over the night as a result of his quick knockout. Despite losing, Patterson won $2 million, which will be paid over 17 years.

The match was supposed to take place in April 1963, but Liston sustained his knee while playing a golf club, and the match was postponed three months to July 22. Patterson tried to become the first boxer to win the heavyweight championship three times in Las Vegas that night, but Liston denied him out in the first round. Patterson lasted four seconds longer than in the first round.

Patterson suffered with a bout of depression as a result of the setbacks. However, he soon recovered and started winning fights again, including top victories over Eddie Machen and George Chuvalo; the Chuvalo match received The Ring's "Fight of the Year" award.

Patterson was now the number one challenger to Muhammad Ali's title. Ali began fighting in Las Vegas on November 22, 1965, in yet another effort to win the world heavyweight championship three times, despite being clearly dominant. Ali branded Patterson "Uncle Tom" for refusing to call him Muhammad Ali (Patterson continued to call him Cassius Clay) and for his outspokenness against black Muslims.

Before the match, Patterson had said:

Ali mocked, insulted, and disciplined Patterson through the fight, but was unable to knock him out before the referee stopped the game in the 12th round.

Patterson remained a legitimate candidate. Henry Cooper, a British boxer, was knocked out in just four rounds at Wembley Stadium in 1966.

The World Boxing Association organized an eight-man tournament to select Ali's replacement after Ali was stripped of his title for refusing to accept military service. In 1967, Patterson defeated Jerry Quarry to a draw. Patterson lost in a tense 12-round match to Quarry four months later. Patterson then lost a controversial 15-round referee's decision to Jimmy Ellis in Stockholm, a third time, despite breaking Ellis' nose and scoring a controversial knockdown.

He divorced his first wife, Sandra Hicks Patterson, because he wanted him to stop boxing but he had hopes for another title shot in September 1969.

Patterson kept going, defeating Oscar Bonavena in a close match over ten rounds in early 1972.

Patterson was banned after seven rounds with a cut eye while still playing in a rematch against Muhammad Ali for the NABF heavyweight championship on September 20, 1972. Patterson's was the loss of his last fight, but there was no hint of it.

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