Emile Griffith Record & Stats
In a career spanning 19 years and 1 month, Emile Griffith fought 112 times with 85 wins, 24 losses, and 2 draws. By his last professional fight on July 30, 1977, Griffith's boxing record stood at 85-24-2 (22 KO wins, 2 KO losses).
- Born
- Feb 3, 1938
- Died
- Jul 23, 2013 (75 years)
- Debut
- Jun 2, 1958
- Record
- 85-24-2
- Rounds
- 1126
- KOs
- 22 (19.8%)
- Height
- 171 cm
- Reach
- 183 cm
- Ape Index
- 12 cm
- Stance
- Orthodox
- Last Fight
| WBA | WBC | TheRing |
|---|---|---|
| MD w2 d2 | MD w2 d2 | MD w2 d2 |
| WL e1 w1 d6 | WL e1 w1 d6 | WL w3 d8 |
Emile Griffith was an American professional boxer. He was born in Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands on February 3, 1938. Griffith made his professional boxing debut at the age of 20 on June 2, 1958. He was a 2-weight-class world champion. He died on July 23, 2013 at the age of 75 years. Griffith is a Hall of Famer.
Boxing Record
| Total Fights | 112 |
|---|---|
| Wins | 85 |
| Losses | 24 |
| Draws | 2 |
| No-Contests | 1 |
| KO Wins | 22 |
|---|---|
| Total Title Wins | 15 |
| Title Defenses | 10 |
| Title-Fight KO Wins | 5 |
| Losses via KO | 2 |
| # | Date | Age | Opponent | Result | Via |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 112 | Jul 30, 1977 | 39 | Alan Minter | Loss | PTS |
| 111 | Jul 16, 1977 | 39 | Mayfield Pennington | Loss | SD |
| 110 | Apr 15, 1977 | 39 | Joel Bonnetaz | Loss | PTS |
| 109 | Feb 2, 1977 | 38 | Christy Elliott | Win | MD |
| 108 | Dec 4, 1976 | 38 | Frank Reiche | Win | TKO10 |
| 107 | Oct 24, 1976 | 38 | Dino Del Cid | Win | TKO4 |
| 106 | Sep 18, 1976 | 38 | Eckhard Dagge | Loss | MD |
| 105 | Jun 26, 1976 | 38 | Bennie Briscoe | Draw | PTS |
| 104 | Feb 9, 1976 | 38 | Loucif Hamani | Loss | PTS |
| 103 | Nov 7, 1975 | 37 | Jose Roberto Chirino | Win | UD |
| 102 | Aug 9, 1975 | 37 | Elijah Makathini | Loss | PTS |
| 101 | Jul 23, 1975 | 37 | Leo Saenz | Win | UD |
| 100 | May 31, 1975 | 37 | Jose Luis Duran | Loss | UD |
| 99 | Dec 10, 1974 | 36 | Donato Paduano | Win | UD |
| 98 | Nov 22, 1974 | 36 | Vito Antuofermo | Loss | UD |
| 97 | Oct 9, 1974 | 36 | Bennie Briscoe | Win | MD |
| 96 | May 25, 1974 | 36 | Renato Garcia | Win | PTS |
| 95 | Feb 5, 1974 | 36 | Tony Licata | Loss | UD |
| 94 | Nov 19, 1973 | 35 | Tony Mundine | Loss | UD |
| 93 | Nov 1, 1973 | 35 | Manuel González | Win | MD |
| 92 | Jun 2, 1973 | 35 | Carlos Monzón | Loss | UD |
| 91 | Mar 12, 1973 | 35 | Nessim Max Cohen | Draw | PTS |
| 90 | Dec 18, 1972 | 34 | Jean-Claude Bouttier | Loss | DQ |
| 89 | Oct 11, 1972 | 34 | Joe DeNucci | Win | SD |
| 88 | Sep 16, 1972 | 34 | Joe DeNucci | Win | SD |
| 87 | Mar 30, 1972 | 34 | Ernie Lopez | Win | UD |
| 86 | Feb 21, 1972 | 34 | Jacques Kechichian | Win | PTS |
| 85 | Jan 31, 1972 | 33 | Armando Muñíz | Win | UD |
| 84 | Dec 10, 1971 | 33 | Danny McAloon | Win | UD |
| 83 | Sep 25, 1971 | 33 | Carlos Monzón | Loss | TKO14 |
| 82 | Jul 26, 1971 | 33 | Nessim Max Cohen | Win | UD |
| 81 | May 3, 1971 | 33 | Ernie Lopez | Win | MD |
| 80 | Mar 23, 1971 | 33 | Rafael Gutierrez | Win | UD |
| 79 | Mar 5, 1971 | 33 | Juan Ramos | Win | TKO7 |
| 78 | Nov 10, 1970 | 32 | Nate Collins | Win | UD |
| 77 | Oct 17, 1970 | 32 | Danny Perez | Win | UD |
| 76 | Jul 15, 1970 | 32 | Dick Tiger | Win | UD |
| 75 | Jun 4, 1970 | 32 | Tom Bogs | Win | PTS |
| 74 | Mar 11, 1970 | 32 | Carlos Marks | Win | UD |
| 73 | Jan 28, 1970 | 31 | Doyle Baird | Win | UD |
| 72 | Oct 17, 1969 | 31 | José Nápoles | Loss | UD |
| 71 | Aug 15, 1969 | 31 | Art Hernandez | Win | SD |
| 70 | Jul 11, 1969 | 31 | Dick DiVeronica | Win | TKO7 |
| 69 | May 12, 1969 | 31 | Stanley Hayward | Win | UD |
| 68 | Feb 3, 1969 | 31 | Andy Heilman | Win | UD |
| 67 | Oct 29, 1968 | 30 | Stanley Hayward | Loss | SD |
| 66 | Aug 6, 1968 | 30 | Gypsy Joe Harris | Win | UD |
| 65 | Jun 11, 1968 | 30 | Andy Heilman | Win | MD |
| 64 | Mar 4, 1968 | 30 | Nino Benvenuti | Loss | UD |
| 63 | Dec 15, 1967 | 29 | Remo Golfarini | Win | TKO6 |
| 62 | Sep 29, 1967 | 29 | Nino Benvenuti | Win | MD |
| 61 | Apr 17, 1967 | 29 | Nino Benvenuti | Loss | UD |
| 60 | Jan 23, 1967 | 28 | Joey Archer | Win | UD |
| 59 | Jul 13, 1966 | 28 | Joey Archer | Win | MD |
| 58 | Apr 25, 1966 | 28 | Dick Tiger | Win | UD |
| 57 | Feb 3, 1966 | 28 | Johnny Brooks | Win | UD |
| 56 | Dec 10, 1965 | 27 | Manuel González | Win | UD |
| 55 | Oct 4, 1965 | 27 | Harry Scott | Win | RTD7 |
| 54 | Sep 14, 1965 | 27 | Gabe Terronez | Win | TKO4 |
| 53 | Aug 19, 1965 | 27 | Don Fullmer | Loss | UD |
| 52 | Jun 14, 1965 | 27 | Eddie Pace | Win | UD |
| 51 | Mar 30, 1965 | 27 | Jose Stable | Win | UD |
| 50 | Jan 26, 1965 | 26 | Manuel González | Loss | SD |
| 49 | Dec 1, 1964 | 26 | Dave Charnley | Win | TKO9 |
| 48 | Sep 22, 1964 | 26 | Brian Curvis | Win | UD |
| 47 | Jun 12, 1964 | 26 | Luis Manuel Rodríguez | Win | SD |
| 46 | Apr 14, 1964 | 26 | Stan Harrington | Win | KO4 |
| 45 | Mar 11, 1964 | 26 | Juan Carlo Duran | NC | NC |
| 44 | Feb 10, 1964 | 26 | Ralph Dupas | Win | KO3 |
| 43 | Dec 20, 1963 | 25 | Rubin Carter | Loss | TKO1 |
| 42 | Oct 5, 1963 | 25 | Jose Monon Gonzalez | Win | MD |
| 41 | Aug 10, 1963 | 25 | Holly Mims | Win | UD |
| 40 | Jun 8, 1963 | 25 | Luis Manuel Rodríguez | Win | SD |
| 39 | Mar 21, 1963 | 25 | Luis Manuel Rodríguez | Loss | UD |
| 38 | Feb 3, 1963 | 25 | Christian Christensen | Win | TKO9 |
| 37 | Dec 8, 1962 | 24 | Jorge Fernandez | Win | TKO9 |
| 36 | Oct 17, 1962 | 24 | Ted Wright | Win | PTS |
| 35 | Oct 6, 1962 | 24 | Don Fullmer | Win | UD |
| 34 | Aug 18, 1962 | 24 | Denny Moyer | Win | SD |
| 33 | Jul 13, 1962 | 24 | Ralph Dupas | Win | UD |
| 32 | Mar 24, 1962 | 24 | Benny Paret | Win | TKO12 |
| 31 | Feb 3, 1962 | 24 | Johnny Torres | Win | UD |
| 30 | Dec 23, 1961 | 23 | Isaac Logart | Win | MD |
| 29 | Nov 4, 1961 | 23 | Stanford Bulla | Win | KO4 |
| 28 | Sep 30, 1961 | 23 | Benny Paret | Loss | SD |
| 27 | Jul 29, 1961 | 23 | Yama Bahama | Win | UD |
| 26 | Jun 3, 1961 | 23 | Gaspar Ortega | Win | TKO12 |
| 25 | Apr 1, 1961 | 23 | Benny Paret | Win | KO13 |
| 24 | Dec 17, 1960 | 22 | Luis Manuel Rodríguez | Win | SD |
| 23 | Oct 22, 1960 | 22 | Willie Toweel | Win | TKO8 |
| 22 | Aug 25, 1960 | 22 | Florentino Fernández | Win | UD |
| 21 | Jul 25, 1960 | 22 | Jorge Fernandez | Win | UD |
| 20 | Jun 3, 1960 | 22 | Jorge Fernandez | Win | SD |
| 19 | Apr 26, 1960 | 22 | Denny Moyer | Loss | SD |
| 18 | Mar 11, 1960 | 22 | Denny Moyer | Win | SD |
| 17 | Feb 12, 1960 | 22 | Gaspar Ortega | Win | SD |
| 16 | Jan 8, 1960 | 21 | Roberto Peña | Win | UD |
| 15 | Jan 8, 1960 | 21 | Ray Lancaster | Win | UD |
| 14 | Oct 26, 1959 | 21 | Randy Sandy | Loss | SD |
| 13 | Aug 7, 1959 | 21 | Kid Fichique | Win | UD |
| 12 | May 25, 1959 | 21 | Willie Stevenson | Win | UD |
| 11 | Apr 27, 1959 | 21 | Mel Barker | Win | UD |
| 10 | Mar 23, 1959 | 21 | Bobby Shell | Win | UD |
| 9 | Feb 23, 1959 | 21 | Barry Allison | Win | TKO5 |
| 8 | Feb 9, 1959 | 21 | Willie Joe Johnson | Win | TKO5 |
| 7 | Jan 26, 1959 | 20 | Gaylord Barnes | Win | TKO5 |
| 6 | Dec 15, 1958 | 20 | Larry Jones | Win | KO5 |
| 5 | Nov 17, 1958 | 20 | Sergio Rios | Win | KO3 |
| 4 | Oct 6, 1958 | 20 | Artie Cunningham | Win | PTS |
| 3 | Jul 21, 1958 | 20 | Tommy Leaks | Win | PTS |
| 2 | Jun 23, 1958 | 20 | Bruce Gibson | Win | PTS |
| 1 | Jun 2, 1958 | 20 | Joe Parham | Win | PTS |
Featured Opponents
Statistics
Career Summary
Emile Griffith's professional boxing career spanned more than 19 years — from 1958 to 1977.
Griffith made his debut against Joe Parham at the age of 20 on June 2, 1958, defeating Parham via 4 round PTS. He went on to win 12 more consecutive fights after the debut, which included 5 wins via stoppage.
Griffith had his first world title fight at the age of 23 on April 1, 1961 after 24 professional fights, against Benny Paret for the welterweight NBA, NYSAC, and The Ring titles. He defeated Paret via 13th round KO to become the welterweight champion of the world.
He was a three-time undisputed world champion — at middleweight (2x) and welterweight, and won 11 world titles at 2 weight classes. He was elevated as world champion twice. For all the details about Griffith's world title wins and defenses refer to "Emile Griffith World Titles".
Some of Griffith's best fights and notable victories include wins over Nino Benvenuti, Dick Tiger, Benny Paret, and Denny Moyer.
Emile Griffith had a total of 24 losses in his professional boxing career — eight of them in title bouts and 16 in non-title bouts. He suffered his first loss against Randy Sandy via 10 round split-decision on October 26, 1959, which ended his 13-fight win streak. He was stopped two times and lost 22 times via decision. For more details about these defeats, refer to "All of Emile Griffith's losses".
His last professional fight was a non-title bout against British boxer Alan Minter at 39 years of age, on July 30, 1977. Griffith lost the fight via 10 round PTS.
Griffith retired from professional boxing with a record of 85-24-2, which included 22 knockout wins and 2 losses via knockout, and 11 title wins. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) in 1990.
Career Highlights
Emile Griffith fought a total of 112 times during his professional career. He was among the very best of his generation and put on some great performances. These eight fights are the highlight of his career.
Emile Griffith vs. Benny Paret
A 23-year old Emile Griffith (22-2, 6 KO) had his first world title fight against Benny Paret for Paret's NBA, NYSAC, and The Ring welterweight belts. Paret was 24 years old with a record of 34-9-3. Paret was on a one-fight losing streak. Both the boxers were of the same height but Griffith had a 12 cm reach advantage over Paret.
Griffith defeated Paret via 13th round KO to win the NBA, NYSAC, and Ring Magazine welterweight titles.
Emile Griffith vs. Benny Paret III
In a rematch, a 24-year old Emile Griffith (28-3, 9 KO) faced Benny Paret, who was now 25 years old with a record of 35-11-3. Paret was on a one-fight losing streak. Both the boxers were of the same height but Griffith had a 12 cm reach advantage over Paret.
Griffith defeated Paret via 12th round TKO to win the NBA, NYSAC, and Ring Magazine welterweight titles.
Emile Griffith vs. Denny Moyer III
In a rematch, a 24-year old Emile Griffith (30-3, 10 KO) faced Denny Moyer, who was now 23 years old with a record of 32-7. Moyer was on a one-fight win streak with 8 KO wins, and was the taller of the two by 3 cms but Griffith had a 9 cm reach advantage over Moyer.
Griffith defeated Moyer via 10 round split-decision.
Emile Griffith vs. Luis Manuel Rodríguez
In a rematch, a 25-year old Emile Griffith (35-4, 12 KO) faced Luis Manuel Rodríguez in a undisputed welterweight championship bout.
Griffith defeated Rodríguez via 15th round split-decision to win the WBA, WBC, and Ring Magazine welterweight titles.Emile Griffith vs. Dick Tiger
A 28-year old Emile Griffith (49-7, 17 KO) faced Dick Tiger, who was 36 years old with a record of 53-16-3 in a undisputed middleweight championship bout. Tiger was on a four-fight win streak with 25 KO wins, and was the taller of the two by 2 cms but Griffith had a 3 cm reach advantage over Tiger.
Griffith defeated Tiger via 15 round unanimous decision to win the WBA, WBC, and Ring Magazine middleweight titles.
Emile Griffith vs. Nino Benvenuti II
In an immediate rematch, a 29-year old Emile Griffith (52-8, 17 KO) faced Nino Benvenuti, who was now 29 years old with a record of 72-1 in a undisputed middleweight championship bout. Griffith had lost to Benvenuti in their last fight, and was the taller of the two by 9 cms and also had a 8 cm reach advantage over Griffith.
Griffith defeated Benvenuti via 15 round majority decision to win the WBA, WBC, and Ring Magazine middleweight titles.
Emile Griffith vs. Dick Tiger II
In a rematch, a 32-year old Emile Griffith (63-11, 19 KO) faced Dick Tiger, who was now 40 years old with a record of 60-18-3. Tiger was on a three-fight win streak with 27 KO wins, and was the taller of the two by 2 cms but Griffith had a 3 cm reach advantage over Tiger.
Griffith defeated Tiger via 10 round unanimous decision.
Emile Griffith vs. Carlos Monzón II
In a rematch, a 35-year old Emile Griffith (76-13-1, 20 KO) faced Carlos Monzón, who was now 30 years old with a record of 79-3-9 in a undisputed middleweight championship bout. Monzón was on a 23-fight win streak with 55 KO wins, and was the taller of the two by 11 cms and also had a 10 cm reach advantage over Griffith.
Monzón defeated Griffith via 15 round unanimous decision.
FAQs
What are some of Emile Griffith's best wins?
Some of Griffith's best wins were against Nino Benvenuti, Dick Tiger, Benny Paret, and Denny Moyer. Despite the loss, his performances against Benny Paret and Carlos Monzón are also among Griffith's best.
How many KOs does Emile Griffith have on his record?
Griffith knocked out 22 of his 112 opponents. By his last fight, his KO ratio was at 19.8%. Of his total 85 wins, 22 of them were via KO (25.9%).
Who did Emile Griffith lose to?
Griffith had 24 losses. Alan Minter, Mayfield Pennington, Joel Bonnetaz, Eckhard Dagge, and Loucif Hamani are some of the boxers who have beaten Griffith.