Jimmy Ellis Record
| Total Fights | 53 |
|---|---|
| Wins | 40 |
| Losses | 12 |
| Draws | 1 |
| No-Contests | 0 |
| Title Wins | 1 |
|---|---|
| Title Defenses | 1 |
| Title-Fight KOs | 0 |
| KO Wins | 24 |
| KO Losses | 4 |
Featured Opponents
What is Jimmy Ellis' boxing record?
In a professional boxing career spanning 14 years, Jimmy Ellis fought 53 times with 40 wins, 12 losses, and 1 draw.
Ellis retired from professional boxing with a record of 40-12-1, which included one heavyweight world-title win and one successful title defense fight. He had a 45.3% knockouts-to-fights ratio with 24 of his total 53 fights being knockout wins. Ellis suffered four knockout losses in his career, one of which was against Joe Frazier in a heavyweight title fight.
His last fight was a 1st round KO victory over Carl Baker on May 6, 1975.
Some of Ellis' best fights and notable victories include wins over Hall-of-Famer Floyd Patterson, Jerry Quarry, George Chuvalo, Leotis Martin, and Oscar Bonavena.
| # | Date | Age | Opponent | Res | Via |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 53 | May 6, 1975 | 35 | Carl Baker | Win | KO1 |
| 52 | Mar 2, 1975 | 35 | Joe Frazier | Loss | TKO9 |
| 51 | Nov 12, 1974 | 34 | Joe Bugner | Loss | PTS |
| 50 | Jul 16, 1974 | 34 | Ron Lyle | Loss | UD |
| 49 | Mar 4, 1974 | 34 | Larry Middleton | Draw | SD |
| 48 | Dec 12, 1973 | 33 | Boone Kirkman | Loss | SD |
| 47 | Oct 23, 1973 | 33 | Al Jones | Win | TKO7 |
| 46 | Jun 18, 1973 | 33 | Earnie Shavers | Loss | KO1 |
| 45 | May 5, 1973 | 33 | Rico Brooks | Win | KO5 |
| 44 | Apr 14, 1973 | 33 | Joe Tiger Harris | Win | KO2 |
| 43 | Mar 6, 1973 | 33 | Charlie Harris | Win | TKO1 |
| 42 | Feb 21, 1973 | 32 | Bob Felstein | Win | KO2 |
| 41 | Oct 26, 1972 | 32 | Harold Carter | Win | TKO7 |
| 40 | Sep 21, 1972 | 32 | Ollie Wilson | Win | TKO6 |
| 39 | Jun 13, 1972 | 32 | Rico Brooks | Win | KO2 |
| 38 | May 16, 1972 | 32 | Dick Gosha | Win | TKO6 |
| 37 | Jul 26, 1971 | 31 | Muhammad Ali | Loss | TKO12 |
| 36 | May 10, 1971 | 31 | George Chuvalo | Win | UD |
| 35 | Mar 2, 1971 | 31 | Tony Doyle | Win | KO10 |
| 34 | Nov 10, 1970 | 30 | Roberto Davila | Win | TKO7 |
| 33 | Feb 16, 1970 | 29 | Joe Frazier | Loss * | RTD4 |
| 32 | Sep 14, 1968 | 28 | Floyd Patterson | Win * | PTS |
| 31 | Apr 27, 1968 | 28 | Jerry Quarry | Win * | MD |
| 30 | Dec 2, 1967 | 27 | Oscar Bonavena | Win | UD |
| 29 | Aug 5, 1967 | 27 | Leotis Martin | Win | TKO9 |
| 28 | Mar 22, 1967 | 27 | Johnny Persol | Win | KO1 |
| 27 | Nov 14, 1966 | 26 | Tommy Sims | Win | KO1 |
| 26 | Oct 27, 1966 | 26 | Eddie Dembry | Win | KO1 |
| 25 | Sep 10, 1966 | 26 | Billy Daniels | Win | PTS |
| 24 | May 21, 1966 | 26 | Leweni Waqa | Win | KO1 |
| 23 | Mar 29, 1966 | 26 | Hubert Hilton | Win | PTS |
| 22 | Nov 15, 1965 | 25 | Chuck Leslie | Win | UD |
| 21 | May 25, 1965 | 25 | Joe Blackwood | Win | KO1 |
| 20 | Nov 30, 1964 | 24 | George Benton | Loss | MD |
| 19 | Oct 21, 1964 | 24 | Don Fullmer | Loss | SD |
| 18 | Apr 21, 1964 | 24 | Joe Spencer | Win | KO1 |
| 17 | Feb 28, 1964 | 24 | Rubin Carter | Loss | UD |
| 16 | Sep 27, 1963 | 23 | Luis Gutierrez | Win | PTS |
| 15 | Jun 18, 1963 | 23 | Johnny Halafihi | Win | KO1 |
| 14 | Dec 3, 1962 | 22 | LeRoy Green | Win | UD |
| 13 | Sep 1, 1962 | 22 | Henry Hank | Loss | UD |
| 12 | Jun 13, 1962 | 22 | Charlie Glover | Win | PTS |
| 11 | Jun 13, 1962 | 22 | Sammy Poe | Win | PTS |
| 10 | Jun 7, 1962 | 22 | Rudolph Bent | Win | TKO2 |
| 9 | May 4, 1962 | 22 | Holley Mims | Win | UD |
| 8 | Feb 17, 1962 | 21 | Johnny Alford | Win | MD |
| 7 | Jan 11, 1962 | 21 | Rory Calhoun | Win | KO1 |
| 6 | Nov 29, 1961 | 21 | Holley Mims | Loss | UD |
| 5 | Oct 7, 1961 | 21 | Clarence Riley | Win | RTD1 |
| 4 | Aug 22, 1961 | 21 | Wilf Greaves | Win | MD |
| 3 | Jul 22, 1961 | 21 | Johnny Morris | Win | SD |
| 2 | May 6, 1961 | 21 | Gene Leslie | Win | UD |
| 1 | Apr 19, 1961 | 21 | Arley Seifer | Win | TKO3 |
* World-title fight
Boxing career
Jimmy Ellis was an American professional boxer. He was born in Louisville, Kentucky, U.S. on February 24, 1940. He was a heavyweight world champion. Ellis died on May 6, 2014 at the age of 74 years. His professional boxing career spanned more than 14 years — from 1961 to 1975.
Ellis made his professional boxing debut against Arley Seifer at the age of 21 on April 19, 1961, defeating Seifer via 3rd round TKO. He went on to win 4 more consecutive fights after the debut, which included 1 wins via stoppage.
He had his first world title fight at the age of 28 on April 27, 1968 after 30 professional fights, against Jerry Quarry for the heavyweight WBA (vacant) title. He defeated Quarry via 15 round majority decision to become the heavyweight champion of the world.
Ellis won one world title at heavyweight. For all the details about Ellis' world title wins and defenses refer to the "Championships" section below.
Ellis had a total of 12 losses in his professional boxing career.
His last professional fight was a non-title bout against Carl Baker at 35 years of age, on May 6, 1975. Ellis won the fight via 1st round KO.
Championships
Ellis had a total of three world-title fights, which includes winning one world title and one successful title defense. He won two of these fights and lost one.
Title Wins
Jimmy Ellis fought for a heavyweight world title in two fights and won once. He won one heavyweight belt.
| Date | Opponent | Division | Titles Won | Method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 27, 1968 | Jerry Quarry | Heavyweight | WBA* | MD |
Title Defenses
Jimmy Ellis had two heavyweight world-title defense fights. He won once and lost once.
Following is the table of his successful title defense fights, the next section has the fights where he lost his titles.
| Date | Opponent | Division | Titles Defended | Method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 14, 1968 | Floyd Patterson | Heavyweight | WBA | PTS |
Title Losses
Jimmy Ellis lost one world-title defense fight, and lost one title in the fight.
| Date | Opponent | Division | Titles Lost | Method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 16, 1970 | Joe Frazier | Heavyweight | WBA | RTD |
Highlights
Ellis fought a total of 53 times during his professional career, which includes 3 world-title fights at the heavyweight division. These four fights are the highlight of his career.
December 2, 1967: Jimmy Ellis puts on the first remarkable performance of his career, defeating Oscar Bonavena via 12th round unanimous decision.
April 27, 1968: Ellis wins his first world title by defeating Jerry Quarry via 15 round majority decision. He is now the WBA heavyweight world champion.
September 14, 1968: Ellis successfully defends the WBA heavyweight title against Floyd Patterson, winning the fight via 15 round PTS.
May 10, 1971: Jimmy Ellis beats George Chuvalo via 10th round unanimous decision.
FAQs
How many KOs does Jimmy Ellis have on his record?
Ellis knocked out 24 of his 53 opponents. By his last fight, his KO ratio was at 45.3%. Of his total 40 wins, 24 of them were via KO (60%).
What was Jimmy Ellis' first world title win?
Ellis' first world-title win was the WBA (vacant) belt at heavyweight. He defeated Jerry Quarry via 15 round majority decision to win the title.
How many world titles did Jimmy Ellis win?
Ellis won one world title at heavyweight.
How many title defenses did Jimmy Ellis make?
Ellis had a total of two title defense fight. He was successful one time and lost one time.