Michael Dokes

Dokesc. 1982
Personal information
Nickname	Dynamite
Nationality	American
Born	Michael Marshall Dokes (1958-08-10)August 10, 1958 Akron, Ohio, U.S.
Died	August 11, 2012(2012-08-11) (aged 54) Akron, Ohio, U.S.
Height	6 ft 3 in (191 cm)
Weight	Heavyweight
Boxing career
Reach	78 in (198 cm)
Stance	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	61
Wins	53
Win by KO	33
Losses	6
Draws	2
Medal record Men'samateur boxing Representing United States Pan American Games Mexico City 1975 Heavyweight

Michael Marshall Dokes (August 10, 1958 – August 11, 2012) was an Americanprofessional boxer who competed from 1976 to 1997, and held theWBAheavyweight title from 1982 to 1983. As anamateur he won a silver medal in the heavyweight division at the1975 Pan American Games.

Dokes won a silver medal at the1975 Pan American Games. He lost a 5–0 decision toTeófilo Stevenson in the finals. He also lost a close decision toJohn Tate in the Olympic trials in 1976, after which he turned professional.

• 1975 National AAU Heavyweight Champion
• 1976National Golden Gloves Heavyweight Champion, beating future pro champs John Tate andGreg Page en route.
• As an underage 15-year-old, made it to the finals of both the 1974 National Golden Gloves and the National AAU tournaments. He lost to Leon Spinks in AAU final, and future Mike Tyson trainer Bobby Stewart in the Golden Gloves final.
• Won 1974 North American championships.
• Beat Marvin Stinson, who won the 1976 National AAU Heavyweight Championship.

Dokes turned professional in 1976. He received national exposure in a televised exhibition withMuhammad Ali in 1977, which saw Ali clown and mug while slipping Dokes's punches, but also revealed glimpses of Dokes's potential.^[1] He came to real prominence in 1979 by defeating veteran contenderJimmy Young. His career faltered slightly after fighting to a draw withOssie Ocasio, but Dokes returned to knock out Ocasio in one round soon thereafter. By early 1982, after a first-round knockout of Lynn Ball to win theNABF title, Dokes was in line for a title shot. He was ranked #2 by theWBC and #3 by theWBA. Dokes became WBA heavyweight champion in 1982 byknocking outMike Weaver in the first round in a match held weeks after theRay Mancini-Duk Koo Kim lightweight title fight that ended in Kim's death. Because of Nevada State Athletic Commission instructions to refereeJoey Curtis regarding the stoppage of the fight in light of the incident, some felt it was premature. In the rematch, Dokes retained his title on a majority draw (tie).

Dokes's reign as the WBA title holder was short-lived. He lost his title by atenth-round knockout toGerrie Coetzee. He was later knocked out by future championEvander Holyfield.

Dokes was knocked out byDonovan Ruddock in 1990. In 1993, Dokes faced newly crowned heavyweight championRiddick Bowe in his first title defense since defeating Evander Holyfield. Bowe won by TKO in the first round. Although Dokes and his team protested that the fight was stopped prematurely, it was obvious that Dokes was in no condition to continue after taking a vicious barrage of punches from the heavy-hitting Bowe. After a nearly three-year hiatus, Dokes returned to the ring winning three of five matches over a two-year period before retiring for good in 1997.

In 1999 Dokes was sentenced to between four and 15 years in prison after being convicted of an attack on his fiancée in August 1998. Late in 2008, Dokes was released on parole.^[2] Dokes died ofliver cancer at a hospice in Akron in August 2012, a day after his 54th birthday.^[3][4]

No.	Result	Record	Opponent	Type	Round, time	Date	Location	Notes
1	—	0–0(1)	Muhammad Ali	—	3	Apr 16, 1977	Miami Beach Convention Center,Miami Beach, Florida, U.S.	Non-scored bout

• Boxing record for Michael Dokes fromBoxRec(registration required)

• 1958 births
• 2012 deaths
• 20th-century African-American sportsmen
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• Deaths from liver cancer
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• Boxers at the 1975 Pan American Games
• Medalists at the 1975 Pan American Games
• Pan American Games silver medalists for the United States in boxing

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