Joe Calzaghe CBE | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Calzaghe in 2007 | |||||||||||||||
| Born | Joseph William Calzaghe (1972-03-23)23 March 1972 (age 52) Hammersmith,London, England | ||||||||||||||
| Nationality | Welsh | ||||||||||||||
| Other names |
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| Statistics | |||||||||||||||
| Weight(s) | |||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)[1] | ||||||||||||||
| Reach | 73 in (185 cm) | ||||||||||||||
| Stance | Southpaw | ||||||||||||||
| Boxing record | |||||||||||||||
| Total fights | 46 | ||||||||||||||
| Wins | 46 | ||||||||||||||
| Wins by KO | 32 | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Joseph William CalzagheCBE (/kælˈzæɡi/kal-ZA-gee; born 23 March 1972) is a Welsh[2] formerprofessional boxer who competed from 1993 to 2008. He held multiple world championships in twoweight classes, includingunified andlineal titles atsuper-middleweight, and theRing magazinelight-heavyweight title.[3]
Calzaghe is the longest reigning super middleweight world champion in boxing history, having held theWorld Boxing Organization (WBO) title for over 10 years and defending it against 20 opponents (a record in the division, shared withSven Ottke) before moving up to light-heavyweight. As his super-middleweight and light-heavyweight reigns overlapped, he retired with the longest continual time as world champion of any active boxer at the time. Calzaghe was the first boxer to unify three of the four major world titles (World Boxing Association,World Boxing Council, and WBO) at super-middleweight, and was the inauguralRing champion in that weight class.
Between 2006 and 2008, Calzaghe was ranked byThe Ring as one of the world's top ten active boxers,pound for pound,[4] reaching a peak ranking of third in January 2009.[5] He retired in February 2009 with anundefeated record of 46 wins, and as a reigning world champion.[6] As of December 2024,BoxRec ranks Calzaghe as the 37th greatest fighter of all time, pound for pound, as well as the second-greatest European boxer of all time.[7][8]
In 2007, Calzaghe won theBBC Sports Personality of the Year Award,[9] making him the first Welsh winner of this award sinceDavid Broome in 1960. Calzaghe was inducted into theInternational Boxing Hall of Fame in 2014.[10] He was nicknamed the "Pride of Wales" and the "Italian Dragon".[11]
Calzaghe was born in Hammersmith, London, to aSardinian father,Enzo, and aWelsh mother, Jackie.[12] His paternal grandparents settled in Britain after the Second World War, during which his grandfather Giuseppe had served in the12th Infantry Division Sassari, but had returned to live in Italy by the end of the 1950s. Calzaghe's father worked several jobs as a teenager in Italy, including as a barman, a chef, and a cleaner, before travelling Europe as abusker. He eventually arrived back in Britain to visit family inBournemouth. It was during this time that Calzaghe's parents met; his mother hailed from the mining town ofMarkham, Caerphilly. The couple married, and briefly moved to Sardinia, but returned shortly after when Calzaghe's mother became homesick. They settled in London, his father working two jobs in a factory and abed and breakfast while his mother worked as a secretary in the offices of production company20th Century Fox.[13]
Calzaghe was born inHammersmith Hospital in March 1972,[13] before his father decided to move the family back to Sardinia at the end of the year, living in his grandfather's home in Bancali. However, his mother again pushed to return to Britain and the family lived with his maternal grandmother in Markham for three years before they moved into their own home on acouncil estate in Pentwynmawr, near the town ofNewbridge, inCaerphilly County Borough, South Wales. He attended the local school, Pentwynmawr Primary, along with his two sisters, Melissa and Sonia, and developed a keen interest in playing football. He joined Pentwynmawr F.C. at under-10s level, playing as amidfielder and scored consistently during his early years.[14]
At the age of eight, he was given a children's boxing toy that developed his interest in the sport and his father made apunching bag from an old carpet.[14] He joined his first boxing club, Newbridge Amateur Boxing Club at ten years old and the sport quickly took priority for the young Calzaghe as he gave up playing football after two years.[15] Calzaghe moved on toOakdale Comprehensive School at 11, but was targeted by bullies as a teenager, becoming the target of regular verbal abuse that left him isolated. Although the culprits left him alone after a year, Calzaghe later admitted that he "never recovered from the abuse" and left school without sitting any of hisGCSEs.[16]
Calzaghe was the first person to be awarded theFreedom ofCaerphilly County Borough, in 2009.[17]
Already anMBE,[18] he was elevated toCBE in the 2008 Queen's Birthday Honours.[19]
In 120 amateur contests, Calzaghe won four schoolboy ABA titles, followed by three consecutive senior British ABA titles (British Championships) between 1990 and 1993, which were won in three different weight categories,welterweight,light middleweight andmiddleweight.[20] He reportedly had an amateur record of 110–10. Calzaghe received his last two defeats in a boxing ring at the hands of Michael Smyth in the 1990 Welsh ABA Final, and againstRomanian amateur Adrian Preda at the 1990 European Junior Championships inPrague.[21][22]
In September 1993 Calzaghe was signed up and made his professional debut atCardiff Arms Park on theLennox Lewis vs. Frank Bruno bill the following month, halting 23 fight veteran Paul Hanlon in one round. By September 1995, Calzaghe had won thirteen out of thirteen fights, including seven in the first round and two in the second, including quickfire victories over the highly experienced American duo of Frank Minton and Robert Curry, with only the fully fledged British Light Heavyweight Bobbie Joe Edwards lasting the distance.
In October 1995, Calzaghe won the vacantBritishsuper-middleweight title, stopping the previously unbeaten Stephen Wilson in the eighth round.
At the end of 1995, Calzaghe was voted Young Boxer of the Year by the Professional Boxing Association and the Boxing Writers' Club, withBarry McGuigan top tipping Calzaghe for 1996: "He punches ferociously, moves superbly and has the best of the European technique and US aggression."[23]
After beginning 1996 with two more quick knockouts over Guy Stanford and Anthony Brooks, he successfully defended his British title with an easier-than-expected fifth round stoppage of the tough undefeated puncherMark Delaney (21–0). Despite Delaney being a good fighter in his own right, Calzaghe's critics said that he had still not really been tested. Calzaghe said in reply that he could only beat whoever was out there and prepared to fight him. Calzaghe rounded off the year with victories over two experienced opponents in Warren Stowe andPat Lawlor.
In November 1996, Calzaghe moved toFrank Warren's stable. Warren, who had managedNigel Benn for his first twenty fights, declared: "Joe Calzaghe is a far better prospect, in fact he is my fighter for the new millennium."[24] Calzaghe continued his winning ways in 1997, defeating Carlos Christie, the unbeatenTyler Hughes and the 45–2 Luciano Torres. Meanwhile, Warren spent the summer of 1997 chasing a fight for Calzaghe with eitherWBC ChampionRobin Reid or IrishWBO ChampionSteve Collins. The fight with Collins was arranged, but at a late stage Collins withdrew because of injury, was stripped of his title, and then retired.
After Collins retired, a fight against British boxing legendChris Eubank was quickly set up for the vacant WBO title on 11 October 1997, inSheffield. Calzaghe emerged victorious over the two-time WBO champion, knocking the granite chinned Eubank down in the opening seconds and claiming a unanimous points win. The judges scored the contest 118–110, 118–109, and 116–111 in favour of Calzaghe. Eubank said of Calzaghe in a 2006 interview that: "Joe is the proper article, a true warrior."[25] Calzaghe conceded that Eubank, even in his comeback, gave him the toughest fight of his life.[25] His popularity grew alongside the wider cultural movement ofCool Cymru, and Calzaghe was symbolic of the new Welsh identity which was forming.
In 1998, he defended his title againstBranko Sobot (winning bytechnical knockout in 3 rounds). Sobot was a late replacement for Syrian-AmericanTarick Salmaci,[26] who pulled out after a row with his management.[26] Sobot was knocked down in the third round. He beat the count but immediately came under renewed punishment from Calzaghe,[26] forcing the referee to step in at 1:35 of the third round.
Calzaghe then went on to defeat perennial contenderJuan Carlos Gimenez Ferreyra (TKO after 9 rounds), a former opponent of bothNigel Benn and Chris Eubank. Calzaghe became the first boxer to stop Gimenez Ferreyra, something which Benn, Eubank andRoberto Durán had failed to do in the past.
In 1999, Calzaghe started out by fighting his domestic rival,Robin Reid. Calzaghe was bitter that Reid had refused to face him whilst holding the WBC Championship in a unification bout and vowed to beat him, while Reid vowed to upset the odds by defeating Calzaghe and becoming a world champion again. After four rounds of the fight, Calzaghe seemed in total control and on his way to a comfortable victory, but then Reid won the next couple of rounds and it became a highly competitive fight thereafter with around five close rounds by the end of the fight that could have been scored either way, or even. Reid was also docked a point by the referee in the eighth round after a fifth warning for rabbit punches and low blows. It was arguably the closest that Calzaghe came to losing in his entire professional boxing career. After twelve rounds, the judges scored the fight for Calzaghe via a split decision (two judges scored it 116–111 for Calzaghe, while the other judge scored it 116–111 for Reid).[27] Reid was never given the opportunity of a rematch. Calzaghe badly bruised his hand during the fight and according to Calzaghe, he suffered a dose of food poisoning.[28] Calzaghe finished the year with another points win against Australian Rick Thornberry, where he broke his hand in the third round after looking like overwhelming his opponent early.
2000 started with another points decision against fellow BritonDavid Starie, in what was a dull fight that had a lot of holding and with the boxers' respective styles never gelling. This was followed by impressive wins againstOmar Sheika (who was coming off a win overGlen Johnson) by fifth-round stoppage, and a TKO over former WBC world champion and close friendRichie Woodhall in ten competitive rounds, in what turned out to be Woodhall's last fight.[29]
2001 started with an impressive first-round-stoppage win over the unbeaten German No 1 contenderMario Veit (30–0), followed by a win against American contender Will McIntyre on theMike Tyson–Brian Nielsen undercard inCopenhagen Denmark, marking his first defence outside Britain. Calzaghe dropped him in the third round with a ferocious left uppercut, although McIntyre managed to survive the count.[30] But the end was near. Calzaghe dropped McIntyre again at the start of the fourth, and this time the referee stopped the proceedings.[30]
2002 started with unanimous points wins against formerIBF world championCharles Brewer of the United States in Cardiff, followed by a shutout 12-round unanimous decision over Miguel Angel Jimenez (120–107 for Calzaghe on all three judges' scorecards), and then a quick second round TKO of American Tocker Pudwill,[31] who took the fight at very short notice as a replacement for the injuredThomas Tate, in Newcastle in December.[32] With the win over Pudwill, Calzaghe successfully defended his WBO super-middleweight title for the 12th time. After the fight, Calzaghe said: "I'm one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world. I want to be remembered as one of the best British boxers ever."[33]
Calzaghe's only fight of 2003 was in June against another former world champion, in the shape of AmericanByron Mitchell at theCardiff International Arena.[34] Calzaghe won byTKO in the second. Calzaghe suffered his first career knockdown in the second round, before rising to halt Mitchell in the very same round, thus becoming the first boxer to stop Mitchell.[35]
2004 started out with a defence against Armenian contender Mger Mkrtchian in Cardiff where he won easily by a seventh-round knockout, followed by a points win over Egyptian-AmericanKabary Salem inEdinburgh in October, during which Calzaghe was briefly knocked down in the fourth round by a right hand.[36] However, Calzaghe was not hurt, and he dominated the fight and knocked Salem down in the 12th round, winning comfortably on all three scorecards, 116–109, 117–109 and 118–107.[37]
Mario Veit worked his way to a rematch against Calzaghe inBraunschweig, Germany, in July 2005, marking Calzaghe's second defence on foreign soil.[38] Calzaghe beat Veit by technical knockout in the sixth round. On 10 September 2005, Calzaghe fought theKenya boxerEvans Ashira and won by a comfortable unanimous decision over the former Middleweight title challenger, despite breaking his left hand in the third round.[39] Calzaghe fought on one-handed winning 120–108, 120–108, 120–107.
His scheduled unification bout with IBF super-middleweight championJeff Lacy for 4 November 2005 was initially canceled due to the break sustained to the metacarpal in his left hand. Warren successfully rescheduled it for 5 March 2006, and the match was won by an easy unanimous points decision over Lacy, who was a pre-fight favourite with the bookmakers[40] and American pundits alike. Calzaghe dominated throughout the fight, with British fight fans chanting "easy" at the American during the last three rounds. Calzaghe gained the IBF title and won every round despite a point being deducted in the 11th for an illegal behind the body punch. He also won the vacantThe Ring andlineal titles,[41] becoming the first super-middleweight to be recognized as world champion byThe Ring magazine.
On 14 October 2006, Calzaghe faced the rugged contender and future WBC super-middleweight championSakio Bika.[42] Two points were deducted from Bika for head butts, one of which led to a severe cut over Calzaghe's left eye[43] which would cause him problems for the duration of the bout. However, Calzaghe won the fight by clear decision to continue his undefeated run.
On 27 November 2006, it was announced that Calzaghe had signed a contract to defend his WBO super-middleweight title against former star ofThe ContenderPeter Manfredo Jr. of the United States on 7 April 2007, atMillennium Stadium in Cardiff, Wales, to be shown onHBO. Because HBO did not want to cover a fight with the non-American mandatory IBF challengerRobert Stieglitz of Germany, and with the opportunity to fight World Middleweight championJermain Taylor in the summer if he won against Manfredo, Calzaghe chose to fight Manfredo and as a result had to relinquish the IBF super-middleweight championship. Both Calzaghe and Warren claimed that, "Stieglitz doesn't mean anything outside Germany."[44] Stieglitz went on to fightAlejandro Berrio for the vacant IBF title, losing in 3 rounds. Berrio in turn lost the title toLucian Bute in his first defense.[45]
On 7 April 2007, Calzaghe met Peter Manfredo Jr. in front of 35,000 fans inCardiff, Wales.[46] Calzaghe was victorious on a third-round stoppage, unleashing a flurry of punches on the outclassed Manfredo, who threw nothing in return, thus drawing a stoppage from the referee.Manfredo and some American commentators called the stoppage premature because Manfredo did not appear hurt.[47] HBO's ringside announcers declared that the stoppage was "way too quick." TrainerEmanuel Steward did contend that Calzaghe was clearly on his way to victory, but the stoppage was no fault of his own.
In May 2007,Frank Warren released details toBBC 5 Live and on his website that Calzaghe had accepted Mogens Palle's offer of$5 million to fight undefeated WBA & WBC world championMikkel Kessler. The bout took place at Cardiff'sMillennium Stadium on 4 November.[48] The fight was a unification bout for the WBO,The Ring,WBA (Undisputed) andWBC super-middleweight titles. Calzaghe won byunanimous decision, surpassing the 20 defences made byBernard Hopkins andLarry Holmes atmiddleweight andheavyweight respectively.[49][50][51] Only formerheavyweight championJoe Louis (with 25 defences), formerlight heavyweight championDariusz Michalczewski (23 defences), formerminimumweight championRicardo López (23 defences), and former heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko (23 defences) have made more title defences.
Calzaghe was frequently described asundisputed champion,[49][50][52][53] but since he had relinquished the IBF title, others argued that this was not strictly accurate.[54][55]Reuters called him the "Undisputed King" of the division,[51] while David A Avila said he was "the true undisputed world champion. Forget about the IBF titleholderAlejandro Berrio. That's really Calzaghe's belt too."[56] The WBA describes an "Undisputed Champion" as one who holds any two of the WBA, WBC, IBF and WBO titles;[57] which Calzaghe did after beating Kessler and had earlier done after beating Lacy.
On 19 April 2008, at theThomas & Mack Center inLas Vegas,[58] Calzaghe defeatedBernard Hopkins to winThe Ring Light Heavyweight Championship by a split decision in his first ever fight in the United States.
Calzaghe did not get off to a good start. In the first round, Hopkins struck him with a right hand, knocking him down.[59] As the rounds went on, Calzaghe continued to push the pace and began to get his rhythm going by landing combinations at close range. Hopkins' key weapon was his right hand, but after a few rounds Calzaghe could see the right hands coming and easily blocked the shots whilst Hopkins gradually tired.[60] According toCompuBox, Calzaghe landed more punches on Hopkins than any of his previous opponents. Calzaghe also outlanded Hopkins in both total punches and power punches in each round of the fight.[61] American Judges Chuck Giampa (116–111) and Ted Gimza (115–112) scored the fight clearly for Calzaghe, while judge Adalaide Byrd (114–113) scored the fight narrowly for Hopkins. HBO's unofficial ringside judgeHarold Lederman scored the bout 116–111 for Calzaghe.
Hopkins was upset with the official decision and said that he was robbed of a clear points win. Hopkins said, "I just really feel like I took the guy to school. I feel like I made him fight my fight, not his. I wanted him to run into my shots. I think I made him do that, and I think I made it look pretty easy. I think I controlled the pace, and I controlled the fight." He has also openly stated that he wanted a rematch with Calzaghe.[62]
Calzaghe said: "It was one of the toughest fights of my career. ... He is very clever. He was so awkward. It wasn't pretty, but I won the fight. ... It wasn't my best night, but I know I won."[63]
"The first four rounds, and after that Calzaghe got in his groove, much like he did when he fought Mikkel Kessler, and from that point on it was Calzaghe. And Calzaghe didn't fight as good a fight as he could've fought, and he still won decisively,"Emanuel Steward said at ringside.
Calzaghe split with promoter Frank Warren in June 2008 and announced that he would promote his fights personally for the remainder of his career. The split caused Warren to launch a court case against Calzaghe, claiming that a verbal promise to promote theRoy Jones Jr. fight was broken and that Calzaghe owed him $1.4 million;[64] Calzaghe in turn claimed that Warren owed him past fees. In March 2009 the High Court ruled that Warren had persuaded Calzaghe to sign contracts underduress when Calzaghe was hungry anddehydrated preparing for matches and that Warren's company Sports Network Limited owed Calzaghe $2.8 million in unpaid fees.[65]
On 8 July 2008, after Calzaghe's split from Frank Warren, it was officially announced that the 39-year-old,Roy Jones Jr., and 36-year-old Joe Calzaghe had reached an agreement to fight forThe Ring Light Heavyweight Championship in New York City atMadison Square Garden on 20 September 2008 on HBO PPV. Jones was on the comeback trail, and coming off a win overFélix Trinidad. After Calzaghe injured his right hand in training,[66] the fight was postponed,[67] with 8 November being set as the new date. Calzaghe was put down in the first round. Two close rounds followed before Calzaghe took control of the fight. In the eighth round, Jones sustained a cut over an eye, nearly forcing a stoppage. All three judges' decisions were 118–109 for Calzaghe.[68]
On 5 February 2009, Joe Calzaghe announced his retirement from professional boxing. He finished his career with a record of 46 wins and no losses, and becoming one of only fifteen world champions (to date) toretire as an undefeated world champion.[69] After his retirement, fellow boxer and friend,Ricky Hatton described him as "the best British fighter we've ever had."[70]
As of May 2023,BoxRec rates Calzaghe as the second greatestEuropean boxer,pound for pound, of all time, behindDuilio Loi.[71][72]
Following his retirement from boxing, Calzaghe started his own boxingpromotion company, Calzaghe Promotions, with his fatherEnzo Calzaghe.[73]
In an interview withGMTV, Calzaghe stated he is promoting the Beat Bullying campaign. He is said to have found the inspiration from being a victim of bullying himself when he was young, saying he got bullied because of his small stature.
Calzaghe won the2010 Soccer Aid, a Britishcharity football match with the Rest of the World team beating England, and Joe scored the Rest of the World team's first goal. The game was tied after full-time but the Rest of the World won on penalties.
In 2012, Calzaghe made a cameo appearance as himself in an episode of the UK TV comedy dramaStella.
Calzaghe has three sons, two from an 11-year marriage to Mandy Davies from 1994 to 2005, and one from a 3-year relationship with Katie Matthews.[74] Calzaghe split up with his girlfriend of five years, Jo-Emma Larvin, in 2009, after participating in the seventh series of the BBC'sStrictly Come Dancing series, partnering with Russian professionalKristina Rihanoff.[75] Calzaghe and Rihanoff began a relationship soon thereafter. However, the couple announced the amicable breakup of their relationship in August 2013.
Following an undercover investigation by theNews of the World newspaper, Calzaghe admitted he had used cocaine since his boxing career had ended. In a statement on his website, he added that he regretted his "occasional use of cocaine in what have sometimes been the long days since my retirement from the ring".[76]
Outside boxing, Calzaghe is a lifelong fan ofJuventus FC.[77]
| 46 fights | 46 wins | 0 losses |
|---|---|---|
| By knockout | 32 | 0 |
| By decision | 14 | 0 |
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 46 | Win | 46–0 | Roy Jones Jr. | UD | 12 | 8 Nov 2008 | Madison Square Garden,New York City, New York, US | RetainedThe Ring light-heavyweight title |
| 45 | Win | 45–0 | Bernard Hopkins | SD | 12 | 19 Apr 2008 | Thomas & Mack Center,Paradise, Nevada, US | WonThe Ring light-heavyweight title |
| 44 | Win | 44–0 | Mikkel Kessler | UD | 12 | 3 Nov 2007 | Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, Wales | Retained WBO andThe Ring super-middleweight titles; WonWBA (Undisputed) andWBC super-middleweight titles |
| 43 | Win | 43–0 | Peter Manfredo Jr. | TKO | 3 (12),1:30 | 7 Apr 2007 | Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, Wales | Retained WBO andThe Ring super-middleweight titles |
| 42 | Win | 42–0 | Sakio Bika | UD | 12 | 14 Oct 2006 | MEN Arena, Manchester, England | Retained IBF, WBO andThe Ring super-middleweight titles |
| 41 | Win | 41–0 | Jeff Lacy | UD | 12 | 4 Mar 2006 | MEN Arena, Manchester, England | Retained WBO super-middleweight title; WonIBF and inauguralThe Ring super-middleweight titles |
| 40 | Win | 40–0 | Evans Ashira | UD | 12 | 10 Sep 2005 | International Arena, Cardiff, Wales | Retained WBO super-middleweight title |
| 39 | Win | 39–0 | Mario Veit | TKO | 6 (12),2:18 | 7 May 2005 | Volkswagen Halle,Braunschweig, Germany | Retained WBO super-middleweight title |
| 38 | Win | 38–0 | Kabary Salem | UD | 12 | 22 Oct 2004 | Royal Highland Showground,Edinburgh, Scotland | Retained WBO super-middleweight title |
| 37 | Win | 37–0 | Mger Mkrtchyan | TKO | 7 (12),1:05 | 21 Feb 2004 | National Ice Rink, Cardiff, Wales | Retained WBO super-middleweight title |
| 36 | Win | 36–0 | Byron Mitchell | TKO | 2 (12),2:36 | 28 Jun 2003 | International Arena, Cardiff, Wales | Retained WBO super-middleweight title |
| 35 | Win | 35–0 | Tocker Pudwill | TKO | 2 (12),0:39 | 14 Dec 2002 | Telewest Arena, Newcastle, England | Retained WBO super-middleweight title |
| 34 | Win | 34–0 | Miguel Ángel Jiménez | UD | 12 | 17 Aug 2002 | Cardiff Castle, Cardiff, Wales | Retained WBO super-middleweight title |
| 33 | Win | 33–0 | Charles Brewer | UD | 12 | 20 Apr 2002 | International Arena, Cardiff, Wales | Retained WBO super-middleweight title |
| 32 | Win | 32–0 | Will McIntyre | TKO | 4 (12),0:45 | 13 Oct 2001 | Parken Stadium,Copenhagen, Denmark | Retained WBO super-middleweight title |
| 31 | Win | 31–0 | Mario Veit | TKO | 1 (12),1:52 | 28 Apr 2001 | International Arena, Cardiff, Wales | Retained WBO super-middleweight title |
| 30 | Win | 30–0 | Richie Woodhall | TKO | 10 (12),0:28 | 16 Dec 2000 | Sheffield Arena, Sheffield, England | Retained WBO super-middleweight title |
| 29 | Win | 29–0 | Omar Sheika | TKO | 5 (12),2:08 | 12 Aug 2000 | Wembley Conference Centre, London, England | Retained WBO super-middleweight title |
| 28 | Win | 28–0 | David Starie | UD | 12 | 29 Jan 2000 | MEN Arena, Manchester, England | Retained WBO super-middleweight title |
| 27 | Win | 27–0 | Rick Thornberry | UD | 12 | 5 Jun 1999 | International Arena, Cardiff, Wales | Retained WBO super-middleweight title |
| 26 | Win | 26–0 | Robin Reid | SD | 12 | 13 Feb 1999 | Telewest Arena,Newcastle, England | Retained WBO super-middleweight title |
| 25 | Win | 25–0 | Juan Carlos Giménez Ferreyra | RTD | 9 (12),3:00 | 25 Apr 1998 | National Ice Rink, Cardiff, Wales | Retained WBO super-middleweight title |
| 24 | Win | 24–0 | Branko Sobot | TKO | 3 (12),1:35 | 24 Jan 1998 | International Arena, Cardiff, Wales | Retained WBO super-middleweight title |
| 23 | Win | 23–0 | Chris Eubank | UD | 12 | 11 Oct 1997 | Sheffield Arena,Sheffield, England | Won vacantWBO super-middleweight title |
| 22 | Win | 22–0 | Luciano Torres | TKO | 3 (10),0:52 | 5 Jun 1997 | Whitchurch Leisure Centre, Bristol, England | |
| 21 | Win | 21–0 | Tyler Hughes | KO | 1 (10),2:04 | 22 Mar 1997 | Wythenshawe Forum,Manchester, England | |
| 20 | Win | 20–0 | Carlos Christie | TKO | 2 (10),1:39 | 21 Jan 1997 | Whitchurch Leisure Centre,Bristol, England | |
| 19 | Win | 19–0 | Pat Lawlor | TKO | 2 (10),1:55 | 15 May 1996 | STAR Centre, Cardiff, Wales | |
| 18 | Win | 18–0 | Warren Stowe | TKO | 2 (8),3:00 | 4 May 1996 | Goresbrook Leisure Centre, London, England | |
| 17 | Win | 17–0 | Mark Delaney | TKO | 5 (12) | 20 Apr 1996 | International Centre,Brentwood, England | Retained British super-middleweight title |
| 16 | Win | 16–0 | Anthony Brooks | TKO | 2 (10) | 13 Mar 1996 | Brent Town Hall, London, England | |
| 15 | Win | 15–0 | Guy Stanford | TKO | 1 (10),1:24 | 13 Feb 1996 | Welsh Institute of Sport, Cardiff, Wales | |
| 14 | Win | 14–0 | Stephen Wilson | TKO | 8 (12),2:18 | 28 Oct 1995 | Royal Albert Hall, London, England | Won vacantBritish super-middleweight title |
| 13 | Win | 13–0 | Nick Manners | TKO | 4 (8),2:20 | 30 Sep 1995 | Festival Hall,Basildon, England | |
| 12 | Win | 12–0 | Tyrone Jackson | TKO | 4 (8),1:08 | 8 Jul 1995 | Barbican Centre,York, England | |
| 11 | Win | 11–0 | Robert Curry | TKO | 1 (8),1:29 | 19 May 1995 | Elephant and Castle Shopping Centre, London, England | |
| 10 | Win | 10–0 | Bobbie Joe Edwards | PTS | 8 | 22 Feb 1995 | Ice Rink,Telford, England | |
| 9 | Win | 9–0 | Frank Minton | KO | 1 (8),1:25 | 14 Feb 1995 | York Hall,London, England | |
| 8 | Win | 8–0 | Trevor Ambrose | TKO | 2 (8) | 30 Nov 1994 | Civic Hall,Wolverhampton, England | |
| 7 | Win | 7–0 | Mark Lee Dawson | TKO | 1 (8) | 1 Oct 1994 | National Ice Rink, Cardiff, Wales | |
| 6 | Win | 6–0 | Karl Barwise | TKO | 1 (6) | 4 Jun 1994 | National Ice Rink, Cardiff, Wales | |
| 5 | Win | 5–0 | Darren Littlewood | TKO | 1 (6) | 1 Mar 1994 | Town Hall,Dudley, England | |
| 4 | Win | 4–0 | Martin Rosamond | TKO | 1 (6) | 22 Jan 1994 | Welsh Institute of Sport, Cardiff, Wales | |
| 3 | Win | 3–0 | Spencer Alton | TKO | 2 (4) | 16 Dec 1993 | Newport Centre,Newport, Wales | |
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | Paul Mason | TKO | 1 (4) | 10 Nov 1993 | Town Hall,Watford, England | |
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Paul Hanlon | TKO | 1 (4) | 1 Oct 1993 | Cardiff Arms Park,Cardiff, Wales |
| Date | Fight | Billing | Buys | Network |
|---|---|---|---|---|
November 8, 2008 | Calzaghe vs.Jones | Battle of the Superpowers | 225,000[78] | HBO |
Specific
Joe Calzaghe was crowned undisputed world super-middleweight champion in Cardiff tonight
Lucien Bute, whose claim to the International Boxing Federation title is all that stands between the Welshman and undisputed world champion status
Joe Calzaghe, who is now the closest to being the undisputed super middleweight champion of the world. (There's still the IBF title if he's to have all four of the most recognized belts.)
Bibliography
| Sporting positions | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amateur boxing titles | ||||
| Previous: Timothy Taylor | ABA light-middleweight champion 1992 | Next: David Starie | ||
| Previous: Lee Woolcock | ABA middleweight champion 1993 | |||
| Regional boxing titles | ||||
| Vacant Title last held by Sam Storey | British super-middleweight champion 28 October 1995 – May 1996 Vacated | Vacant Title next held by David Starie | ||
| World boxing titles | ||||
| Vacant Title last held by Steve Collins | WBO super-middleweight champion 11 October 1997 – 26 September 2008 Vacated | Vacant Title next held by Denis Inkin | ||
| Preceded by | IBF super-middleweight champion 4 March 2006 – 27 November 2006 Vacated | Vacant Title next held by Alejandro Berrio | ||
| Inaugural champion | The Ring super-middleweight champion 4 March 2006 – 26 September 2008 Vacated | Vacant Title next held by Andre Ward | ||
| Preceded by | WBA super-middleweight champion Undisputed title 4 November 2007 – 26 September 2008 Vacated | |||
| WBC super-middleweight champion 4 November 2007 – 5 July 2008 Vacated | Vacant Title next held by Carl Froch | |||
| Preceded by | The Ring light-heavyweight champion 19 April 2008 – 5 February 2009 Retired | Vacant Title next held by Jean Pascal | ||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
