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Hedgemon Lewis

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American boxer and trainer (1946–2020)

Hedgemon Lewis
Born(1946-02-25)February 25, 1946
Greensboro, Alabama, U.S.
DiedMarch 31, 2020(2020-03-31) (aged 74)
Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
Statistics
Weight(s)
StanceOrthodox
Boxing record
Total fights63
Wins53
Losses7
Draws2
No contests1

Hedgemon Lewis (February 25, 1946 – March 31, 2020) was an American professional boxer and trainer. He held the NYSAC welterweight world title in 1972 and challenged for welterweight world championships on three occasions; the unified WBA, and WBC titles twice in 1971 and 1974; and the WBC title in 1976. As an amateur, he won the National Golden Gloves lightweight title in 1964 and the welterweight title in 1966.

Professional career

Lewis was initially taken under the wing of Detroit-based coach Luther Burgess, who presided over his formative boxing years and was later trained by Eddie Futch. Due to Lewis’s exciting style, he soon attracted the attention of Hollywood. His management company consisted of actors and entertainment stars such as Ryan O'Neal, Bill Cosby and Robert Goulet.

Racing through the early part of his career, Lewis was victorious in his first 22 fights. He fought out of Detroit initially, before basing himself in Los Angeles. Establishing himself as one of boxing’s top prospects, Lewis was poised to take on his biggest fight to date, against Ernie ‘Indian Red’ Lopez. In the first 4 rounds, Lewis outclassed his opponent, before Lopez came from behind to win.

Lewis bounced back to win his next five fights, including defeating highly rated contender Oscar "Shotgun" Albarado over ten rounds. This set the stage for a rematch against former foe Ernie Lopez. In a closely fought and exciting contest, Lewis picked up the decision, flooring his opponent in round 4.

Fighting for the world title

Embarking on a succession of impressive wins, Lewis improved his record to 40-3. In December 1971, Lewis took on Cuban fighter Jose Napoles for the WBC and WBA World Welterweight titles. The bout was tightly contested, with Lewis pushing the world champion for the full 15 rounds. The decision went to Napoles, but all 3 judges scorecards registered a very close fight. Still at a relatively young age of 25, Lewis returned to winning ways, racking up 11 straight wins on the bounce. This included a doubleheader against former world champion Billy Backus.

Lewis traveled to Syracuse, New York, the home town of Backus, for the first bout in June 1972. In what turned out to be one of the fights of the year, Lewis dropped his rival in round 4 on his way to a decision victory. In the rematch, later on, that year, Lewis would once again claim victory. In defeating Backus, Lewis picked up the New York version of the World Welterweight title. He also gained the admiration of the New York boxing scene. Continuing on with varying degrees of success, Lewis would fight twice more for the world title, including a rematch against Jose Napoles, without success. Hedgemon Lewis retired in 1976 at the age of 30. His final career record read 53-7-2. Lewis was inducted into the California Boxing Hall of Fame in 2006.

Post professional boxing career

Not yet finished with the sport, Lewis became a noted coach and cornerman in the world of boxing. He worked the corners with legendary figures such as Eddie Futch, Thell Torrence and Freddy Roach. He would play a key role as part of Futch’s camp in the epic ‘Thriller in Manila’ fight. Lewis trained fighters until his death. Outside of boxing, he also achieved success in the Los Angeles real estate market. Lewis also appeared as a craps gambler in the Ryan O'Neal 1985 movie, Fever Pitch.

He died on March 31, 2020, at the age of 74, of COVID-19 on top of other health issues.

Professional boxing record

62 fights 53 wins 7 losses
By knockout 26 4
By decision 27 3
Draws 2
No. Result Record Opponent Type Round, time Date Location Notes
63 Loss 53–7–2 (1) John H. Stracey TKO 10 (15), 1:25 Mar 20, 1976 Empire Pool, Wembley, London, England, UK For WBC and The Ring welterweight titles
62 Draw 53–6–2 (1) Harold Weston PTS 10 Dec 12, 1975 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, US
61 Draw 53–6–1 (1) Carlos Palomino MD 10 Nov 22, 1975 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US
60 Win 53–6 (1) Rafael Rodriguez MD 10 May 7, 1975 Auditorium, Minneapolis, Minnesota, US
59 Win 52–6 (1) Rafael Rodriguez UD 10 Mar 19, 1975 Auditorium, Minneapolis, Minnesota, US
58 Loss 51–6 (1) Armando Muñíz UD 10 Dec 3, 1974 Forum, Inglewood, California, US
57 Loss 51–5 (1) José Nápoles TKO 9 (15), 2:40 Aug 3, 1974 Palacio de los Deportes, Mexico City, Mexico For WBA, WBC, and The Ring welterweight titles
56 Win 51–4 (1) Felipe Vaca KO 4 (10) Apr 28, 1974 Gimnasio de Mexicali, Mexicali, Mexico
55 Win 50–4 (1) Jose Miranda UD 10 Mar 1, 1974 Coliseum, San Diego, California, US
54 Win 49–4 (1) Johnny Gant UD 10 Dec 10, 1973 Felt Forum, New York City, New York, US
53 Win 48–4 (1) Rudy Barro KO 3 (10), 2:52 Nov 6, 1973 Memorial Auditorium, Sacramento, California, US
52 Win 47–4 (1) Chucho Garcia UD 10 Oct 13, 1973 Forum, Inglewood, California, US
51 Win 46–4 (1) Ruben Zamora TKO 6 (10), 2:12 Mar 31, 1973 Sports Arena, San Diego, California, US
50 Win 45–4 (1) Billy Backus UD 15 Dec 8, 1972 War Memorial Auditorium, Syracuse, New York, US Retained NYSAC welterweight title
49 Win 44–4 (1) Jose Baltazar UD 10 Oct 13, 1972 Coliseum, San Diego, California, US
48 Win 43–4 (1) Mario Marquez KO 2 (10) Jul 21, 1972 San Diego, California, US
47 Win 42–4 (1) Billy Backus UD 15 Jun 16, 1972 War Memorial Auditorium, Syracuse, New York, US Won vacant NYSAC welterweight title
46 Win 41–4 (1) Ruben Zamora UD 10 May 8, 1972 Forum, Inglewood, California, US
45 Loss 40–4 (1) José Nápoles UD 15 Dec 14, 1971 Forum, Inglewood, California, US For WBA, WBC, and The Ring welterweight titles
44 Win 40–3 (1) Jose Gabino KO 6 (10), 1:12 Sep 24, 1971 Convention Center, Anaheim, California, US
43 Win 39–3 (1) Cassius Greene TKO 6 (10), 2:55 Jul 31, 1971 Civic Auditorium, Santa Monica, California, US
42 Win 38–3 (1) Arturo Lomeli KO 6 (10) Jun 28, 1971 Auditorio Municipal, Tijuana, Mexico
41 Win 37–3 (1) Percy Pugh TKO 8 (10), 2:10 May 17, 1971 Municipal Auditorium, New Orleans, Louisiana, US
40 ND 36–3 (1) Leroy Romero ND 3 (10) May 7, 1971 Minidome, Pocatello, Idaho, US
39 Loss 36–3 Adolph Pruitt UD 10 Jan 12, 1971 Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, US
38 Win 36–2 Manuel Avitia TKO 8 (10), 3:00 Oct 31, 1970 Valley Music Theatre, Woodland Hills, California, US
37 Win 35–2 Raul Soriano UD 10 Oct 8, 1970 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US
36 Win 34–2 Chucho Almazan KO 8 (10), 1:23 Aug 13, 1970 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US
35 Win 33–2 Raúl Rodríguez TD 2 (10) Jul 7, 1970 Tijuana, Mexico
34 Win 32–2 Severo Balboa KO 3 (10), 1:35 Jun 19, 1970 Valley Music Theatre, Woodland Hills, California, US
33 Win 31–2 Ricky Ortiz TKO 3 (10), 2:06 May 26, 1970 Valley Music Theatre, Woodland Hills, California, US
32 Win 30–2 Gustavo Garcia KO 5 (10) May 13, 1970 Tijuana, Mexico
31 Win 29–2 Don Cobbs UD 10 Dec 18, 1969 Olympia Stadium, Detroit, Michigan, US
30 Loss 28–2 Ernie Lopez TKO 10 (10), 2:33 Oct 4, 1969 Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California, US
29 Win 28–1 Ernie Lopez UD 10 Jul 10, 1969 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US
28 Win 27–1 Oscar Albarado UD 10 Apr 10, 1969 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US
27 Win 26–1 Miguel Hernandez KO 1 (10) Mar 20, 1969 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US
26 Win 25–1 Celso Olivas KO 1 (10), 1:18 Oct 31, 1968 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US
25 Win 24–1 Miguel Aguilar UD 10 Sep 19, 1968 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US
24 Win 23–1 Shelly Lyons PTS 10 Sep 3, 1968 Circle Arts Theater, San Diego, California, US
23 Loss 22–1 Ernie Lopez TKO 9 (10), 1:48 Jul 18, 1968 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US
22 Win 22–0 Doug McLeod TKO 2 (10), 1:00 Jun 13, 1968 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US
21 Win 21–0 Bob Murray UD 10 May 16, 1968 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US
20 Win 20–0 Jose Valenzuela RTD 5 (10), 3:00 Apr 25, 1968 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US
19 Win 19–0 Ruben Rivera KO 2 (10), 2:08 Apr 4, 1968 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US
18 Win 18–0 Miguel Aguilar UD 10 Oct 19, 1967 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US
17 Win 17–0 Carl Jordan PTS 9 Aug 24, 1967 Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan, US
16 Win 16–0 Colin Fraser PTS 8 Jun 26, 1967 Toronto, Ontario, Canada
15 Win 15–0 Garry Broughton UD 8 Jun 15, 1967 Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan, US
14 Win 14–0 Primus Williams UD 8 May 12, 1967 Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan, US
13 Win 13–0 Mel Fields KO 3 (5) Apr 13, 1967 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US
12 Win 12–0 Charley Lewis PTS 6 Mar 23, 1967 Convention Center, Louisville, Kentucky, US
11 Win 11–0 Sam Ivory TKO 5 (10) Mar 18, 1967 Armory, Newark, New Jersey, US
10 Win 10–0 Primus Williams UD 6 Jan 28, 1967 Armory, Newark, New Jersey, US
9 Win 9–0 Phil Garcia KO 3 (6) Dec 1, 1966 Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US
8 Win 8–0 Dawson Smith UD 4 Nov 21, 1966 Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan, US
7 Win 7–0 Charley Lewis UD 6 Nov 1, 1966 Civic Auditorium, Grand Rapids, Michigan, US
6 Win 6–0 Clavis Dejarnette TKO 2 (4), 2:14 Oct 26, 1966 Armory, Akron, Ohio, US
5 Win 5–0 Arnold Bushman TKO 3 (6) Oct 6, 1966 Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan, US
4 Win 4–0 Mike Belski TKO 1 (6), 1:29 Aug 29, 1966 Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan, US
3 Win 3–0 Larry Youngblood TKO 2 (4) Aug 5, 1966 Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan, US
2 Win 2–0 Larry Youngblood UD 4 Jul 11, 1966 Cobo Hall, Detroit, Michigan, US
1 Win 1–0 Arnold Bushman RTD 2 (4) May 13, 1966 Music Hall Arena, Cincinnati, Ohio, US

References

  1. Lindy Lindell, "Metro Detroit Boxing"
  2. Boxrec, "Professional boxing record for Hedgemon Lewis", "http://boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=012562&cat=boxer Archived November 2, 2012, at the Wayback Machine"
  3. Harry Mullan, "Great Book of Boxing"
  4. Peter Arnold, "The illustrated encyclopedia of world boxing"
  5. Harry Mullan, "Great Book of Boxing"
  6. "Remembering Hedgemon Lewis (1946-2020); Welterweight Champ, Hollywood Pet". April 1, 2020.
  7. "Boxing News: Hedgemon Lewis passes away » June 6, 2022". March 31, 2020.

External links

Titles in pretence
Vacant World Welterweight Champion
NYSAC Recognition
June 16, 1972 – August 3, 1974 		Lost bid for undiputed title
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