Paul Pender

Paul Pender (June 20, 1930 – January 12, 2003), was an American boxer and firefighter from Massachusetts who held the World Middleweight Championship.[1][2]

Paul Pender
Paul Pender in 1960
Statistics
Real namePaul Pender
Weight(s)160 lb (73 kg) (middleweight)
Height5'10'
Reach72
NationalityAmerican
BornJune 20, 1930
Brookline, Massachusetts
DiedJanuary 12, 2003(2003-01-12) (aged 72)
Bedford, Massachusetts
StanceOrthodox
Boxing record
Total fights48
Wins40
Wins by KO20
Losses6
Draws2
No contests0

Early life

Pender was born in the Boston suburb of Brookline, Massachusetts, the son of William and Anna (Lyster) Pender. A 1949 graduate of Brookline High School, Pender was recruited as an all American football player at Michigan State University and Penn State, but instead, chose to enter professional boxing, while attending Staley College. Although a champion, he regarded boxing as his second job and being a Brookline firefighter his first. As an amateur, he won the New England welterweight championship.

Pender was a member of the United States Marine Corps.

Professional career

In 1959, the National Boxing Association withdrew its recognition of Sugar Ray Robinson as middleweight champion. Gene Fullmer and Carmen Basilio fought for the vacant NBA title, and Fullmer won. Pender beat Robinson, one of the greatest fighters of all time, for the disputed middleweight championship title.[3] He won by split decision in 15 rounds. Pender fought Robinson once again to defend his title and went on to beat him by split decision.

He fought a set of three matches against English boxer Terry Downes, of which only the third (on April 7, 1962) went the full distance. He won the first and the third bout, but the last would prove to be the only fight of that year for Pender and the last of his career. The New York Boxing Commission stripped Pender of his title for not defending it against Dick Tiger. Pender sued and won on appeal.[4]

His career was hampered by his brittle hands.[5] He retired May 7, 1963 as the current world middleweight champion.[6]

His career record was 40 wins (20 by KO), 6 losses, and 2 draws.

Death

He died in Bedford, Massachusetts on January 12, 2003, at the Veterans Administration Hospital.[3]



Professional boxing record
48 fights 40 wins 6 losses
By knockout 20 3
By decision 19 3
By disqualification 1 0
Draws 2
No. Result Record Opponent Type Round Date Location Notes
48 Win 40–6–2 Terry Downes UD 15 Apr 7, 1962 Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. Won NYSAC and The Ring middleweight titles
47 Loss 39–6–2 Terry Downes RTD 9 (15) Jul 11, 1961 Empire Pool, Wembley, London, England Lost NYSAC and The Ring middleweight titles
46 Win 39–5–2 Carmen Basilio UD 15 Apr 22, 1961 Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. Retained NYSAC and The Ring middleweight titles
45 Win 38–5–2 Terry Downes TKO 9 (15) Jan 14, 1961 Arena, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. Retained NYSAC and The Ring middleweight titles
44 Win 37–5–2 Sugar Ray Robinson SD 15 Jun 10, 1960 Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. Retained NYSAC and The Ring middleweight titles
43 Win 36–5–2 Sugar Ray Robinson SD 15 Jan 22, 1960 Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. Won NYSAC and The Ring middleweight titles
42 Win 35–5–2 Gene Hamilton UD 10 Dec 14, 1959 Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
41 Win 34–5–2 Jackson Brown UD 12 Aug 17, 1959 Pierce Memorial Field, East Providence, Rhode Island, U.S. Won USA New England middleweight title
40 Win 33–5–2 Ralph Tiger Jones UD 10 Mar 17, 1959 Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
39 Win 32–5–2 Joe Shaw TKO 5 (10) Feb 16, 1959 Arcadia Ballroom, Providence, Rhode Island, U.S.
38 Win 31–5–2 Young Beau Jack DQ 3 (10) Feb 9, 1959 Arcadia Ballroom, Providence, Rhode Island, U.S. Jack was DQ'd after he knocked Pender out and proceeded
to attack him while unconscious on the canvas
37 Win 30–5–2 Joe Gomes TKO 6 (10) Jan 5, 1959 Rhode Island Auditorium, Providence, Rhode Island, U.S. Fight stopped on cuts
36 Win 29–5–2 Willie Kid Johnson TKO 3 (10) Dec 22, 1958 Arcadia Ballroom, Providence, Rhode Island, U.S.
35 Win 28–5–2 Pete Adams TKO 4 (10) Dec 15, 1958 Arena, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
34 Win 27–5–2 Jackson Brown TKO 3 (10) Nov 17, 1958 Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
33 Win 26–5–2 Jimmy Skinner UD 10 Dec 4, 1956 Mechanics Building, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
32 Loss 25–5–2 Gene Fullmer UD 10 Feb 14, 1955 Eastern Parkway Arena, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, U.S.
31 Win 25–4–2 Freddie Mack TKO 4 (10) Jan 6, 1955 Mechanics Building, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
30 Win 24–4–2 Ted Olla SD 10 Dec 20, 1954 Eastern Parkway Arena, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, U.S.
29 Win 23–4–2 Larry Villeneuve UD 10 Aug 3, 1954 Arena, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
28 Loss 22–4–2 Jimmy Beau TKO 5 (10) Mar 31, 1952 Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
27 Win 22–3–2 Otis Graham UD 10 Oct 1, 1951 Mechanics Building, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
26 Loss 21–3–2 Gene Hairston KO 3 (10) Apr 30, 1951 Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
25 Draw 21–2–2 Joe Rindone PTS 10 Mar 12, 1951 Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
24 Loss 21–2–1 Joe Rindone UD 10 Jan 22, 1951 Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
23 Win 21–1–1 Norman Hayes KO 7 (10) Jan 8, 1951 Mechanics Building, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
22 Loss 20–1–1 Norman Hayes UD 10 Dec 11, 1950 Mechanics Building, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
21 Win 20–0–1 Harold Sampson TKO 3 (10) Nov 27, 1950 Mechanics Building, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
20 Win 19–0–1 Norman Horton KO 2 (10) Nov 13, 1950 Mechanics Building, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
19 Win 18–0–1 Ernie Durando UD 10 Oct 23, 1950 Arena, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
18 Win 17–0–1 Roy Wouters UD 10 Oct 9, 1950 Miners Forum, Glace Bay, Nova Scotia, Canada
17 Win 16–0–1 Bobby James UD 10 Sep 25, 1950 Arena, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
16 Win 15–0–1 Al Couture TKO 7 (10) Jun 22, 1950 Exposition Building, Portland, Maine, U.S.
15 Win 14–0–1 Charley Dodson UD 10 May 3, 1950 Exposition Building, Portland, Maine, U.S.
14 Win 13–0–1 Leon Brown TKO 5 (8) Mar 27, 1950 Rhode Island Auditorium, Providence, Rhode Island, U.S.
13 Win 12–0–1 Sonny Horne UD 10 Jan 23, 1950 Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
12 Draw 11–0–1 Bill Daley PTS 10 Dec 19, 1949 Mechanics Building, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
11 Win 11–0 Bill Daley UD 8 Oct 21, 1949 Mechanics Building, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
10 Win 10–0 Jose Contreras KO 2 (6) Oct 5, 1949 Mechanics Hall, Worcester, Massachusetts, U.S.
9 Win 9–0 Mike Gillo PTS 6 Sep 26, 1949 Arena, New Haven, Connecticut, U.S.
8 Win 8–0 Ted Brassley TKO 3 (6) Sep 12, 1949 Mechanics Building, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
7 Win 7–0 Eddie Richardson KO 1 (?) Jun 9, 1949 Candlelite Stadium, Bridgeport, Connecticut, U.S.
6 Win 6–0 Mike Saad UD 6 May 2, 1949 Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
5 Win 5–0 Johnny Rice KO 1 (6) Apr 11, 1949 Arena, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
4 Win 4–0 George Meyers KO 3 (6) Mar 28, 1949 Arena, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
3 Win 3–0 Frank Theodore KO 2 (4) Mar 3, 1949 Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
2 Win 2–0 Mickey Lane KO 2 (6) Feb 17, 1949 Mechanics Building, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
1 Win 1–0 Paul Williams KO 1 (4) Jan 28, 1949 Mechanics Building, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.

See also

References
  1. "The Lineal Middleweight Champions". The Cyber Boxing Zone Encyclopedia.
  2. "Paul Pender, 72; Middleweight Boxing Champion in the 1960s – latimes". Articles.latimes.com. January 14, 2003. Retrieved March 28, 2016.
  3. "Paul Pender – Boxer, 72". The New York Times. January 14, 2003. Retrieved March 28, 2016.
  4. "Terry Downes: Forgotten man of the fight game still packs a punch | Profiles | News". The Independent. May 14, 2011. Archived from the original on May 25, 2022. Retrieved March 28, 2016.
  5. Mulcahey, Marty. "ESPN.com – BOXING – Forgotten Champ: Paul Pender". A.espncdn.com. Retrieved March 28, 2016.
  6. Mike Lewis. "Obituary: Paul Pender | News". The Guardian. Retrieved March 28, 2016.
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