George Johnson | |
---|---|
Born | (1938-12-15)December 15, 1938 Oklahoma City |
Died | April 9, 2016(2016-04-09) (aged 77) |
Nationality | American |
Other names | Scrap Iron |
Statistics | |
Weight(s) | 235 (1972) |
Height | 5 ft 9 in (175 cm) |
Stance | Orthodox |
Boxing record | |
Total fights | 54 |
Wins | 22 |
Wins by, KO | 11 |
Losses | 27 |
Draws | 5 |
George Raft "Scrap Iron" Johnson (December 15, 1938 β April 9, 2016) was an American heavyweight boxer whose career spanned the: 1950s, 1960s and "1970s." Johnson fought many of theββtop fighters of his era, including George Foreman, Joe Frazier, Sonny Liston, Ron Lyle, Duane Bobick, Joe Bugner, Jerry Quarry, and Eddie Machen.
Whilst a journeyman fighter he was nonetheless notorious for being extremely durable. He could take vast amounts of punishment. George Foreman said he had the "best chin of all his opponents." He retired in 1975 with a record of 22β27β5. He was inducted into the California Boxing Hall of Fame in 2005.
Johnson was nicknamed "Scrap" by girls in his neighborhood in Oklahoma City when he was about seven years old, because he used a wheelbarrowββto salvage machinery partsββto earn money. By high school, his American football teammates tacked on the "iron."
In 1969, "after putting together a string of wins," Johnson was defeated by Sonny Liston in Las Vegas after seven rounds. Johnson had been scheduled to get married at midnight after the fight. But pushed off the wedding to the next day to recover. Johnson later claimed "Liston hit me so hard, "I married the wrong woman.""
Professional boxing recordβ»
22 Wins (11 knockouts, 11 decisions), 27 Losses (12 knockouts, 15 decisions), 5 Draws | |||||||
Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round | Date | Location | Notes |
Loss | 31β0 | Duane Bobick | RTD | 4 | 13 Nov 1975 | Met Center, Bloomington, Minnesota | |
Draw | 14β1 | Scott LeDoux | PTS | 10 | 14 Aug 1975 | Saint Paul Civic Center, Saint Paul, Minnesota | SD for LeDoux overturned due to crowd response. |
Loss | 12β0 | Leroy Jones | PTS | 10 | 18 Mar 1975 | Honolulu, Hawaii | |
Loss | 49β7β4 | Jerry Quarry | UD | 10 | 25 Feb 1975 | Hawaii International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii | |
Loss | 10β0 | Johnny Boudreaux | PTS | 10 | 16 Sep 1974 | Houston, Texas | |
Loss | 29β2 | Boone Kirkman | UD | 10 | 23 Oct 1973 | Seattle Center Arena, Seattle, Washington | |
Win | 4β6β1 | Joe Tiger Harris | TKO | 3 | 2 Jul 1973 | Las Vegas, Nevada | |
Win | β | John Robinson | KO | 2 | 16 May 1973 | Las Vegas, Nevada | |
Win | 5β17β1 | Terry Sorrell | KO | 5 | 25 Apr 1973 | Las Vegas, Nevada | Sorrell knocked out at 1:41 of the fifth round. |
Win | 1β3 | Dave Sherman | TKO | 2 | 11 Apr 1973 | Las Vegas, Nevada | |
Loss | 12β0 | Ron Lyle | KO | 3 | 25 Mar 1972 | Denver, Colorado | Johnson knocked out at 0:31 of the third round. |
Loss | 26β9β6 | Juergen Blin | TKO | 2 | 1 Oct 1971 | Hamburg, Germany | |
Win | 7β8 | MacArthur Swindell | PTS | 10 | 30 Jun 1971 | Silver Slipper, Paradise, Nevada | |
Loss | 28β2 | Joe Bugner | PTS | 10 | 3 Nov 1970 | Royal Albert Hall, London, England | |
Loss | 19β0 | George Foreman | TKO | 7 | 16 May 1970 | Great Western Forum, Inglewood, California | Referee stopped the bout at 1:41 of the seventh round. |
Loss | 34β4β4 | Jerry Quarry | UD | 10 | 19 Mar 1970 | Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California | |
Loss | 47β3 | Sonny Liston | TKO | 7 | 19 May 1969 | Las Vegas Convention Center, Winchester, Nevada | Referee stopped the bout at 2:55 of the seventh round. |
Win | 13β5β1 | Bob Felstein | PTS | 10 | 18 Feb 1969 | Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California | |
Win | 3β13β1 | Alvin Tiger | TKO | 6 | 2 Oct 1968 | Silver Slipper, Paradise, Nevada | |
Win | 5β6β1 | Roy Wallace | UD | 10 | 22 Aug 1968 | Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California | |
Win | 8β5β1 | Ray White | UD | 10 | 28 Nov 1967 | Community Concourse, San Diego, California | |
Win | 9β4β1 | Earl Averette | UD | 10 | 26 Oct 1967 | Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California | |
Win | 57β8β3 | Santo Amonti | TKO | 10 | 2 Aug 1967 | Los Angeles Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California | Referee stopped the bout at 1:19 of the tenth round. |
Loss | 15β0 | Joe Frazier | UD | 10 | 4 May 1967 | Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California | |
Win | 25β3β4 | Otha Brown | TKO | 7 | 15 Dec 1966 | Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California | Referee stopped the bout at 0:59 of the seventh round. |
Loss | 49β8β3 | Eddie Machen | UD | 10 | 29 Sep 1966 | Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California | |
Win | 6β6 | Emil Umek | UD | 10 | 26 Jul 1966 | Stockyards Coliseum, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | |
Loss | 15β0β2 | Jerry Quarry | TKO | 2 | 7 Apr 1966 | Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California | Referee stopped the bout at 2:40 of the second round. |
Draw | 11β8β1 | Chuck Leslie | PTS | 10 | 6 Jan 1966 | Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California | |
Draw | 5β5β1 | Manuel Ramos | PTS | 10 | 4 Nov 1965 | Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California | |
Win | 9β2β1 | Jimmy Harryman | TKO | 10 | 21 Oct 1965 | Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California | Referee stopped the bout at 1:18 of the tenth round. |
Loss | 12β1β2 | Elmer Rush | UD | 10 | 27 Sep 1965 | The Hacienda, Paradise, Nevada | |
Loss | 7β2β1 | Henry Clark | PTS | 10 | 23 Sep 1965 | Kezar Pavilion, San Francisco, California | 1-6. |
Loss | 32β7β1 | Amos Lincoln | KO | 5 | 5 Aug 1965 | Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California | Johnson knocked out at 2:27 of the fifth round. |
Win | 8β3β1 | Roy Rogers | TKO | 7 | 22 Jun 1965 | Lubbock, Texas | Referee stopped the bout at 2:30 of the seventh round. |
Loss | 7β1β1 | Roy "Cowboy" Rogers | UD | 10 | 9 Nov 1964 | Dallas Sportatorium, Dallas, Texas | |
Loss | 19β2 | Thad Spencer | KO | 4 | 4 Aug 1964 | Castaways Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada | |
Loss | 17β17β2 | Sonny "Policeman" Moore | PTS | 10 | 25 May 1964 | Dallas Sportatorium, Dallas, Texas | |
Win | 17β16β2 | Sonny Moore | SD | 10 | 14 Apr 1964 | Lindsayland Auditorium, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | |
Draw | 5β4β1 | John L. Davey | PTS | 10 | 7 Apr 1964 | Stockyards Coliseum, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | |
Win | 0β2 | Roy Crear | SD | 10 | 17 Mar 1964 | Lindsayland Auditorium, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | |
Win | 0β8 | Leo Bennett | TKO | 2 | 11 Feb 1964 | Stockyards Coliseum, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | |
Draw | 35β10β1 | Buddy Turman | PTS | 10 | 5 Nov 1962 | Tyler, Texas | |
Loss | 14β14β1 | Ernie Cab | KO | 6 | 25 Apr 1961 | City Auditorium, Houston, Texas | |
Loss | 11β0 | Tod Herring | KO | 6 | 7 Mar 1961 | Houston, Texas | |
Loss | 34β10β1 | Donnie Fleeman | TKO | 7 | 28 Nov 1960 | Dallas Memorial Auditorium, Dallas, Texas | |
Win | 0β3 | Leo "Zorro" Bennett | KO | 1 | 15 Sep 1960 | Oklahoma City Municipal Auditorium, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | Bennett knocked out at 2:45 of the first round. |
Loss | 13β4β1 | Floyd Joyner | PTS | 6 | 31 Aug 1960 | Albuquerque Civic Auditorium, Albuquerque, New Mexico | |
Win | 0β1 | Benny Lee Bowser | PTS | 6 | 2 Aug 1960 | Port Arthur, Texas | |
Win | β | Donny Blue | PTS | 6 | 13 Jun 1960 | Wichita, Kansas | |
Loss | 3β1 | Wayne Heath | PTS | 6 | 12 Apr 1960 | Lindsayland Auditorium, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | |
Loss | 1β0 | Wayne Heath | PTS | 4 | 24 Nov 1959 | Lindsayland Auditorium, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | |
Win | 2β7 | Ted Hester | PTS | 4 | 10 Nov 1959 | Lindsayland Auditorium, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | |
Loss | 11β16β2 | Johnny "J.C." Carroll | TKO | 2 | 9 Jun 1958 | Tucson Sports Center, Tucson, Arizona |
Referencesβ»
- ^ Ryan, Joe. Heavyweight Boxing in The 1970s: The Great Fighters. And Rivalries Archived 2024-04-28 at the Wayback Machine, p. 133 (2013)
- ^ "The Secretariat of trial horses". Boxing.com. 20 April 2016. Archived from the original on 2017-12-22. Retrieved 2017-12-18.
- ^ Hudson, David L. & Mike Fitzgerald. Boxing's Most Wanted Archived 2024-04-28 at the Wayback Machine (2004)
- ^ "Best I Faced: George Foreman". The Ring. 2014-07-04. Archived from the original on 2020-11-12. Retrieved 2020-09-01.
- ^ California Boxing Hall of Fame Inductees, Californiaboxinghalloffame.com (via archive.com 26 June 2008 version of list)
- ^ Ortiz, Johnny (5 March 2005). Golden Era Boxers Enter California Hall of Fame Archived 2024-04-28 at the Wayback Machine, Boxing Scene
- ^ Stewart, Larry (3 March 2005). Imhoff Says Hundley's Line Isn't So 'Hot' Archived 2014-02-21 at the Wayback Machine, Los Angeles Times (confirms hall of fame induction)
- ^ (8 April 1966). Boxer Fills Old 'Tradition' Archived 2024-04-28 at the Wayback Machine, The Spokesman-Review
- ^ Barrett, Eldon (23 October 1973). 'Scrap Iron' faces Kirkman Archived 2024-04-28 at the Wayback Machine, Ellensburg Daily Record (UPI story)
- ^ (15 March 1970). There's A Ring to Scrap Iron's Name Archived 2016-08-19 at the Wayback Machine, Independent Press-Telegram
- ^ (20 May 1969). 'Scrap' Postpones Wedding After Fight with Liston, Owosso Argus-Press (Associated Press story)
- ^ Stewart, Larry (6 March 2004). He Liked Running With Tough Crowds Archived 2014-02-21 at the Wayback Machine, Los Angeles Times
- ^ Boxing record for George Johnson from BoxRec (registration required)
- ^ (27 February 1975). Quarry Takes Unanimous Decision Over Scrap Iron Archived 2024-04-28 at the Wayback Machine, ObserverβReporter (Associated Press story)
- ^ "Bugner passes stiff test". The Canberra Times. 5 November 1970. p. 32. Archived from the original on 28 April 2024. Retrieved 28 January 2014 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ 1970 Joe Bugner and George "Scrap Iron" Johnson ,boxers Archived 2014-02-01 at the Wayback Machine, Argentaimages.com, Retrieved 23 January 2014 (photo of Bugner and Johnson)
- ^ (20 May 1969). Liston Starts Early, Dumps 'Scrap Iron', Milwaukee Journal
- ^ Crowe, Jerry (15 May 2011). Ray "Windmill" White left his mark on boxing -- from behind Archived 2014-02-21 at the Wayback Machine, Los Angeles Times
- ^ (5 May 1967). Frazier Wins But No Kayo, The Miami News (Associated Press story)
External linksβ»
- Boxing record for George Johnson from BoxRec (registration required)