Top 20 Boxers With the Most Wins in History (With KO Ratios)

The big records in boxing were mostly at the beginning of the 20th century. As with any boxing era, those decades had their specifics. This applies to fight records as well. For various reasons, not all fights are entered in the fighters’ records. Also, the statistics are sometimes full of missing fights.

Also, in those days, there was such a thing as a Newspaper decision. This is the newspapers’ opinion (decision) on the result of a close fight. There, the result of the fight judges left to the newspaper to decide. So we will not take into account the Newspaper’s decision here. The lives and careers of our heroes deserve attention; maybe one of these fighters will inspire you!

Marcel Cerdan: 110-4

• Full record: 110(65 KO) – 4; 58% KO
• Career: 1934–1949 (15 years)
• Alias: Le Bombardier Marocain
• Total number of fights: 114 (755 rounds)
• Member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame

Born in Algeria, North Africa, this French boxer is an iconic figure in the history of French sport. Of his four losses, two disqualifications, a highly questionable split decision defeat, exactly defines, and a loss due to a shoulder injury. He is considered the best boxer in French history.

Reaching his record of 45 wins, he gets his first loss due to disqualification. During World War II, Marcel won the inter-union boxing championship in 1944. His fighting record and legacy might have been even greater if not for a tragic death at age 33. It happened when an Air France flight, on the way to New York City, crashed in the Azores. Marcel was one of 48 people aboard who died.

Jimmy Wilde: 131-3-1

• Full record: 131(99ko) – 3(3ko) – 1; 75% KO
• Career: 1911-1923 (12 years)
• Alias: The Mighty Atom
• Total number of fights: 135 (1041 rounds)
• Member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame

The nickname “Mighty Atom” defines what Jimmy Wilde was exactly. At 97 pounds, he scared his opponents more than Sonny Liston and Mike Tyson did in their time. Before Jimmy had his first loss, he had a perfect record of 97 wins and one draw. He is a rare phenomenon for those years.

He managed to keep both his health and make good money without losing it. A real legend in his lifetime, in addition to his achievements in the boxing craft, he managed to write several books. Realizing that time, we can understand that not all of the fighters’ fights were sometimes documented.

According to unconfirmed information, Jimmy had over 800 fights in the ring, losing only 10 of them. How trustworthy is this information? We can only guess. In 1990, he was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame. He is also ranked as the third greatest puncher in the history of boxing by the magazine “The Ring”.

Dave Shade: 132-28-61

• Full record: 132(17ko) – 28(2ko) – 59; 12% KO
• Career: 1918-1935 (17 years)
• Alias: Dave Charles
• Total number of fights: 221 (1645 rounds)
• Member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame

Dave Schade comes from a boxing family that includes brothers Billy and George Schade. He started boxing at the age of 16 and later fought twice for the world welterweight title. During his career, Shade fought three future Hall of Fame members: Jack Britton(0-0-2), Mickey Walker(1-2), and Max Rosenblum(0-2).

Dave was very closely tied to the Mafia, so systematic fights with him ended up with dubious judging decisions. So, it was in 1925, when he faced Mickey Walker, it was a meeting of two dirty fighters, which made the fight more colorful.

At the end of all the rounds, no one doubted that Shade won the fight, but the judges gave the victory to Walker. The next day, the newspapers wrote about the rigged fight. It also said that businessman Arnold Rothstein had cashed in on a $60,000 bet on the judges’ decision. To this, Rothstein only corrected the media and said that he had bet $80,000!

Tony Canzoneri: 137-24-10

• Full record: 137(44ko) – 24(1ko) – 10; 32% KO
• Career: 1925-1939 (14 years)
• Alias: –
• Total number of fights: 171 (1351 rounds)
• Member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame

Young Tony Canzoneri’s life was turned upside down when his family left Slidell, Louisiana, for Staten Island, New York. This, as it turned out, the special boy found himself in a place where boxing was very popular. There, he realized his talent and great passion for fighting.

With a height of 5,47 ft, the young, ambitious boxer made his way to the boxing top and won five world titles. In 1931, he defeated Jackie ‘Kid’ Berg in the World Junior Welterweight Championship. He was, at that time, only the second boxer ever to win world titles in three different weight classes.

In 1934, ‘The Ring Magazine’ named Canzoneri the fighter of the year. He is considered by many boxing critics as one of the best boxers in history, and, of course, he was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

Joe Gans: 145-10-16

• Full record: 145(100ko) – 10(5ko) – 16; 68% KO
• Career: 1893-1909 (16 years)
• Alias: Old Master
• Total number of fights: 171 (1475 rounds)
• Member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame

Joseph Gant, also known as Joe Gans, was born November 25, 1874, in Baltimore, Maryland. Even though Gans boxed more than 100 years ago, he is still ranked as the best lightweight fighter in history, along with Roberto Duran. Joe Gans’ dominance in the lightweight division was from 1902 to 1908.

During this time, he did not lose a single championship fight, making a total of 14 defenses. In some ways, he was part of the boxing revolution when he became the first black world champion. At a historical milestone, this is a very significant moment, especially considering the racial discrimination of those years.

As an old-school fighter, he was a great puncher with a hardened personality, combining that with excellent physicality and skills. Certainly, he was far ahead of his time, demonstrating flawlessness in the boxing basics, for which he earned the nickname “The Old Master”.

He made practically no mistakes in the fight. He was extremely cold-blooded, very focused, and had hard punches, never wasting too much energy. He was a real talent for his time.

Sandy Saddler: 145-16-2

• Full record: 145(103ko) – 16(1ko) – 2; 71% KO
• Career: 1944-1956 (12 years)
• Alias: Joseph (Joey) Saddler
• Total number of fights: 163 (922 rounds)
• Member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame

One of the greatest masters of artistic knockout in boxing history is Joseph “Sandy” Sandler. Without exaggeration, he had a monster-punching power. Of his 145 victories, 103 were by knockout, and that is an incredible record. Saddler mainly boxed in the featherweight division and was a two-time champion there.

Along with that, he was also a super featherweight champion. Sandy was well-known as a dirty fighter. He was a hooligan in the ring, but beyond that, he had great boxing skills. Also, Sandler’s fame was due to the fact that he defeated the great Willie Pep.

He boxed with him four times, three of which he won. The powerful Sandy would have been on this list with many more victories if not for the car accident. Because of it, he was forced to give up his title in 1957. But this early retirement did not prevent him from being included in the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990.

He was also later ranked as the 2nd best welterweight of the 20th century. He is number 5 on Ring Magazine’s list of the 100 Greatest Punchers in Boxing History.

Henry Armstrong: 149-21-10

• Full record: 149(99ko) – 21(2ko) – 10; 66% KO
• Career: 1931-1945 (14 years)
• Alias: Homicide Hank
• Total number of fights: 181 (1156 rounds)
• Member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame

You can often hear the name Henry Jackson, Jr. in disputes about the best boxer in the sport’s history, and it makes sense, despite his 21 losses. This African-American/Irish/Indian fighter was born in Mississippi. Early in his professional career, he fought for $35 in St.

Louis, under the name Melody Jackson. In his first three fights, he lost. But that only motivated the future legend, and he began a bright, winning streak after that. He holds one of the most impressive records in the sport, starting his knockout streak of 26 wins in 1937.

By 1938, that number had already risen to 46, with seven of those being title victories. The same year, six years after his first fight, he knocked out Petey Sarron and became the world featherweight champion. He is the only boxer who has ever held three different titles in three different weight classes at the same time.

They are the featherweight, the lightweight, and the welterweight. He has faced 17 world champions in the ring, winning 15 of them. Over the years of his illustrious career, he had several nicknames changed, his most popular nickname being Homicide Hank. After his retirement, he became a minister and devoted his life to needy children.

Fritzie Zivic: 158-65-10

• Full record: 158(82ko) – 65(4ko) – 10; 51% KO
• Career: 1931-1949 (18 years)
• Alias: The Croat Comet
• Total number of fights: 233 (1807 rounds)
• Member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame

Zivic was born to an immigrant family; his father was Croatian, and his mother, Maria, was Slovenian. He is one of five brothers, four of whom boxed. They were nicknamed “The Fighting Zivics.” Although considered one of the dirtiest fighters in boxing history, Fritzi is also considered one of the best.

In the fight, he was tactical, assertive, and incredibly courageous. Living in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he turned pro in 1931. Making his featherweight debut at age 18, and by 1936 he was in the top 10 at welterweight. Fritzi was introduced to the larger public as a talented fighter by Henry Amstrong.

In the first of their three fights, he defeated Armstrong by decision. The second fight was over in Zivic’s favor as well, but this time by TKO in the 10 round. Henry took his rematch in the third fight and won by unanimous decision.

For most of his career, Zivick faced the best fighters on the planet, from 1941 to 1946, from lightweight to heavyweight. His opponents were Sugar Ray Robinson, Lou Jenkins, Jake Lamotta, Beau Jack, Bob Montgomery, Tommy Bell, Billy Arnold, and Freddie Archer.

Chalky Wright: 171-46-19

• Full record: 171(87ko) – 46(7ko) – 19; 50% KO
• Career: 1928-1948 (20 years)
• Alias: Chalky
• Total number of fights: 236 (1377 rounds)
• Member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame

His real name is Albert Wright. Chalky was an American featherweight boxer; he was born in Arizona and was the youngest of seven children in the family. Wright began his professional boxing career at the age of 16. At 5,61 feet tall, Wright was tall for his 125-pound weight.

In addition, he had long arms, which gave him a good advantage in the fight. His debut fight was on February 23, 1928, at which time he defeated Nilo Ballé by a judge’s decision. 1938 he faced the great Henry Armstrong in the ring but lost by knockout in the third round.

In 1941, he was one of the best featherweights in the world. Wright had a great career, and in 2003, he was ranked #95 on Ring magazine’s list of the 100 greatest punchers of all time. Unfortunately by the end of his career, he became different from his old self. Out of his last ten fights, he won only one, after which he finally decided to retire from the sport.

Sugar Ray Robinson: 174-19-6

• Full record: 174(109ko) – 19(1ko) – 6; 62% KO
• Career: 1940-1965 (25 years)
• Alias: Sugar Ray
• Total number of fights: 199 (1400 rounds)
• Member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame

“Sugar” Ray Robinson is widely recognized as the greatest boxer, regardless of weight class, in boxing history. Walker Smith, Jr. or Sugar Ray Robinson had an amateur record of 85 undefeated victories, 40 of them by first-round knockouts.

The youngest of three children, Robinson originally wanted to be a doctor, but as time would later show, Robinson was born to box. His professional career was as brilliant as his amateur one. He won his first 40 fights and then lost to Jake LaMotte in February 1942.

After that defeat, he would run a phenomenal streak of 91 wins. He faced LaMotte another five times to prove his status and won each fight. Robinson retired in 1952 with a record of 132-2-2, but unfortunately returned to boxing and added another 42 wins, 17 losses, and four draws to his record. He was a phenomenon in the sport and was unacceptably good for those years, being a fighter who was way beyond those times.

Alabama Kid: 206-60-23

• Full record: 206(117ko) – 60(20ko) – 23; 56% KO
• Career: 1928-1950 (22 years)
• Alias: Alabama Kid
• Total number of fights: 289 (1833)

Alabama Kid, oddly enough, is not from Alabama; moreover, he has not fought a single fight in this part of the world. That nickname is reportedly given to him by his promoter, Le Huffman. Clarence Reeves never liked his real name. He would spend most of his long and eventful career in Australia, boxing the best fighters this country had to offer him.

The biggest Kid’s fight was with one of the best middleweights and welterweights in the world, top Australian boxer Ron Richards. On December 22, 1938, a live audience of 14,000 people filled the stadium in Sydney and watched this fight. Alabama lost after 12 rounds by judges’ decision.

But later, on January 26, 1941, he still managed to get a rematch. This time, he had one of the best victories of his career, knocking out Richards in the eighth round. Other big wins in his career were over Jack McNamee, heavyweight Billy “Wokko” Britt, and even a knockout over Le McNabb. This guy weighed a whopping 277 pounds against Alabama’s average of 167 pounds.

Herbert Lewis Hardwick: 178-58-11

• Full record: 178(48ko) – 58(7ko) – 11; 26% KO
• Career: 1929-1948 (19 years)
• Alias: Cocoa Kid
• Total number of fights: 245 (2095)
• Member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame

Herbert Lewis Hardwick was born on May 2, 1914, in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico. Later, while he was still a child, his family moved to New Haven, Connecticut. Beginning to box, he got attention from future State Senator Harry Durant, who later founded his boxing expenses.

He took the alias Cacao Kid as a tribute to the great Cuban boxer, Hall of Fame member Kid Chocolate. After that, he got the attention of the boxing world. In 1933, experienced 18-year-old Herbert gets the big fight against former featherweight champion Luis Kaplan.

After ten rounds he wins by judges’ decision. In 1935, he defeated Frankie Britt and took the welterweight title. The following year, he meets Holman Williams in the first of their incredible 13 fights. From 1936 to 1945, the Kid defeated Williams eight times, lost thrice, and turned one fight into a draw.

He is a true veteran, with 245 professional fights. He defeated such fighters as Eddie Booker, Steve Mamakos, and Jack Chase and had a draw with Charley Burley. He also met Hall of Fame members Battling Battalino, Lou Ambers, and Archie Moore. In 1948, he retired after nearly twenty years in the ring, after which he was entered into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

Sam Langford: 178-29-38

• Full record: 178(126ko) – 29(8ko) – 38; 70% KO
• Career: 1902-1926 (24 years)
• Alias: The Boston Bonecrusher
• Total number of fights: 245 (1994 rounds)
• Member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame

Those who have never fought for the title rank Langford as the Greatest Fighter. He is also ranked as the second-greatest puncher in boxing history by The Ring magazine. So why hasn’t such a fighter fought for the title? Langford’s title fight problem was personal, not professional.

At the time, the king of the division was Jack Johnson. He was the first African-American to become a world heavyweight champion and refused to fight Langford. Johnson’s excuse was that a fight between two black boxers would not interest the viewers.

Racism in those days in the United States was huge. Thus, Langford continued to fight, destroying his opponents. The incredible thing about all this was that for his entire fighting career, he was completely blind in one eye and partially blind in the other.

Langford had to beat his disabilities with close-range fighting to see and feel his opponent better. The story of Sam Langford’s fight is a great example of fortitude and the ability to move forward when everything goes against you.

Freddie Miller: 184-29-5

• Full record: 184(45ko) – 29(2ko) – 5; 24% KO
• Career: 1927-1940 (13 years)
• Alias: –
• Total number of fights: 218(1890 rounds)
• Member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame

Freddie Miller is an American boxer from Cincinnati, Ohio. He is one of the best featherweight fighters in history. Freddie was listed by Ring Magazine as one of the “Top 80 fighters of the last 80 years,” ranking 62nd. He debuted in April 1927, and for the rest of the year, he had 29 fights, losing only five.

During the first three years of his career, he became one of the contenders for the title. After two wins over future world champion Tommy Paul, he got a title fight against Battling Battalino. Unfortunately, he could not win in this first fight. In the second attempt, he also could not win the title because the fight was no contest.

Finally, in 1933, Miller defeated Tommy Paul and won the NBA title. He could defend his title 12 times.

Archie Moore: 185-23-10

• Full record: 185(132ko) – 23(7ko) – 10; 71% KO
• Career: 1935-1963 (28 years)
• Alias: Old Mongoose
• Total number of fights: 218 (1473)
• Member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame

Archie Moore, also known as “The Old Mongoose,” was the model of professionalism and boxing mastery. Even at the age of 47, he was defending the light heavyweight title. At the age of 40+, he had 41 more fights, of which he lost only three.

Regarding his career, he holds the record in boxing history as the fighter with the most knockout victories (131 KOs). He did not fight for titles until the age of 39, when he defeated Joey Maxim. At age 45, Moore fought 20-year-old Mohammed Ali in 1962 and was knocked out in four rounds.

This will be the penultimate fight of the great fighter’s career. He is the only fighter in history that has fought both Rocky Marciano and Muhammad Ali. Moore was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame and inspired the Rocky Balboa movie in 2006. On the list of the greatest punchers in boxing history, ‘The Old Mongoose’ took his rightful fourth place. Great Fighter with a Great Legacy. Learn more about Archie Moore’s boxing style.

Ted Kid Lewis: 191-32-14

• Full record: 191(77ko) – 32(6ko) – 14; 40% KO
• Career: 1909-1929 (20 years)
• Alias: The Aldgate Sphinx
• Total number of fights: 237 (2020 rounds)
• Member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame

Physically gifted, a young boy named Gershon Mendeloff grew up in a rented apartment in the East End of London. This kid, at the age of 14, joined the members of the London Judean Athletic Club. He boxed under the nickname Kid Lewis, earning sixpence and a cup of tea per fight.

With his unique style and perfected left hook, Lewis became a professional boxer a year after he began boxing. Four years later, in 1913, he won the British featherweight title and a year later won the European Championship in the same division.

After that, he began to travel the world in search of bigger fights. In the end, he wins the world welterweight championship against Jack Britton, at the famous Madison Square Garden Arena, New York. Lewis and Britton later met face each other 18 more times, of which Lewis had seven wins and two draws. In 1992, Lewis was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

Maxie Rosenbloom: 207-39-26

• Full record: 207(19ko) – 39(2ko) – 26; 9% KO
• Career: 1923-1939 (16 years)
• Alias: Slapsie Maxie
• Total number of fights: 272 (2523 rounds)
• Member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame

Max did not have good knockout power and focused mostly on defense. His punches were more like slaps, for which he earned the nickname “Slapsie”. Max was born into a family of Jewish immigrants from Russia. He differed from the youngest years by his violent temper and aggressive behavior.

Like many boxers of that time, he had to combine fights with work. Along with the fights, he worked as a bodyguard, elevator operator, and even a railroad worker. Living under such a work schedule, Max had almost no time to train, but he still had success in boxing.

In 1932, he successfully defended his title against Lou Scozza and became the undisputed champion. Then, in 1933, he fought against a German boxer, Adolf Heuser, in a famous fight, beating him after 15 rounds.

During his career, he fought great fighters like Dave Slade, Henry Lewis, and heavyweight Young Stribling and defeated Hall of Fame members Jack McWeeney, Ted Lewis, and many others. After his boxing career ended, Max played in movies and managed to act in more than a hundred films. After that, he opened his restaurant in Hollywood under the name “Slapsie Maxie’s”.

Young Stribling: 224-13-14

• Full record: 224(129ko) – 13(1ko) – 14; 57% KO
• Career: 1921-1933 (12 years)
• Alias: King of the Canebrakes
• Total number of fights: 251 (1669 rounds)
• Member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame

Even though Young was a great boxer, his destiny was that he never became a world champion. But that didn’t stop him from being included in the International Boxing Hall of Fame. He is considered one of the best fighters ever, who never won a world title.

One of the reasons that he was not a champion, was the motorcycle accident that took his life at age 28. Imagine how crazy the fighter’s record would have been if not for that accident. Young was used to physical exercises since childhood, as his parents were circus acrobats.

The role of a boxing coach in the Stribling family was taken by his mother. His father took the management role, and later, he became his promoter and manager. He combined his boxing lessons with playing American football and playing on the high school basketball team.

After he turned 16, he successfully debuted in professional boxing. There he immediately attracted the attention of local promoters who offered him a contract for four fights, for each of them he got 10$. In many of his fights, Young had a fairly strong advantage in speed, power, and reflexes, thanks to his training with his parents.

An amazing fact of Stribling’s life is that after starting his career as a featherweight, he went all the way to the heavyweight division.

Willie Pep: 229-11-1

• Full record: 229(65ko) – 11(6ko) – 1; 28% KO
• Career: 1940-1966 (26 years)
• Alias: Will o’ the Wisp
• Total number of fights: 241 (1956 rounds)
• Member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame

His birth name is Gugliermo Papaleo. He is a 5,47 ft Italian-American boxer from Middleton, Connecticut. He had a total of 241 boxing bouts during his career, a total of 1956 rounds. He is regarded as potentially the best featherweight in boxing history and is known for his speed and defensive skills.

He faced Sugar Ray Robinson in an amateur fight. The fight took place in a store basement in Norwich. In this fight, Pep was defeated by a judge’s decision. He had no idea who Robinson was since Robinson boxed under an alias.

That’s comparable to seeing young Mayweather and Pacquiao fight outside a diner somewhere in our days. Another incredible fact about Willie Pep, he survived a plane crash in 1947 in which the pilot and two passengers died. He recovered from serious injuries in the crash and continued to box successfully afterward.

He retired at the age of 43, leaving behind a glorious winning career and a name that has been forever attached to boxing history.

Len Wickwar: 342-86-43

• Full record: 342(94ko) – 86(37ko) – 43; 27% KO
• Career: 1928-1947 (19 years)
• Alias: –
• Total number of fights: 471 (4014 rounds)

Len Wickwar is a British boxer who turned into a professional at the age of 18. He began his career boxing in small clubs, doing up to three fights in one night. Without any regret for his health and energy, he quickly enough makes his way to the top of boxing.

As a consequence, one of his biggest fights was at Welford Road Stadium in the late 1930s, where he lost to British lightweight Eric Boon. But his boxing career was stopped for six years (1940-1946) during World War II. He did return to boxing after the war but only had four fights before retiring in 1947.

He fought a total of 471 professional fights, including 342 wins, the highest total in boxing history. The 342 victories represent 73% of the total number of fights, while the number of defeats was only 19%, a glorious coefficient for so many fights, which is admirable. He also owns the Guinness record for the most professional boxing bouts.

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