40-Plus and in the Ring
Bernard Hopkins and other boxers who fought past 40.
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Bernard Hopkins - At an age when many athletes retire, there are a few boxers over 40 still battling it out in the ring. Bernard Hopkins, 48, became the oldest boxer to win a major title Saturday night beating Tavoris Cloud, 31, for the IBF light heavyweight championship.Over Hopkins' 20-plus year career he’s won 53 fights (32 by knockout) and lost six. Hopkins is the first fighter to obtain all four world titles of each major boxing league sanctioning body: World Boxing Association (WBA), World Boxing Council (WBC), International Boxing Federation (IBF) and World Boxing Organization (WBO). Check out these veteran boxers still doing it and boxers of years past that have fought over 40.(Photo: AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
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Roy Jones Jr. - In 2011, at 42 years old, Roy Jones Jr., who has won titles in the middleweight, super middleweight, light heavyweight and heavyweight divisions, was knocked out by Russian Denis Lebedev in Moscow. In 2010 he lost in a unanimous decision against boxing veteran Bernard Hopkins.(Photo: Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
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Evander Holyfield - Evander "the Real Deal” Holyfield, 48, defeated Danish boxer Brian Nielsen in Denmark earlier this month. During his career, which started in 1984, he was the world undisputed dhampion in the cruiserweight and heavyweight divisions and became the only boxer to win the world heavyweight title four times. His career record stands at 44 wins (29 by knock out) and 10 losses.(Photo: Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images)
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Antonio Tarver - Antonio “Magic Man” Tarver, 42, is a former IBF, WBC, WBA and IBO light heavyweight champion with a record of 28 wins (19 by knockout) and six losses. He also earned a bronze medal in the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta and gold medals in the 1995 World Amateur Championships and Pan America Games. Tarver defeated defending champion Danny Green in the ninth round in 2011 for the IBO cruiserweight title. Prior to that he defeated Dominican fighter Nagy Aguilera in October.(Photo: John Gichigi/Getty Images)
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Oliver McCall - Oliver “the Atomic Bull” McCall is 46 and still fighting, his latest bout being a loss in a unanimous decision against Cedric Boswell in March. Out of his 55 wins, 37 are knockouts. A career highlight is his 1994 upset of British boxer Lennox Lewis for the WBC heavyweight championship in London.(Photo: Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)
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Larry Holmes - Larry Holmes, age 61, started off his professional career with a bang in 1973, winning his first 48 matches. He held the WBC heavyweight champion title from 1978 to 1983, the ring heavyweight title from 1980 to 1985 and the IBF heavyweight title from 1983 to 1985. His last fight, at age 51 back in 2002, was a win against American boxer Eric Esch. His career record stands at 69 wins (44 by knockout) and six losses.(Photo: Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images)
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“Sugar” Ray Leonard - “Sugar” Ray Leonard, 55, began his professional boxing career in 1977. He’s won the WBC welterweight title, WBA light middleweight title, WBC super middleweight title, WBO super middleweight title and the WBC super middleweight title during his time in the ring. His last match, in 1997 at age 40, was a loss to Puerto Rican fighter Hector Camacho. His career record stands at 36 wins (25 by knock out) and three losses.(Photo: Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)
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“Sugar” Ray Robinson - Referred to as the greatest of all time by fellow boxer Muhammad Ali, “Sugar” Ray Robinson, was 44 years old when he retired in 1965. He had a record of 173 wins (with 108 knockouts) and 19 losses. In his last fight against boxer Joey Archer in 1965 he was soundly defeated and lost via a unanimous decision. During his career, he held the world welterweight title (1946-1951) and world middleweight title (1951 and 1955 and 1958). He died in 1989.(Photo: PA Photos /Landov)
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George Foreman - Perhaps better known now for his famous Foreman Grill, 62-year-old George Forman began his professional career in 1969. In 1994 he shocked the world when at age 45 he knocked out 26-year-old boxer Michael Moorer to become the world’s oldest man to be heavyweight boxing champion. He fought his last fight, a loss to American boxer Shannon Briggs, in 1997, but announced in 2004 that he’d be making a comeback to the ring at age 55. However the fight, against an unnamed opponent, never materialized. He is a two-time world heavyweight boxing champion and won a gold medal during the 1968 Olympics as a heavyweight. His career record stands at 76 wins (with 68 knockouts) and five losses. (Photo: Scott Gries/Getty Images for MTV Networks)