Don Fullmer (February 21, 1939 – January 28, 2012) was an American professional boxer and a brother of the former world middleweight champion

Gene Fullmer Lawrence Gene Fullmer (July 21, 1931 – April 27, 2015) was an American professional boxer and World Middleweight champion. He was known as The Utah Cyclone, The Mormon Mauler, and as "Cyclone" Gene Fullmer. Professional career Fullmer began h ...

. Eight years younger than his more famous brother, Don followed Gene into the gym in West Jordan, Utah, to learn how to box. He fought as an amateur for four years and did not lose in sixty-five fights. Another brother, Jay, was also active in boxing.

Boxing career

Don turned professional in 1957 as a

middleweight Middleweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the middleweight division is contested above and up to . Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have beg ...

and beat some top contenders during his early career, such as Rocky Fumerelle, Rocky Rivero, and Joe DeNucci. However, he also lost to some good fighters, such as former champions

Terry Downes Terry Downes, BEM (9 May 1936 – 6 October 2017) was a British middleweight boxer, occasional film actor, and businessman. He was nicknamed the "Paddington Express" for his aggressive fighting style. At the time of his death, Downes was Brit ...

Dick Tiger Richard Ihetu (August 14, 1929 – December 14, 1971), professionally known as Dick Tiger was a Nigerian professional boxer who held the undisputed middleweight and light-heavyweight championships. Tiger emigrated to Liverpool, England ...

, José Torres and

Emile Griffith Emile Alphonse Griffith (February 3, 1938 – July 23, 2013) was an American professional boxer who won world titles in three weight divisions. He held the world light middleweight, undisputed welterweight, and middleweight titles. His best-kno ...

, as well as Joey Archer. In 1964 he beat Jimmy Ellis, who later went on to win the

World Boxing Association The World Boxing Association (WBA), formerly known as the National Boxing Association (NBA), is an international professional boxing organization based in Panama. The WBA awards its world championship title at the professional level. Founded ...

version of the

heavyweight Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Male boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 2 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation an ...

championship. The win against Ellis began a winning streak for Fullmer and he went on to defeat Griffith and Archer in rematches. This streak ended when he lost to

Nino Benvenuti Giovanni "Nino" Benvenuti (26 April 1938 – 20 May 2025) was an Italian professional boxer and actor. He held world titles in two weight classes, having held the undisputed super-welterweight championship from June 1965 to June 1966 and the ...

in Rome in 1966. Benvenuti went on to win the middleweight title, and after Fullmer beat Carl "Bobo" Olson he fought a rematch with Benvenuti for the title in 1968. He knocked the Italian down but lost a fifteen-round unanimous decision. While never a recognized world champion, Fullmer did win a bout billed as for the "World Junior Light Heavyweight Championship" when he defeated Joe Hopkins in 1967. This title was the precursor to the current

super middleweight Super middleweight, or light cruiserweight, is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing In professional boxing, super middleweight is contested between the middleweight and light heavyweight divisions, in which boxers can weigh between 160 pounds ( ...

championship. Few in the boxing world recognized the legitimacy of that title. Fullmer retired from the ring in 1972. After his retirement, he worked for the

Salt Lake County Salt Lake County is located in the U.S. state of Utah. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 1,185,238, making it the most populous county in Utah. Its county seat and largest city is Salt Lake City, the state capital. The co ...

Fire Department. Along with his brothers, and he ran the Fullmer Brothers boxing gym in West Jordan. The gym provided for kids to work out for free.

Death

Don Fullmer died of

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia; pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and produce high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or '' ...

on January 28, 2012, aged 72. He was survived by his wife, Nedra and his five sons.

Filmography

*'' The Devil's Brigade'' (1968) - The G.I.

Professional boxing record

References

External links

*
Fullmer Brothers Boxing website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fullmer, Don 1939 births 2012 deaths Middleweight boxers Boxers from Utah Sportspeople from West Jordan, Utah Deaths from leukemia in the United States Deaths from cancer in Utah American male boxers 20th-century American sportsmen