Thaddeus Spencer Jr. (March 28, 1943 – December 13, 2013) was an American

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 ...

boxer Boxer most commonly refers to: *Boxer (boxing), a competitor in the sport of boxing * Boxer (dog), a breed of dog Boxer or boxers may also refer to: Animal kingdom * Boxer crab * Boxer shrimp, a small group of decapod crustaceans * Boxer snipe ee ...

. A native of

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

, Spencer made his professional boxing debut in May 1960. After building up a 31–5 record, Spencer was considered one of the top boxers of his time. With wins over contenders Doug Jones,

Brian London Brian Sidney Harper (19 June 1934 – 23 June 2021), better known by the ring name Brian London, was an English professional boxer who competed from 1955 to 1970. He held the British and Commonwealth heavyweight title from 1958 to 1959, and twi ...

, George Johnson, Tom McNeeley and Amos Lincoln, he was regarded highly enough to be a part of the eight-man WBA elimination tournament, held after

Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and social activist. A global cultural icon, widely known by the nickname "The Greatest", he is often regarded as the gr ...

had been stripped of the title. Spencer won a 12-round decision over former title-holder

Ernie Terrell Ernest Terrell (April 4, 1939 – December 16, 2014) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1957 to 1973. He held the World Boxing Association's heavyweight title from 1965 to 1967, and was one of the tallest heavyweights of his era ...

in August 1967 and was then matched against

Jerry Quarry Jerry Quarry (May 15, 1945 – January 3, 1999), nicknamed "Irish" or "The Bellflower Bomber", was an American professional boxer. During the peak of his career from 1968 to 1971, Quarry was a popular figure in boxing, featured on the cover ' ...

in the semi-finals. Despite entering the bout as a 6–4 favorite, Spencer lost to Quarry by a 12th-round TKO. Spencer lost his next three fights by knockout, to Leotis Martin, Billy Walker and

Mac Foster MacArthur "Mac" Foster (June 27, 1942 – July 19, 2010) was a 20th-century American heavyweight professional boxer. He competed from 1966 to 1976, winning 30 of his 36 professional bouts, with all his victories achieved by knockout. He stopped ...

, and was never a serious title contender again. He continued boxing until 1971, though without winning another bout. Spencer died in his sleep on December 13, 2013, in

Vallejo, California Vallejo ( ; ) is a city in Solano County, California, United States, and the second largest city in the North Bay (San Francisco Bay Area), North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, Bay Area. Located on the shores of San Pablo Bay, the ci ...

. Spencer's son, Todd Spencer, was a football star for

U.S.C. The United States Code (formally The Code of Laws of the United States of America) is the official codification of the general and permanent federal statutes of the United States. It contains 53 titles, which are organized into numbered se ...

, and played three seasons in the NFL for the Steelers and the Chargers.

Professional boxing record

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Spencer, Thad 1943 births 2013 deaths Boxers from Portland, Oregon Heavyweight boxers American male boxers 20th-century American sportsmen