James Bennett Williamson (born December 18, 1956, in
Indianapolis,
Indiana
Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th ...
) is a retired American
professional boxer
Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional bouts are supervised by a regulatory autho ...
who held the
WBC light heavyweight title in 1985.
Professional career
Williamson turned pro in 1979 after a successful amateur career and won the Vacant WBC Light Heavyweight Title in 1985 in a decision over Prince Mama Mohammed. He lost the title in his first defense against
Dennis Andries
Dennis Andries MBE (born 5 November 1953) is a British former professional boxer who fought at light heavyweight.
Professional career
Andries turned pro in 1978 and won the WBC Light Heavyweight Title in 1986 in a decision over American JB ...
. Although he never challenged again for another major title, he moved up to heavyweight and became a journeyman fighter, fighting until 1995, losing matches against notable heavyweights
Henry Akinwande
Henry Adetokunboh Akinwande (born 12 October 1965) is a British former professional boxer who competed from 1989 to 2008. He held the WBO heavyweight title from 1996 to 1997, as well as the Commonwealth heavyweight title in 1993, and the Eur ...
,
Peter McNeeley
Peter McNeeley (born October 6, 1968) is an American former heavyweight boxer, best known for his 1995 fight with Mike Tyson, before which McNeeley had said he would wrap Tyson in a "cocoon of horror." McNeeley fought aggressively but was kn ...
,
Jimmy Thunder
Ti'a James Senio Peau (3 February 1966 – 13 February 2020), known professionally as Jimmy Thunder, was a Samoan-born New Zealand professional boxer who held the IBO heavyweight title from 1994 to 1995. He held multiple regional heavyweight ti ...
, and
George Foreman
George Edward Foreman (born January 10, 1949) is an American former professional boxer, entrepreneur, minister and author. In boxing, he was nicknamed "Big George" and competed between 1967 and 1997. He is a two-time world heavyweight champ ...
.
Professional boxing record
See also
*
List of world light-heavyweight boxing champions
This is a chronological list of world light heavyweight boxing champions, as recognized by four of the better-known sanctioning organizations:
Championship recognition
1903–1910
The light-heavyweight division was created in 1903, the brainc ...
References
External links
*
!colspan=3 style="background:#C1D8FF;", Regional boxing titles
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williamson, J. B.
1956 births
Living people
Middleweight boxers
Light-heavyweight boxers
Heavyweight boxers
World light-heavyweight boxing champions
World Boxing Council champions
Winners of the United States Championship for amateur boxers
Sportspeople from Indianapolis
Boxers from Indiana
American male boxers
African-American boxers
United States Marines
21st-century African-American people
20th-century African-American sportspeople