Lester Ellis (born 15 March 1965) is a British-born Australian former

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 ...

. He is a five-time world champion, having also held the Australian and

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with " republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from th ...

(twice) titles. At the age of 19, In 1985, Ellis fought and beat then-reigning

IBF The International Boxing Federation (IBF) is one of four major organizations recognized by the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) which sanctions professional boxing bouts, alongside the World Boxing Association (WBA), World Boxing Counci ...

super featherweight Super featherweight, also known as junior lightweight, is a weight division in professional boxing, contested between and . The super featherweight division was established by the New York Walker Law in 1920, although first founded by the Ne ...

champion

Hwan-Kil Yuh Yuh Hwan-kil (; September 23, 1962 – April 21, 2009) was a South Korean former professional boxer who has held the inaugural IBF junior-lightweight title between April 1984 to February 1985. Professional career On December 6, 1981, he won ...

over fifteen rounds. In 1993 he won the vacant World Boxing Federation (WBF)

welterweight Welterweight is a weight class in combat sports. Originally the term "welterweight" was used only in boxing, but other combat sports like Muay Thai, taekwondo, and mixed martial arts also use it for their own weight division system to classify the ...

title agains
Rocky Berg
Ellis faced and defeate
Al Coquilla
in 1994 for the vacant IBO

light welterweight Light welterweight, also known as junior welterweight or super lightweight, is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional boxing In professional boxing, light welterweight is contested between the lightweight and welterweight divisio ...

title. Ellis went on to win another two IBO world titles, both in different weight divisions. One in 1995 agains
Amado Cabato
at

lightweight Lightweight is a weight class in combat sports and rowing. Boxing Professional boxing The lightweight division is over 130 pounds (59 kilograms) and up to 135 pounds (61.2 kilograms) weight class in the sport of boxing. Notable lightweight b ...

and another at

light middleweight Light middleweight, also known as junior middleweight or super welterweight,PeBoxRec/ref> is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing The light middleweight division (also known as junior middleweight in the IBF or super welterweight in the WBA ...

agains
Eric Alexander

Early life

Lester Ellis was born on 15 March 1965 in

Blackpool, England Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, between the Ribble and Wyre rivers, and is ...

to mother Sheila Ellis and his father Keith Ellis Snr. He is the youngest of three boys, with Keith Ellis being the oldest followed by Neil Ellis. The Ellis family migrated to Australia when Ellis was three on 2 October 1968. At the age of five, Ellis's mother Sheila left the family home, leaving the three boys to live with Keith Snr. Ellis took this very hard and as a result he grew a hate towards authority figures and often did not attend school. At the age of 12, Ellis began boxing training with Matthew Quinn at the Glengala Boxing Club in the

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a me ...

suburb of

West Sunshine Sunshine West is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, west of Melbourne's central business district, located within the City of Brimbank local government area. Sunshine West recorded a population of 18,552 at the . Sunshine West is a ...

. Quinn had seen great potential in young, hateful Ellis and taught him how to harness his hate through the art of boxing.

Amateur boxing career

Under amateur boxing trainer Matthew Quinn and his brother Keith, Ellis had an outstanding amateur career with a total record of 50 fights for 45 wins. Ellis had collected four Australian titles and six Victorian titles throughout this period. Ellis turned professional in 1983

Professional career

Super featherweight IBF champion

In 1985, with a professional boxing record of 14 fights for 14 wins, 11 by KO at the age of 19, Ellis was offered to fight

for the Super Featherweight International Boxing Federation (IBF) World Title. Ellis won this fight which went for the scheduled 15 rounds via split decision. Ellis successfully defended his title the same year agains
Rod Sequenan.
ref name="Lester Ellis"/> Later that year on 12 July 1985 Ellis lost his IBF world championship via unanimous decision to ex training partner and then rival

Barry Michael Barry Michael (born 2 June 1955) is an Australian former boxer. He was in his prime during the 1980s and is best remembered for his 1985 fight against Lester Ellis, which received nationwide television coverage in Australia. Early life Micha ...

Professional boxing record

Boxing titles

Titles won by Ellis

1984-11-16 – Commonwealth (British Empire) Super Featherweight Title, opponent

John Sichula John "Big Joe" Sichula (4 February 1955 — 1 October 1994 (aged 39)), was a Zambian amateur featherweight and professional super feather/ light/light welterweight boxer of the 1970s and '80s who as an amateur qualified for (but withdrew from) ...

1985-02-15 – IBF Super Featherweight Title, opponent

1987-04-30 – Australian Lightweight Title, opponen
Dale Artango
ref name="Boxrec"/> 1988-03-16 – Australian light welterweight Title, opponen
Pat Leglise
ref name="Boxrec"/> 1988-08-04 – Commonwealth (British Empire) Light Welterweight Title, opponen
Tony Laing
ref name="Boxrec"/> 1993-02-19 – vacant World Boxing Federation Welterweight Title, opponen
Rocky Berg
ref name="Boxrec"/> 1994-12-03 – vacant International Boxing Organization Light Welterweight Title, opponen
Al Coquilla
ref name="Boxrec"/> 1995-03-10 – International Boxing Organization Lightweight Title, opponen
Amado Cabato
ref name="Boxrec"/> 1995-07-17 – vacant International Boxing Organization Light Middleweight Title, opponen
Eric Alexander
ref name="Boxrec"/>

Personal life

Ellis is married to wife Sharon, with whom he has four sons – Lester Jr, Jake (who is a professional boxer and promoter), Darcy and Demsey. They live in the suburb of Taylors Hill, in Melbourne, Victoria. Ellis currently runs the Lester Ellis Fitness Academy from his home. Ellis's son ''

Lester Ellis Jr Lester is an ancient Anglo-Saxon surname and given name. Notable people and characters with the name include: People Given name * Lester Bangs (1948–1982), American music critic * Lester W. Bentley (1908–1972), American artist from Wisco ...

'' has begun an acting career, recently starring as the title character's love interest in Ja'mie Private School Girl.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ellis, Lester 1965 births Living people People from Blackpool English emigrants to Australia Welterweight boxers Lightweight boxers International Boxing Federation champions International Boxing Organization champions Boxers from Melbourne Australian male boxers Commonwealth Boxing Council champions