MacArthur "Mac" Foster (June 27, 1942 – July 19, 2010) was a 20th-century American

heavyweight Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 3 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation, the W ...

professional boxer. He competed from 1966 to 1976, winning 30 of his 36 professional bouts, with all his victories achieved by knockout. He stopped heavyweight contenders

Thad Spencer Thaddeus Spencer Jr. (March 28, 1943 – December 13, 2013) was an American heavyweight boxer. A native of Portland, Oregon, Spencer made his professional boxing debut in May 1960. After building up a 31-5 record, which included wins over conte ...

, Cleveland Williams, whom he defeated twice, and

Zora Folley Zora "Bell" Folley (May 27, 1931 – July 7, 1972) was a mid-20th century American heavyweight boxer, known for his defensive game and punching ability. Early life Born in Dallas, Texas on 27 May 1931, Folley moved with his family to Chandler ...

. Foster went the distance against

Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and activist. Nicknamed "The Greatest", he is regarded as one of the most significant sports figures of the 20th century, ...

in April 1972, losing by a 15-round unanimous decision.

Early life

Foster was born in

Alexandria, Virginia Alexandria is an independent city in the northern region of the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of downtown Washington, D.C. In 2020, the population was 159,467. ...

, a son, and the third of eleven children, of a

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Mis ...

sharecropping Sharecropping is a legal arrangement with regard to agricultural land in which a landowner allows a tenant to use the land in return for a share of the crops produced on that land. Sharecropping has a long history and there are a wide range ...

family. He spent his childhood years in

Fresno Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, maki ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

, where his father found employment as a nurse. Foster picked grapes and cotton as a youth.

Fresno State University California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) is a public university in Fresno, California. It is one of 23 campuses in the California State University system. The university had a fall 2020 enrollment of 25,341 students. It offers bac ...

offered him a track and field scholarship out of Washington High School, but he declined the opportunity, choosing instead to enlist with the

United States Marines The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through c ...

. Whilst serving with the Marines he won fourteen amateur boxing titles, and was deployed for two combat tours in the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

. After a discharge from the Marines with the rank of sergeant, Foster turned professional, becoming the third

boxer of note ( Young Corbett III was a world welterweight champion and Wayne Thornton rose through the rankings to become a number one heavyweight contender in 1970). He trained with Pat DiFuria at the Merced Street Gym.

Boxing career

Standing at 6 ft 2" in height and known as "Big Mac The Knife from Fresno", Foster made his professional debut in 1966, winning his first 24 fights by

knockout A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, muay thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving striking, a ...

, and was named ''The Ring''s Progress of the Year for 1969. Britain's ''Boxing Illustrated'' wrote, "He could certainly whack!" Whilst being employed as a

sparring Sparring is a form of training common to many combat sports. Although the precise form varies, it is essentially relatively ' free-form' fighting, with enough rules, customs, or agreements to minimize injuries. By extension, argumentative deba ...

partner for

Sonny Liston Charles L. "Sonny" Liston ( 1930 – December 30, 1970) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1953 to 1970. A dominant contender of his era, he became the world heavyweight champion in 1962 after knocking out Floyd Patterson ...

, Foster was reputed to have knocked down the former world champion, causing Liston two days later to work Foster over during another sparring session before handlers could intervene between the two men to stop it.

Big fights

In 1969 Foster knocked out contender Thad Spencer in the first round, and twice knocked out a past his prime Cleveland Williams. By 1970 Foster was ranked as the world's number one heavyweight contender and seemed set for a title shot, but his 24–0 winning streak came to an end when as favourite he was stopped in six rounds by the more experienced

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 rated by ''The Ring'' magazine as the most popular ...

in June 1970. After the Quarry fight, Foster knocked out ageing and by then unranked

in one round.

Versus Mohammad Ali

In April 1972 Foster faced

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...

in a rare 15-round, non-title bout. Although he defied Ali's prediction of a fifth-round stoppage by lasting the distance, Foster lost a clear decision to the former champion, winning just two rounds, one round, and no rounds on the three judges' respective scorecards. Foster had never been in a professional fight longer than eight rounds before facing Ali.

Last fights

Foster followed up his loss to Ali with knockouts of journeymen Sam McGill and Charles Williams. He was then outpointed by Bob Stallings,

Joe Bugner József Kreul Bugner (born 13 March 1950) is a Hungarian-born British- Australian former heavyweight boxer and actor. He holds triple nationality, being a citizen of Hungary and a naturalised citizen of both Australia and the United Kin ...

and Henry Clark in consecutive bouts. Foster served as

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 ...

's sparring partner for Foreman's world title bout with

Ken Norton Kenneth Howard Norton Sr. (August 9, 1943 – September 18, 2013) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1967 to 1981, and held the WBC world heavyweight championship in 1978. He is best known for his fights with Muhammad Ali, in ...

in 1974. He retired from boxing in 1976 after losing his fourth consecutive decision, this time to prospect Stan Ward. Foster's final record was 30–6, with all 30 of his wins coming by knockout.

Later life

After retiring, Foster volunteered his time as boxing coach for youth.

Death

Foster died at the age of 68 of

MRSA Methicillin-resistant ''Staphylococcus aureus'' (MRSA) is a group of Gram-positive bacteria that are genetically distinct from other strains of ''Staphylococcus aureus''. MRSA is responsible for several difficult-to-treat infections in humans. ...

on Monday, July 19, 2010. His body was buried at the San Joaquin Valley National Cemetery in Santa Nella, California.

Personal life

He married Yolanda, the marriage producing four children, Gregory, Joshua, Nathaniel and Nicole.

Professional boxing record

, - , align="center" colspan=8, 30 Wins (30 knockouts), 6 Losses (1 knockout, 5 decisions) , - , align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3", Result , align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3", Record , align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3", Opponent , align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3", Type , align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3", Round , align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3", Date , align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3", Location , align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3", Notes , -align=center , Loss , 30–6 , align=left, Stan Ward , UD , 10 , February 26, 1976 , align=left,

San Jose Civic Auditorium The San Jose Civic (formerly known as the San Jose Civic Auditorium and City National Civic) is a former arena, currently operating as a theatre, located in downtown San Jose, California. The venue is owned by the City of San Jose, is managed by ...

San Jose, California San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popul ...

, align=left, , - , Loss , 30–5 , align=left, Henry Clark , UD , 10 , May 30, 1974 , align=left,

Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Oakland Coliseum, currently branded as RingCentral Coliseum, is a stadium in Oakland, California. It is part of the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Complex, with the adjacent Oakland Arena, near Interstate 880. The Coliseum is the home ba ...

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

, align=left, , - , Loss , 30–4 , align=left,

, PTS , 10 , November 13, 1973 , align=left, Empire Pool, Wembley, London , align=left, , - , Loss , 30–3 , align=left, Bob Stallings , SD , 10 , June 30, 1973 , align=left, Aragon Ballroom,

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, align=left, , - , Win , 30–2 , align=left, Charles "Hercules" Williams , KO , 10 , May 3, 1973 , align=left,

, align=left, , - , Win , 29–2 , align=left, Sam McGill , TKO , 9 , April 11, 1973 , align=left, Aragon Ballroom,

, align=left, , - , Loss , 28–2 , align=left,

, UD , 15 , April 1, 1972 , align=left, Nihon Budokan,

, align=left, , - , Win , 28–1 , align=left, Giuseppe Ros , KO , 8 , December 26, 1971 , align=left,

Hallenstadion The Hallenstadion (german: , ''Zürich Indoor Stadium'') is a multi-purpose facility located in the quarter of Oerlikon in northern Zürich. It is home to the ZSC Lions of the National League (NL) and has a capacity of 11,200 spectators. Design ...

, Zurich , align=left, , - , Win , 27–1 , align=left,

Billy Joiner Billy Joiner (10 May 1938 - 2019), was an American professional boxer from Cincinnati, U.S. Early life Joiner was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on 10 May 1938. His father was a former professional boxer, as was his uncle who had once knocked out ...

, KO , 5 , July 29, 1971 , align=left,

Olympic Auditorium The Grand Olympic Auditorium is a former sports venue in southern Downtown Los Angeles, California. The venue was built in 1924 at 1801 South Grand Avenue, now just south of the Santa Monica Freeway. The grand opening of the Olympic Auditorium ...

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wo ...

, align=left, , - , Win , 26–1 , align=left, Mike Boswell , TKO , 4 , March 25, 1971 , align=left,

, align=left, , - , Win , 25–1 , align=left,

, KO , 1 , September 29, 1970 , align=left, Selland Arena,

Fresno, California Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, maki ...

, align=left, , - , Loss , 24–1 , align=left,

, KO , 6 , June 17, 1970 , align=left,

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsyl ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

, align=left, , - , Win , 24–0 , align=left,

Jack O'Halloran Jack O'Halloran (born April 8, 1943) is an American actor and former boxer. O'Halloran fought in 57 professional boxing matches (including fights with future heavyweight champions George Foreman and Ken Norton), but he is best known for acting ...

, KO , 1 , April 9, 1970 , align=left,

, align=left, , - , Win , 23–0 , align=left, Jimmy Rossette , KO , 4 , March 24, 1970 , align=left, Selland Arena,

, align=left, , - , Win , 22–0 , align=left, Bob Felstein , KO , 2 , December 16, 1969 , align=left, Selland Arena,

, align=left, , - , Win , 21–0 , align=left, Cleveland Williams , KO , 3 , November 18, 1969 , align=left,

Sam Houston Coliseum Sam Houston Coliseum was an indoor arena located in Houston, Texas. Early years Located at 801 Bagby Street in Downtown Houston, the Coliseum and Music Hall complex replaced the Sam Houston Hall, which was a wooden structure that had been erected ...

, Houston, Texas , align=left, , - , Win , 20–0 , align=left, Cleveland Williams , TKO , 5 , September 13, 1969 , align=left, Selland Arena,

, align=left, , - , Win , 19–0 , align=left, Roger Russell , TKO , 3 , August 19, 1969 , align=left, Selland Arena,

, align=left, , - , Win , 18–0 , align=left,

, KO , 1 , May 20, 1969 , align=left, Selland Arena,

, align=left, , - , Win , 17–0 , align=left, Roger Rischer , KO , 4 , January 21, 1969 , align=left, Selland Arena,

, align=left, , - , Win , 16–0 , align=left, Joe Hemphill , TKO , 3 , November 27, 1968 , align=left,

Silver Slipper The Silver Slipper was a casino in Paradise, Nevada, that operated from September 1950 to November 29, 1988. The building was designed by architect Martin Stern, Jr. History Opened in 1950, the casino was built on the grounds of the Last Front ...

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vega ...

, align=left, , - , Win , 15–0 , align=left, Tommy Fields , TKO , 5 , August 16, 1968 , align=left,

Centennial Coliseum The Reno-Sparks Convention Center is a convention center in the western United States, located in Reno, Nevada.

Reno, Nevada Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is the c ...

, align=left, , - , Win , 14–0 , align=left, Tommy Burns , KO , 1 , August 8, 1968 , align=left, Seattle Center Arena,

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...

, align=left, , - , Win , 13–0 , align=left, Curtis Bruce , TKO , 3 , July 9, 1968 , align=left, Selland Arena,

, align=left, , - , Win , 12–0 , align=left, Sonny Moore , KO , 2 , April 2, 1968 , align=left, Selland Arena,

, align=left, , - , Win , 11–0 , align=left, Steve Grant , TKO , 2 , February 27, 1968 , align=left, Selland Arena,

, align=left, , - , Win , 10–0 , align=left, Hubert Hilton , TKO , 5 , January 23, 1968 , align=left, Selland Arena,

, align=left, , - , Win , 9–0 , align=left, Roy Wallace , KO , 7 , November 28, 1967 , align=left, Selland Arena,

, align=left, , - , Win , 8–0 , align=left, Ray Junior Ellis , KO , 2 , October 11, 1967 , align=left, Selland Arena,

, align=left, , - , Win , 7–0 , align=left, Floyd Joyner , TKO , 7 , August 29, 1967 , align=left, Selland Arena,

, align=left, , - , Win , 6–0 , align=left, Lino Armenteros , KO , 3 , June 13, 1967 , align=left, Selland Arena,

, align=left, , - , Win , 5–0 , align=left, Lou Phillips , KO , 3 , May 9, 1967 , align=left, Selland Arena,

, align=left, , - , Win , 4–0 , align=left, L.J. Wheeler , TKO , 6 , March 14, 1967 , align=left, Selland Arena,

, align=left, , - , Win , 3–0 , align=left, Sam Wyatt , KO , 1 , February 6, 1967 , align=left, Selland Arena,

, align=left, , - , Win , 2–0 , align=left, Leroy Birmingham , KO , 1 , January 5, 1967 , align=left,

, align=left, , - , Win , 1–0 , align=left, Jimmy Gilmore , KO , 3 , November 28, 1966 , align=left,

, align=left,

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Foster, Mac 1942 births 2010 deaths Boxers from California Boxers from Virginia Heavyweight boxers Sportspeople from Fresno, California United States Marines Sportspeople from Alexandria, Virginia American male boxers African-American boxers 20th-century African-American sportspeople 21st-century African-American people