Marvin Hart (September 16, 1876 – September 17, 1931) was the World Heavyweight Boxing Champion from July 3, 1905, to February 23, 1906.
Boxing career
Hart, nicknamed "the Louisville Plumber" because of his former trade, gained considerable prominence after a 1905 win over future champion
Jack Johnson. That year, the heavyweight title was left vacant as a result of the retirement of champion
James J. Jeffries and Hart's record earned him a chance to fight for the championship against top-ranked
Jack Root
John Arthur Root, born as Janos Ruthaly and known professionally as Jack Root (May 26, 1876 – June 10, 1963) was an American boxer. He was the first world light heavyweight champion as well as a challenger for the world heavyweight title. He fo ...
(1876–1963), a much more experienced boxer, who had already beaten Hart in November, 1902.
Jeffries, the retiring champ, refereed the championship fight on July 3, 1905, in
Reno, Nevada
Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada–California border. It is the county seat and most populous city of Washoe County, Nevada, Washoe County. Sitting in the High Eastern Sierra foothills, ...
. Hart knocked out Jack Root in the 12th round to win the vacant championship. After one successful exhibition match, Hart lost his championship to
Canadian
Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...
Tommy Burns on February 23, 1906, in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
. Burns won the 20-round fight by decision.
Death
Hart died the day after his 55th birthday of an enlarged liver and high blood pressure. He was interred in the Resthaven Memorial Park, in his hometown of
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the List of cities in Kentucky, most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeastern United States, Southeast, and the list of United States cities by population, 27th-most-populous city ...
.
Professional boxing record
See also
*
List of heavyweight boxing champions
At boxing's beginning, the heavyweight division had no weight class (boxing), weight limit, and historically the weight class has gone with vague or no definition. During the 19th century many heavyweights were 170 Pound (mass), pounds (12 st ...
References
External links
Marvin Hart - Cyber Boxing Zone Profile*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hart, Marvin
1876 births
1931 deaths
Boxers from Louisville, Kentucky
Heavyweight boxers
World heavyweight boxing champions
American male boxers