# 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, Spencer was considered one of the top boxers of his time. With wins over contenders Doug Jones, Brian London, 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 had been stripped of the title. Spencer won a 12-round decision over former title-holder Ernie Terrell in August 1967 and was then matched against Jerry Quarry 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, 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. Spencer's son, Todd Spencer, was a football star for U.S.C., and played three seasons in the NFL for the Steelers and the Chargers.

## Professional boxing record

| 46 fights | 32 wins | 13 losses |
| By knockout | 14 | 7 |
| By decision | 18 | 6 |
| Draws | 1 | 1 |
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
| 46 | Loss | 32–13–1 | Tony Doyle | UD | 10 | 07/06/1971 | Dallas Memorial Auditorium, Dallas, Texas | |
| 45 | Loss | 32–12–1 | Ron Stander | UD | 10 | 23/04/1971 | Omaha Civic Auditorium, Omaha, Nebraska | |
| 44 | Loss | 32–11–1 | Jose Luis Garcia | KO | 2 (10) | 05/10/1970 | Caracas | |
| 43 | Loss | 32–10–1 | Tony Doyle | UD | 10 | 28/05/1970 | Minneapolis Auditorium, Minneapolis, Minnesota | |
| 42 | Draw | 32–9–1 | Charlie Reno | PTS | 10 | 18/03/1970 | Seattle Center Arena, Seattle, Washington | |
| 41 | Loss | 32–9 | Mac Foster | KO | 1 (10) | 20/05/1969 | Selland Arena, Fresno, California | |
| 40 | Loss | 32–8 | Billy Walker | TKO | 6 (10) | 12/11/1968 | Empire Pool, Wembley, London | |
| 39 | Loss | 32–7 | Leotis Martin | TKO | 9 (10) | 28/05/1968 | Royal Albert Hall, Kensington, London | |
| 38 | Loss | 32–6 | Jerry Quarry | TKO | 12 (12) | 03/02/1968 | Oakland Arena, Oakland, California | WBA World Heavyweight Title Tournament Semi-Finals |
| 37 | Win | 32–5 | Ernie Terrell | UD | 12 | 05/08/1967 | Astrodome, Houston, Texas | WBA World Heavyweight Title Tournament Quarter-Finals |
| 36 | Win | 31–5 | Amos Lincoln | TKO | 8 (10) | 26/06/1967 | Cow Palace, Daly City, California | |
| 35 | Win | 30–5 | Doug Jones | UD | 10 | 14/10/1966 | Cow Palace, Daly City, California | |
| 34 | Loss | 29–5 | Bill McMurray | TKO | 7 (12) | 13/09/1966 | Sacramento, California | Lost California Heavyweight Title |
| 33 | Win | 29–4 | Brian London | PTS | 10 | 02/05/1966 | Belle Vue Zoological Gardens, Belle Vue, Manchester | |
| 32 | Win | 28–4 | Jack Bodell | RTD | 2 (10) | 18/04/1966 | Belle Vue Zoological Gardens, Belle Vue, Manchester | |
| 31 | Win | 27–4 | Billy Daniels | TD | 6 (10) | 21/02/1966 | Kezar Pavilion, San Francisco, California | |
| 30 | Win | 26–4 | Chuck Leslie | UD | 12 | 19/01/1966 | Kezar Pavilion, San Francisco, California | Won California Heavyweight Title |
| 29 | Loss | 25–4 | Amos Lincoln | SD | 10 | 22/11/1965 | Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada | |
| 28 | Win | 25–3 | Roger Rischer | UD | 12 | 26/04/1965 | San Francisco Civic Auditorium, San Francisco, California | |
| 27 | Win | 24–3 | Billy Daniels | UD | 10 | 17/03/1965 | Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, Santa Monica, California | |
| 26 | Win | 23–3 | Chuck Leslie | UD | 10 | 22/02/1965 | Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, Santa Monica, California | |
| 25 | Loss | 22–3 | Amos Lincoln | TKO | 9 (10) | 15/12/1964 | Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, Santa Monica, California | |
| 24 | Win | 22–2 | Tom McNeeley | KO | 5 (10) | 09/11/1964 | Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, Santa Monica, California | |
| 23 | Win | 21–2 | Ollie Wilson | TKO | 7 (10) | 13/10/1964 | Castaways Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada | |
| 22 | Win | 20–2 | George Johnson | KO | 4 (10) | 04/08/1964 | Castaways Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada | |
| 21 | Win | 19–2 | Ray Shiel | KO | 5 (8) | 05/07/1964 | Rasunda, Solna Municipality | |
| 20 | Loss | 18–2 | Chuck Leslie | PTS | 10 | 30/11/1963 | Reno, Nevada | |
| 19 | Win | 18–1 | Jim Fletcher | TKO | 6 (10) | 12/10/1963 | Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, Santa Monica, California | |
| 18 | Win | 17–1 | Jefferson Davis | UD | 10 | 01/08/1963 | Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California | |
| 17 | Win | 16–1 | Monroe Ratliff | TKO | 9 (10) | 13/05/1963 | Moulin Rouge, Hollywood, California | |
| 16 | Win | 15–1 | Alvin Tiger | TKO | 5 (10) | 08/04/1963 | Moulin Rouge, Santa Monica, California | |
| 15 | Win | 14–1 | Leonard Dugan | UD | 10 | 20/10/1962 | Portland Memorial Coliseum, Portland, Oregon | |
| 14 | Win | 13–1 | Prince Bongoa | KO | 7 (8) | 09/10/1962 | San Jose, California | |
| 13 | Win | 12–1 | Otis Lee | PTS | 6 | 10/07/1962 | Sam Houston Coliseum, Houston, Texas | |
| 12 | Win | 11–1 | John Riggins | PTS | 6 | 28/05/1962 | San Francisco Civic Auditorium, San Francisco, California | |
| 11 | Win | 10–1 | Art Wright | KO | 2 (?) | 14/04/1962 | San Jose Civic Auditorium, San Jose, California | |
| 10 | Win | 9–1 | Dave Furch | PTS | 10 | 14/11/1961 | Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium, Santa Cruz, California | |
| 9 | Win | 8–1 | Lou Bailey | UD | 10 | 09/09/1961 | Portland Memorial Coliseum, Portland, Oregon | |
| 8 | Win | 7–1 | Jerry Gaines | TKO | 2 (10) | 11/07/1961 | Interstate Fairgrounds, Spokane, Washington | Referee stopped the bout at 2:59 of the second round. |
| 7 | Loss | 6–1 | Shirley Pembleton | PTS | 4 | 01/07/1961 | Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey | |
| 6 | Win | 6–0 | John Riggins | UD | 6 | 04/05/1961 | Spokane Coliseum, Spokane, Washington | |
| 5 | Win | 5–0 | Yancy D. Smith | KO | 3 (6) | 10/04/1961 | Cow Palace, Daly City, California | |
| 4 | Win | 4–0 | Frankie Haynes | PTS | 10 | 21/03/1961 | San Jose, California | |
| 3 | Win | 3–0 | Harvey Taylor | PTS | 8 | 23/01/1961 | Seattle Civic Ice Arena, Seattle, Washington | |
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | Theo Lolanzo | PTS | 6 | 07/09/1960 | Sick's Stadium, Seattle, Washington | |
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Frankie Rowe | TKO | 3 (4) | 03/05/1960 | Tacoma Armory, Tacoma, Washington | |