# Howard Davis Jr.

Howard Edward Davis Jr. (February 14, 1956 – December 30, 2015) was an American professional boxer. Growing up on Long Island as the eldest of 10 children, Davis first learned boxing from his father. After being inspired by a movie about Muhammad Ali, Davis embarked on his amateur career. He won the 1976 Olympic gold medal one week after his mother died. He was also awarded the Val Barker Trophy at the Olympics, beating out such boxers as Sugar Ray Leonard, Michael Spinks and Leon Spinks.
He turned professional after the Olympics and went on to compile a professional record of 36–6–1 with 14 knockouts. He retired in 1996. After retirement he became a trainer. Eventually he worked as boxing director at American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Florida, where he trained both amateur and professional boxers and MMA fighters. He was also a motivational speaker and a musician.

## Amateur career

As an amateur, Davis was trained by his father, a former boxer. He had an outstanding amateur career. In 1976, Davis won the Olympic gold medal in the lightweight division in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Davis was also named the Outstanding Boxer of the 1976 Olympics and given the Val Barker Trophy. His Olympic teammates included Sugar Ray Leonard, Michael Spinks and Leon Spinks.
His Olympic victory came just one week after his mother died of a heart attack.
Davis had an amateur record of 125–5.
Amateur accomplishments include:
* 1973 National AAU Champion (125 lb)
** Defeated Leroy Veasley of Detroit in the final
* 1974 World Championships (125 lbs) in Havana, Cuba
** Defeated Roberto Andino (Puerto Rico) on points
** Defeated Rumen Peshev (Bulgaria) on points
** Defeated Eddie Ndukwu (Nigeria) on points
** Defeated Mariano Álvarez (Cuba) on points
** Defeated Boris Kuznetsov (Soviet Union) on points
* 1976 National AAU Champion (132 lbs)
** Defeated Thomas Hearns on points.
* 1976 Olympic Trials
** Defeated Aaron Pryor to qualify at 132 pounds
* 1976 Summer Olympics – Gold Medal (132 lbs) and Val Barker Award winner for Most Outstanding Boxer of the Games
** Round of 32: Defeated Yukio Segawa (Japan) won on points
** Round of 16: Defeated Leonidas Asprilla (Colombia) won by KO 2
** Quarterfinal:; Defeated Tsvetan Tsvetkov (Bulgaria) won by TKO 3
** Semifinal: Defeated Ace Rusevski (Yugoslavia) won on points
** Final: Defeated Simion Cuţov (Romania) won on points

## Professional career

Davis turned professional in 1977. After winning his first thirteen fights, he challenged Jim Watt for the WBC lightweight title in 1980. Watt won by a fifteen-round unanimous decision. In 1984, with a record of 26–1, Davis fought Edwin Rosario for the WBC lightweight title. Rosario retained his title with a twelve-round split decision. His final attempt to win a world title came in 1988. Davis was stunningly knocked out in the first round by IBF junior welterweight champion Buddy McGirt. He retired after the fight. In 1994, Davis launched a comeback as a middleweight. He retired for good after losing by second-round knockout to Dana Rosenblatt on April 13, 1996.
He finished with a professional record of 36–6–1 with 14 KO's.

## Honors

In August 1976, Davis' hometown of Glen Cove, New York honored Davis with a parade for his Olympic achievement, which was attended by Lt. Governor Mary Anne Krupsak.
In July 2009, Glen Cove honored Davis by naming a street after him. The Mayor also proclaimed July 10 as Howard Davis Day in honor of both father and son.

## Personal life

In 1981, Davis had his Olympic Gold Medal stolen from his home, only to be found years later by a landscaper on the side of the road. After discovering the true value of the medal, the landscaper returned the medal to Davis.
Davis served as a boxing trainer to MMA fighters, including Chuck Liddell and fighters from American Top Team. He also worked as a sports commentator, a public speaker, and a promoter for Fight Time Promotions. Davis was a boxing coach/trainer for Chuck Liddell on The Ultimate Fighter 11. Davis' wife Karla Guadamuz-Davis served as his Publicist and Business Manager.
Davis followed a strict vegetarian diet.
Davis' son Dyah is also a former professional boxer, who transitioned to a coaching career and is a boxing coach at the American Top Team.

## Death

In the summer of 2015 Davis learned that he had incurable, late-stage lung cancer. He died on December 30, 2015, from the disease at the age of 59.

## Professional boxing record

| 43 fights | 36 wins | 6 losses |
| By knockout | 14 | 2 |
| By decision | 22 | 4 |
| Draws | 1 | 1 |
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
| 43 | Loss | 36–6–1 | Dana Rosenblatt | KO | 2 (12), 2:00 | 13 Apr 1996 | TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, US | For the WBU Middleweight Championship. |
| 42 | Win | 36–5–1 | Humberto Aranda | PTS | 10 | 29 Jun 1995 | Ukrainian Cultural Center, Somerset, New Jersey, US | |
| 41 | Win | 35–5–1 | Glenn Odem | UD | 10 | 4 May 1995 | Ukrainian Cultural Center, Somerset, New Jersey, US | |
| 40 | Win | 34–5–1 | Joaquin Velasquez | UD | 10 | 19 Jan 1995 | Ukrainian Cultural Center, Somerset, New Jersey, US | |
| 39 | Win | 33–5–1 | Rip Rettig | TKO | 7 (10) | 17 Nov 1994 | Ukrainian Cultural Center, Somerset, New Jersey, US | |
| 38 | Loss | 32–5–1 | Buddy McGirt | KO | 1 (15), 2:45 | 31 Jul 1988 | Felt Forum, New York, New York, US | For the IBF Super Lightweight Championship. |
| 37 | Win | 32–4–1 | Ron Johnson | UD | 10 | 28 Apr 1988 | Teachers Union Hall, Dorchester, Boston, US | |
| 36 | Win | 31–4–1 | Shelton LeBlanc | UD | 10 | 25 Mar 1988 | Felt Forum, New York, New York, US | |
| 35 | Win | 30–4–1 | Ali Kareem Muhammad | TKO | 9 (10), 2:15 | 21 Jan 1988 | Felt Forum, New York, New York, US | |
| 34 | Loss | 29–4–1 | Héctor Camacho | UD | 10 | 2 May 1987 | Convention Center, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US | |
| 33 | Win | 29–3–1 | Othal Dixon | UD | 10 | 27 Feb 1987 | Trump Casino Hotel, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US | |
| 32 | Draw | 28–3–1 | Meldrick Taylor | SD | 10 | 16 Aug 1986 | Sands Hotel Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US | |
| 31 | Loss | 28–3 | Joe Manley | UD | 10 | 28 Feb 1986 | Golden Nugget Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US | |
| 30 | Win | 28–2 | Sammy Matos | TKO | 4 (10) | 16 Oct 1985 | New Brunswick High School, New Brunswick, New Jersey, US | |
| 29 | Win | 27–2 | Bobby Johnson | UD | 10 | 14 Dec 1984 | Nassau Coliseum, Uniondale, New York, US | |
| 28 | Loss | 26–2 | Edwin Rosario | SD | 12 | 23 Jun 1984 | Roberto Clemente Coliseum, San Juan, Puerto Rico | For the WBC Lightweight Championship. |
| 27 | Win | 26–1 | Darrell Stovall | TKO | 2 (10), 1:48 | 16 May 1984 | Showboat Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada, US | |
| 26 | Win | 25–1 | Connie Swift | RTD | 8 (10), 3:00 | 3 Mar 1984 | Bally's Park Place Hotel Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US | |
| 25 | Win | 24–1 | Greg Coverson | TKO | 8 (10), 2:36 | 18 Jun 1983 | Resorts Casino Hotel, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US | |
| 24 | Win | 23–1 | George Feeney | UD | 10 | 10 Apr 1983 | Sanremo, Italy | |
| 23 | Win | 22–1 | Tony Baltazar | UD | 10 | 27 Feb 1983 | Resorts Casino Hotel, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US | |
| 22 | Win | 21–1 | Claude Noel | UD | 10 | 12 Nov 1982 | Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida, US | |
| 21 | Win | 20–1 | Ezequiel Cocoa Sanchez | UD | 10 | 16 Oct 1982 | Golden Nugget Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US | |
| 20 | Win | 19–1 | James Martinez | TKO | 6 (10) | 26 Aug 1982 | Sands Hotel Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US | |
| 19 | Win | 18–1 | Anthony Collins | RTD | 3 (10) | 22 Jul 1982 | Sands Hotel Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US | |
| 18 | Win | 17–1 | Julio Valdez | UD | 10 | 3 Jun 1982 | Sands Casino Hotel, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US | |
| 17 | Win | 16–1 | Angel Cruz | UD | 10 | 16 Apr 1981 | Felt Forum, New York, New York, US | |
| 16 | Win | 15–1 | Larry Stanton | RTD | 8 (10), 3:00 | 26 Jun 1981 | Colonie Hill Catering Hall, Hauppauge, New York, US | |
| 15 | Win | 14–1 | Johnny Lira | UD | 10 | 6 Dec 1980 | Caesars Tahoe, Stateline, Nevada, US | |
| 14 | Loss | 13–1 | Jim Watt | UD | 15 | 7 Jun 1980 | Ibrox Park, Glasgow, Scotland, UK | For the WBC Lightweight Championship. |
| 13 | Win | 13–0 | Vilomar Fernandez | UD | 12 | 23 Feb 1980 | Resorts Casino Hotel, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US | |
| 12 | Win | 12–0 | Maurice Watkins | UD | 10 | 14 Sep 1979 | The Summit, Houston, Texas, US | |
| 11 | Win | 11–0 | Jose Hernandez | KO | 7 (10), 2:50 | 17 Jun 1979 | Convention Center Arena, San Antonio, Texas, US | |
| 10 | Win | 10–0 | Giancarlo Usai | KO | 3 (10), 0:28 | 20 Apr 1979 | Felt Forum, New York, New York, US | |
| 9 | Win | 9–0 | Luis Davila | UD | 10 | 4 Nov 1978 | Resorts International Hotel & Casino, Superstar Theatr, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US | |
| 8 | Win | 8–0 | Norman Goins | UD | 10 | 9 Jul 1978 | Indiana Convention Center, Indianapolis, Indiana, US | |
| 7 | Win | 7–0 | Larry Stanton | SD | 10 | 13 May 1978 | Orlando Sports Stadium, Orlando, Florida, US | |
| 6 | Win | 6–0 | Jose Fernandez | UD | 8 | 4 Feb 1978 | Aladdin Theater, Las Vegas, Nevada, US | |
| 5 | Win | 5–0 | Arturo Pineda | TKO | 4 (8) | 13 Sep 1977 | Grand Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, US | |
| 4 | Win | 4–0 | Domenick Monaco | TKO | 8 (8), 2:17 | 17 Jul 1977 | Miami Beach Convention Center, Miami Beach, Florida, US | |
| 3 | Win | 3–0 | Carlos Rico Gonzalez | UD | 6 | 11 May 1977 | Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, US | |
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | Rick Craney | KO | 3 (6), 1:35 | 20 Mar 1977 | Kentucky Exposition Center, Louisville, Kentucky, US | |
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Jose Resto | UD | 6 | 15 Jan 1977 | The Aladdin, Las Vegas, Nevada, US | Professional debut |