George Johnson (boxer)
American boxer, born 1941
George Johnson
Born (1938-12-15 ) December 15, 1938Oklahoma City
Died April 9, 2016(2016-04-09) (aged 77) Nationality American Other names Scrap Iron Statistics Weight(s) 235 (1972)[ 1] Height 5 ft 9 in (175 cm) Stance Orthodox
Boxing record Total fights 54 Wins 22 Wins by KO 11 Losses 27 Draws 5
George Raft "Scrap Iron " Johnson (December 15, 1938 – April 9, 2016)[ 2] was an American heavyweight boxer whose career spanned the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. Johnson fought many of the top fighters of his era, including George Foreman , Joe Frazier , Sonny Liston , Ron Lyle , Duane Bobick , Joe Bugner , Jerry Quarry , and Eddie Machen .[ 3]
Whilst a journeyman fighter he was nonetheless notorious for being extremely durable. He could take vast amounts of punishment. George Foreman said he had the best chin of all his opponents.[ 4] He retired in 1975 with a record of 22–27–5. He was inducted into the California Boxing Hall of Fame in 2005.[ 5] [ 6] [ 7] [ 8]
Johnson was nicknamed "Scrap" by girls in his neighborhood in Oklahoma City when he was about seven years old, because he used a wheelbarrow to salvage machinery parts to earn money. By high school, his American football teammates tacked on the "iron."[ 9] [ 10]
In 1969, after putting together a string of wins, Johnson was defeated by Sonny Liston in Las Vegas after seven rounds. Johnson had been scheduled to get married at midnight after the fight, but pushed off the wedding to the next day to recover. Johnson later claimed "Liston hit me so hard, I married the wrong woman."[ 11] [ 12]
Professional boxing record
22 Wins (11 knockouts, 11 decisions), 27 Losses (12 knockouts, 15 decisions), 5 Draws [ 13]
Result
Record
Opponent
Type
Round
Date
Location
Notes
Loss
31–0
Duane Bobick
RTD
4
13 Nov 1975
Met Center , Bloomington, Minnesota
Draw
14–1
Scott LeDoux
PTS
10
14 Aug 1975
Saint Paul Civic Center , Saint Paul, Minnesota
SD for LeDoux overturned due to crowd response.
Loss
12–0
Leroy Jones
PTS
10
18 Mar 1975
Honolulu, Hawaii
Loss
49–7–4
Jerry Quarry
UD
10
25 Feb 1975
Hawaii International Center , Honolulu, Hawaii
[ 14]
Loss
10–0
Johnny Boudreaux
PTS
10
16 Sep 1974
Houston, Texas
Loss
29–2
Boone Kirkman
UD
10
23 Oct 1973
Seattle Center Arena , Seattle, Washington
Win
4–6–1
Joe Tiger Harris
TKO
3
2 Jul 1973
Las Vegas, Nevada
Win
—
John Robinson
KO
2
16 May 1973
Las Vegas, Nevada
Win
5–17–1
Terry Sorrell
KO
5
25 Apr 1973
Las Vegas, Nevada
Sorrell knocked out at 1:41 of the fifth round.
Win
1–3
Dave Sherman
TKO
2
11 Apr 1973
Las Vegas, Nevada
Loss
12–0
Ron Lyle
KO
3
25 Mar 1972
Denver, Colorado
Johnson knocked out at 0:31 of the third round.
Loss
26–9–6
Juergen Blin
TKO
2
1 Oct 1971
Hamburg , Germany
Win
7–8
MacArthur Swindell
PTS
10
30 Jun 1971
Silver Slipper, Paradise, Nevada
Loss
28–2
Joe Bugner
PTS
10
3 Nov 1970
Royal Albert Hall , London , England
[ 15] [ 16]
Loss
19–0
George Foreman
TKO
7
16 May 1970
Great Western Forum , Inglewood, California
Referee stopped the bout at 1:41 of the seventh round.
Loss
34–4–4
Jerry Quarry
UD
10
19 Mar 1970
Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California
Loss
47–3
Sonny Liston
TKO
7
19 May 1969
Las Vegas Convention Center , Winchester, Nevada
Referee stopped the bout at 2:55 of the seventh round. [ 11] [ 17]
Win
13–5–1
Bob Felstein
PTS
10
18 Feb 1969
Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California
Win
3–13–1
Alvin Tiger
TKO
6
2 Oct 1968
Silver Slipper , Paradise, Nevada
Win
5–6–1
Roy Wallace
UD
10
22 Aug 1968
Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California
Win
8–5–1
Ray White
UD
10
28 Nov 1967
Community Concourse, San Diego, California
[ 18]
Win
9–4–1
Earl Averette
UD
10
26 Oct 1967
Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California
Win
57–8–3
Santo Amonti
TKO
10
2 Aug 1967
Los Angeles Sports Arena , Los Angeles, California
Referee stopped the bout at 1:19 of the tenth round.
Loss
15–0
Joe Frazier
UD
10
4 May 1967
Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California
[ 19]
Win
25–3–4
Otha Brown
TKO
7
15 Dec 1966
Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California
Referee stopped the bout at 0:59 of the seventh round.
Loss
49–8–3
Eddie Machen
UD
10
29 Sep 1966
Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California
Win
6–6
Emil Umek
UD
10
26 Jul 1966
Stockyards Coliseum, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Loss
15–0–2
Jerry Quarry
TKO
2
7 Apr 1966
Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California
Referee stopped the bout at 2:40 of the second round.
Draw
11–8–1
Chuck Leslie
PTS
10
6 Jan 1966
Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California
Draw
5–5–1
Manuel Ramos
PTS
10
4 Nov 1965
Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California
Win
9–2–1
Jimmy Harryman
TKO
10
21 Oct 1965
Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California
Referee stopped the bout at 1:18 of the tenth round.
Loss
12–1–2
Elmer Rush
UD
10
27 Sep 1965
The Hacienda , Paradise, Nevada
Loss
7–2–1
Henry Clark
PTS
10
23 Sep 1965
Kezar Pavilion , San Francisco, California
1-6.
Loss
32–7–1
Amos Lincoln
KO
5
5 Aug 1965
Olympic Auditorium , Los Angeles, California
Johnson knocked out at 2:27 of the fifth round.
Win
8–3–1
Roy Rogers
TKO
7
22 Jun 1965
Lubbock, Texas
Referee stopped the bout at 2:30 of the seventh round.
Loss
7–1–1
Roy "Cowboy" Rogers
UD
10
9 Nov 1964
Dallas Sportatorium , Dallas, Texas
Loss
19–2
Thad Spencer
KO
4
4 Aug 1964
Castaways Hotel and Casino , Las Vegas, Nevada
Loss
17–17–2
Sonny "Policeman" Moore
PTS
10
25 May 1964
Dallas Sportatorium , Dallas, Texas
Win
17–16–2
Sonny Moore
SD
10
14 Apr 1964
Lindsayland Auditorium, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Draw
5–4–1
John L. Davey
PTS
10
7 Apr 1964
Stockyards Coliseum, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Win
0–2
Roy Crear
SD
10
17 Mar 1964
Lindsayland Auditorium, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Win
0–8
Leo Bennett
TKO
2
11 Feb 1964
Stockyards Coliseum, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Draw
35–10–1
Buddy Turman
PTS
10
5 Nov 1962
Tyler, Texas
Loss
14–14–1
Ernie Cab
KO
6
25 Apr 1961
City Auditorium, Houston, Texas
Loss
11–0
Tod Herring
KO
6
7 Mar 1961
Houston, Texas
Loss
34–10–1
Donnie Fleeman
TKO
7
28 Nov 1960
Dallas Memorial Auditorium , Dallas, Texas
Win
0–3
Leo "Zorro" Bennett
KO
1
15 Sep 1960
Oklahoma City Municipal Auditorium, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Bennett knocked out at 2:45 of the first round.
Loss
13–4–1
Floyd Joyner
PTS
6
31 Aug 1960
Albuquerque Civic Auditorium , Albuquerque, New Mexico
Win
0–1
Benny Lee Bowser
PTS
6
2 Aug 1960
Port Arthur, Texas
Win
—
Donny Blue
PTS
6
13 Jun 1960
Wichita, Kansas
Loss
3–1
Wayne Heath
PTS
6
12 Apr 1960
Lindsayland Auditorium, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Loss
1–0
Wayne Heath
PTS
4
24 Nov 1959
Lindsayland Auditorium, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Win
2–7
Ted Hester
PTS
4
10 Nov 1959
Lindsayland Auditorium, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Loss
11–16–2
Johnny "J.C." Carroll
TKO
2
9 Jun 1958
Tucson Sports Center, Tucson, Arizona
References
^ Ryan, Joe. Heavyweight Boxing in The 1970s: The Great Fighters and Rivalries Archived 2024-04-28 at the Wayback Machine , p. 133 (2013)
^ "The Secretariat of trial horses" . Boxing.com . 20 April 2016. Archived from the original on 2017-12-22. Retrieved 2017-12-18 .
^ Hudson, David L. & Mike Fitzgerald. Boxing's Most Wanted Archived 2024-04-28 at the Wayback Machine (2004)
^ "Best I Faced: George Foreman" . The Ring . 2014-07-04. Archived from the original on 2020-11-12. Retrieved 2020-09-01 .
^ California Boxing Hall of Fame Inductees , Californiaboxinghalloffame.com (via archive.com 26 June 2008 version of list)
^ Ortiz, Johnny (5 March 2005). Golden Era Boxers Enter California Hall of Fame Archived 2024-04-28 at the Wayback Machine , Boxing Scene
^ Stewart, Larry (3 March 2005). Imhoff Says Hundley's Line Isn't So 'Hot' , Los Angeles Times (confirms hall of fame induction)
^ (8 April 1966). Boxer Fills Old 'Tradition' Archived 2024-04-28 at the Wayback Machine , The Spokesman-Review
^ Barrett, Eldon (23 October 1973). 'Scrap Iron' faces Kirkman Archived 2024-04-28 at the Wayback Machine , Ellensburg Daily Record (UPI story)
^ (15 March 1970). There's A Ring to Scrap Iron's Name Archived 2016-08-19 at the Wayback Machine , Independent Press-Telegram
^ a b (20 May 1969). 'Scrap' Postpones Wedding After Fight with Liston , Owosso Argus-Press (Associated Press story)
^ Stewart, Larry (6 March 2004). He Liked Running With Tough Crowds , Los Angeles Times
^ Boxing record for George Johnson from BoxRec (registration required)
^ (27 February 1975). Quarry Takes Unanimous Decision Over Scrap Iron Archived 2024-04-28 at the Wayback Machine , Observer–Reporter (Associated Press story)
^ "Bugner passes stiff test" . The Canberra Times . 5 November 1970. p. 32. Archived from the original on 28 April 2024. Retrieved 28 January 2014 – via National Library of Australia.
^ 1970 Joe Bugner and George "Scrap Iron" Johnson ,boxers Archived 2014-02-01 at the Wayback Machine , Argentaimages.com, Retrieved 23 January 2014 (photo of Bugner and Johnson)
^ (20 May 1969). Liston Starts Early, Dumps 'Scrap Iron' [permanent dead link ] , Milwaukee Journal
^ Crowe, Jerry (15 May 2011). Ray "Windmill" White left his mark on boxing -- from behind , Los Angeles Times
^ (5 May 1967). Frazier Wins But No Kayo [permanent dead link ] , The Miami News (Associated Press story)
External links