Alexander McKay (1804 – 3 June 1830) was a Scottish

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 Wo ...

bare-knuckle fighter. He fought in just five prize fights, these are: # Loss to

Simon Byrne Simon Byrne (1806 – 2 June 1833), nicknamed "The Emerald Gem", was an Irish bare-knuckle prize fighter. The heavyweight boxing champion of Ireland, he was drawn to England by the larger sums of prize money on offer and his hopes of becomin ...

after 47 mins, in 5 rounds on 3 May 1827 # Win over Peter Curran after 18 mins – in 1828 # Win over

Paul Spencer Dario G is the stage name of English musician Paul Spencer. Dario G was originally a trio, who are best known for their 1997 hit " Sunchyme", which reached number 2 on the UK Singles Chart. The group formed in Cheshire, England and consisted of ...

after 25 rounds on 16 October 1828 £40 # Win over Paul Spencer after 30 mins in 34 rounds on 17 February 1829 # Loss to Simon Byrne after 53 mins in 47 rounds on 2 June 1830 McKay died of a brain

haemorrhage Bleeding, hemorrhage, haemorrhage or blood loss, is blood escaping from the circulatory system from damaged blood vessels. Bleeding can occur internally, or externally either through a natural opening such as the mouth, nose, ear, urethra, vagi ...

30 hours after his second fight against Byrne. The news of his death was greeted in his native

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

by rioting in which several died. He is buried in churchyard in the village of

Hanslope Hanslope is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority area of the City of Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. The village is about west northwest of Newport Pagnell, about north of Stony Stratford and north of Central Milt ...

, Buckinghamshire. The following

epitaph An epitaph (; ) is a short text honoring a deceased person. Strictly speaking, it refers to text that is inscribed on a tombstone or plaque, but it may also be used in a figurative sense. Some epitaphs are specified by the person themselves be ...

is engraved on his tombstone. :::"''Strong and athletic was my frame'' :::''Far from my native home I came'' :::''And bravely fought with Simon Byrne'' :::''Alas, but never to return.'' :::''Stranger take warning from my fate'' :::''Lest you should rue your case too late'' :::''If you have ever fought before'' :::''Determine now to fight no more"''

External links

Record of McKay's fights
Bare-knuckle boxers Scottish male boxers Deaths due to injuries sustained in boxing 1804 births 1830 deaths Sport deaths in England Heavyweight boxers {{Scotland-boxing-bio-stub

See also

External links