Glen Flanagan - 8 December 1949 Minneapolis Auditorium Boxing Program (cropped)

Glen Flanagan (November 16, 1926 – January 28, 1979) was a

featherweight Featherweight is a weight class in the combat sports of boxing, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, and Greco-Roman wrestling. Boxing Professional boxing History A featherweight boxer weighs in at a limit of . In the early days of the division, t ...

professional boxer from

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

Personal life

Glen Flanagan was born and raised in St Paul,

. He and his wife Betty had six children, and Glen went on to have a successful career in

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and

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. Flanagan also ran for the city council of St Paul and owned a bar and two restaurants. He also tried his hand at farming in his later years, and dabbled as a promoter, manager, and trainer at different times.

Professional career

In a career that lasted from 1946 until 1960, Glen Flanagan compiled a professional record of 83 wins (34 by knockout) and 23 losses, with 13 draws. Flanagan faced a number of notable opponents, including Miguel Acevedo,

Jackie Graves Jackie Graves (September 12, 1922 – November 15, 2005), alias "The Austin Atom", was a featherweight boxer from Minnesota. Personal life Graves was a native of Austin, Minnesota. Boxing career From 1944 to 1956 Graves compiled a career record ...

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, Pat Iacobucci (three consecutive bouts), Ray Famechon (at Madison Square Garden), Jackie Blair, Gene Smith, Redtop Davis,

Corky Gonzalez Rodolfo "Corky" Gonzales (June 18, 1928 – April 12, 2005) was a Mexican-American boxer, poet, political organizer, and activist. He was one of many leaders for the Crusade for Justice in Denver, Colorado. The Crusade for Justice was an urb ...

, Tommy Collins, Diego Sosa, Armand Savoie, Lulu Perez, Duilio Loi, and Eddie Chavez. Flanagan was a world rated fighter back when there were eight weight classes and one ''top ten'' for each weight class. Flanagan won the Minnesota featherweight, lightweight, and welterweight titles and fought for the world championship in the featherweight division against Tommy Collins in the

Boston Garden The Boston Garden was an arena in Boston, Massachusetts. Designed by boxing promoter Tex Rickard, who also built the third iteration of New York's Madison Square Garden, it opened on November 17, 1928, as "Boston Madison Square Garden" (lat ...

in 1952, losing a close 15 round decision. Flanagan was rated 3rd in the world at the time when Sandy Sadler was in the army and the n.b.a was looking for a champion. Flanagan fought 10 times on national TV in the US and was responsible with his brother Del Flanagan and

for putting Minnesota on the national boxing map during the 1940s and 50s. was posthumously inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame in 2005 and the Minnesota Boxing Hall of Fame in 2010.

Notes

1926 births 1979 deaths Featherweight boxers Boxers from Saint Paul, Minnesota American male boxers {{US-boxing-bio-stub