Gustav George Lesnevich (February 22, 1915 – February 28, 1964) was an American

boxer Boxer most commonly refers to: * Boxer (boxing), a competitor in the sport of boxing *Boxer (dog), a breed of dog Boxer or boxers may also refer to: Animal kingdom * Boxer crab * Boxer shrimp, a small group of decapod crustaceans * Boxer snipe ee ...

who held the World Light Heavyweight Championship.

Boxing career

Lesnevich was born and raised in

Cliffside Park, New Jersey Cliffside Park is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 23,594,Billy Conn William David Conn (October 8, 1917 – May 29, 1993) was an Irish American professional boxer and Light Heavyweight Champion famed for his fights with Joe Louis. He had a professional boxing record of 63 wins, 11 losses and 1 draw, with 14 wins ...

, but lost a decision. In 1941 he took on

Anton Christoforidis Anton Christoforidis (; 26 May 1917 – 19 October 1985) was a Greek professional light heavyweight boxer. He won the NBA Light Heavyweight Championship in 1941, making him the first Greek to become a world boxing champion. Early life Chris ...

, winning the NBA light heavyweight title by decision. Later that year he defended the title twice against Tami Mauriello, winning both decisions to become the undisputed light heavyweight champion. In 1948 he lost a decision to

Freddie Mills Frederick Percival Mills (26 June 1919 – 25 July 1965) was an English boxer, and the world light heavyweight champion from 1948 to 1950. Mills was tall and did not have a sophisticated boxing style; he relied on two-fisted aggression, relen ...

along with his title recognition. In 1949 he took on

Ezzard Charles Ezzard Mack Charles (July 7, 1921 – May 28, 1975), known as the Cincinnati Cobra, was an American professional boxer and World Heavyweight Champion. Known for his slick defense and precision, he is often considered the greatest light heavywei ...

, but was TKO'd in the 7th, and retired after the bout. In addition to his various accolades, Lesnevich was named

Ring Magazine Fighter of the Year ''The Ring (magazine), The Ring'' magazine was established in 1922 and has named a Fighter of the Year since 1928, which this list covers. The award, selected by the magazine editors, is based on a boxer's performance in the ring.United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mu ...

from 1943 to 1945.

Professional boxing record

References

External links

* * , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Lesnevich, Gus 1915 births 1964 deaths Boxers from New Jersey People from Cliffside Park, New Jersey Sportspeople from Bergen County, New Jersey United States Coast Guard enlisted American male boxers Light-heavyweight boxers United States Coast Guard personnel of World War II

Boxing career

Professional boxing record

See also

References

External links