Julian Jackson (born September 12, 1960) is a former
professional boxer from the
U.S. Virgin Islands who competed from 1981 to 1998. He is a three-time world champion in two weight classes, having held the
WBA super welterweight title from 1987 to 1990, and the
WBC middleweight
Middleweight is a weight class in combat sports.
Boxing Professional
In professional boxing, the middleweight division is contested above and up to .
Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have be ...
title twice between 1990 and 1995. Possessing formidable
knockout
A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, muay thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving strikin ...
power, Jackson is regarded by many as one of the hardest punchers in boxing history,
pound for pound, and was ranked number 25 by
''The Ring'' magazine in a 2003 list of "100 Greatest Punchers". Jackson's knockout-to-win ratio stands at 89%. Jackson was elected to the
International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2019.
Amateur career
Jackson represented the United States Virgin Islands at the
1979 Pan American Games, losing his first fight to
Jose Baret of the
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares with ...
.
Jackson reportedly completed his amateur career with a record of 15 wins, 2 losses.
Professional career
Jackson turned professional in February 1981 and had many of his early fights in
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...
, where he lived for a short time, and gained a shot at
WBA super welterweight champion
Mike McCallum
Mike McCallum (born 7 December 1956) is a Jamaican former professional boxer who competed from 1981 to 1997. He held world championships in three weight classes, including the WBA super welterweight title from 1984 to 1988, the WBA middlewei ...
in August 1986. Jackson hurt the champion on a couple occasions in the first round, but McCallum came storming back with a barrage that forced the referee to stop matters in the second round.
After McCallum moved up to middleweight, Jackson got his second shot at the now-vacant WBA title in November 1987 against Korean
Baek In-chul, winning in three rounds. Baek would go on to win the WBA super-middleweight title a year later. Jackson made three defenses of his crown, against former
IBF title-holder
Buster Drayton
Moses Buster Drayton (March 2, 1952 – November 20, 2022) was an American boxer who won the IBF world title at light middleweight (154 lb). Drayton turned pro in 1978 and won the vacant IBF light middleweight title with a decision win over Ca ...
(TKO 3), Francisco DeJesus (KO 8), and future three-time champion
Terry Norris (TKO 2). All these defenses were won with a single knockout punch.
Jackson then vacated his crown, moved up to 160 lb (73 kg), and was matched against
Herol 'Bomber' Graham
Herol Graham (born 13 September 1959) is a British former professional boxer who competed from 1978 to 1998. A three-time world title challenger, he is generally acknowledged as one of the best British boxers of the post-war era to have never ...
for the vacant
WBC middleweight title. Due to Jackson's recent retina damage which had required surgery, the
British Boxing Board of Control
The British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC) is the governing body of professional boxing in the United Kingdom.
History
The British Boxing Board of Control was formed in 1929 from the old National Sporting Club and is headquartered in Cardif ...
felt that Jackson was returning to boxing too soon and didn't allow him to box in the UK, so the bout was held at Torrequebrada Hotel & Casino, Benalmádena, Andalucía, Spain on 24 November 1990.
Graham was putting on his typical savvy performance against Jackson: countering, slipping, and dancing out of the way, targeting Jackson's vulnerable eye which started to swell. After being consistently beaten to the punch for three and a half rounds, Jackson then unleashed one of the great right hands in boxing history. After Jackson connected with the punch, Graham was unconscious before he hit the canvas, and was revived only after five alarming minutes.
Defenses against Dennis Milton (KO 1), Ismael Negron (KO 1), and Ron Collins (TKO 5) ended quickly, but
Thomas Tate would make Jackson work longer and harder in their August 1992 encounter – Julian had to go to the scorecards for the first time in a title bout in winning a 12-round unanimous decision, scoring a knockdown along the way. At this point Jackson was in the middle of the pound-for-pound rankings.
This would lead to his showdown in May 1993 with another big hitter,
Gerald McClellan
Gerald Allen McClellan (born October 23, 1967) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1988 to 1995. He is a two-time middleweight world champion, having held the WBO title from 1991 to 1992, and the WBC title from 1993 to ...
. This time the challenger prevailed, as Jackson failed to find the knockout blow when hitting McClellan with hard punches and controlling Rounds 2 and 3, with McClellan turning the fight around and knocking Jackson down twice in the fifth round. The second knockdown prompted the referee to stop the fight, after Jackson made it to his feet yet remained unsteady. After winning his next three fights, Jackson had another shot at the title in May 1994 in a rematch with McClellan. In a very brief fight, Jackson hit McClellan with some hard punches, but Jackson was then hurt himself and put under heavy pressure by McClellan, with McClellan flooring Jackson with a left hook to the body after 65 seconds. The referee counted Jackson out as he rose to his feet.
After McClellan vacated the title to move up to super-middleweight, Jackson would have a second but brief reign as WBC middleweight champion, beating the previously undefeated European champion
Agostino Cardamone in March 1995. Jackson had a shaky end to the first round, during which he was hurt and put under pressure until the bell by Cardamone, who wasn't considered a hard puncher. In round two however, Jackson again showed his punching power by suddenly dropping Cardamone heavily with a short right hand. Cardamone managed to make it to his feet but remained badly shaken, forcing the referee to stop the fight.
Jackson lost the title in his first defense against
Quincy Taylor
Quincy Lee Taylor (born July 18, 1963) is an American former professional boxer who competed between 1986 and 2001. He held the WBC middleweight title from 1995 to 1996.
Professional career
Taylor, a southpaw, turned pro in 1986. In 1987, he ...
in August 1995, by a sixth round stoppage. During the fight with Taylor, Jackson tore his
rotator cuff and looked a shadow of his former self. Jackson would have four more low-key victories, before ending his career with losses to
Verno Phillips
Verno Jeremias Phillips (born November 29, 1969) is a Belizean former professional boxer who competed from 1988 to 2008. He is a three-time junior middleweight world champion, having held the WBO title from 1993 to 1995, and the IBF title twice ...
and Anthony Jones, both in nine rounds, in 1998.
Life after boxing
After retiring from the sport, Jackson joined the ministry and still lives in his birthplace of St. Thomas, Virgin Islands. He has continued his involvement in the local boxing field as a trainer and coach, and his three sons,
Julius Jackson
Julius Jackson (born August 1, 1987) is a professional boxer from the Virgin Islands who qualified for the 2008 Olympics at light-heavyweight, as did his brother John Jackson. Their father is boxer Julian Jackson.
Amateur career
At the 2007 Wo ...
, Julian Jackson Jr. and
John Jackson, have all competed professionally since 2009.
Jackson was once hired by
Coral World Ocean Park in St. Thomas as a way to attract visitors to the park.
[https://tripbucket.com/dreams/dream/visit-coral-world-ocean-park-saint-thomas-usvi/]
Professional boxing record
References
External links
*
Q&A: Julian Jackson!
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, Julian
1960 births
Living people
World boxing champions
United States Virgin Islands male boxers
People from Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands
American male boxers
World Boxing Association champions
World Boxing Council champions
World middleweight boxing champions
World light-middleweight boxing champions
Boxers at the 1979 Pan American Games
Pan American Games competitors for the United States Virgin Islands
International Boxing Hall of Fame inductees