Michael Joseph O'Dowd (April 5, 1895 in
St. Paul, Minnesota – July 28, 1957) was an American boxer who held the World Middleweight Championship from 1917 to 1920.
Biography
O'Dowd won the title on November 14, 1917 by knocking out
Al McCoy in the sixth round after dropping him six times.
[Mike O'Dowds's Professional Boxing Record](_blank)
BoxRec.com. Retrieved on 2014-05-18. O'Dowd was the only active boxing champion to fight at the front during
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
(1918, while serving in the U.S. Army).
[Minnesota Boxing Hall of Fame - Mike O'Dowd](_blank)
MNBHOF.org Retrieved on 2014-04-30 During his career he claimed victories over Hall of Famers
Jack Britton
Jack Britton (October 14, 1885 – March 27, 1962) was an American boxer who was the first three-time world welterweight boxing champion. Born William J. Breslin in Clinton, New York, his professional career lasted for 25 years beginning in ...
,
Mike Gibbons,
Kid Lewis and
Jeff Smith. On February 25, 1918, he held the legendary
Harry Greb
Edward Henry Greb (June 6, 1894 – October 22, 1926) was an American professional boxer. Nicknamed "The Pittsburgh Windmill", he is widely regarded by many boxing historians as one of the best pound for pound boxers of all time.
He was the Ame ...
to a draw.
O'Dowd was knocked out just once in his career, his last fight on March 16, 1923.
[Cyber Boxing Encyclopedia - Mike O'Dowd](_blank)
CyberBoxingZone.com Retrieved on 2014-04-30
O'Dowd died on July 28, 1957 from a
heart attack
A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...
at a Veteran's hospital, aged 62. He was inducted into the
Minnesota Boxing Hall of Fame
The Minnesota Boxing Hall of Fame is a commemorative organization with plans to create a museum. It celebrates the history of boxing in the state of Minnesota by honoring individuals whose achievements within the sport are noteworthy.
History
Thou ...
in 2011 and the
International Boxing Hall of Fame
The modern International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF), located in Canastota, New York, honors boxers, trainers and other contributors to the sport worldwide. Inductees are selected by members of the Boxing Writers Association of America. The I ...
in 2014.
[International Boxing Hall of Fame - Mike O'Dowd](_blank)
IBHOF.com Retrieved on 2014-04-05
Professional boxing record
All information in this section is derived from
BoxRec
BoxRec or boxrec.com is a website dedicated to holding updated records of professional and amateur boxers, both male and female. It also maintains a MediaWiki-based encyclopaedia of boxing.
The objective of the site is to document every profess ...
,
unless otherwise stated.
Official record
All
newspaper decision A newspaper decision was a type of decision in professional boxing. It was rendered by a consensus of sportswriters attending a bout after it had ended inconclusively with a "no decision", as many regions had not adopted the National Sporting Club o ...
s are officially regarded as “no decision” bouts and are not counted in the win/loss/draw column.
Unofficial record
Record with the inclusion of
newspaper decision A newspaper decision was a type of decision in professional boxing. It was rendered by a consensus of sportswriters attending a bout after it had ended inconclusively with a "no decision", as many regions had not adopted the National Sporting Club o ...
s in the win/loss/draw column.
See also
*
List of middleweight boxing champions Championship recognition
1884–1910
Champions were recognized by public acclamation. A champion in that era was a fighter who had a notable win over another fighter and kept winning afterward. Retirements or disputed results could lead to a cha ...
References
External links
O'Dowd's Record at Cyber Boxing Zone*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Odowd, Mike
1895 births
1957 deaths
United States Army personnel of World War I
Middleweight boxers
Boxers from Saint Paul, Minnesota
American male boxers