Nicholas Ward often known as Nick Ward (1 April 1811 – 17 February 1850) was an English bare-knuckle fighter. Nick Ward was the heavyweight champion of England for four months in 1841. His first recorded fight was in 1835 against Harry John Lockyer. In 1840 he fought his brother's old enemy James Burke; Burke was a feared and dangerous fighter, who had killed one opponent, the champion

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 ...

. Following the match Jem Ward had refused to fight Burke, would not hand over the championship belt or acknowledge Burke as the heavyweight champion, even after he was acquitted of murder. Nick Ward won the bout against Burke when his gang of supporters forced the

referee A referee is an official, in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The official tasked with this job may be known by a variety of other titl ...

to disqualify Burke for an alleged foul. This winning pattern was repeated when in February 1841 Ward became heavyweight champion. He beat

Ben Caunt Ben Caunt (22 March 1815 – 10 September 1861) was a 19th-century English bare-knuckle boxer who became the heavyweight boxing champion known as the "Torkard Giant" and "Big Ben". Early life Caunt was born on 22 March 1815 in Hucknall Torkard, ...

, the reigning champion, when Caunt was disqualified, after the

succumbed to pressure from the crowd claiming Caunt hit Ward while he was down. In May of the same year Caunt legitimately beat Ward and regained his title. At this time boxing was governed by the less than arduous

London Prize Ring rules The London Prize Ring Rules were a list of boxing rules promulgated in 1838 and revised in 1853. These rules were based on those drafted by England's Jack Broughton in 1743 (known as the Broughton Rules) and governed the conduct of prizefighting ...

. The more strict and fair Queensbury rules were not implemented until much later in the century. Nick Ward is today considered a "mediocre" boxer, known for using "unfair tactics" and avoiding head on fighting. However, in spite of his reputation for underhand fighting he was considered a good counter puncher.Nick Ward
/ref> Ward died in

Soho Soho is an area of the City of Westminster, part of the West End of London. Originally a fashionable district for the aristocracy, it has been one of the main entertainment districts in the capital since the 19th century. The area was develop ...

, London in 1850 aged 38.

References

External links

The Bare-knuckle Champions of England
1811 births 1850 deaths Bare-knuckle boxers English male boxers {{England-boxing-bio-stub

See also

References

External links