Super bantamweight, also known as junior featherweight, is a
weight class in
professional boxing
Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse bid, purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional bouts are supervised by a regula ...
, contested from and up to .
There were attempts by boxing promoters in the 1920s to establish this weight class, but few sanctioning organizations or state athletic commissions would recognize it.
Jack Wolf won recognition as champion when he beat
Joe Lynch at
Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...
on September 21, 1922, but afterwards the weight division fell into disuse.
The division was revived in the 1970s and the first title fight in 54 years in the division took place in 1976 when the
World Boxing Council recognized Rigoberto Riasco as its champion when he defeated
Waruinge Nakayama in eight rounds. The
World Boxing Association crowned its first champion in 1977 when
Soo Hwan Hong
Hong Soo-hwan (Hangul: 홍수환, born May 26, 1950) is a South Korean former professional boxer who competed between 1969 and 1980. He is a world champion in two weight classes, having held the WBA and ''The Ring'' bantamweight titles from ...
knocked out Hector Carasquilla in three rounds to win the inaugural WBA championship. In 1983 the
International Boxing Federation
The International Boxing Federation (IBF) is one of four major organizations recognized by the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) which sanctions professional boxing bouts, alongside the World Boxing Association (WBA), World Boxing Counci ...
sanctioned the bout between Bobby Berna and Seung-In Suh for its first title. Berna won in the eleventh round.
Notable fighters to hold championship titles at this weight have been
Wayne McCullough,
Guillermo Rigondeaux,
Scott Quigg,
Wilfredo Gómez,
Lupe Pintor,
Jeff Fenech
Jeff Fenech (born 28 May 1964) is an Australian former professional boxer who competed between 1984 and 2008. He won world titles in three weight divisions, having held the IBF bantamweight title from 1985 to 1987, the WBC super-bantamweight t ...
,
Fabrice Benichou,
Daniel Zaragoza,
Kennedy McKinney,
Érik Morales,
Marco Antonio Barrera,
Manny Pacquiao,
Rafael Márquez,
Toshiaki Nishioka,
Carl Frampton,
Leo Santa Cruz,
Isaac Dogboe and
Israel Vázquez. Gómez holds the record for longest title reign, at five years and ten months.
Current world champions
Current champions
Current ''The Ring'' world rankings
As of , .
Keys:
: Current ''
The Ring'' world champion
References
{{Boxing weight classes
Bantamweight
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