During the 1970s, boxing was characterized by dominating champions and history making rivalries. The decade had many super-stars, but these super-stars also had fierce rivals. Alexis Arguello, for example, who won the world Featherweight and Jr. Lightweight titles during this decade, had to overcome Alfredo Escalera twice before the decade was over.

At least six divisions had world champions who could be considered dominant: The Bantamweights had Ruben Olivares, the Super Bantamweights, (a division created in 1976) had Wilfredo Gómez winning the title in 1977 and keeping it until 1983, when he left it vacant. The Lightweights had Roberto Duran, considered by many the greatest Lightweight of all time, and who won the title in 1972 and vacated it in 1979 to seek championships at other weights, the Jr. Welterweights had Antonio Cervantes, who reigned twice in the division, the Middleweights had Carlos Monzon, sometimes refered to as King Carlos because of his seven year reign as world champion, the Light-Heavyweights had Bob Foster, who generally proffesed dislike of anyone who thought of him of as less than a champion. The Heavyweights, of course, had Muhammad Ali, who ruled twice between 1974 and 1979.

Another aspect of boxing in the 1970s is that the decade of the '70s is considered by many to be the best ever for the Heavyweight division: Ali returned in 1970 from his forced retirement, and Joe Frazier was world champion when Ali returned. Former world champions Jimmy Ellis and Floyd Patterson as well as George Foreman, Oscar Bonavena, Jerry Quarry, Earnie Shavers, Leon Spinks, Ken Norton, Larry Holmes, Ron Stander, Chuck Wepner, Jose King Roman, Light Heavyweight champ Foster, John Tate, Jimmy Young, Ron Lyle, Joe Bugner, Scott LeDoux and many others added intrigue to the division. Don King surged as a leading boxing promoter, and champions Duran, Monzon and Ali had historic rivalries with Esteban De Jesus, Rodrigo Valdez and Frazier, respectively.

Table of contents
1 A list of fights by year
2 1970
3 1971
4 1972
5 1973
6 1974
7 1975
8 1976
9 1977
10 1978
11 1979

A list of fights by year

1970

1971

1972

  • January 15- Joe Frazier retains his world Heavyweight title with a five round knockout of Terry Daniels in New Orleans.
  • April 7- Bob Foster recovers the WBA world Light-Heavyweight title, unifying it once again with his WBC championship, knocking out Vicente Rondon in two rounds at Miami. Rondon had become the second Latin American world Light Heavyweight champion when the WBA recognized him after Foster refused to defend the championship against him, but the WBC had kept Foster as world champion.
  • May 26- Joe Frazier retains his world Heavyweight title with a five round knockout over Ron Stander in Omaha.
  • June 26- Roberto Duran wins the first of four world titles, knocking out WBA world Lightweight champion Ken Buchanan in thirteen rounds at New York. The fight has a controversial ending: many believe that the blow with which Duran ended the fight was actually a low blow and he should have been disqualified.
  • June 27- Muhammad Ali knocks out Jerry Quarry in the seventh round of their Las Vegas rematch.
  • September 20- Muhammad Ali beats Floyd Patterson by a knockout in round seven of their rematch, held at New York. It is Patterson's last professional fight, he retires with a record of 55-8-1 with 40 knockouts.
  • October 28- Antonio Cervantes wins the WBA world Jr. Welterweight title for the first time, with a tenth round knockout of defending champion Alfonso Peppermint Frazer in Panama City, Panama.
  • November 17- Esteban De Jesus begins his trilogy of fights with Roberto Duran by defeating the world Lightwegith champion by a ten round unanimous decision in New York. Duran suffers his first career defeat in the non-title fight.

1973

  • January 22- George Foreman becomes world Heavyweight champion, defeating Joe Frazier by knockout in round two at Kingston, Jamaica. It is the first fight televised on HBO Boxing.
  • January 24- WBA world Flyweight champion Masao Ohba dies after his car collided with a truck in Tokyo, Japan. He left a record of 35 wins, 2 losses and 1 draw, with 15 knockouts.
  • March 31- Ken Norton becomes the second boxer to defeat Muhammad Ali, breaking Ali's jaw in route to a twelve round split decision in San Diego.
  • May 5- Eder Jofre wins the WBC world Featherweight title three years after his first retirement from boxing, defeating world champion Jose Legra by a fifteen round majority decision in Brasilia, Brazil.
  • May 19- Antonio Cervantes retains his WBA world Jr. Welterweight title with a five round knockout of Alfonso Peppermint Frazer, in their Panama City, Panama rematch.
  • June 2- Carlos Monzon retains his world Middleweight title with a fifteen round unanimous decision over Emile Griffith, at their rematch, held in Monte Carlo, Monaco.
  • July 2- Former world Heavyweight champion Joe Frazier returns to the ring, beating Joe Bugner by a twelve round decision at London, England.
  • September 1- George Foreman retains his world Heavyweight title with a first round knockout over Jose King Roman, who becomes the first Puerto Rican to challenge for the world Heavyweight championship, in Tokyo.
  • September 10- Muhammad Ali avenges his loss to Ken Norton, beating Norton by a twelve round split decision in Inglewood, California.
  • November 3- Arnold Taylor survives four knockdowns to knock out WBA world Bantamweight champion Romeo Anaya in fourteen rounds, winning the world title in Johannesburg, South Africa, in what boxing writer Chris Greyvenstein called probably the most murderous and dramatic (fight) in South African history.
  • December 1- In the first boxing fight pitting a Black man against a White man in South African history, Bob Foster, an African-American, retains his world Light Heavyweight championship with a fifteen round unanimous decision over Pierre Fourie. It was, in addition, Foster's second fifteen round decision win over Fourie.

1974

1975

  • March 24: The fight that inspired the movie Rocky: With a young Sylvester Stallone sitting at home and watching, Muhammad Ali retains his world Heavyweight championship with a fifteenth round knockout over underdog Chuck Wepner, but not without suffering a ninth round knockdown first, in Cleveland.
  • March 30- Jose Napoles retains his world Welterweight title with a controversial twelve round technical decision over Armando Muniz in Acapulco, Mexico. Although no one knew for sure when Napoles' facial cuts (which caused the fight to be stopped) happened, it was decided that they were probably the result of a headbutt in round three. Therefore, instead of giving the world title to Muniz by technical knockout, it was decided to check the judge's scorecards, and Napoles was ahead on points, making him the winner by technical decision.
  • April 26- George Foreman stages a boxing exhibition against five different boxers, including former Joe Frazier challenger Terry Daniels. He beats the five men by knockout in Toronto, Canada.
  • May 16- Muhammad Ali retains the world Heavyweight title with an eleventh round knockout of Ron Lyle in Las Vegas.
  • May 17- Antonio Cervantes retains his WBA world Jr. Welterweight title with a fifteen round decision over Esteban De Jesus in Panama City, Panama.
  • June 20- Ruben Olivares wins the WBC world Featherweight title, knocking out Bobby Chacon in the second round of their second of three fights, in Inglewood.
  • June 28- Angel Espada wins the vacant WBA world Welterweight title that had been stripped from Jose Napoles after Napoles refused to fight him, by beating Clyde Gray with a fifteen round decision in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
  • June 30- Muhammad Ali retains his world Heavyweight title with a fifteen round unanimous decision over Joe Bugner in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
  • July 12- Jose Napoles retains his world Welterweight title with a fifteen round decision over Armando Muniz in their Mexico City, Mexico rematch.
  • July 15- With only two previous professional bouts, Thailand's Saensak Muangsuring makes history by winning the WBC world Jr. Welterweight title, knocking out world champion Jose Fernandez in Bangkok. Muangsuring becomes the fastest boxer to reach a world championship after his debut.
  • August 23- The first world Junior Flyweight world championship fight sees Jaime Rios beat Rigoberto Marcano by decision in fifteen rounds at Panama City to become the WBA's world champion.
  • September 20- Davd Kotey becomes Ghana's first world champion, defeating Ruben Olivares by a fifteen round decision to win the WBC's world Featherweight championship in Inglewood.
  • September 30- The Thrilla in Manila: in what many consider the greatest fight of all times, Muhammad Ali retains his world Heavyweight title in his third fight with Joe Frazier, knocking him out in round fourteen in Manila. Ali compared this bout to being next to death.
  • December 6- Jose Napoles' last fight, as he loses his WBC world Welterweight title to John H. Stracey in Mexico City, Mexico.

1976

1977

  • March 17- Jimmy Young defeats George Foreman by a twelve round unanimous decision at the Roberto Clemente Coliseum, San Juan, Puerto Rico. Immediately after the fight, Foreman has a religious experience, becomes a new-born Christian and retires from boxing.
  • April 23- In a fight without any titles at stake, WBC world Bantamweight champion Carlos Zarate defeats WBA world champion Alfonso Zamora in four rounds at Inglewood. A fan was arrested for climbing into the ring during the first round of the fight.
  • May 11- Ken Norton knocks out former Olympian Duane Bobick in the first round at the Madison Square Garden, New York.
  • May 21- Wilfredo Gómez wins the first of three world titles by knocking out WBC world Jr. Featherweight champion Dong Kyun Yum in twelve rounds at San Juan.
  • July 30- Carlos Monzon recovers from a second round knockdown and retains his world Middleweight championship with a fifteen round unanimous decision against Rodrigo Valdes in their rematch, at Monte Carlo, Monaco. Monzon broke the all time record of defenses at the Middleweight division with fourteen successful defenses, and he retired permanently after this fight.
  • September 29- Muhammad Ali retains the world Heavyweight championship with a fifteen round unanimous decision over Earnie Shavers in New York.
  • November 5- Rodrigo Valdes wins the undisputed world Middleweight championship left vacant by archrival Carlos Monzon, outpointing Bennie Briscoe by unanimity after fifteen rounds in Campioni d' Italia, Italy.

1978

  • January 21- The third and final chapter of the Duran-De Jesus trilogy, as Roberto Duran re-unifies his WBA world Lightweight championship with the WBC one, defeating Esteban De Jesus by a knockout in round twelve at Las Vegas. Duran had been stripped of his WBC belt for failing to meet Itshimatzu Suzuki in a world championship bout, Suzuki later won the WBC title and lost it to De Jesus.
  • January 28- Alexis Arguello wins the second of three world titles, knocking out WBC world Jr. Lightweight champion Alfredo Escalera in thirteen rounds in Bayamon, Puerto Rico.
  • February 15- Leon Spinks wins the undisputed world Heavyweight championship, defeating Muhammad Ali by a fifteen round split decision, in Las Vegas.
  • April 15- Eusebio Pedroza begins his record-setting championship run as WBA world Featherweight champion, knocking out Cecilio Lastra in thirteen rounds at Panama City, Panama.
  • May 20- Jose Cuevas retains his WBA world welterweight title with a first round knockout of former world champion Billy Backus in Inglewood.
  • June 9- Larry Holmes becomes the WBC's world Heavyweight champion by defeating Ken Norton by a fifteen round split decision, round fifteen of their fight being regarded as one of the greatest round fifteens in history by many experts. Norton had been awarded recognition as world champion by the WBC after Leon Spinks refused to fight him.
  • September 15- Muhammad Ali makes history, becoming the first boxer to be world Heavyweight champion three times, by beating Leon Spinks by a fifteen round unanimous decision at their New Orleans rematch.
  • October 28- In an eagerly anticipated bout, Wilfredo Gómez delivers what many consider the greatest victory ever by a Puerto Rican boxer, knocking out Carlos Zarate in five rounds to retain the WBC world Super Bantamweight title, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
  • November 10- Larry Holmes retains his WBC world Heavyweight title with a seventh round knockout over Uruguayan Alfredo Evangelista, in Las Vegas.

1979

     
Also see: Boxing in the 1960s, Boxing in the 1980s.