Joey Archer (born February 11, 1938, in New York City, New York) is an American retired boxer. He defeated Sugar Ray Robinson in Robinson's final fight in 1965 (by unanimous decision) and fought Hall of Fame boxers such as Emile Griffith and Dick Tiger.

Joey Archer
Born (1938-02-11) February 11, 1938 (age 86)
Bronx, New York, United States
NationalityAmerican
Statistics
Weight(s)Middleweight
Height5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
StanceOrthodox
Boxing record
Total fights49
Wins45
Wins by KO8
Losses4

Professional boxing career edit

“Irish” Joey Archer began his career in 1956 at 18 years of age.[1] He was a master boxer with excellent speed but lacked any semblance of power in his punches. Fighting mostly in various New York and Texas venues, he was a winner in his first 30 fights, with only 7 victories coming inside the distance. His most notable win was against the highly ranked Don Fullmer by a decision. This win earned Archer a date against tough Puerto Rican contender Jose “Monon” Gonzalez, who gave Archer his first defeat in a split decision.

Two months later Archer avenged the loss by beating Gonzalez in a decisive decision. The victory propelled Archer on a streak of 15 consecutive wins against some of the Middleweight division's top fighters, including England's Mick Leahy, Denny Moyer, Argentina's Farid Salim, Canada's Blair Richardson, Holley Mims, Rubin “Hurricane” Carter, and his most impressive career win, against future Hall-of-Famer and three time World champion Dick Tiger.

The final win in the streak was against “Sugar” Ray Robinson in what would be the last fight of Robinson's illustrious, Hall-of-Fame career.[2] Having reached the top of the Middleweight division, Archer suffered an unexpected split decision loss to the ranked Don Fullmer.

Nevertheless, Archer earned a title challenge against Middleweight champion Griffith based on his recent winning streak. The title fight against Virgin Islander Griffith in 1966 was a hard-fought, close contest, and after 15 rounds of fighting, Griffith won by a majority decision.

Archer's dream of winning the prized Middleweight title went unfulfilled, as the referee ruled the contest a draw, with the other two judges voting in favor of the champion. Six months later, Archer would again fight Griffith for the Middleweight title, and would once again taste defeat in a very narrow, controversial decision.[3]

Retirement edit

“Irish” Joey Archer announced his retirement from boxing after the disappointment of these two bitter, close losses to Emile Griffith. He ended his career with a record of 45 victories (with 8 by KO) and only 4 defeats.

Although he never captured a world title, Archer's boxing skills earned him induction into the World Boxing Hall of Fame in 2005. He is on the eligibility list of the International Boxing Hall of Fame.[4]


Professional boxing record edit

49 fights 45 wins 4 losses
By knockout 8 0
By decision 37 4
No. Result Record Opponent Type Round, time Date Location Notes
49 Loss 45–4 Emile Griffith UD 15 Jan 23, 1967 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, US For WBA, WBC, and The Ring middleweight titles
48 Loss 45–3 Emile Griffith MD 15 Jul 13, 1966 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, US For WBA, WBC, and The Ring middleweight titles
47 Loss 45–2 Don Fullmer SD 12 Dec 13, 1965 Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, US For WBA American middleweight title
46 Win 45–1 Sugar Ray Robinson UD 10 Nov 10, 1965 Civic Arena, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, US
45 Win 44–1 Johnny Torres PTS 10 Feb 20, 1965 Market Street Armory, Paterson, New Jersey, US
44 Win 43–1 Dick Tiger SD 10 Oct 16, 1964 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, US
43 Win 42–1 Gaylord Barnes UD 10 Jul 30, 1964 Wahconah Park, Pittsfield, Massachusetts, US
42 Win 41–1 Willie James TKO 9 (10), 1:51 Jun 24, 1964 Wahconah Park, Pittsfield, Massachusetts, US
41 Win 40–1 Gaylord Barnes UD 10 May 27, 1964 City Arena, Richmond, Virginia, US
40 Win 39–1 Johnny Torres UD 10 May 9, 1964 Arena, Boston, Massachusetts, US
39 Win 38–1 Holley Mims SD 10 Feb 7, 1964 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, US
38 Win 37–1 Rubin Carter SD 10 Oct 25, 1963 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, US
37 Win 36–1 Farid Salim UD 10 Jul 13, 1963 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, US
36 Win 35–1 Victor Zalazar UD 10 May 18, 1963 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, US
35 Win 34–1 Blair Richardson UD 10 Feb 16, 1963 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, US
34 Win 33–1 Denny Moyer UD 10 Jan 5, 1963 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, US
33 Win 32–1 Mick Leahy UD 10 Nov 10, 1961 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, US
32 Win 31–1 Jose Gonzalez UD 10 Aug 25, 1961 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, US
31 Loss 30–1 Jose Gonzalez SD 10 Jun 23, 1961 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, US
30 Win 30–0 Don Fullmer MD 10 Feb 4, 1961 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, US
29 Win 29–0 Joe Rubino UD 8 Oct 24, 1960 St. Nicholas Arena, New York City, New York, US
28 Win 28–0 Cheffy Reyna KO 2 (6) Jun 16, 1960 Municipal Auditorium, Pensacola, Florida, US
27 Win 27–0 Babe Vance UD 8 Jan 19, 1960 Sports Arena, Amarillo, Texas, US
26 Win 26–0 Aman Peck UD 8 Nov 24, 1959 Municipal Auditorium, San Antonio, Texas, US
25 Win 25–0 Henry Burton UD 10 Nov 9, 1959 Mayfair Arena, Tyler, Texas, US
24 Win 24–0 Ralph Lucas TKO 4 (8) Jul 4, 1959 Bandera, Texas, US
23 Win 23–0 Tony Dupas UD 10 May 12, 1959 City Auditorium, Houston, Texas, US
22 Win 22–0 Tony Dupas TD 7 (10) Mar 10, 1959 Sam Houston Coliseum, Houston, Texas, US Archer suffered a bad cut from a head-butt, and was unable to continue
21 Win 21–0 Ken Biggs RTD 4 (6) Feb 11, 1959 Sam Houston Coliseum, Houston, Texas, US
20 Win 20–0 Ruben Flores PTS 4 Dec 9, 1958 Sam Houston Coliseum, Houston, Texas, US
19 Win 19–0 Willie Estes KO 1 (4) Dec 1, 1958 Memorial Auditorium, Dallas, Texas, US
18 Win 18–0 Willie Estes PTS 4 Nov 25, 1958 City Auditorium, Houston, Texas, US
17 Win 17–0 Ray Sheppard PTS 8 Nov 5, 1958 Exhibition Hall, Miami Beach, Florida, US
16 Win 16–0 Bernie Raines PTS 6 Jul 28, 1958 St. Nicholas Arena, New York City, New York, US
15 Win 15–0 Julie Jamison UD 6 Jun 2, 1958 St. Nicholas Arena, New York City, New York, US
14 Win 14–0 Joe Lissy UD 6 Mar 17, 1958 St. Nicholas Arena, New York City, New York, US
13 Win 13–0 Eddie Prince UD 6 Feb 14, 1958 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, US
12 Win 12–0 Joe Lissy UD 6 Dec 20, 1957 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, US
11 Win 11–0 Paul Griffin UD 6 Nov 11, 1957 St. Nicholas Arena, New York City, New York, US
10 Win 10–0 Jimmy Landron TKO 4 (4) Sep 30, 1957 St. Nicholas Arena, New York City, New York, US
9 Win 9–0 Danny Jones TKO 4 (4) Sep 9, 1957 St. Nicholas Arena, New York City, New York, US
8 Win 8–0 Johnny Lissy PTS 4 Aug 2, 1957 St. Nicholas Arena, New York City, New York, US
7 Win 7–0 Bernie Raines UD 4 Jul 8, 1957 St. Nicholas Arena, New York City, New York, US
6 Win 6–0 Hiram Vale UD 4 May 13, 1957 St. Nicholas Arena, New York City, New York, US
5 Win 5–0 Silby Ford PTS 4 Apr 29, 1957 St. Nicholas Arena, New York City, New York, US
4 Win 4–0 Silby Ford PTS 4 Mar 8, 1957 St. Nicholas Arena, New York City, New York, US
3 Win 3–0 Whitey Porr TKO 4 (4), 0:56 Mar 8, 1957 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, US
2 Win 2–0 Danny Jones PTS 4 Dec 21, 1956 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, US
1 Win 1–0 Danny Jones PTS 4 Nov 8, 1956 Sunnyside Garden, New York City, New York, US

References edit

  1. ^ "Nearly Great: Irish Joey Archer". Boxing.com. Archived from the original on 2019-02-22. Retrieved 2017-03-10.
  2. ^ "Goodbye Mr. Robinson". Boxing.com. Archived from the original on 2019-02-12. Retrieved 2017-03-10.
  3. ^ "The Mysterious Case of Middleweight Joey Archer". Real Combat Media.
  4. ^ "Culling The Herd: One Man's Picks For IBHOF 2010". BoxingScene. 20 October 2009.

External links edit