Three-time heavyweight king Muhammad Ali told us all he was ‘The Greatest’ many, many years ago. Few believed him back then, but there are no arguments now.
Nathan Fogg recounts the story of two heavyweight greats – Muhammad Ali and Floyd Patterson – meeting in the ring for a rematch on September 20, 1972.
Matt Christie looks back at Ken Norton, a heavyweight destined to be remembered as a jawbreaker
Marc Gatford recounts the story of Muhammad Ali’s final win
A last round rally clinched revenge victory for ‘The Greatest’ – Muhammad Ali
Matt Christie details Cassius Clay’s road from childhood to amateur glory that peaked on September 5, 1960
Before he passed away, legendary trainer Angelo Dundee spoke to Matt Christie about five of his magical nights
Thomas Georgiou looks back on the life of heavyweight great Ken Norton
Muhammad Ali battered Brian London in August 6, 1966 mismatch, writes Thomas Georgiou
World heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali took on Japanese grappler, Antonio Inoki, on June 26, 1976 and the mixed match ended up as just a mish-mash as we reported all those years ago
The original Boxing News ringside report from when Henry Cooper met Cassius Clay, as Muhammad Ali was then known on June 18, 1963
On this day, June 11, 2005 Kevin McBride handed Mike Tyson his last loss. He recounts the event in his own words
History’s most significant fighter Jack Johnson died on June 10 1946, writes John Dennen
Muhammad Ali passed away a year ago today. Alan Hubbard, who travelled the world with him, remembers the life and times of The Greatest
In April 2010, Matt Christie spoke to Muhammad Ali’s now passed trainer, Angelo Dundee. This is what he had to say about their incredible journey
Written in 1986, former Boxing News editor Harry Mullan details his first trip to America, which culminated with being ringside for Muhammad Ali’s last great performance
Fifty moments, both good and bad, that shaped the legend of Muhammad Ali
There was ‘death in the air’ as Muhammad Ali prepared to come up against the formidable George Foreman in 1974
Olympic medallist and KO king Kanat Islam talks about his heroes, ambitions and love for Kazakhstan
Matt Christie tells the story of Muhammad Ali vs Sonny Liston, a historic boxing rematch that was an utter shambles from beginning to end
Boxing News sits at the heart of the boxing scene. We want to share with you our passion by guiding you through the world of boxing, share our ringside seats and experiences, to listen to your opinions as we form our own, and to retain the integrity and excitement that seduces boxing fans around the world.
Boxing News was founded in 1909 by original editor John Murray as, simply, Boxing. Murray had been a regular contributor to Health & Strength magazine and convinced its owner, Bill Berry (later Lord Camrose) to launch a weekly magazine dedicated solely to boxing. It is believed Murray had been inspired by Jack Johnson beating Tommy Burns to become the first black World heavyweight champion. In his first editorial, Murray stated, "Boxing will stand for good clean sport. Its success of failure is in the hands of those who believe in sport of this character. Our energies will be devoted to giving the best paper that time, thought and money can devise." When circulation began to decline in the depression days of the late 20s, the name of the magazine was changed to Boxing, Racing and Football. In October 1931, the paper was sold to a syndicate of London sportsmen, who installed Sydney Rushton, a long-time London fight reporter, as the new editor. The layout changed, the page size was increased and Rushton proved less popular than Murray. The paper was again put up for sale and, while waiting for a buyer, the old features were reinstated and there was no official Editor. Another set of sportsmen bought the paper and Godfrey Williams was named editor. He attempted to run Boxing as a newspaper, cutting popular features and reducing news stories down to the shortest possible length. The circulation quickly dropped to its lowest ever.
Billy Masters, a city printer and huge boxing fan, saved the paper, appointing W.H. Millier as the new editor. He completely reinvigorated the magazine, helped in no small measure by its first colour cover. In 1935, Millier departed and the owner replaced him with Sydney Ackland, who had previously worked as John Murray's assistant editor and had been taught by him. World War II brought many changes as first Sydney, then replacement Stanley Nelson, contributed to the war effort. Murray made a popular comeback as editor but ill health forced him to step down in 1941. Gilbert Odd took over until the building housing the paper was destroyed by the enemy. Odd was then called up for national service and both Masters and Murray served further terms. Now with the new name of Boxing News, the paper was bought by Australian publicist Vivian Brodzky and former promoter Sydney Hulls. Northern sports writer Bert Callis was the new editor. Odd took over for a second term upon Callis’ retirement. Odd implemented the tradition of reporting the results and fighters' weights for every single fight in the country. When Odd quit to write books, he was succeeded by Jack Wilson and then Tim Riley. When Brodzky died, Boxing News was sold twice in quick succession, and Graham Houston became editor in 1971, immediately broadening the range of coverage, especially in North America. Houston left in 1977 to work on morning newspapers in Canada. This prompted the appointment of perhaps BN's greatest Editor of recent years, Harry Mullan. Circulation increased exponentially during the Mullan years, which doubled as a time of great change in the boxing world. Most notable new developments were the proliferation of ‘world’ titles and the increase in the number of major British promoters. Mullan was fiercely principled and tremendously well respected in the boxing fraternity. When Mullan left in October 1996, he was given this glowing tribute from then BN Publisher Peter Kravitz: "His writing stands comparison with the Lieblings, Hausers and Mailers of this century of boxing." Assistant Editor Claude Abrams succeeded Mullan in November 1996. Boxing News was redesigned and switched to a full-colour format and become more extensive in content. In March 1999 the paper went to A3 size before reverting to A4, and increasing in size to 48 pages (from 24) in September 2005. The magazine remained the main trade paper in Britain. Abrams left BN – after 22 years – in December 2009, just three months after the publication celebrated its centenary, and was succeeded as editor by Tris Dixon.
Tris left the magazine in December 2014, with Matt Christie taking over as editor.
