Hall of Fame Professional Boxer. He was the former WBA World Lightweight Champion (1962, 1963 to 1965) and the former WBC Lightweight Champion (1963 to 1965). Raised in Chicago, his interest of the sport was born from his roughhousing with neighborhood friends. His energies would later be refined in a disciplined manner during his training sessions at the Chicago gym owned by the legendary heavyweight Joe Louis. Following his amateur career, he turned professional in 1956 came under the guidance of Hall of Fame bantamweight-turned-trainer Johnny Coulon and with his influence, Perkins developed into an intelligent boxer with effective punching ability. On September 14th, 1962, he captured the WBA lightweight crown with a 15-round unanimous decision over Italy's Duilio Loi, however three-months later he was on the loosing end of the scorecards with Loi reclaiming the belt. In June of 1963, Perkins secured both the WBA and WBC titles with a 15-round unanimous decision over Roberto Cruz and had two successful defense bouts before falling to Carlos Hernandez in January 1965. He went onto capture the NABF Welterweight crown in 1973 and retired from boxing two years later after compiling a 74 win (21 knockout) 20 loss and 1 draw record. Perkins only suffered one loss by knockout during his professional career and held the distinction of participating in boxing contests in over 20 countries. He died of complications from diabetes and dementia. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2008.
Hall of Fame Professional Boxer. He was the former WBA World Lightweight Champion (1962, 1963 to 1965) and the former WBC Lightweight Champion (1963 to 1965). Raised in Chicago, his interest of the sport was born from his roughhousing with neighborhood friends. His energies would later be refined in a disciplined manner during his training sessions at the Chicago gym owned by the legendary heavyweight Joe Louis. Following his amateur career, he turned professional in 1956 came under the guidance of Hall of Fame bantamweight-turned-trainer Johnny Coulon and with his influence, Perkins developed into an intelligent boxer with effective punching ability. On September 14th, 1962, he captured the WBA lightweight crown with a 15-round unanimous decision over Italy's Duilio Loi, however three-months later he was on the loosing end of the scorecards with Loi reclaiming the belt. In June of 1963, Perkins secured both the WBA and WBC titles with a 15-round unanimous decision over Roberto Cruz and had two successful defense bouts before falling to Carlos Hernandez in January 1965. He went onto capture the NABF Welterweight crown in 1973 and retired from boxing two years later after compiling a 74 win (21 knockout) 20 loss and 1 draw record. Perkins only suffered one loss by knockout during his professional career and held the distinction of participating in boxing contests in over 20 countries. He died of complications from diabetes and dementia. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2008.
Bio by: C.S.
Advertisement
