Benny Leonard
| Benny Leonard | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Statistics | |
| Real name | Benjamin Leiner |
| Nickname(s) | Ghetto Wizard The Great |
| Rated at | Lightweight |
| Height | 5 ft 5 in (1.65 m) |
| Reach | 69 in (175 cm) |
| Nationality | American |
| Born |
April 7, 1896 New York, New York, United States |
| Died | April 18, 1947 (aged 51) New York, New York, St. Nicholas Arena |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 219 |
| Wins | 183 |
| Wins by KO | 70 |
| Losses | 24 |
| Draws | 8 |
| No contests | 4 |
Benny Leonard (born Benjamin Leiner; Hebrew name דוב בער בן אברהם גרשון [Dov Ber ben Avraham Gershon]; April 7, 1896 – April 18, 1947) was an American professional lightweight boxer. Widely considered one of the all-time greats, he was ranked 8th on The Ring magazine's list of the "80 Best Fighters of the Last 80 Years" and placed 7th in ESPN's "50 Greatest Boxers of All-Time". In 2005, the International Boxing Research Organization ranked Leonard as the #1 lightweight, and #8 best pound-for-pound fighter of all-time. Statistical website BoxRec rates Leonard as the 2nd best lightweight ever, while The Ring magazine founder Nat Fleischer placed him at #2. Boxing historian Bert Sugar placed him 6th in his Top 100 Fighters catalogue. Leonard is a member of the National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame, the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame, the Ring Magazine Hall of Fame, the World Boxing Hall of Fame, and the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
Benny Leonard was born and raised in the Jewish ghetto, which was then located in the lower east side of Manhattan, New York City, on whose streets he learned to fight. He was the son of Minny and Gershon Leiner, who immigrated from Eastern Europe.
Leonard was known for his speed, excellent boxing technique and ability to think fast on his feet. He also was a hard hitter, who scored 70 KOs out of his 183 wins. Leonard was defeated 24 times and was held to a draw on 8 occasions. As was common in the era in which he fought, Leonard engaged in several no-decision matches and is believed to have fought 219 bouts.
Leonard debuted on a Saturday in November 1911—the exact date is unknown—losing in three rounds at the Fondon Athletic Club in New York when the fight was stopped because he was bleeding through the nose. He won 12 of his next 18 bouts (three were no-decisions), establishing a reputation as a good local fighter before meeting Canadian Frankie Fleming in May 1912. Leonard was knocked out for only the second time in his career. He lost a rematch with Fleming 16 months later. (Not surprisingly, Fleming got the first shot at Freddie Welsh, failing to unseat the lightweight champion in a May 1915 fight the newspapers awarded to Welsh.) Leonard's next big test came when he took on featherweight champion Johnny Kilbane in Atlantic City in April 1915. Kilbane won six of ten rounds to win the decision. "Leonard might have beaten the champion if he had a little more confidence," the Chicago Tribune said, "but even when he was having the best of the going he shut up like a clam and clinched for all he was worth."
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