Dick Richardson (boxer)
| Dick Richardson | |
|---|---|
| Statistics | |
| Real name | Richard Alexander Richardson |
| Rated at | Heavyweight |
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (191 cm) |
| Nationality |
 Welsh
|
| Born | 1 June 1934 Newport, Monmouthshire, Wales |
| Died | 15 July 1999 (aged 65) |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 47 |
| Wins | 31 |
| Wins by KO | 24 |
| Losses | 14 |
| Draws | 2 |
| No contests | 0 |
Dick Richardson (1 June 1934 – 15 July 1999) was a heavyweight boxer from the Maesglas area of Newport, Monmouthshire, Wales. He held the European heavyweight title from March 1960 to June 1962. In all, he won 31 of his 47 professional bouts, losing 14, with two drawn. He was one of a quartet of outstanding British heavyweights in the 1950s and early 1960s, along with Henry Cooper, Joe Erskine and Brian London, who held out the possibility of a British heavyweight world champion.
Richardson defeated a number of top heavyweights in his career, including; Ezzard Charles, Karl Mildenberger, Bob Baker, Brian London and Hans Kalbfell.
He was born Richard Alexander Richardson but was known as Dick. He was 6 feet 3 inches (191 cm) tall and weighed about 14 stone 4 pounds (200 lb; 91 kg). He had a few amateur bouts before being called up for his national service in 1953. He served in the Royal Army Service Corps where he became boxing champion. However he was beaten in the inter-services boxing championships by Brian London, later to become British heavyweight boxing champion, and fighting under his real name of Harper. He turned professional in 1954, being managed by Wally Lesley and trained by Johnny Lewis at a gym in Blackfriars, London. In September 1954, he lost his first professional bout on points against Henry Cooper’s twin brother, George, fighting under the ring name of Jim Cooper. He avenged this defeat in March 1955 with a technical knockout in the second round.
Richardson began to build up an impressive list of victories, many of them inside the distance. In May 1956 he fought fellow Welsh heavyweight, Joe Erskine, in the Maindy Stadium, Cardiff, in front of 35,000 fans. Despite knocking Erskine down in round five, Richardson lost on points. Richardson continued to look for higher-class opponents and in October 1956, he fought the ex-world champion Ezzard Charles in a fight that became a farce when the American was disqualified in round two for persistent holding. He next fought the world-class Cuban, Nino Valdes in December 1956, but was forced to retire in the eighth round.
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