What is the ‘Lonsdale Belt’? The history of one of British boxing’s most prestigious championships

The Tyson Fury-Deontay Wilder rivalry had a second the place Wilder mocked Fury for the “invisible” lineal heavyweight title that the Brit boasts about. That prompted the “Gypsy King” to tell “The Bronze Bomber” in regards to the lineal championship’s wealthy historical past in boxing, earlier than snatching Wilder’s bodily WBC title for good measure.

Equally, the Lonsdale Belt has a storied historical past as one among British boxing’s most prestigious championships. Chris Billam-Smith and Tommy McCarthy conflict in cruiserweight motion for the Lonsdale title Saturday as a part of Matchroom Boxing’s Struggle Camp 2 card at Matchroom HQ in Brentwood, Essex and streaming stay and solely on DAZN.

The winner would be the newest Lonsdale Belt holder becoming a member of the likes of Lennox Lewis, Billy Joe Saunders, Kell Brook and plenty of extra.

Right here, DAZN Information takes a have a look at numerous elements of the Lonsdale Belt’s historical past, together with its origin, present holders and outright winners.

Origin of the Lonsdale Belt

The Lonsdale Belt, a British boxing award, was based by Lord Lonsdale, president of the Nationwide Sporting Membership, in 1909, as reported by Britannica.com. The belt was first designed to be awarded to the champion in every division, having subsequently modified arms each time that champion suffered defeat. The very first Lonsdale Belt was awarded to light-weight Freddie Welsh, who acquired the distinction after profitable the NSC British Light-weight title in 1909. The shift from that got here in 1929 when the British Boxing Board of Management (BBBofC) assumed management of the designation of the Lonsdale Belt, awarding it to a champion who gained three championshp bouts inside a division — and never essentially consecutively. In 2013, the BBBofC launched the Lonsdale badge to be adorned on recipients’ trunks to additional entrench the award’s status in British boxing.

Present holders of the Lonsdale Belt

• Vacant; Flyweight
• Vacant; Tremendous Flyweight
• Lee McGregor; Bantamweight
• Brad Foster; Tremendous Bantamweight
• Leigh Wooden; Featherweight
• Anthony Cacace; Tremendous Featherweight
• Maxi Hughes; Light-weight
• Akeem Ennis Brown.; Junior Welterweight
• Ekow Essuman; Welterweight
• Ted Cheeseman; Junior Middleweight
• Felix Money; Middleweight
• Lennox Clarke; Tremendous Middleweight
• Craig Richards; Gentle Heavyweight
• Vacant; Cruiserweight
• Joe Joyce; Heavyweight

Outright winners of the Lonsdale Belt

• Jim Driscoll; Featherweight (1910)
• Digger Stanley; Bantamweight (1912)
• Freddie Welsh; Light-weight (1912)
• Bombardier Billy Wells; Heavyweight (1913)
• Johnny Basham; Welterweight (1915)
• Joe Fox; Bantamweight (1917)
• Jimmy Wilde; Flyweight (1917)
• Tancy Lee; Featherweight (1917)
• Dick Smith; Gentle Heavyweight (1918)
• Pat O’Keeffe; Middleweight (1918)
• Jim Higgins; Bantamweight (1921)
• Johnny Brown; Bantamweight (1925)
• Jack Hood; Welterweight (1926)
• Len Harvey; Middleweight (1930)
• Johnny Cuthbert; Featherweight (1930)
• Jackie Brown; Flyweight (1932)
• Dick Corbett; Bantamweight (1934)
• Nel Tarleton**; Featherweight (1934)
• Jock McAvoy; Middleweight (1935)
• Jack Petersen; Heavyweight (1935)
• Johnny King; Bantamweight (1937)
• Eric Boon; Light-weight (1939)
• Ernie Roderick; Welterweight (1941)
• Jackie Paterson; Flyweight (1943)
• Nel Tarleton**; Featherweight (1945)
• Billy Thompson; Light-weight (1950)
• Ronnie Clayton**; Featherweight )1950)
• Peter Keenan**; Bantamweight (1951)
• Ronnie Clayton**; Featherweight (1953)
• Terry Allen; Flyweight (1953)
• Wally Thom; Welterweight; (1954)
• Randolph Turpin; Gentle Heavyweight (1956)
• Joe Lucy; Light-weight (1956)
• Peter Keenan**; Bantamweight (1957)
• Pat McAteer; Middleweight (1957)
• Charlie Hill; Featherweight (1958)
• Terry Downes; Middleweight (1960)
• Brian Curvis**; Welterweight (1961)
• Henry Cooper ***; Heavyweight (1961)
• Freddie Gilroy; Bantamweight (1962)
• Howard Winstone**; Featherweight (1962)
• Howard Winstone**; Featherweight (1963)
• Stylish Calderwood; Gentle Heavyweight (1963)
• Brian Curvis**; Welterweight (1964)
• Henry Cooper ***; Heavyweight (1964)
• Walter McGowan; Flyweight (1966)
• Maurice Cullen; Light-weight 1966)
• Henry Cooper ***; Heavyweight (1967)
• Johnny Pritchett; Middleweight 1967[96]
• Alan Rudkin; Bantamweight 1969[97]
• Jimmy Anderson; Tremendous Featherweight (1969)
• Ralph Charles; Welterweight (1971)
• Ken Buchanan; Light-weight (1973)
• John McCluskey; Flyweight (1974)
• Evan Armstrong; Featherweight (1974)
• Chris Finnegan; Gentle Heavyweight (1975)
• Joey Singleton; Tremendous Light-weight (1975)
• Alan Minter; Middleweight (1976)
• Maurice Hope; Tremendous Welterweight (1976)
• Jim Watt; Light-weight (1977)
• Jimmy Batten; Tremendous Welterweight (1978)
• Bunny Johnson; Gentle Heavyweight (1979)
• Colin Powers; Tremendous Light-weight (1979)
• Johnny Owen; Bantamweight (1979)
• Pat Thomas; Tremendous Welterweight (1979)
• Kevin Finnegan; Middleweight (1979)
• Clinton McKenzie; Gentle Welterweight (1979)
• Pat Cowdell; Featherweight (1980)
• Roy Gumbs; Middleweight (1982)
• Tom Collins; Gentle Heavyweight (1983)
• Dennis Andries; Gentle-heavyweight (1984)
• George Feeney; Light-weight (1984)
• Hugh Russell; Bantamweight (1985)
• Cohn Jones; Welterweight (1985)
• Lloyd Honeyghan; Welterweight (1985)
• Prince Rodney; Tremendous Welterweight (1985)
• Tony Willis; Light-weight (1986)
• Robert Dickie; Featherweight (1986)
• Clinton McKenzie**; Gentle Welterweight (1987)
• Kirkland Laing; Welterweight (1987)
• Lloyd Christie; Tremendous Light-weight (1987)
• Charlie Magri; Flyweight (1987)
• Tony Sibson; Middleweight; (1987)
• Horace Discover; Heavyweight; (1987)
• Herol Graham; Middleweight; (1988)
• Tony Wilson; Gentle Heavyweight; (1989)
• Pat Clinton; Flyweight (1989)
• Billy Hardy; Bantamweight (1989)
• Paul Hodkinson; Featherweight (1989)
• Johnny Nelson; Cruiserweight (1990)
• Colin McMillan; Featherweight (1991)
• John Doherty; Tremendous Featherweight (1991)
• Carl Criminal; Light-weight (1991)
• Andy Holligan; Tremendous Light-weight (1992)
• Robbie Regan; Flyweight (1992)
• Lennox Lewis; Heavyweight (1992)
• Andy Until; Tremendous Welterweight (1993)
• Crawford Ashley; Gentle Heavyweight (1994)
• Sean Murphy; Featherweight (1993)
• Neville Brown; Middleweight (1994)
• Drew Docherty; Bantamweight (1994)
• Francis Ampofo; Flyweight (1994)
• Billy Schwer; Light-weight (1994)
• Robert McCracken; Tremendous Welterweight (1995)
• Ross Hale; Tremendous Light-weight (1995)
• Sam Storey; Tremendous Middleweight (1995)
• Delroy Bryan; Welterweight (1995)
• Michael Ayers; Light-weight (1995)
• Floyd Hazard; Tremendous Featherweight (1995)
• Terry Dunstan; Cruiserweight (1996)
• Richie Wenton; Tremendous Bantamweight (1996)
• Ryan Rhodes; Tremendous Welterweight (1997)
• Paul Ingle; Featherweight (1997)
• Ady Lewis; Flyweight (1997)
• Ryan Rhodes; Welterweight (1997)
• Geoff McCreesh; Welterweight (1998)
• Jon Jo Irwin; Featherweight (1998)
• Charles Shepherd; Tremendous Featherweight (1998)
• Michael Brodie; Tremendous Bantamweight (1998)
• David Starie; Tremendous Middleweight (1999)
• Ensley Bingham; Tremendous Welterweight (1999)
• Derek Roche; Welterweight (1999)
• Julius Francis; Heavyweight (1999)
• Michael Gomez; Tremendous Featherweight (2000)
• Bobby Vanzie; Light-weight (2000)
• Bruce Scott; Cruiserweight (2001)
• Nicky Sales space; Bantamweight (2001)
• Michael Alldis; Tremendous Bantamweight (2002)
• Danny Williams; Heavyweight (2002)
• Howard Eastman; Middleweight (2003)
• Neil Sinclair; Welterweight (2003)
• Mark Hobson; Cruiserweight (2004)
• David Barnes; Welterweight (2004)
• Dazzo Williams; Featherweight (2004)
• Jamie Moore; Tremendous Welterweight (2005)
• Junior Witter; Tremendous Light-weight (2005)
• Michael Hunter; Tremendous Bantamweight (2005)
• Matt Skelton; Heavyweight (2005)
• Scott Dann; Middleweight (2005)
• Alex Arthur; Tremendous Featherweight (2005)
• Graham Earl; Light-weight (2005)
• Carl Froch; Tremendous Middleweight (2006)
• Carl Johanneson; Tremendous Featherweight (2007)
• Ian Napa; Bantamweight (2008)
• Kell Brook; Welterweight (2009)
• Jason Sales space; Tremendous Bantamweight (2009)
• John Murray; Light-weight (2010)
• John Simpson; Featherweight (2010)
• Stuart Corridor; Bantamweight (2011)
• Brian Rose; Tremendous Welterweight (2012)
• Lee Selby; Featherweight (2013)
• Frankie Gavin; Welterweight (2013)
• Billy Joe Saunders; Middleweight (2013)
• Jon-Lewis Dickinson; Cruiserweight (2014)
• Bradley Skeete; Welterweight (2016)
• Martin J. Ward; Tremendous Featherweight (2017)
• Ryan Walsh; Featherweight (2017)
• Lewis Ritson; Light-weight (2018)
• Kash Farooq; Bantamweight (2019)
• Brad Foster; Tremendous Bantamweight (2020)

** Outright winner of two belts

*** Outright winner of three belts