Calvin Brock facts for kids

Calvin Vance Brock (born January 22, 1975) is an American former professional boxer. He competed in boxing from 2001 to 2007. By the end of 2005, he was ranked as the world's seventh-best heavyweight boxer by The Ring magazine.

Calvin Brock was trained by Tom Yankello. In 2006, he won the Ring Magazine Knockout of the Year award for his amazing win against Zuri Lawrence. He also fought for the IBF and IBO heavyweight titles. Brock had to stop boxing because of an eye injury he got after a fight with Eddie Chambers.

Calvin Brock's Early Life

Calvin Brock was born and grew up in Charlotte, North Carolina. His family was middle-class. He loved boxing as a kid. When he was 10, his dad took him to a gym, but they told him to come back when he was 12.

Five months after turning 12, Brock returned to the gym. He lost his first six fights, but he didn't give up! In 1999, he earned a degree in finance from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. He then got a job as a banker at Bank of America. He even appeared in a Bank of America advertisement, where he was called "The Boxing Banker." This became his famous nickname. Soon, Brock left his banking job to focus completely on his boxing career.

Calvin Brock's Amateur Boxing Career

Calvin Brock had a very successful amateur boxing career before turning professional.

Winning Championships

• In 1998, he won the Golden Gloves heavyweight championship. This is a big deal in amateur boxing!
• In 1999, he won the United States national amateur super heavyweight championship.

The 2000 Summer Olympics

Brock qualified for the 2000 Summer Olympics super heavyweight tournament. He narrowly beat T.J. Wilson to get there. However, he lost to Paolo Vidoz in his first fight at the Olympics. During the Olympics, he was teammates with future world champions like Jermain Taylor, Jeff Lacy, and Brian Viloria. Calvin Brock finished his amateur career with an impressive record of 147 wins and 38 losses.

Calvin Brock's Professional Boxing Career

Calvin Brock started his professional boxing journey on February 11, 2001. He quickly made a name for himself.

First Fights and Big Wins

Brock won his first 23 fights, with 19 of those wins coming by knockout! This showed he was a powerful boxer.

Fighting Clifford Etienne

His first big challenge was against Clifford Etienne. Etienne was a well-known boxer who had fought against famous names like Mike Tyson. Their fight took place in Houston, Texas, and was shown on ESPN2. Brock knocked Etienne down three times. The referee stopped the fight in the third round, giving Brock a win by TKO (Technical Knockout).

Facing Jameel McCline

Just three months after beating Etienne, Brock took on another tough opponent, Jameel McCline. McCline was ranked among the top heavyweights in the world. Many people thought McCline would win this fight. The match was held in Las Vegas, Nevada. Brock weighed 218 pounds, while McCline was much heavier at 265 pounds.

Brock mostly focused on hitting McCline's body. In the middle rounds, Brock used a clever "bob and weave" style to avoid punches. He was knocked down in the seventh round but quickly got back up and finished the round strong. Brock continued to outbox McCline for the rest of the fight. The fight went all ten rounds, and Brock won by a unanimous decision. This means all the judges agreed he was the winner. Boxing experts praised the fight, and this win helped Brock get ranked among the top heavyweights. Even former world champion Mike Tyson said Brock was one of his favorite new heavyweights.

Winning a Title Against David Bostice

On November 19, 2005, Brock fought David Bostice for the IBA Continental Americas heavyweight title. This was the first title fight of Brock's professional career. Bostice was an experienced boxer. The fight happened in Charlotte, North Carolina, Brock's hometown. Both boxers fought hard from the start. Brock seemed to be doing better in the early rounds. He hit Bostice with many combinations to the head and body. Brock got tired in the middle rounds but picked up his pace later. He hurt Bostice several times and almost stopped him in the ninth round. The crowd cheered loudly for Calvin in the final round. Brock won the fight by unanimous decision.

The Knockout of the Year

On February 25, 2006, Brock fought Zuri Lawrence in Las Vegas. Lawrence was known as a tough boxer. The first five rounds were slow, but Brock was slowly wearing Lawrence down. At the end of the sixth round, Brock landed a powerful left hook that knocked Lawrence out cold. Lawrence was unconscious for several minutes. Brock is the only boxer who ever knocked Lawrence out. This knockout won The Ring magazine's KO of the Year award!

Fighting for a World Title

With an amazing record of 28 wins and no losses, Brock was offered a chance to fight Wladimir Klitschko for the IBF world heavyweight championship. However, Brock turned down the offer at first because he didn't agree with the terms.

Facing Timur Ibragimov

Instead, Brock chose to fight Timur Ibragimov on June 24, 2006. This fight was in Las Vegas and was shown on HBO. It was a very hot day, which made both fighters careful. Brock won the fight by unanimous decision. After this win, with 29 wins and no losses, many boxing experts thought Brock was one of the most promising American heavyweights.

The Klitschko Championship Fight

Brock finally agreed to fight Wladimir Klitschko for the IBF world heavyweight championship on November 11, 2006, at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Brock was confident he could adapt to Klitschko's style. In the early rounds, Brock's movements made Klitschko hesitant. Klitschko's trainer told him to be more aggressive. From the fourth round, Klitschko started fighting harder and hurt Brock several times. In the fifth round, Brock caused a cut under Klitschko's eye. In the seventh round, Brock was hit with a strong punch and fell to the ground. He got up, but the referee stopped the fight, deciding Brock couldn't continue.

Final Fights and Retirement

After two more wins, Brock entered a four-man tournament to get another shot at the IBF world heavyweight championship. In the semifinals, he faced undefeated boxer Eddie Chambers. Brock weighed 241 pounds for this fight, which was the heaviest he had ever been. The fight took place in Tacoma, Washington. Chambers used his speed and movement well and won the fight by a split decision.

During this fight, Brock suffered damage to his right eye. After surgery to fix the eye in December 2007, Brock became legally blind in his right eye. This meant he had to retire from boxing permanently. He can still see some light and shapes with that eye.

Calvin Brock's Life After Boxing

Today, Calvin Brock works as a commercial real estate agent. He is married and has a daughter and a son.

Calvin Brock's Boxing Record

Calvin Brock had a professional boxing record of 33 fights:

• 31 wins (23 by knockout)
• 2 losses (1 by knockout)