Lloyd Honeyghan facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Lloyd Honeyghan
Statistics
Nickname(s)	Honey Raggamuffin Man
Rated at	Welterweight Light-middleweight
Height	5 ft 9 in
Reach	68 in
Nationality	British
Born	(1960-04-22) 22 April 1960 (age 65) Saint Elizabeth, Jamaica
Stance	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	48
Wins	43
Wins by KO	30
Losses	5

Lloyd Honeyghan (born 22 April 1960) is a British former professional boxer. He competed from 1980 to 1995. He was the undisputed welterweight champion from 1986 to 1987. He also held the WBC and The Ring magazine welterweight titles twice. This was between 1986 and 1989.

At a regional level, he held the British, European, and Commonwealth welterweight titles. He held these from 1983 to 1985. He also held the Commonwealth super-welterweight title from 1993 to 1994.

Early Life and Amateur Boxing

Lloyd Honeyghan was born in Jamaica. He lived there with his grandparents for his early years. When he was nine, he moved to England to live with his parents. They had settled in Bermondsey, London.

He started boxing at age 11. He joined the Fisher Amateur Boxing club. He was a good amateur boxer. He even boxed for England. However, he never won a national amateur title. He decided to become a professional boxer in 1980.

Becoming a Professional Boxer

Honeyghan started his professional career in 1980. He won his first fight against Mike Sullivan. He then won his next 12 fights. This included a win over Kostas Petrou.

In 1983, he fought Lloyd Hibbert. This fight was to decide who would challenge for the British welterweight title. Honeyghan won this fight. After that, he won the Southern Area welterweight title. He knocked out Sid Smith in the fourth round.

British Welterweight Champion

On 5 April 1983, Honeyghan won the British welterweight title. He beat Cliff Gilpin in a 12-round fight. Honeyghan said this was one of his toughest fights. He was even knocked down for the first time in his career.

He stayed very busy in 1983. He traveled to the United States to beat Kevin Austin. Then he won against Harold Brazier in London. He finished the year by beating Cliff Gilpin again.

In 1984, Honeyghan only fought once. He beat Roberto Mendez. He had to take a break after that. He broke his thumb and needed surgery.

European Welterweight Champion

On 5 January 1985, he won the European welterweight title. He knocked out Gianfranco Rosi in the third round in Italy. This was a big win because it's hard for foreign fighters to win in Italy.

After this, Honeyghan beat R W Smith. He continued to fight often in 1985. He defeated three American boxers: Roger Stafford, Danny Paul, and Ralph Twinning.

Honeyghan later changed managers. He felt his old manager, Terry Lawless, was focusing too much on another boxer. He then signed with Mickey Duff. Honeyghan also got a new trainer, Bobby Neill. He ended 1985 by winning the British, European, and Commonwealth welterweight titles. He beat Sylvester Mittee in that fight.

On 20 May 1986, Honeyghan stopped Horace Shufford in eight rounds. This win earned him a chance to fight for the world title. He would face the unbeaten and undisputed welterweight world champion, Donald Curry.

Undisputed Welterweight Champion

On 27 September 1986, Honeyghan fought Donald Curry. This fight was for the undisputed welterweight title. It took place in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Most people thought Curry would win easily. He was considered one of the best boxers in the world. But there were rumors that Curry was struggling to make the weight limit.

Honeyghan was a big underdog. His manager, Mickey Duff, bet a lot of money on him to win. Honeyghan also placed a bet.

Honeyghan surprised everyone by dominating the fight. He almost knocked Curry down in the second round. Curry gave up at the end of the sixth round. Curry had a broken nose and cuts on his face. Honeyghan won the undisputed world title!

Before the fight, Curry had called Honeyghan a "ragamuffin." This was because Honeyghan wore casual clothes to a press conference. After his big win, Honeyghan proudly used the nickname "Raggamuffin Man." It showed his tough, streetwise style.

Giving Up a Title

After winning the world title, Honeyghan made a big decision. He disagreed with the WBA's rules. They allowed fights in apartheid South Africa. So, he publicly dropped the WBA welterweight title into a trash can. He chose to give up the title instead of defending it against a South African boxer.

Some people criticized his actions. But his stance was important. Soon after, the WBA stopped allowing fights in South Africa.

Defending His Titles

After becoming world champion, Honeyghan changed his boxing style. He became more aggressive. He would try for a knockout from the very start of a fight. He once said, "You don't get paid for overtime in this business."

In his first title defense, he fought former world champion Johnny Bumphus. Honeyghan knocked him down early. At the start of the next round, Honeyghan quickly rushed across the ring. He tried to hit Bumphus right away. This was allowed at the time. Honeyghan missed the punch, but his arm still knocked Bumphus down. Honeyghan had a point taken away, but Bumphus was already hurt. The rules were later changed because of this incident. Now, the referee stands in the middle of the ring at the start of each round. This makes sure both boxers are ready.

In his second defense, Honeyghan beat the unbeaten Maurice Blocker. He won by points. He became a very exciting fighter to watch. He also had one of the fastest world title wins. He knocked out Gene Hatcher in just 45 seconds!

Losing and Regaining Titles

In 1987, Honeyghan lost his WBC title to Jorge Vaca. The fight was stopped because Vaca got a cut from an accidental clash of heads. Vaca was a last-minute replacement. Honeyghan was expected to win easily. However, Honeyghan was not at his best. The WBC rules at the time meant Vaca won the fight. Many fans thought the decision was unfair.

Honeyghan made history by becoming only the second British boxer to regain a world title. He knocked out Jorge Vaca in the third round of their rematch. He won back his WBC title!

Honeyghan then defended his titles against Yung-Kil Chung. He stopped Chung in five rounds in July 1988.

In February 1989, Honeyghan lost his WBC title again. He fought Marlon Starling. Honeyghan fought wildly. Starling was very good at defense. Starling stopped Honeyghan in the ninth round.

Honeyghan later tried to win the WBA title in 1990. He fought Mark Breland. But Honeyghan was not at his best anymore. He was knocked down six times and stopped in three rounds.

Later Career

In 1991, Honeyghan moved up to a heavier weight class called super-welterweight. He won six fights in a row. In 1993, he won the Commonwealth super-welterweight title. He beat Mickey Hughes.

However, in June 1993, he lost to former world champion Vinny Pazienza. He won two more fights after that. In 1994, he beat Kevin Adamson and kept his Commonwealth title. He retired from boxing in 1995. His last fight was against Adrian Dodson.

Health and Life After Boxing

Lloyd Honeyghan had problems with his hands during his career. He once tested positive for a pain-relief medicine after a fight. He was fined for this.

When he was younger, Honeyghan was known for his stylish clothes. He was involved in an incident in 1993 where he was hurt, but he recovered.

Honeyghan and Mike Tyson are friends. Tyson was impressed by Honeyghan's fighting style. He once said, "He's mean and nasty, he doesn't fight like a British fighter." This was a compliment about Honeyghan's aggressive style.

In 2014, there was a small disagreement between Honeyghan and another boxer, Errol Christie. Their friend Frank Bruno had to step in.

A block of flats in Southwark, London, was named after Lloyd Honeyghan. This was to honor his achievements.

After retiring, Honeyghan gained weight. In October 2017, he had a heart attack but recovered well. In September 2020, he had a blood clot on his lung. Due to a car accident, Honeyghan now uses a wheelchair.

Business Ventures

Towards the end of his boxing career, Honeyghan got involved in the music business. He produced two CDs with reggae artists.

Like many boxers, Honeyghan faced money problems after his career. He had owned a fancy car and several properties. But he was declared bankrupt in 1994.

After retiring, he tried to become a boxing manager and promoter. He put on a few boxing shows. But it was hard to make money without TV support. He eventually stopped promoting fights.

Professional Boxing Record

Boxing Titles

Major World Titles

• WBA welterweight champion (147 lbs)
• WBC welterweight champion (147 lbs) (2 times)
• IBF welterweight champion (147 lbs)

The Ring Magazine Titles

• The Ring welterweight champion (147 lbs) (2 times)

Regional and International Titles

• Southern Area welterweight champion (147 lbs)
• British welterweight champion (147 lbs) (2 times)
• European welterweight champion (147 lbs)
• Commonwealth welterweight champion (147 lbs)
• Commonwealth light middleweight champion (154 lbs)

Undisputed Titles

• Undisputed welterweight champion

See Also

• List of welterweight boxing champions
• List of WBA world champions
• List of WBC world champions
• List of IBF world champions
• List of The Ring world champions
• List of undisputed boxing champions