Saoul Mamby facts for kids

Saoul Paul Mamby was an American professional boxer. He was born on June 4, 1947, and passed away on December 19, 2019. Saoul Mamby boxed for many years, from 1969 to 2008. He was a world champion, holding the WBC super lightweight title. He held this important title from 1980 to 1982.

Early Life and Boxing Start

Saoul Mamby was born in the Bronx, New York. His mother, Victoria, had Spanish roots. His father, Robert, was from Jamaica. Saoul became interested in boxing while visiting Jamaica.

He began his boxing journey in 1963 when he was 16 years old. He competed in the Golden Gloves boxing tournaments in 1965 and 1966. As an amateur boxer, he won 25 fights and lost only 5. He then became a professional boxer in 1969.

Mamby also served his country as a soldier. He was in the U.S. Army and served in Vietnam during the Vietnam War in 1968.

Becoming a World Champion

Saoul Mamby won the WBC super lightweight title in February 1980. He traveled to South Korea to fight the champion, Kim Sang-Hyun. Mamby won the fight in the 14th round.

He held his championship title for two and a half years. During this time, he successfully defended it five times. He traveled to places like Indonesia and Nigeria for his fights.

Key Title Defenses

• In July 1980, he stopped former champion Esteban De Jesús in the 13th round. This fight was on the same night as a big fight for Larry Holmes.
• He won a 15-round decision against Termite Watkins. This was also on the undercard of a famous fight between Larry Holmes and Muhammad Ali.
• He won another 15-round fight against Jo Kimpuani. This was during another Larry Holmes fight event.
• He then went to Indonesia and won a decision against Thomas Americo.
• In his last fight as champion, he won against Obisia Nwankpa in Nigeria.

Later Career and Challenges

Saoul Mamby was supposed to fight WBA champion Aaron Pryor. This fight would have brought together the two main champions in the super lightweight division. However, the fight did not happen.

Instead, Mamby lost his WBC title in June 1982. He lost by a split decision to Leroy Haley. He tried to win the world title two more times. In February 1983, he had a rematch with Haley but lost. Then, in November 1984, he challenged the new champion, Billy Costello. He lost that fight too.

Mamby also fought other famous boxers. He lost to Roberto Durán in 1976. He also tried to win another WBC title in 1977 in Thailand. He lost that fight to Saengsak Muangsurin.

Saoul Mamby continued to box even when he was in his 50s. The California State athletic commission made him retire after his last loss in 2000.

Boxing at 60 Years Old

When he was 60 years old, Mamby announced he would return to boxing. He fought a few weeks later in the Cayman Islands. He weighed about 149.5 pounds (67 kilograms). He lost a ten-round fight to Anthony Osbourne. This made Mamby one of the oldest boxers to ever compete in an official fight. This was his eleventh loss in his last 14 fights.

Mamby was known for being tough. He could take many punches without being knocked out. In 85 professional fights, he was only stopped once. That happened in 1993 against Derell Coley, who was much younger.

See also

• List of WBC world champions
• List of select Jewish boxers