Bridgerweight
Bridgerweight is a weight class in professional boxing created and used by the World Boxing Council (WBC). The weight is named after six-year-old American, Bridger Walker, who saved his four-year-old sister from a stray dog in 2020.
History
After presenting Bridger Walker with a championship belt and naming him an "Honorary Champion" in July 2020,[1] the WBC announced the establishment of bridgerweight four months later on November 9. Established for boxers weighing between 200 pounds (91 kg; 14 st 4 lb) and 224 pounds (102 kg; 16 st 0 lb), the division sits between the WBC's cruiserweight and heavyweight divisions. WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman said of the decision to create the new weight: "We have decided to create a new division called Bridger, as it is the bridge necessary to serve the large number of boxers who are between 200 and 224-pounds. This name is inspired by that hero of humanity, that six-year-old boy who heroically saved his four-year-old sister from an attack by a wild dog during the pandemic; yes, this new division is inspired by Bridger Walker."[2]
As of December 2020, none of the other major sanctioning organizations (WBA, IBF, WBO) have adopted the new weight class.[3][4][5] The IBA, a lightly-regarded minor sanctioning organization, has a similar weight class named super cruiserweight for boxers weighing between 200 pounds (91 kg; 14 st 4 lb) and 210 pounds (95 kg; 15 st 0 lb).[6][7]
References
- Savage, Nic (July 23, 2020). "Bridger Walker receives Honorary Champion belt from WBC after dog attack". NZ Herald. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
- Rivera, Miguel (November 9, 2020). "WBC Prez Says New Weight Division, 200-224, Will Be Called 'Bridger'". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
- "World Boxing Association Ranking". World Boxing Association. Retrieved November 26, 2020.
- "IBF Ratings". www.ibf-usba-boxing.com. Retrieved November 26, 2020.
- "WBO rankings". WBO. Retrieved November 26, 2020.
- "SUPER CRUISERWEIGHT (200 LBS)". internationalboxingassociation.com. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
- "WOMEN'S SUPER CRUISERWEIGHT". wbcboxing.com. Retrieved 2020-11-25.