Cornelius Boza-Edwards

Cornelius Boza-Edwards (born Cornelius Bbosa; 27 May 1956) is the former WBC Super Featherweight Champion of the World.[1] Born in Kampala, Uganda, he fought in both the super-featherweight and lightweight divisions. He emigrated from Uganda to England, where he lived for a long period. He now lives in the United States, where he trains other boxers.

Cornelius Boza-Edwards
Statistics
Weight(s)
Height5 ft 8 12 in (174 cm)
Reach71 in (180 cm)
Nationality Ugandan
Born (1956-05-27) 27 May 1956
Kampala, Uganda
StanceSouthpaw
Boxing record
Total fights53
Wins45
Wins by KO34
Losses7
Draws1

Amateur career

Boza-Edwards started boxing at the age of nine in Uganda alongside other notable fighters such as Ayub kalule and John Mugabi. He moved to England with his mentor Jack Edwards and continued to box firstly with the New Enterprise club in Tottenham and then the Fitzroy Lodge club in South London. He boxed for England but was overlooked for selection for the Olympic team after being beaten on points by Pat Cowdell in the 1976 ABA championships.

Boza-Edwards was given another opportunity when he was scheduled to compete as a featherweight boxer for Uganda in the 1976 Montreal Olympics. However, Uganda boycotted the Montreal Olympics, as did many other African countries. The boycott deprived him of the chance of competing in the Olympics.[2]

Professional career

In 1976, Boza-Edwards turned professional with Mickey Duff as his manager and George Francis as his trainer. He changed his surname to Boza on the recommendation of Mickey Duff. As it was an easier name for the fans to remember and added Edwards out of respect for Jack Edwards his mentor.[3]

Boza-Edwards won his first nine fights before suffering a loss to Des Gwilliam when he suffered a cut eye. He then went on an 18-fight winning streak and was offered a fight as a substitute against Alexis Arguello. He put up a spirited performance before being retired by his corner at the end of the eighth round. Arguello praised Boza-Edwards and said that he thought that he would become the champion after he had moved up in weight to the lightweight division. Boza-Edwards was actually boxing in the lighweight division at the time but moved down to the super-featherwight division.

WBC Super-Featherweight Champion

In 1981, Boza-Edwards won the WBC World Super-Featherweight Title from Rafael "Bazooka" Limón with a fifteen-round decision at Stockton, California. Limón, a Mexican, had made his infamous "You know what happens to British boxers when they face Mexicans" comment. In reference to the fight between Lupe Pintor and Johnny Owen, after which Owen had died.[4]

He defeated Bobby Chacon after he retired at the end of the thirteenth round in his first and only successful defence. He lost the title three months later in an upset to Rolando Navarrete, by knockout in round five. Navarrete had come in as a late substitute for Limón and shocked Boza-Edwards by knocking him down three times, the final time he was counted out.

Later career

In 1982, Boza-Edwards won the European Super-featherweight title by defeating Carlos Hernandez of Spain after he retired in the fourth round. He then based himself in the United States and became a favourite on the television networks with his aggressive style of fighting.

He was meant to fight Bobby Chacon for the WBC World Super-Featherweight Title in 1983 but boxing politics meant that the WBC withdrew recognition of the fight, which went ahead anyway. Chacon won on points in a fight where both fighters were knocked down but needed 40 stitches afterwards. The fight was voted The Ring magazine Fight of the Year 1983. Following his loss to Chacon he fought Rocky Lockridge the former WBA super-featherweight champion and lost on points over ten rounds.

Boza-Edwards moved up to the lightweight division and earned a title shot against Héctor Camacho in 1986 for the WBC World Lightweight Title which he lost by decision over twelve rounds. His final shot at the title was in 1987 against José Luis Ramírez in Paris and he was knocked out in the fifth round of a fight for the WBC World Lightweight Title. Following this defeat he retired from boxing and became a trainer.

Personal life

Boza-Edwards first wife Jackie died from kidney failure six months after giving birth to their daughter Michelle in the UK. He was nearly lost to the sport of boxing as a result of his grief but decided to continue.[5] He remarried after relocating to the US and he and his wife Rumiko have two daughters Dominique and Jenna.

Mayweather Boxing Club

Boza-Edwards now runs the Mayweather Boxing Club in Las Vegas, NV.[6] He was inducted into the Nevada Boxing Hall of fame in 2014[7]

Professional boxing record

Professional record summary
53 fights 45 wins 7 losses
By knockout 34 4
By decision 10 3
By disqualification 1 0
Draws 1
Result Record Opponent Type Round, time Date Location Notes
Loss 45–7-1 José Luis Ramírez KO 5 (12) 1987-10-10 Zenith Palais, Paris For WBC World Lightweight Title.
Win 45–6-1 Ali Kareem Muhammad UD 10 (10) 1987-07-09 Felt Forum, New York
Loss 44–6-1 Héctor Camacho UD 12 (12) 1986-09-26 Abel Holtz Stadium, Miami Beach For WBC World Lightweight Title.
Draw 44–5-1 Terrence Alli PTS 10 (10) 1986-03-30 Showboat Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas
Win 44–5 John Montes UD 10 (10) 1985-07-14 Egypt Shrine Temple, Tampa
Win 43–5 Melvin Paul KO 2 (10) 1985-04-14 York Hall, Bethnal Green
Win 42–5 Gary Gamble RTD 4 (10) 1985-03-17 Egypt Shrine Temple, Tampa
Win 41–5 Charlie Brown TKO 3 (10) 1984-10-13 Kings Hall, Belfast
Win 40–5 Guy Villegas TKO 7 (10) 1984-06-17 Hyatt Regency, Tampa
Win 39–5 Trevor Evelyn RTD 2 (10) 1984-02-19 Hyatt Regency, Tampa
Loss 38–5 Rocky Lockridge UD 10 (10) 1983-09-09 Caesars Palace, Outdoor Arena, Las Vegas
Loss 38–4 Bobby Chacon UD 12 (12) 1983-05-15 Caesars Palace, Sports Pavilion, Las Vegas The Ring magazine's "Fight of the Year"
Win 38–3 Pedro Laza TKO 9 (10) 1983-02-27 Showboat Hotel & Casino, Sports Pavilion, Las Vegas
Win 37–3 Blaine Dickson UD 10 (10) 1983-02-27 Showboat Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas
Win 36–3 Roberto Elizondo UD 10 (10) 1982-06-26 Showboat Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas
Win 35–3 John Verderosa TKO 3 (10) 1982-04-24 Playboy Hotel & Casino, Atlantic City
Win 34–3 Carlos Hernandez RTD 4 (12) 1982-03-17 Royal Albert Hall, Kensington Won EBU Super Featherweight Title.
Win 33–3 Arturo Leon RTD 4 (10) 1982-02-09 Royal Albert Hall, Kensington
Win 32–3 Juan Carlos Álvarez TKO 3 (10) 1981-11-24 Wembley Arena, Wembley
Loss 31–3 Rolando Navarrete KO 5 (15) 1981-08-29 Stadio de Pini, Viareggio Lost WBC Super Featherweight Title.
Win 31–2 Bobby Chacon RTD 13 (15) 1981-05-30 Showboat Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas Retained WBC Super Featherweight Title.
Win 30–2 Rafael Limón UD 15 (15) 1981-03-08 Civic Auditorium, Stockton Won WBC Super Featherweight Title.
Win 29–2 Ramon Contreras ud 10 (10) 1980-11-28 Sports Arena, San Diego
Win 28–2 Roberto Torres TKO 2 (10) 1980-10-14 Royal Albert Hall, Kensington
Loss 27–2 Alexis Argüello TKO 8 (10) 1980-08-09 Superstar Theater - Resorts Atlantic City
Win 27–1 Jose Manuel Velazquez TKO 3 (10) 1980-07-12 Conference Centre, Wembley
Win 26–1 Ronnie Green TKO 6 (10) 1980-06-28 Empire Pool, Wembley
Win 25–1 Jerome Artis TKO 3 (8) 1980-06-07 Ibrox Park, Glasgow
Win 24–1 Benny Marquez TKO 4 (8) 1980-04-22 Royal Albert Hall, Kensington
Win 23–1 James Washington TKO 2 (8) 1980-04-01 Conference Centre, Wembley
Win 22–1 Fili Ramirez TKO 7 (10) 1980-03-16 Caesars Palace, Las Vegas
Win 21–1 Jose Luis Gonzalez KO 3 (8) 1979-11-03 Kelvin Hall, Glasgow
Win 20–1 Fernando Jimenez RTD 6 (8) 1979-06-24 Chapiteau de l'Espace Fontvieille, Fontvieille
Win 19–1 Godfrey Mwamba TKO 2 (8) 1979-03-31 Independence Stadium, Lusaka
Win 18–1 Pedro Jimenez PTS 6 (6) 1979-03-04 Teatro Ariston, San Remo
Win 17–1 Frankie Moultrie SD 8 (8) 1979-01-13 Convention Center, Miami Beach
Win 16–1 Georges Cotin TKO 1 (8) 1978-12-18 Hilton Hotel, Mayfair
Win 15–1 Godfrey Mwamba TKO 3 (8) 1978-11-04 Lusaka
Win 14–1 George Feeney PTS 8 (8) 1978-09-26 Empire Pool, Wembley
Win 13–1 Ethem Oezakalin TKO 3 (8) 1978-07-19 Municipal Stadium, Bellaria
Win 12–1 Carlos Foldes DQ 5 (8) 1978-02-21 Royal Albert Hall, Kensington
Win 11–1 Dil Collins KO 5 (8) 1977-12-06 Royal Albert Hall, Kensington
Win 10–1 Bingo Crooks PTS 8 (8) 1977-11-08 Empire Pool, Wembley
Loss 9–1 Des Gwilliam TKO 6 (8) 1977-09-27 Empire Pool, Wembley
Win 9–0 Mario Oliveira TKO 2 (8) 1977-06-14 Empire Pool, Wembley
Win 8–0 Tommy Glencross TKO 2 (8) 1977-05-31 Royal Albert Hall, Kensington
Win 7–0 Billy Vivian KO 1 (6) 1977-04-18 Hilton Hotel, Mayfair
Win 6–0 Godfrey Butler KO 2 (8) 1977-03-16 Midland Sporting Club, Civic Hall, Solihull
Win 5–0 George McGurk TKO 1 (6) 1977-02-14 Hilton Hotel, Mayfair
Win 4–0 Danny Connolly TKO 2 (6) 1977-02-01 Royal Albert Hall, Kensington
Win 3–0 Tommy Wright TKO 1 (6) 1977-01-25 York Hall, Bethnal Green
Win 2–0 Paul Clemit TKO 3 (6) 1976-12-20 Manor Place Baths, Walworth
Win 1–0 Barry Price KO 6 (6) 1976-12-13 Hilton Hotel, Mayfair Professional debut

See also

  • List of super-featherweight boxing champions

References

Achievements
Preceded by
Rafael Limón
WBC super featherweight champion
8 March 1981 - 29 August 1981
Succeeded by
Rolando Navarrete
Awards
Preceded by
Bobby Chacon UD15 Rafael Limón IV
The Ring magazine Fight of the Year
L12 Bobby Chacon II

1983
Succeeded by
José Luis Ramírez KO4 Edwin Rosario II
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