Boxing’s Greats of the States | Mississippi: Henry Armstrong

Boxers come from every corner of the globe. Sometimes, fighters are products of their environment, favoring styles prevalent in the country or state from which they hail. Various regions of the United States are considered factories for great fighters, though that certainly is not the case with each state. In this weekly Sherdog.com series, the spotlight will shine on the best boxer of all-time from each of the 50 states. Fighters do not necessarily need to be born in a given state to represent it; they simply need to be associated with it.

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The casual boxing fan may not know much about him, but Henry Armstrong remains without question one of the greatest fighters to ever lace up the gloves. Most historians tout “Sugar” Ray Robinson as the best pound-for-pound boxer in history, with “Homicide Hank” ranked second on many of those same lists.

His real name was Henry Melody Jackson, and when looking back on his illustrious career, there was virtually nothing he failed to accomplish. Armstrong was knocked out in his professional debut on July 27, 1931, but that did not stop the Columbus, Mississippi, native from later destroying nearly everyone put in his path. In fact, he became arguably the most accomplished boxer of the 1930s. Armstrong captured the world featherweight championship in October 1937, added the world welterweight crown to his collection in May 1938 and then claimed the world lightweight title a few months later. He successfully defended those three belts, from 126 to 147 pounds.

Armstrong eventually vacated his featherweight title and later surrendered his lightweight crown to Lou Ambers, a fellow all-time great he had previously beaten. However, he retained his welterweight championship 19 times before future hall of famer Fritzie Zivic defeated him in a 15-round decision on Oct. 4, 1940. Already a three-division champion, Armstrong also challenged Ceferino Garcia for the middleweight title. The bout ended in a draw, though many ringside observers reportedly felt Armstrong had done enough to earn a decision. At the time, there were only eight divisions -- there are 17 today -- in boxing, making his accomplishments even more spectacular. Armstrong’s non-stop aggression led to many entertaining battles in the ring, as he took on the best fighters of his generation: Ambers, Robinson, Zivic, Beau Jack, Sammy Angott, Barney Ross, Chalky Wright and countless others.

Armstrong retired in 1946 with an overall record of 151-21-9 and 101 knockouts. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990, two years after his death.

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