Chris Byrd

Christopher Cornelius Byrd (born August 15, 1970) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1993 to 2009. He is a two-time world heavyweight champion, having first won the WBO title in 2000 after an upset corner stoppage over then-undefeated Vitali Klitschko. In his first title defense later that year, he lost to Vitali's brother Wladimir Klitschko. In 2002, Byrd defeated Evander Holyfield to win the IBF heavyweight title for his second reign as world champion. He made four successful defenses until losing his title again to Wladimir Klitschko in a 2006 rematch. He was ranked by BoxRec in the world's top 10 heavyweight from 1998 to 2004, reaching his highest ranking of No.3 in 2000.<ref name=boxrec-hw-annuals>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

As an amateur, Byrd represented the United States at the 1992 Summer Olympics and won a silver medal in the middleweight division. He is also a three-time national amateur champion, winning the light middleweight title in 1989, and the middleweight title in 1991 and 1992.

Early life

Chris Byrd was the youngest of eight children growing up in Flint, Michigan. He began boxing at age 5, training in his father's (Joe Sr.) Joe Byrd Boxing Academy. His father continued to train and manage Byrd as a professional. Byrd attended Flint Northwestern High School.

Amateur career

Byrd began competing in the ring at age 10, since then he had 285 amateur fights in various weight classes, compiled an impressive record of 275 wins, 10 losses. He was a three-time U.S. amateur champion (1989, 1991, and 1992). He was on the 1991 U.S. National boxing Team that became the first (and only) U.S. team to score a tie against the heralded Cuban team. Byrd won the silver medal in the 1992 Barcelona summer Olympics as a middleweight, losing to Cuba's Ariel Hernández in the final.

Amateur highlights

• Lost in the 1988 Olympic Trials at Light Welterweight, losing to eventual United States representative Todd Foster.
• 1989 United States Amateur Light Middleweight Champion
• 1990 Goodwill Games in Seattle, lost to Torsten Schmitz (East Germany) on points, in Light Middleweight competition.
• 1991 United States Amateur Middleweight Champion
• 1991 World Championships, lost at Middlweight to Ramon Garbey (Cuba)
• 1992 United States Amateur Middleweight Champion
• 1992 Middleweight Gold Medalist at Canada Cup. Results were:
  • Justin Crawford (Australia) won on points
  • Joe Laryea (Ghana) won on points
  • Igor Anashkin (Russia) won on points
• 1992 Qualified as a Middleweight at the Olympic Trials in Worcester, MA. Results were:
  • Derrick James won on points
  • William Joppy won on points
  • Mike DeMoss won on points
  • Eric Carr won on points, this bout was at the Olympic Box-Offs in Phoenix, AZ*
• Captured the Middleweight Silver Medal at the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games. Results were:
  • Mark Edwards (Great Britain) 21-3
  • Alexander Lebziak (Russia/Unified Team) 16-7
  • Ahmed Dine (Algeria) 21-2
  • Chris Johnson (Canada) 17-3
  • Ariel Hernandez (Cuba) 7-12

Professional career

1993–1998: early career

Byrd turned professional on January 28, 1993, knocking out 10 of his first 13 opponents. Byrd moved up to heavyweight three fights into his professional career.

Byrd remained undefeated for his first 26 fights, knocking off then-notable opponents like Phil Jackson, Lionel Butler, Uriah Grant, Bert Cooper, Craig Peterson, Frankie Swindell, Jimmy Thunder, undefeated Eliecer Castillo and Ross Puritty.

1999: Byrd vs. Ibeabuchi, comeback victories

However, in 1999, Byrd's undefeated record came to a dead end when he fought undefeated Ike Ibeabuchi. With 48 seconds left in the fifth round, a left-handed bolo punch followed with a right hook sent Byrd to the canvas, face first.

2000: first world title, facing the Klitschkos

Template:Main article During the last week of March 2000, Byrd was offered the chance to be the replacement (for Donovan Ruddock) against undefeated champion Vitali Klitschko in Berlin, Germany (Klitschko's adopted home country) for the WBO Heavyweight Title. He therefore had only seven days to prepare for the fight (not the customary 6–12 weeks). Byrd was trailing after nine rounds by scores of 88–83 (on two cards) and 89–82 (on one card), i.e. losing seven or eight of those rounds. However, Byrd was arguably Vitali's most difficult opponent as he landed clean shots and made him miss regularly, resulting Klitschko severely injured his shoulder and being unable to continue after the ninth round. The injury that Klitschko suffered was a torn shoulder rotator cuff, which required major surgery and a 7-month lay-off. Despite trailing on all three of the judges' scorecards, Byrd walked away the winner by a technical knockout due to the injury to Klitschko. While most consider this a fluke win for Byrd, nobody (including Lennox Lewis) gave Vitali a more difficult fight before that and since. Vitali landed at a much lower percentage and while he threw more, Byrd almost landed as many punches as him.

Six months later, Byrd was back in Germany to defend the title against Wladimir Klitschko, Vitali's younger, more agile brother. Twelve rounds later, Byrd had lost a lopsided unanimous decision and the WBO belt after being knocked down twice.

2001–2002: comeback victories, second world title

Template:Main article Byrd returned to the U.S., signed with Don King and beat Maurice Harris to win the United States Boxing Association heavyweight belt in Madison Square Garden. He was now a top-five contender for the IBF title. After winning his next match (a title defense against New Zealand's top contender David Tua) Byrd eventually received his mandatory shot at the vacant IBF world Heavyweight Championship against Evander Holyfield in Atlantic City. On December 14, 2002, Byrd won a unanimous decision and the IBF title.

2003–2005: four successful title defenses

Template:Main article Byrd has successfully defended the IBF belt against: Fres Oquendo in 2003, a highly entertaining draw with Andrew Golota and a decision win over friend Jameel McCline in 2004, and DaVarryl Williamson in 2005. Byrd's fight with Golota did 75,000 buys on pay-per-view.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

2006: Klitschko rematch

Template:Main article On April 22, 2006, Byrd faced Wladimir Klitschko for the second time. Byrd was making his fifth defense of his IBF title and the fight was also sanctioned by the International Boxing Organization for its title, which had been vacated upon the retirement of Lennox Lewis. The fight took place at SAP Arena in Mannheim, Germany. Byrd was heavily dominated throughout the fight, was down in the fifth, and again in the seventh. Referee Wayne Kelly stopped the fight after the second knockdown when Byrd had an open cut near his eyes. Klitschko won in a TKO.

2007–2010: Povetkin bout, move to light heavyweight, and retirement

After losing to Alexander Povetkin, Byrd would drop about 40 pounds to return to the light heavyweight division. He fought Shaun George on May 16, 2008, at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas. Byrd was dropped by George in round one and rocked again in round two. George then hammered Byrd with his right hand at will, finally flooring Byrd twice in the ninth round. Byrd beat the count after the first knockdown, but was then battered down again and the bout was waved off by the referee.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

In 2010, Byrd officially announced his retirement from boxing.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Life outside boxing

Byrd hosts a weekly video podcast, entitled "Byrd's Eye View", which showcases former boxers as well as current professional and champion-level fighters.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Additional information

• Byrd's hometown is Flint, Michigan, where he trained along with his brother Patrick Byrd and sister Tracy Byrd. Byrd's other sister, Laurie Byrd, is a professional basketball coach. Byrd is also a first cousin of Lamon Brewster, himself a former world heavyweight champion and two-time Klitschko opponent.
• Byrd's corner consisted entirely of family members.
• Byrd made an appearance in the 2008 documentary Beyond the Ropes.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

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• Byrd also makes an appearance in the 2011 documentary Klitschko, in which he discusses his trio of title bouts with the brothers.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

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Professional boxing record

Template:Abbr	Result	Record	Opponent	Type	Round, time	Date	Location	Notes
47	Template:Yes2Win	Template:Nowrap	Matthias Sandow	TKO	4 (8), Template:Small	Mar 21, 2009	Template:Small
46	Template:No2Loss	40–5–1	Shaun George	TKO	9 (10), Template:Small	May 16, 2008	Template:Small
45	Template:No2Loss	40–4–1	Alexander Povetkin	TKO	11 (12), Template:Small	Oct 27, 2007	Template:Small
44	Template:Yes2Win	40–3–1	Paul Marinaccio	RTD	7 (10), Template:Small	Apr 18, 2007	Template:Small
43	Template:No2Loss	39–3–1	Wladimir Klitschko	TKO	7 (12), Template:Small	Apr 22, 2006	Template:Small	Template:Small
42	Template:Yes2Win	39–2–1	DaVarryl Williamson	UD	12	Oct 1, 2005	Template:Small	Template:Small
41	Template:Yes2Win	38–2–1	Jameel McCline	SD	12	Nov 13, 2004	Template:Small	Template:Small
40	Template:DrawDraw	37–2–1	Andrew Golota	Template:Abbr	12	Apr 17, 2004	Template:Small	Template:Small
39	Template:Yes2Win	37–2	Fres Oquendo	UD	12	Sep 20, 2003	Template:Small	Template:Small
38	Template:Yes2Win	36–2	Evander Holyfield	UD	12	Dec 14, 2002	Template:Small	Template:Small
37	Template:Yes2Win	35–2	Jeff Pegues	TKO	3 (10), Template:Small	Jun 8, 2002	Template:Small
36	Template:Yes2Win	34–2	David Tua	UD	12	Aug 18, 2001	Template:Small	Template:Small
35	Template:Yes2Win	33–2	Maurice Harris	UD	12	May 12, 2001	Template:Small	Template:Small
34	Template:Yes2Win	32–2	David Vedder	UD	10	Jan 19, 2001	Template:Small
33	Template:No2Loss	31–2	Wladimir Klitschko	UD	12	Oct 14, 2000	Template:Small	Template:Small
32	Template:Yes2Win	31–1	Vitali Klitschko	RTD	9 (12), Template:Small	Apr 1, 2000	Template:Small	Template:Small
31	Template:Yes2Win	30–1	David Washington	TKO	10 (10)	Jan 19, 2000	Template:Small
30	Template:Yes2Win	29–1	Val Smith	KO	2 (10), Template:Small	Oct 22, 1999	Template:Small
29	Template:Yes2Win	28–1	Jose Ribalta	RTD	3 (10), Template:Small	Jun 3, 1999	Template:Small
28	Template:Yes2Win	27–1	John Sargent	TKO	2 (10), Template:Small	May 8, 1999	Template:Small
27	Template:No2Loss	26–1	Ike Ibeabuchi	TKO	5 (10), Template:Small	Mar 20, 1999	Template:Small
26	Template:Yes2Win	26–0	Ross Puritty	UD	10	Jul 14, 1998	Template:Small
25	Template:Yes2Win	25–0	Eliecer Castillo	UD	10	May 30, 1998	Template:Small
24	Template:Yes2Win	24–0	Derek Amos	TKO	6 (10)	Mar 28, 1998	Template:Small
23	Template:Yes2Win	23–0	Jimmy Thunder	TKO	9 (10), Template:Small	Dec 13, 1997	Template:Small
22	Template:Yes2Win	22–0	Frankie Swindell	UD	10	Jun 20, 1997	Template:Small
21	Template:Yes2Win	21–0	Bert Cooper	UD	10	Mar 18, 1997	Template:Small
20	Template:Yes2Win	20–0	Craig Petersen	TKO	6 (10), Template:Small	Jan 28, 1997	Template:Small
19	Template:Yes2Win	19–0	Levi Billups	UD	10	Oct 8, 1996	Template:Small
18	Template:Yes2Win	18–0	Uriah Grant	UD	10	Aug 6, 1996	Template:Small
17	Template:Yes2Win	17–0	Biko Botowamungu	UD	10	May 17, 1996	Template:Small
16	Template:Yes2Win	16–0	Lionel Butler	TKO	8 (10), Template:Small	Apr 23, 1996	Template:Small
15	Template:Yes2Win	15–0	Jeff Wooden	UD	10	Jan 30, 1996	Template:Small
14	Template:Yes2Win	14–0	Phil Jackson	UD	12	Nov 21, 1996	Template:Small
13	Template:Yes2Win	13–0	Nathaniel Fitch	KO	7 (10)	Oct 3, 1995	Template:Small
12	Template:Yes2Win	12–0	Tim Puller	TKO	5 (10), Template:Small	Jul 18, 1995	Template:Small
11	Template:Yes2Win	11–0	Arthur Williams	Template:Abbr	10	May 23, 1995	Template:Small
10	Template:Yes2Win	10–0	Joel Humm	Template:Abbr	4 (8)	Apr 26, 1995	Template:Small
9	Template:Yes2Win	9–0	Mike Rouse	TKO	6 (12), Template:Small	Mar 28, 1995	Template:Small
8	Template:Yes2Win	8–0	Frankie Hines	TKO	2, Template:Small	Jan 1, 1995	Template:Small
7	Template:Yes2Win	7–0	Ron Gullette	TKO	5	Nov 1, 1994	Template:Small
6	Template:Yes2Win	6–0	Waxxen Fikes	TKO	4 (8), Template:Small	Oct 4, 1994	Template:Small
5	Template:Yes2Win	5–0	Max Key	Template:Abbr	1	Aug 30, 1994	Template:Small
4	Template:Yes2Win	4–0	Gerard O'Neal	TKO	2 (6)	Jun 7, 1994	Template:Small
3	Template:Yes2Win	3–0	Exum Speight	UD	6	Mar 22, 1994	Template:Small
2	Template:Yes2Win	2–0	Mike Sullivan	Template:Abbr	1	May 15, 1993	Template:Small
1	Template:Yes2Win	1–0	Gary Smith	Template:Abbr	6	Jan 28, 1993	Template:Small

Viewership

Germany

Date	Fight	Viewership (Template:Abbr)	Network	Source(s)
Template:Dts {{safesubst:#invoke:Check for unknown parameters|check|unknown=|preview=Page using Template:Center with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y| 1 | style }}	Vitali Klitschko vs. Chris Byrd	check|unknown=|preview=Page using Template:Center with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y| 1 | style }}	Sat.1	<ref name=byrd-vitali>9,79 Millionen sahen WM-Kampf von Vitali Klitschko: Beste SAT.1-Quote seit fast zwei Jahren (ger.)</ref>
Template:Dts {{safesubst:#invoke:Check for unknown parameters|check|unknown=|preview=Page using Template:Center with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y| 1 | style }}	Chris Byrd vs. Wladimir Klitschko	check|unknown=|preview=Page using Template:Center with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y| 1 | style }}	Sat.1	<ref name=byrd1>Wladimir Klitschko is the new world champion (German)</ref>
Template:Dts {{safesubst:#invoke:Check for unknown parameters|check|unknown=|preview=Page using Template:Center with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y| 1 | style }}	Chris Byrd vs. Wladimir Klitschko II	check|unknown=|preview=Page using Template:Center with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y| 1 | style }}	Das Erste	<ref name=byrd2>More than 10 million viewers saw Klitschko fight (German)</ref>
Template:Dts {{safesubst:#invoke:Check for unknown parameters|check|unknown=|preview=Page using Template:Center with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y| 1 | style }}	Chris Byrd vs. Alexander Povetkin	check|unknown=|preview=Page using Template:Center with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y| 1 | style }}	Das Erste	<ref name="povetkin-byrd">Das Ertse and RTL show strong numbers Template:Webarchive (ger.)</ref>
	Total viewership	33,920,000

US pay-per-view bouts

Date	Fight	Pay-per-view buys	Network	Source(s)
Template:Dts	Chris Byrd vs. Andrew Golota	check|unknown=|preview=Page using Template:Center with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y| 1 | style }}	Spike TV/King Vision	<ref name="rafael2004">Where are the new heavyweights? By Dan Rafael, USA TODAY</ref><ref>2004-04-17 Chris Byrd vs Andrew Golota - IBF World Heavyweight Title</ref>
Template:Dts	Chris Byrd vs. Jameel McCline	check|unknown=|preview=Page using Template:Center with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y| 1 | style }}	HBO PPV	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
	Total sales	195,000

See also

• List of heavyweight boxing champions
• List of IBF world champions
• List of WBO world champions
• List of southpaw stance boxers

External links

• Template:Official website
• Template:Boxrec