Editing Joe Bugner (section)

====Defeat of Henry Cooper====
In March 1971, Bugner met veteran Cooper and won a fifteen-round decision. Bugner won the bout by the slimmest of margins, 1/4 point, on the card of the lone official, [[Harry Gibbs (referee)|Harry Gibbs]]. The British sporting public and press were deeply divided about the verdict. Many felt that Cooper deserved the decision due to his steady aggression. But Bugner fought effectively on the defence and often scored with his left jab, and in the opinion of many{{Who|date=November 2023}}, was the rightful winner of the bout. ''[[The Times]]'', among others, scored the fight in favour of Bugner. Still, the outcome of the bout is regarded as one of the most controversial in British boxing history.{{Citation needed|date=November 2023}}

Nonetheless, Bugner was now the [[List of British heavyweight boxing champions|British]], British Commonwealth, and European champion, and for the first time, he was ranked among the world's top ten heavyweights. Bugner would remain in the world ratings for most of the 1970s.{{Citation needed|date=November 2023}}

Bugner retained his European title with a decision over tough German heavyweight [[Jürgen Blin]].{{Citation needed|date=November 2023}} However, later in 1971, Bugner surprisingly lost decisions to underdogs [[Jack Bodell]] and Larry Middleton; sandwiched between these losses was a victory over Mike Boswell. The Bodell fight was particularly costly, depriving Bugner of his British, British Commonwealth and European championships. Bugner's relative inexperience, his youth and lack of an extensive amateur background were the chief causes of these defeats.{{Citation needed|date=November 2023}}

In 1972 Bugner won eight consecutive fights, including a knockout over [[Jürgen Blin]] for the European championship. By the end of this, Bugner demonstrated much-improved ring ability and acquired enough experience that his manager began seeking matches against the world's best heavyweights.{{Citation needed|date=November 2023}}