Bobby 'Boogaloo' Watts
Encyclopedia
Bobby "Boogaloo" Watts is an American born middleweight
boxer who fought primarily in the mid-1970s. Born in Sumter County in a small town named Rembert, South Carolina
, Bobby Watts came to Philadelphia
at age 10 and began boxing at the urging of his cousin, future heavyweight contender Jimmy Young.
Watts was a top contender, and one of the most skilled of the 1970s Philadelphia middleweights. "Boogaloo" is most famously known for defeating "Marvelous" Marvin Hagler
, scoring a controversial 10-round majority decision on January 13, 1976, at The Spectrum in Philadelphia.
He finished his career with a record of 38 wins (20 KOs), 7 losses and 1 draw. After his boxing career ended in 1982, Watts trained former super middleweight champion Charles Brewer
and contender Buster Drayton
.
Middleweight
Middleweight is a division, or weight class, in boxing. Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have begun in the 1840s. In the bare-knuckle era, the first middleweight championship fight was between Tom Chandler and Dooney Harris in 1897...
boxer who fought primarily in the mid-1970s. Born in Sumter County in a small town named Rembert, South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
, Bobby Watts came to Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
at age 10 and began boxing at the urging of his cousin, future heavyweight contender Jimmy Young.
Watts was a top contender, and one of the most skilled of the 1970s Philadelphia middleweights. "Boogaloo" is most famously known for defeating "Marvelous" Marvin Hagler
Marvin Hagler
Marvelous Marvin Hagler , is a former professional boxer who was undisputed world middleweight champion between 1980 and 1987. Hagler holds the distinction of having the highest KO% of all middleweight champions at 78%...
, scoring a controversial 10-round majority decision on January 13, 1976, at The Spectrum in Philadelphia.
He finished his career with a record of 38 wins (20 KOs), 7 losses and 1 draw. After his boxing career ended in 1982, Watts trained former super middleweight champion Charles Brewer
Charles Brewer (boxer)
Charles Brewer , was a professional boxer of 185 cm height in the Super Middleweight division....
and contender Buster Drayton
Buster Drayton
Buster Drayton , was a professional boxer in the Light Middleweight division.Drayton turned pro in 1978 and won the Vacant IBF Light Middleweight Title with a decision win over Carlos Santos in 1986. He defended the belt twice before losing it to Matthew Hilton the following year...
.