Floyd Patterson Cassius Clay Mike Tyson Evander Holyfield Lennox Lewis Hasim Rahman Wladamir Klitschko Vitali Klitschko Tyson Fury AJ Anyone I forget? This list is purely off memory and my awesome depth of boxing knowledge.. Was John John Ruiz a two timer? Its a pretty short and distinguished list none the less. Man people will scoff at Hasim Rahman, but the man is still a two time heavyweight champion all the same. It seems there has been a significant increase in 2 time champs over the last 15 years or so...... so it may be an achievement that has lost a bit of its luster. If you ask me it's still a huge achievement though, and anyone who accomplishes such a feat should get substantial points towards ATG or HOF status. I will say Vitali, Rahman and Fury should all have asterisks by their names... Fury and Rahman because neither ever actually defended their titles (honestly ill have to double check Rahman, he may have had one defense that ended in a draw)... And Vitali cause he was kind of a champion emeritus But all three of those guys still went out and won the championship on two separate occasions
Whether u consider Moorer a two-time champion or a three-time champion, he still qualifies. I don't know if u think of Tim Witherspoon as a two-time champion or not.
Being a two-time "World" champion is really impressive. It's a very short list - Patterson, Ali, Holyfield, Foreman, Lewis and, technically, Fury - although Fury never really lost it in the ring. He wasn't gone any longer than Dempsey was during his reign. * Patterson when he defeated Moore and Johansson. * Ali when he defeated Liston, Foreman and Spinks (only three-time "world" champ). * Holyfield when he defeated Douglas and Bowe. * Foreman when he defeated Frazier and Moorer. * Lewis when he defeated Holyfield and Rahman. * Fury when he defeated Klitschko, officially retired, then beat Wilder for the Ring belt (basically another Patterson-Moore/Lewis-Holyfield vacant "world" title situation). That's it, really.
Shame on me for forgetting Foreman. I'm split on the whole 'world' title aspect however. In today's era that would winning and retaining the undisputed title and then winning it again which would be damn near impossible because youd get stripped of at least one of your titles along the way. I for one still hold the linear in high regard. It is the only title not corrupted by greed and money
Well, it's not that confusing. Tyson Fury is the "World" Champ. Whoever beats him will be the World champ. It only gets confusing when there isn't one. So, hope that cleared it up for you. (LOL)
The list could be a lot longer or a lot shorter, depending on how you look at it. Do we just go lineal, or do we count WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO, NBA, EBU World, NYSAC? These, and more, were considered "world" titles. But the OP didn't specify world titles, they mentioned organizational champions. So if you count USBA, NABF, InterContinental (doesn't that mean "world" anyway, strictly speaking?), and so many more, there are a lot more 2+ heavyweight champions.
You have to lose the title first of course, so it is a qualified compliment. Having said that, maintaining elite form over time, is harder than dominating for a short period. If you have a two tie m champion, you are probably looking at an exceptional fighter.