This is from a single newspaper account, which is quite well known, yet oddly little is spoke of it. Despite searching, I have failed to find any additional information. If any is ever found I will add it, however I will be surprised if I ever find anything to add. Protestant Mercury December 28, 1681 (page 4) Yesterdaya Match of Boxing was performed, before his Grace Duke of Albemarl, between the Dukes Foot-man and a Butcher, the latter won the Prize, as he hath done many before, being accounted (though but a little Man) the best at the Exercise in England Him being listed as a champion is due to him being considered the best in England. It is possible it meant best for his size, however I think the wording of "though but a little man", implies this was not the case, as being small would not be a hinderance to being best for your size. I have seen some people commenting on this say he was the Duke of Albemarl's butcher, this appears to be a misreading. I also find it noteworthy that it says "Boxing", with no clarification, implying that what boxing was would be well understood. The presence of the Duke also shows that it had came up from the underground by this point since the ban by Theodosius nearly 1,300 years previously. Link to Heavyweight Champions from Ancient to Present
A few notes. @GlaukosTheHammer and me both thought he should be included, and since I've done a few others, I thought I'd quickly type it up, it's his project, so I'm happy to make some changes. I didn't think he should be included with Broughton etc. in the English Era, I thought I was more fitting to be in his own category, along with any others that may be found from between the ban and the times covered in books such as Boxiana and Pugilistica. I names this ear the Dark Age. To clarify I'm aware the Middle Ages, which are sometimes known as the Dark Ages, are generally considered to be 500-1500 (though people's conception is mostly the latter half), however this si a rather outdated and inaccurate term; Dark Ages basically means a time where we don't have records of what was going on a better example, than the middle ages, would be the "Greek" Dark Age that followed the Bonze Age collapse. So what I mean by Dark Age, is a boxing Dark Age.
Oh ****, I did forget about the Butcher! Yeah, Ima add his ass. That little bit on the fight is more than I have for a lot of ancients. Given champion meant something else back then and no one seems to care to fix that or mention it in the Figg story I have no problem calling him a champ, but I'd understand others having a vehement dislike for that. He's easily the best we have from the 17th century given he's the only one we have from the 17th century. If someone else was better in the 17th century it sucks for them that no one kept that record.
I took the “best in England ... thought but a little man” meant, in the parlance of the day, that he was the P4P best. So does that make him boxing’s first P4P claimant?
