Alonzo Butler (October 30, 1979 – October 28, 2024) was an American heavyweight boxer. At the height of his career, Butler went unbeaten for 26 bouts, and would finish his career with 34 wins. He would later become the sparring partner of World heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder, preparing him for his world championship bouts.
Alonzo Butler | |
|---|---|
| Born | Alonzo Butler October 30, 1979 Chattanooga, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Died | October 28, 2024 (aged 44) Knoxville, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Other names | Big Zo |
| Statistics | |
| Weight class | Heavyweight |
| Weight(s) | 250–245 lb (113–111 kg) |
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (191 cm) |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 40 [1] |
| Wins | 34 |
| Wins by KO | 25 |
| Losses | 3 |
| Draws | 2 |
| No contests | 1 |
Background
editButler was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, where he described growing up in the "projects". He later moved to Knoxville, where he worked at the Budweiser factory until 4 a.m. stacking beer to earn enough to support his boxing training.[2]
Butler committed to play football at Middle Tennessee State University. He later chose a boxing career over football.
In 2006, he signed with Art Pelullo to a promotional contract. At the time, he was managed and trained by Ace Miller.[3] After a string of undefeated bouts, he was named the Greater Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame Professional Athlete of the year in 2006.[4] The winning streak made waves in the boxing world at the time, with many speculating that Butler could be the sport's next star.[2]
In May 2007, Butler defeated Ray West with a knockout in the first round.[5]
In 2008, an unbeaten Butler was matched with Friday Ahunanya for a bout in Las Vegas. At the time, his record was 26–0–1.[6] Prior to the match, he had taken nearly a year off of boxing to heal from a detached retina suffered in training.[7][8] Ahunanya took advantage, pummeling Butler in his left eye until it was swollen shut.[9] Butler lost the match after ten rounds.[10][11]
Butler returned to boxing over a year later, but he would not be able to match his earlier record, after a disappointing loss to Travis Walker by majority decision in 2011 for the WBA-NABA heavyweight title.[12] Butler knocked Walker down in the first round of the fight, but lost on points.[13][14]
Butler's next fight, a planned 2011 bout in Mexico to Chris Arreola[15][16] went forward with fighter Raphael Butler instead.[17] Butler had one fight outside the United States, when he unsuccessfully faced Brice Ritani Coe in New Zealand in 2014.[18]
Butler was the longtime sparring partner for eventual World boxing heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder, helping the boxer prepare for the Olympic games and for his WBC heavyweight bouts.[19][20] Wilder described Butler as the toughest sparring partner he was ever matched against, describing him:
"'Big Zo' was the fastest heavyweight I've ever seen, with his size, he was a solid 250 lbs, but he could move. If he had better management and handling he could've been heavyweight champion of the world...Alonzo was the man, he was the first guy that I ever felt a body shot from and I learned a lot from him during that time."[21]
In 2016, Butler fought Roberto White to a win in his hometown of Knoxville. Later that year, he would fight Fred Latham to a close draw by split decision for the USA Tennessee State Heavyweight finals.[22] Butler fought at a heavy weight of 312 lbs.[23] In 2020, he fought twice, winning both bouts to Jesus Martinez Torres (at 295.5 lb (134.0 kg))[24] and to Ron Guerrero respectively.[25][26]
In 2021, he looked to make his professional comeback, enlisting promoter Don King in an effort to return to the ring, despite his age.[27] Butler fought his last bout against Brandon Spencer in Myrtle Beach on August 28, 2021. He won by unanimous decision after eight rounds.[28]
He died in Knoxville, Tennessee, on October 28, 2024, 2 days before his 45th birthday.[29]
Professional record
editParts of this article (those related to Professional record table) need to be updated. (October 2024) |
References
edit- ^ "BoxRec: Alonzo Butler". boxrec.com.
- ^ a b "Tessitore: Butler on the rise as U.S. heavyweight hopeful". ESPN.com. February 13, 2007. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
- ^ Release, Press (May 31, 2006). "Banner Signs Alonzo Butler". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
- ^ Wilson, Mike. "Alonzo Butler, former professional boxer, dies at age 44". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
- ^ https://boxrec.com/en/event/525563/1193093
- ^ "Heavyweights Alonzo Butler And Horace Ray Grant In Action On June Card In Las Vegas • East Side Boxing • News Archives". www.boxing247.com. June 8, 2008. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
- ^ "Butler undergoes surgery to repair detached retina". www.knoxnews.com. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
- ^ "DeLeon finishing busy 2007". Yahoo News. December 6, 2007. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
- ^ "Bad Night For Guys Named Butler - As Raphael And Alonzo Are Beaten By Eddie Chambers And Friday Ahunanya, Respectively • East Side Boxing • News Archives". www.boxing247.com. June 22, 2008. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
- ^ "Heavyweight Ahunanya in dire need of victory". Las Vegas Review-Journal. July 3, 2011. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
- ^ Rold, Cliff (June 20, 2008). "Good Friday: Heavyweight Ahunanya Upsets Alonzo Butler". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
- ^ "ALONZO BUTLER: "IF I HIT ARREOLA ON THE CHIN, I CAN DEFINITELY PUT HIM OUT"|| FIGHTHYPE.COM". www.fighthype.com. Retrieved October 31, 2024.
- ^ Burton, Ryan (October 28, 2011). "Alonzo Butler Talks Chris Arreola, Seth Mitchell and More". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
- ^ "Travis Walker Aims To Build On Points Victory Over Alonzo Butler • East Side Boxing • News Archives". www.boxing247.com. May 17, 2011. Retrieved October 31, 2024.
- ^ Science, The Sweet (October 4, 2011). "Chris Arreola Meets Alonzo Butler on Nov. 5". The Sweet Science. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
- ^ Tutor, Goossen (October 4, 2011). "Arreola Talks Butler Defense, John Molina on The Card". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved October 31, 2024.
- ^ Nagesh, Gautham (November 5, 2011). "Chris Arreola Pounds Raphael Butler in Leon, Mexico". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved October 31, 2024.
- ^ "Boxing: Ritani-Coe eager for action". NZ Herald. May 21, 2014. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
- ^ Horan, Matt (November 3, 2017). "Wilder vs Stiverne II: Being Deontay Wilder's sparring partner". Sky Sports.
- ^ Gibbs, Dan (November 4, 2017). "Wilder vs Stiverne: Wilder's sparring partner predicts fight". Express.co.uk. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
- ^ Temple, Cameron (January 25, 2023). "Deontay Wilder reveals his hardest spar and it wasn't against Klitschko or Haye". talkSPORT. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
- ^ "Alonzo Butler vs Fred Latham – UBF Inter-Continental Championship Bout". Universal Boxing Federation. December 3, 2016. Retrieved October 31, 2024.
- ^ https://boxrec.com/wiki/index.php/Alonzo_Butler_vs_Fred_Latham
- ^ Killeen, Austin (February 3, 2020). "It Was a Sad Week for New Mexico Boxing". Killeen's Korner. Retrieved October 31, 2024.
- ^ https://boxrec.com/en/box-pro/27712
- ^ karlfreitag (January 15, 2020). "Boxing News: Alonzo Butler headlines March 7 in Knoxville » October 30, 2024". fightnews.com. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
- ^ "Local promoter helps boxer make comeback". richmondfreepress.com. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
- ^ "Mayhem in Myrtle Beach IV | Boxing Event". Tapology. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
- ^ Wilson, Mike. "Alonzo Butler, former professional boxer, dies at age 44". www.knoxnews.com. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
External links
edit- Alonzo Butler at IMDb
- Boxing record for Alonzo Butler from BoxRec (registration required)