Home > Aaron Pryor

Pryor, nicknamed The Hawk, had a record of 204 wins and 16 losses as an amateur, and he participated in the 1976 Olympic games at Montreal as an alternate. He turned professional on November 11, 1976, with a win over Larry Smith .

In 1977, Pryor fought eight fights, winning all but two by knockout. Among the fighters he defeated was Johnny Summerhayes . The only two fighters who heard the final bell versus Pryor that year were Summerhayes and Jose Resto . After the fight with Summerhayes. Pryor won 26 fights in a row by knockout, in one of the longest knockout streaks in the history of boxing.

In 1978, Pryor won five fights, and in 1979 he won six. But during '79, Pryor experienced a rise in competition level, and in his last fight that year, he was pitted for the first time ever against a former or future world champion, when he faced former Jr. Welterweight champion of the world Alfonso Fraser , Peppermint, of Panama, who lasted five rounds with The Hawk. After that fight, Pryor entered the WBA rankings.

He only kept on going up in the rankings for the first part of 19801980 is a leap year starting on Tuesday. Events January-February January 1- April 1 National steel strike in United Kingdom January 1 Changes to the Swedish Act of Succession creates Victoria of Sweden, Crown Princess over her younger brother January 5 He. He beat Julio Valdez , Leonidas Asprilla and Carl Crowley before a world title bout was set up by the WBA, versus two time world champion Antonio CervantesAntonio Cervantes (born December 23, 1945) is a Colombian boxing trainer and former two time world Jr. Welterweight champion. Cervantes, who is Black (Blacks are a minority in Colombia), was born in Palenque, also known as the first site of a slave rebell of ColombiaFor other uses see Columbia. The Republic of Colombia is a country in north-western South America. It is bound by earth, to the north and north west by the Caribbean Sea, to the east by Venezuela and Brazil, to the south by Ecuador and Peru, and to the we at Cincinnati. Pryor was dropped in round one, but he rose and knocked out Cervantes in round four in front of a national televisionSee TV (disambiguation) for other uses and Television (band) for the rock band Television is a telecommunication system for broadcasting and receiving moving pictures and sound over a distance. The term has come to refer to all the aspects of television p audience, becoming a world champion. He finished the year knocking out Gaetan Hart to retain his title.

In 1982Events January January 6 William Bonin is convicted of being the "freeway killer". January 8 AT&T agrees to divest itself of twenty-two subdivisions January 11 Mark Thatcher, son of the British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, disappears in the Sahara du he defeated fringe contender Miguel Montilla by a knockout in 12 to begin the year, then put his title on the line versus Akio Kameda . Once again, Pryor went to the floor in round one but got up to knock the Japanese challenger out in round six.

In what promoter Bob Arum nicknamed The Battle of The Champions, Pryor defeated Alexis Arguello by a knockout in 14 in front of an HBO audience. The fight was named Fight Of The Year and later the Fight Of The Decade by Ring Magazine.

The fight sparked controversy, however, because of allegations that Pryor's trainer had introduced an bottle to revive him after round 12, and, after defending his crown against former WBC world champion Sang Hyun Kim (KO 3), Pryor had to defend against Arguello again, this time winning by a knockout in 10 rounds in Las Vegas on September 9, 1983. After the fight, Pryor announced his retirement, and the WBA left the crown vacant.

In 1983 also, Pryor and his wife had a public divorce.

Pryor took back his decision of retiring soon after, however, and the IBF immediately recognized him as their world champion. 1984 proved to be a frustrating year for Pryor. His proposed fight with world Lightweight champion Ray Mancini fell through when Mancini lost his title against Livingstone Bramble, and Pryor was able to defend his IBF world title only once, against Nick Furlano , who became the first guy in 27 fights to last the distance with Pryor, losing to Pryor on points in 15 rounds at Canada.

In 1985, Pryor would only fight one more time, retaining his title versus future world champion Gary Hinton in 15 rounds, once again by points.

Pryor retired and began to have drug problems. He ran into trouble with the police a few times and stories of alleged abuse against members of his family made the headlines.

In 1987 he made a short comeback, suffering his lone loss by a knockout in seven to Bobby Joe Young , a fringe contender of the era.

In 1988 and 1989, he attempted another comeback, winning three fights, all by knockout, against lower opposition. It was discovered, however, that he had been fighting with eye problems, and he was never allowed to box again.

In the 1990s, Pryor decided to stay away from drugs; opened a gym in his hometown where he helps kids learn boxing and get off the streets; and became a pastor. He is currently ministering at a church in Cincinnati.

In 1996, Pryor was elected to the International Boxing Hall Of Fame .

He retired with 39 wins, 1 loss and 35 wins by knockout.