Sonny Banks

Sonny Banks
Sonny Banks
Statistics
Born	June 29, 1940; Birmingham, Mississippi, US
Died	May 13, 1965 (aged 24)
Stance	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	25
Wins	18
Wins by KO	14
Losses	7

Lucien "Sonny" Banks (June 29, 1940 – May 13, 1965)[1] was a mid-20th Century American boxer who is primarily remembered for being the first boxer to ever knock down Cassius Clay (later "Muhammad Ali") in a professional match. In the early 1960s Banks was regarded in the sport as rising prospect known for a lightning fast left hook, but his career was cut short when he died from injuries sustained in the ring in 1965.

Early life

Banks was from Lee County in North-East Mississippi. He was born in the farming community at Birmingham Ridge, about halfway between Tupelo and Saltillo.[2]

Boxing career

He fought Clay on 10 February 1962 in New York, and knocked him down for a count, although he went on to lose the match.[3]

Death

Banks died on 13 May 1965 at the age of 24 from a head injury sustained three days earlier in a 9-round bout against Leotis Martin. His body was buried at Westlawn Cemetery in Wayne, Michigan.[4]

Professional boxing record

18 Wins (14 knockouts, 4 decisions), 7 Losses (5 knockouts, 2 decisions)[5]
Result	Record	Opponent	Type	Round	Date	Location	Notes
Loss	18–7	Leotis Martin	KO	9	1965-05-10	Philadelphia Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	Banks died three days later from injuries sustained during the fight.
Loss	18–6	Cleveland Williams	KO	6	1964-07-21	Houston, Texas
Win	18–5	Don Warner	KO	1	1964-05-18	Philadelphia Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Win	17–5	Lee Batts	KO	2	1964-03-16	Philadelphia Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	Batts knocked out at 1:08 of the second round.
Loss	16–5	Lee Batts	SD	10	1963-11-29	Battle Creek, Michigan
Win	16–4	David E. Bailey	SD	10	1963-10-18	Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan
Win	15–4	Jim Jones	UD	8	1963-07-06	Madison Square Garden, New York City
Win	14–4	Freddie Mack	SD	10	1963-06-05	Graystone Ballroom, Detroit, Michigan
Win	13–4	Leroy Roker	TKO	6	1963-03-15	Graystone Ballroom, Detroit, Michigan	Referee stopped the bout at 0:40 of the sixth round.
Win	12–4	Lou Bailey	KO	1	1963-02-09	Graystone Ballroom, Detroit, Michigan
Win	11–4	Gene Jackson	KO	3	1962-07-28	Graystone Ballroom, Detroit, Michigan	Jackson knocked out at 2:02 of the third round.
Loss	10–4	Young Jack Johnson	KO	5	1962-05-26	Graystone Ballroom, Detroit, Michigan
Loss	10–3	Cassius Clay	TKO	4	1962-02-10	Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York	Referee stopped the bout at 0:26 of the fourth round.
Win	10–2	Clay Thomas	KO	2	1962-01-27	Graystone Ballroom, Detroit, Michigan
Win	9–2	Tunney Hunsaker	KO	2	1961-10-16	Detroit, Michigan
Win	8–2	Willie Coleman	TKO	5	1961-08-07	Graystone Ballroom, Detroit, Michigan	Michigan Heavyweight Title.
Win	7–2	Joe Shelton	KO	2	1961-06-06	Graystone Ballroom, Detroit, Michigan
Win	6–2	Herman Wilson	KO	1	1961-04-25	Graystone Ballroom, Detroit, Michigan
Loss	5–2	Chuck Garrett	PTS	5	1961-02-06	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, Illinois
Loss	5–1	Joe Shelton	KO	3	1960-10-11	Graystone Ballroom, Detroit, Michigan
Win	5–0	Rufus Handsome	KO	1	1960-09-23	Detroit Olympia, Detroit, Michigan
Win	4–0	Chico Gardner	KO	4	1960-08-31	Chicago Stadium, Chicago, Illinois
Win	3–0	Ted Davis	KO	1	1960-08-18	Graystone Ballroom, Detroit, Michigan
Win	2–0	Lloyd Washington	KO	1	1960-07-12	Peace Bridge Arena, Fort Erie, Ontario
Win	1–0	Ernie Berthet, Jr.	PTS	4	1960-05-19	Detroit, Michigan

References

Boxing record for Sonny Banks from BoxRec (registration required)
Source: Rick Cleveland column.
"Poet and Pedagogue," A.J. Liebling, New Yorker (Feb 1962). https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1962/03/03/poet-and-pedagogue
Entry for Banks' grave in Findagrave (2019). https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/111532160/sonny-lucian-banks
Boxing record for Sonny Banks. BoxRec.com.

West Side Boxing News: "15 Round: The True Championship Distance"

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[1] Boxing record for Sonny Banks from BoxRec (registration required)

[2] Source: Rick Cleveland column.

[3] "Poet and Pedagogue," A.J. Liebling, New Yorker (Feb 1962). https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1962/03/03/poet-and-pedagogue

[4] Entry for Banks' grave in Findagrave (2019). https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/111532160/sonny-lucian-banks

[5] Boxing record for Sonny Banks. BoxRec.com.