Boxing in the 1920s Boxing in the 1920s Boxing in the 1920s was an exceptionally popular international sport. Many fights during this era, some 20 years away or so from the television era, were social events with many thousands in attendance, both men and women. World Heavyweight champion Jack Dempsey dominated the sport through much of the decade. He won the title in 1919, keeping it until 1926. He lost the title to Gene Tunney in 1926, but many of his fights were historic, such as his defenses against Georges Carpentier, Luis Firpo and Tom Gibbons, a fight which almost bankrupted the town of
Heavyweight boxing championship records and statistics At the very beginnings, before the establishment of the sanctioning organizations, the title recognition passed through lineage in the fights under Marquess of Queensberry Rules. The champion was informally called "the man who beat the man". The fight between John L. Sullivan and Dominick McCaffrey is recognized by many boxing historians, including those at The Ring, to be for the inaugural World Heavyweight Championship under the Marquess of Queensberry Rules (however, some dispute that claim for various reasons, including the short distance of the bout, McCaffrey's small size and the fact that both fighters were Americans). The lineage was the