Following the name of the champion(s): Indicates the number of times the competitor has held that title at that point.
[...]
Indicates a gap in the listing where title changes are not known.
<
Title was held or changed hands no later than this. In these cases, it is known that a competitor held the title at a certain time but not when he/she won it.
@
Order uncertain. Different titleholders may be known for the same year, for example, but it is not known who held the title before whom.
#
Unofficial or disputable claims. These are usually matches that certainly took place, but where there is doubt that the competitor shown should be recognized as a true title holder. These listings are also italicized.
World Welterweight Title [lineal] (as of 2016-04-19)
* Bolded letters in the competitor's name, if any, indicate the surname/family name.
Paddy Duffy
1888-10-30
Ft. Foote, VA, USA
Defeats Billy McMillan and claims the title; vacant when Duffy passes away on 90-07-10.
Billy Smith
1892-12-14
San Francisco, CA, USA
Defeats Danny Needham.
Tommy Ryan
1894-07-26
Minneapolis, MN, USA
Has claimed the title since defeating Danny Needham on 91-02-17 in Minneapolis, MN (Los Angeles Herald, 91-02-18); defeas Smith on 84-07-26 is generally regarded as the lineal world champion; vacates in 98 to move up to the middleweight class because he can no longer maintain the welterweight limit (The Cincinnati Enquirer, 98-08-25).
Billy Smith [2]
1898-08-25
New York, NY, USA
Defeats Matty Matthews.
Matty Matthews
1900-04-17
New York, NY, USA
Eddie Connolly
1900-06-05
Brooklyn, NY, USA
Rube Ferns
1900-08-13
Buffalo, NY, USA
Matty Matthews [2]
1900-10-16
Detroit, MI, USA
Rube Ferns [2]
1901-05-24
Toronto, ON, CAN
Joe Walcott
1901-12-18
Ft. Erie, ON, CAN
Dixie Kid (Aaron Brown)
1904-04-29
San Francisco, CA, USA
Vacates on 04-09-21 to move up to the middleweight class.
Billy Mellody
1906-10-16
Chelsea, MA, USA
Defeats Joe Walcott.
Mike Sullivan
1907-04-23
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Vacates in 08-10 after moving up to the middleweight class.
Waldemar Holberg
1914-01-01
Melbourne, VIC, AUS
Defeats Ray Bronson.
Tom McCormick
1914-01-24
Melbourne, VIC, AUS
Also holds British Empire and British titles.
Matt Wells
1914-03-21
Sydney, NSW, AUS
Wins the world, British Empire, and British titles.
Mike Glover
1915-06-01
Boston, MA, USA
Jack Britton
1915-06-22
Boston, MA, USA
Ted Lewis
1915-08-31
Boston, MA, USA
Jack Britton [2]
1916-04-24
New Orleans, LA, USA
Ted Lewis [2]
1917-06-25
Dayton, OH, USA
Also listed as American champion (The Wichita Daily Eagle, Wichita, KS, 18-01-02).
Jack Britton [3]
1919-03-17
Canton, OH, USA
Recognized as the first NBA champion in 21-01 (The Decatur Herald, Decatur, IL, 21-02-07, plus several other papers).
Mickey Walker
1922-11-01
New York, NY, USA
Pete Latzo
1926-05-20
Scranton, PA, USA
Joe Dundee
1927-06-03
New York, NY, USA
Recgognized by NYSAC.
Jackie Fields
1929-07-25
Detroit, MI, USA
Has won NBA title on 29-03-25; defeats Dundee on 29-07-25.
Jack Thompson
1930-05-09
Detroit, MI, USA
Tommy Freeman
1930-09-05
Cleveland, OH, USA
Jack Thompson [2]
1931-04-14
Cleveland, OH, USA
Lou Brouillard
1931-10-23
Boston, MA, USA
Jackie Fields [2]
1932-01-28
Chicago, IL, USA
Young Corbett III
1933-02-22
San Francisco, CA, USA
Jimmy McLarnin
1933-05-29
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Barney Ross
1934-05-28
Long Island City, NY, USA
Jimmy McLarnin [2]
1934-09-17
Long Island City, NY, USA
Barney Ross [2]
1935-05-28
New York, NY, USA
Recognized by the World Boxing Commission in 38-04 (International News Service, 38-04-22).
Henry Armstrong
1938-05-31
Long Island City, NY, USA
Fritzie Zivic
1940-10-04
New York, NY, USA
Freddie Cochrane
1941-07-29
Newark, NJ, USA
Marty Servo
1946-02-01
New York, NY, USA
Vacant on 46-09-25 upon (temporary) retirement.
Sugar Ray Robinson
1946-12-20
New York, NY, USA
Defeats Tommy Bell; vacates on 51-02-14 to move up to the middleweight class.
Kid Gavilán
1951-05-18
New York, NY, USA
Defeats Johnny Bratton.
Johnny Saxton
1954-10-20
Philadelphia, PA, USA
Tony DeMarco
1955-04-01
Boston, MA, USA
Carmen Basilio
1955-06-10
Syracuse, NY, USA
Johnny Saxton [2]
1956-03-14
Chicago, IL, USA
Carmen Basilio [2]
1956-09-12
Syracuse, NY, USA
Officially recognized by the "World Committee of Professional Boxing", of which NYSAC and NBA are members, on 57-06-15 (The Los Angeles Times, 57-06-16); vacates on 57-09-23 when Basillo wins the middleweight title.
Virgil Akins
1958-06-06
St. Louis, MO, USA
Has won the recognition by the Massachusetts commission on 57-10-29; defeats Vince Martinez on 58-06-06.
Don Jordan
1958-12-05
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Benny Paret
1960-05-27
Las Vegas, NV, USA
Emile Griffith
1961-04-01
Miami Beach, FL, USA
Benny Paret [2]
1961-09-30
New York, NY, USA
Emile Griffith [2]
1962-03-24
New York, NY, USA
Luis Manuel Rodriguez
1963-03-21
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Emile Griffith [3]
1963-06-08
New York, NY, USA
Wins the middlweight title on 66-04-25; stripped of WBA welterweight title in 66-06; loses lawsuit to retain the WBC welterweight title on 66-08-01.
Curtis Cokes
1966-08-24
New Orleans, LA, USA
Defeats Manuel Gonzalez to win WBA and WBC titles.
José Napoles
1969-04-18
Inglewood, CA, USA
Wins WBA and WBC titles.
Billy Backus
1970-12-03
Syracuse, NY, USA
Wins WBA and WBC titles.
José Napoles [2]
1971-06-04
Inglewood, CA, USA
Wins WBA and WBC titles; stripped of WBA title on 75-05-16 16 for failure to sign for a fight against the top contender Ángel Espada.
John Stracey
1975-12-06
Mexico City, DF, MEX
Wins WBC title.
Carlos Palomino
1976-06-22
London, ENG, GBR
Wins WBC title.
Wilfred Benítez
1979-01-14
San Juan, PR, USA
Wins WBC title.
Sugar Ray Leonard
1979-11-30
Las Vegas, NV, USA
Wins WBC title.
Roberto Durán
1980-06-20
Montreal, QC, CAN
Sugar Ray Leonard [2]
1980-11-25
New Orleans, LA, USA
Vacates on 82-11-09 upon (temporary) retirement.
Donald Curry
1985-12-06
Las Vegas, NV, USA
Has won WBA title on 83-02-13 and IBF title on 84-02-04; defeats Milton McCrory on 85-12-06 to win WBC title.
Lloyd Honeyghan
1986-09-27
Atlantic City, NJ, USA
Wins WBA, WBC, and IBF titles; vacates WBA title in 86-12; stripped of IBF title on 87-10-28.
Jorge Vaca
1987-10-28
London, ENG, GBR
Wins WBC title.
Lloyd Honeyghan [2]
1988-03-29
London, ENG, GBR
Wins WBC title.
Marlon Starling
1989-02-04
Las Vegas, NV, USA
Wins WBC title.
Maurice Blocker
1990-08-19
Reno, NV, USA
Wins WBC title.
Simon Brown
1991-03-18
Las Vegas, NV, USA
Has won IBF title on 88-04-23; defeats Blocker on 91-03-18 to win WBC title; vacates IBF title on 91-05-07.
James McGirt
1991-11-29
Las Vegas, NV, USA
Wins WBC title.
Pernell Whitaker
1993-03-06
New York, NY, USA
Wins WBC title.
Oscar De La Hoya
1997-04-12
Las Vegas, NV, USA
Wins WBC title.
Félix Trinidad
1999-09-18
Las Vegas, NV, USA
Has won IBF title on 93-06-19; defeats De La Hoya on 99-09-18 to win WBC title; vacates on 00-03-03.
Shane Mosley
2000-06-17
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Defeats Oscar De La Hoya to win WBC and IBA titles.
Vernon Forrest
2002-01-26
New York, NY, USA
Wins WBC title.
Ricardo Mayorga
2003-01-25
Temecula, CA, USA
Has won WBA Super title on 02-03-30; defeats Forrest on 03-01-25 to win WBC title.
Cory Spinks
2003-12-13
Atlantic City, NJ, USA
Has won IBF title on 03-03-22; defeats Mayorga on 03-12-13 to win WBA and WBC titles.
Zab Judah
2005-02-05
St. Louis, MO, USA
Wins WBA Super, WBC, and IBF titles.
Carlos Baldomir
2006-01-07
New York, NY, USA
Wins WBC title.
Floyd Mayweather Jr.
2006-11-04
Las Vegas, NV, USA
Has won IBF and IBO titles on 06-04-08; defeats Baldomir on 06-11-04 to win WBC title; vacant on 08-06-06 upon (temporary) retirement.
Shane Mosley [2]
2009-01-24
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Wins WBA Super title.
Floyd Mayweather Jr. [2]
2010-05-01
Las Vegas, NV, USA
Also defeats Victor Ortiz on 11-09-17 to win WBC title; vacant on 17-08-01 upon (temporary) retirement.
Manny Pacquiao
2016-04-09
Paradise, NV, USA
Defeats Timothy Bradley; vacant in 16-04 upon (temporary) retirement.
