From 1980 to 1987, Hagler stood at the top of the sport as the undisputed middleweight champion, defending his crown 12 times and stopping opponents with a ruthlessness that produced a division-record knockout rate of 78 percent. 

Kid Gavilan was born Gerardo Maras on January 6, 1929, in Camagüey, Cuba, the son of a labourer who left before the boy could remember his face. By twelve he was swinging a seven-pound bolo knife, cutting cane under a sun that made the air itself feel heavy. The work built his strength, and some say that the fluid motion of that knife taught him the movement that would later become his signature in the ring - the bolo punch. 

For six years, Joe Brown ruled the lightweight division with quiet authority. From 1956 to 1962, he was the undisputed champion of the world, making eleven successful defences, an achievement that once stood as a record for nearly two decades. Yet today, his name is rarely mentioned when boxing’s great champions are recalled. 

Emile Griffith embodied boxing’s core paradox, a gentle, hat-making champion in a sport that demanded brutality. Haunted by Benny “Kid” Paret’s death and punished more for whom he loved than for blows he threw, his life forces us to question what society forgives and what it will not.

Women’s boxing in America began not with recognition, but resistance. From theatre bouts in the 19th century to courtroom battles in the 1970s, female fighters fought not just opponents, but the right to step into the ring. Each lawsuit, each exhibition, each overlooked victory slowly rewrote the rules. Olympic inclusion in 2012 marked a turning point. Today women’s boxing is no longer fighting for legitimacy, it is fighting to redefine the sport entirely.

Before his infamous 1910 lost to Jack Johnson, James J. Jeffries was considered unbeatable a heavyweight force who reigned supreme at the dawn of modern boxing. This is the untold story of Jeffries' prime and how one night in Reno changed his legacy forever.

In the 1970s, Don King redefined boxing promotion, turning fights into global spectacles like the Rumble in the Jungle and Thrilla in Manila. He knew the bout was the final act in a much larger story, one built through press events, symbolic venues and myth-making.

In the 19th century American boxing was poorly standardised and wildly popular. Within this landscape, Terry McGovern cruised across the bantam weight and featherweight skies. His reign was not long, yet his influence was lasting.

Alongside its rich history, Alcatraz reveals a boxing past with its origins extending back to as early as the California Gold Rush. Local San Franciscans were invited to spectate bouts between military personnel, foreshadowing the island’s long-standing connection to the sport.

The fight game has undergone a significant transformation, from the influx of Irish immigrants to the Golden Age of Ali. Yet throughout these contrasting eras, boxing has consistently reflected the nation’s socio-economic narrative.

As iVisit Boxing prepares to return the sport to the city through the ICONIC Series, we reflect on how San Francisco’s boxing legacy continues to shape its identity.

In Depression-era America, while industries collapsed, boxing endured. As factories closed, the ring stayed open, becoming both an economic product and political tool. Promoters professionalised, cities leaned in and the sport became a stabilising force amid national uncertainty.