| Billy Soose | |
| Realname: | Billy Soose |
| Weight: | Middleweight |
| Birth Date: | 2 August 1915 |
| Birth Place: | Farrell, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Style: | Orthodox |
| Total: | 41 |
| Wins: | 34 |
| Ko: | 13 |
| Losses: | 6 |
| Draws: | 1 |
Billy Soose (August 2, 1915 – September 5, 1998) was an American boxer who won the world middleweight championship in 1941.
Soose was undefeated in his collegiate boxing career at Penn State and was a three-time Golden Gloves winner before turning professional in 1938.[1]
By the end of his first year in the paid ranks he had beaten the former world champion Eddie Babe Risko although he lost a unanimous decision to Charley Burley. In 1940 Soose defeated two future middleweight champions, Ken Overlin and Tony Zale. He began 1941 by defeating future heavyweight and light heavyweight title challenger Tami Mauriello. In May of that year he challenged Overlin for the middleweight title at Madison Square Garden and won by a controversial, but unanimous points decision.[2] He made no defences and in November it was reported that he had relinquished the championship in order to pursue the light-heavyweight title.[3]
After losing a bout to light-heavyweight contender Jimmy Bivins in January 1942 Soose joined the United States Navy and retired from professional boxing at the age of twenty-six.[4]
Soose was featured on the cover of the June 1941 Ring magazine and is a member of the World Boxing Hall of Fame. He is also the subject of a book, Billy Soose - The Champion Time Forgot.[5] He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2009.[6]
Soose was found dead at his home at Tafton, Pennsylvania in 1998.[1]
| Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round | Date | Location | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 41 | Loss | 34–6–1 | Jimmy Bivins | UD | 10 | Jan 13, 1942 | ||
| 40 | Win | 34–5–1 | Jimmy Reeves | PTS | 10 | Dec 18, 1941 | ||
| 39 | Draw | 33–5–1 | Ceferino Garcia | TD | 8 (12) | Jul 30, 1941 | ||
| 38 | Loss | 33–5 | Georgie Abrams | UD | 10 | Jul 30, 1941 | ||
| 37 | Win | 33–4 | Tony Celli | TKO | 2 (10) | Jul 11, 1941 | ||
| 36 | Win | 32–4 | Ken Overlin | UD | 15 | May 9, 1941 | ||
| 35 | Win | 31–4 | Ernie Vigh | PTS | 12 | Mar 7, 1941 | ||
| 34 | Win | 30–4 | Ernie Vigh | UD | 10 | Feb 7, 1941 | ||
| 33 | Win | 29–4 | Tami Mauriello | SD | 10 | Jan 3, 1941 | ||
| 32 | Win | 28–4 | Jimmy Casino | PTS | 10 | Dec 13, 1940 | ||
| 31 | Win | 27–4 | Vince Pimpinella | UD | 10 | Nov 7, 1940 | ||
| 30 | Win | 26–4 | Tony Zale | UD | 10 | Aug 21, 1940 | ||
| 29 | Win | 25–4 | Ken Overlin | SD | 10 | Jul 24, 1940 | ||
| 28 | Win | 24–4 | Jack Ennis | PTS | 10 | May 30, 1940 | ||
| 27 | Win | 23–4 | Ernest Peirce | PTS | 10 | May 15, 1940 | ||
| 26 | Win | 22–4 | Frankie Nelson | PTS | 10 | Mar 25, 1940 | ||
| 25 | Win | 21–4 | Enzo Iannozzi | KO | 4 (10) | Mar 5, 1940 | ||
| 24 | Loss | 20–4 | Georgie Abrams | UD | 10 | Feb 12, 1940 | ||
| 23 | Win | 20–3 | Bud Mignault | UD | 10 | Jan 29, 1940 | ||
| 22 | Win | 19–3 | Jimmy Clark | TKO | 3 (10) | Jan 22, 1940 | ||
| 21 | Win | 18–3 | Vince Pimpinella | PTS | 8 | Jan 15, 1940 | ||
| 20 | Win | 17–3 | Jimmy Jones | TKO | 5 (6) | Dec 19, 1939 | ||
| 19 | Win | 16–3 | Paul Pirrone | PTS | 6 | Dec 11, 1939 | ||
| 18 | Win | 15–3 | Butch Lynch | KO | 4 (10) | Nov 29, 1939 | ||
| 17 | Win | 14–3 | Johnny Duca | UD | 10 | Nov 15, 1939 | ||
| 16 | Win | 13–3 | Jack Munley | TKO | 5 (10) | Oct 18, 1939 | ||
| 15 | Loss | 12–3 | Georgie Abrams | UD | 8 | Sep 25, 1939 | ||
| 14 | Win | 12–2 | Joe Fedz | TKO | 1 (10) | Sep 11, 1939 | ||
| 13 | Win | 11–2 | Johnny Duca | PTS | 10 | Feb 20, 1939 | ||
| 12 | Loss | 10–2 | Charley Burley | UD | 10 | Nov 21, 1938 | ||
| 11 | Loss | 10–1 | Johnny Duca | MD | 10 | Oct 13, 1938 | ||
| 10 | Win | 10–0 | Eddie Babe Risko | KO | 3 (10) | Oct 5, 1938 | ||
| 9 | Win | 9–0 | Charley Weise | KO | 2 (10) | Sep 13, 1938 | ||
| 8 | Win | 8–0 | Freddie Lenn | UD | 10 | Aug 29, 1938 | ||
| 7 | Win | 7–0 | Eric Lawson | TKO | 5 (8) | Aug 2, 1938 | ||
| 6 | Win | 6–0 | Al Quaill | UD | 10 | Jul 25, 1938 | ||
| 5 | Win | 5–0 | Johnny Foster | PTS | 4 | Jun 17, 1938 | ||
| 4 | Win | 4–0 | Joe Lujan | TKO | 3 (6) | Jun 6, 1938 | ||
| 3 | Win | 3–0 | Sewell Hipps | TKO | 4 (4) | Apr 5, 1938 | ||
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | Jimmy Brent | PTS | 4 | Mar 29, 1938 | ||
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Marine Johnny Dean | TKO | 4 (4) | Mar 15, 1938 | ||