| Johnny Saxton | |
| Nationality: | American |
| Weight: | Welterweight |
| Birth Date: | July 4, 1930 |
| Birth Place: | Newark, New Jersey |
| Death Date: | [1] |
| Style: | Orthodox |
| Total: | 66 |
| Wins: | 55 |
| Ko: | 21 |
| Losses: | 9 |
| Draws: | 2 |
Johnny Saxton (July 4, 1930 – October 4, 2008) was an American professional boxer in the welterweight (147lb) division. He was born in Newark, New Jersey, learned to box in a Brooklyn orphanage and had an amateur career winning 31 of 33 fights, twice becoming World Welterweight Champion.[2]
Saxton turned professional in 1949 and ran up forty wins without a defeat before losing to Gil Turner in 1953. His win over Joey Giardello and Johnny Bratton helped propel him to fight with Kid Gavilán (or Gavilan) in 1954 for the world welterweight championship. He beat Gavilan via a fifteen-round decision to take the title. He lost the title the following year via technical knockout against Tony DeMarco. In 1956 he won the title again with an upset win over Carmen Basilio, but lost the title in a rematch with Basilio later in the year. He retired in 1958.
Saxton, brother of Richard Eugene Kyle, who boxed for the U.S. Army, was managed by Frank "Blinky" Palermo, a member of the Philadelphia crime family. Palermo was imprisoned in 1961 for conspiracy and extortion for the covert ownership of prizefighters.[3] Saxton's career was often marred by rumors of shady dealings. His two biggest wins, against Gavilan and Basilio, were both controversial and unpopular with many in the boxing world.
Saxton worked as a security guard and a boxing coach after he retired. A hit-and-run accident left him with damage to one leg, and by the early 1990s he was living in a New York City apartment that had no electricity. A friend helped Saxton move to a retirement home in Florida. He was diagnosed with pugilistic dementia.
| Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round | Date | Location | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 66 | Loss | 55–9–2 | Willie Greene | TKO | 3 (10) | Dec 15, 1958 | ||
| 65 | Loss | 55–8–2 | Denny Moyer | UD | 10 | Oct 21, 1958 | ||
| 64 | Win | 55–7–2 | Barry Allison | SD | 10 | Oct 7, 1958 | ||
| 63 | Loss | 54–7–2 | Joe Miceli | TKO | 3 (10) | Sep 6, 1957 | ||
| 62 | Loss | 54–6–2 | Carmen Basilio | TKO | 2 (15) | Feb 22, 1957 | ||
| 61 | Loss | 54–5–2 | Carmen Basilio | TKO | 9 (15) | Sep 12, 1956 | ||
| 60 | Win | 54–4–2 | Don Williams | MD | 10 | Aug 23, 1956 | ||
| 59 | Win | 53–4–2 | Barry Allison | UD | 10 | Aug 7, 1956 | ||
| 58 | Win | 52–4–2 | Gil Turner | TKO | 10 (10) | May 16, 1956 | ||
| 57 | Win | 51–4–2 | Carmen Basilio | UD | 15 | Mar 14, 1956 | ||
| 56 | Win | 50–4–2 | Ralph Jones | UD | 10 | Nov 9, 1955 | ||
| 55 | Win | 49–4–2 | Jackie O'Brien | UD | 10 | Oct 25, 1955 | ||
| 54 | Win | 48–4–2 | Joe Shaw | UD | 10 | Sep 15, 1955 | ||
| 53 | Win | 47–4–2 | Jimmy Fuller | TKO | 6 (10) | Jun 10, 1955 | ||
| 52 | Loss | 46–4–2 | Tony DeMarco | TKO | 14 (15) | Apr 1, 1955 | ||
| 51 | Loss | 46–3–2 | Ronnie Delaney | UD | 10 | Feb 11, 1955 | ||
| 50 | Win | 46–2–2 | Ramon Fuentes | UD | 10 | Dec 2, 1954 | ||
| 49 | Win | 45–2–2 | Kid Gavilán | UD | 15 | Oct 20, 1954 | ||
| 48 | Draw | 44–2–2 | Johnny Lombardo | PTS | 10 | Aug 4, 1954 | ||
| 47 | Win | 44–2–1 | Johnny Bratton | UD | 10 | Feb 24, 1954 | ||
| 46 | Win | 43–2–1 | Mickey Laurent | TKO | 7 (10) | Feb 1, 1954 | ||
| 45 | Loss | 42–2–1 | Del Flanagan | SD | 10 | Dec 30, 1953 | ||
| 44 | Win | 42–1–1 | Herman McCray | KO | 3 (10) | Dec 3, 1953 | ||
| 43 | Win | 41–1–1 | Joey Giardello | UD | 10 | Sep 29, 1953 | ||
| 42 | Win | 40–1–1 | Charley Williams | TKO | 2 (10) | Sep 15, 1953 | ||
| 41 | Loss | 39–1–1 | Gil Turner | SD | 10 | Jun 15, 1953 | ||
| 40 | Win | 39–0–1 | Joe Miceli | UD | 10 | May 27, 1953 | ||
| 39 | Win | 38–0–1 | Charley Williams | UD | 10 | Mar 31, 1953 | ||
| 38 | Draw | 37–0–1 | Wallace Bud Smith | SD | 10 | Mar 10, 1953 | ||
| 37 | Win | 37–0 | Charley Williams | UD | 10 | Feb 24, 1953 | ||
| 36 | Win | 36–0 | Freddie Dawson | UD | 10 | Feb 10, 1953 | ||
| 35 | Win | 35–0 | Danny Womber | UD | 10 | Dec 29, 1952 | ||
| 34 | Win | 34–0 | Raul Perez | KO | 1 (10) | Dec 12, 1952 | ||
| 33 | Win | 33–0 | Mario Trigo | RTD | 3 (10) | Oct 28, 1952 | ||
| 32 | Win | 32–0 | Ralph Jones | SD | 10 | Oct 3, 1952 | ||
| 31 | Win | 31–0 | Virgil Akins | UD | 10 | Jul 30, 1952 | ||
| 30 | Win | 30–0 | Bobby Lee | UD | 10 | Jul 17, 1952 | ||
| 29 | Win | 29–0 | Luther Rawlings | UD | 10 | Jun 4, 1952 | ||
| 28 | Win | 28–0 | Bobby Lee | KO | 7 (10) | Apr 30, 1952 | ||
| 27 | Win | 27–0 | Charlie Thompson | PTS | 10 | Apr 17, 1952 | ||
| 26 | Win | 26–0 | Lester Felton | DQ | 6 (10) | Mar 14, 1952 | ||
| 25 | Win | 25–0 | Livio Minelli | TKO | 7 (10) | Jan 25, 1952 | ||
| 24 | Win | 24–0 | Charley Salas | UD | 10 | Nov 19, 1951 | ||
| 23 | Win | 23–0 | Marshall Clayton | TKO | 7 (10) | Nov 5, 1951 | ||
| 22 | Win | 22–0 | Honeychile Johnson | MD | 10 | Oct 4, 1951 | ||
| 21 | Win | 21–0 | Tommy Ciarlo | TKO | 5 (10) | Aug 20, 1951 | ||
| 20 | Win | 20–0 | Joey Carkido | RTD | 5 (10) | Aug 8, 1951 | ||
| 19 | Win | 19–0 | Gaby Ferland | TKO | 7 (10) | Jul 30, 1951 | ||
| 18 | Win | 18–0 | Lloyd Tate | TKO | 3 (10) | Jul 2, 1951 | ||
| 17 | Win | 17–0 | Tony Pellone | UD | 10 | Sep 22, 1950 | ||
| 16 | Win | 16–0 | Sonny Bunn | SD | 10 | Aug 28, 1950 | ||
| 15 | Win | 15–0 | Mike Koballa | PTS | 8 | Jun 26, 1950 | ||
| 14 | Win | 14–0 | Losiel Isadore | PTS | 6 | Jun 5, 1950 | ||
| 13 | Win | 13–0 | Bert Linam | TKO | 1 (10) | May 17, 1950 | ||
| 12 | Win | 12–0 | Joe Miceli | SD | 10 | Apr 21, 1950 | ||
| 11 | Win | 11–0 | John Bowman | KO | 3 (8) | Mar 22, 1950 | ||
| 10 | Win | 10–0 | Aldo Minelli | UD | 8 | Mar 15, 1950 | ||
| 9 | Win | 9–0 | Charley Salas | UD | 8 | Feb 10, 1950 | ||
| 8 | Win | 8–0 | Mario Moreno | KO | 2 (8) | Jan 13, 1950 | ||
| 7 | Win | 7–0 | Adrien Mourguiart | KO | 4 (8) | Dec 21, 1949 | ||
| 6 | Win | 6–0 | Bucky Slocum | PTS | 4 | Dec 5, 1949 | ||
| 5 | Win | 5–0 | Horace Bailey | PTS | 6 | Oct 24, 1949 | ||
| 4 | Win | 4–0 | George Hunter | KO | 2 (6) | Sep 6, 1949 | ||
| 3 | Win | 3–0 | Dave Andrews | UD | 8 | Aug 17, 1949 | ||
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | George Dixon | TKO | 1 (6) | Jul 20, 1949 | ||
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Jimmy Swann | KO | 3 (6) | May 9, 1949 | ||