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20 Boxers who sadly died in the Ring

*Originally published by Ian S on April 2023 and  Updated by Vanessa R on August 2023 and Ian S in May 2024

Injuries are a part of the game in boxing. Boxing has seen some terrifying-looking injuries, but boxers have recovered and gone on to fight again. Unfortunately, for some boxers, the injuries and damage incurred in the ring have resulted in their early deaths. Every time a boxer valiantly enters the ring, they risk their life.

When the final bell rings and the bouts conclude, the vast majority of those brave boxers safely return home to their families with some matching on to become the greatest of all time. However, for the unfortunate minority, the worst can happen inside the squared circle. Some people have died as a result of their involvement in prizefighting.  Here are 20 boxers who sadly passed on in the ring.

1. Frankie Campbell

Frankie Campbell was an Italian-American boxer who competed as a heavyweight. He won 33 of his 40 professional fights, losing four, drawing twice, and fighting to a no-contest in one. On August 25, 1930, in San Francisco, California, Campbell was killed in the ring by future heavyweight champion Max Baer.

After knocking out future Max Baer in the second round, Italian-American Frankie Campbell headed to the ropes. Baer sprang to his feet and delivered a thundering right punch to the side of his opponent’s head.

He fought until the fifth round when he suffered a continuous battering from the Nebraska native before the referee stepped in. The fallen fighter sadly died hours later in the hospital from a double cerebral haemorrhage. 

Related: Top 10 Facts About Boxer Frankie Campbell

2. Yo-Sam Choi

Choi Yo-Sam was a world boxing champion from Korea. Choi, 35, defended his WBO Flyweight title against Hari Amoi in 2007. Choi was knocked out in the final seconds of the 12th round. He was able to overcome the count, however, and went on to win a unanimous decision.

Unfortunately, Choi collapsed within the ring and had to be evacuated to the hospital, where he underwent urgent surgery. Choi was declared brain-dead seven days later and died the next day after being withdrawn from a ventilator.

Related: Top 10 Facts About Boxer Yo-Sam Choi

3. Jimmy Doyle

Jimmy Doyle, also known as James Emerson Delaney, was an African-American welterweight boxer who died in the hospital following a boxing match with Sugar Ray Robinson.

It was the first death in a boxing match since the 1800s. Doyle, 22, was knocked down in the eighth round and never regained consciousness, dying in a local hospital after undergoing surgery.

Related: Top 10 Facts About Jimmy Doyle

4. Patrick Day

Patrick Day was a professional boxer from the United States. Patrick was 27 years old when he was knocked down three times in a fight with fellow countryman Charles Conwell. Day’s head severely rebounded on the canvas on the final knockdown that ended the fight. The referee promptly stopped the fight after witnessing Day’s fall.

The day was transported to the hospital, where he began having convulsions and soon fell into a coma. Following that, doctors conducted emergency brain surgery. Day died four days later, on October 16, from what was characterized as a catastrophic brain injury.

Related: Top 10 Facts About Boxer Patrick Day

5. David “Davey” S. Moore

David “Davey” S. Moore was a featherweight world champion boxer from the United States who competed professionally from 1953 to 1963. In the 10th round of his featherweight title fight with Sugar Ramos, Davey Moore was pushed to the floor awkwardly, falling on his neck on the bottom rope.

He was able to stand and finish the round on his feet before the referee called a halt to the action. Unfortunately, the Kentucky-born champion lost much more than his championship after a gruelling bout, going into a coma in his dressing room from which he never awoke and dying 75 hours later in a hospital bed.

Related: Top 10 Facts About Boxer David 鈥淒avey鈥� S. Moore

6. Musa Yamak

Yamak entered the match against Hamza Wandera with an 8-0 the record was knocked out in the second round by a huge shot from his opponent.

In the third round, he attempted to come out but collapsed to the canvas in terrifying scenes. The 38-year-old German fighter made his debut in 2017, has fought largely in Germany but also in Turkey, and has defeated every opponent he has faced up until his May 14 light heavyweight match against Hamza Wandera.

Yamak appeared to be affected by Wandera’s hard strikes in the second round at the Garching boxing contest near Munich. The battle was immediately stopped by the referee, and the event was cancelled as doctors rushed to Yamak’s help and he was quickly transferred to the hospital.

However, the fighter was soon pronounced dead, with officials announcing that he had died of a catastrophic heart attack.

7. Maxim Dadashev

Maxim Kaibkhanovich Dadashev was a Russian boxer who fought in the light-welterweight (63.5 kg) weight class. Dadashev, a Russian amateur champion, competed in the 2015 European Games.

 Maxim Dadashwv died after suffering an injury during his IBF light welterweight battle with Subriel Matias. The Boxer was hospitalized following the fight and died a few days later.

8. Scott Westgarth

Scott Westgarth was a light heavyweight boxer from the United Kingdom. He died on February 26, 2018, at the age of 31, from injuries sustained after winning a 10-round light heavyweight fight on a Saturday night.

Westgarth was knocked down in the final round of his bout against Spelman, but he recovered to win on points. He then conducted a post-match interview before meeting with medics in the locker room.  Concerns regarding his health prompted them to transport him to Royal Hallamshire Hospital in an ambulance.

Several times during the conversation, Westgarth raised his wrapped hand to his head above his left eye, indicating discomfort. Westgarth died the following day, February 25, 2018. Westgarth’s final fight was widely considered to be the biggest victory of his career.

9. Simiso Buthelezi

Boxer Simiso Buthelezi died following a battle in Durban, South Africa, in which he appeared bewildered towards the finish.

Buthelezi, 24, collapsed near the finish of the fight on June 5, 2022, before being rushed to the hospital, according to Boxing South Africa (BSA). The boxer died in the hospital on June 7 after suffering internal bleeding following a brain injury.

A video released on social media appeared to show Buthelezi fighting in the direction of an empty area of the ring, appearing disoriented, forcing the referee to call the fight off.

10. Mike Towell

Towell fought Dale Evans on September 29, 2016, at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Glasgow, where he was TKO’d in the fifth round of the scheduled 12-round bout.

He was then taken to Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, where it was revealed that he had severe brain bleeding, which resulted in his death on September 30, 2016. According to reports, Towell had ceased sparring a few weeks before the fatal battle owing to crippling migraines.

11. Angelo Jacopucci

Angelo, an Italian fighter, was known for calling himself “the clay of the poor.” After winning the continental middleweight championship, he had it taken away. In July 1978, he made an effort to reclaim the championship, but he died before doing so. Throughout the 12-round fight, Jacopucci let his guard down, which gave his opponent countless opportunities to punch him in the face.

His condition should have been known to the referee and line doctor at this moment, but they waited to call it a knockout when he fell to the ground. Angelo Jacopucci was declared dead at the age of 29 after becoming ill, being transported to the hospital, and slipping into a coma. The European title was reduced from 15 to 12 rounds when he passed away, and it was also prohibited to hold matches further than one hour’s drive near neurological facilities.

12. Benny Paret

Johnmolesworth, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via

Benny won the welterweight title twice in the early 1960s. He lost his life at the age of 25 after suffering an injury during a fight with Emile Griffith.

A fight that started in Madison Square on March 24, 1962, led to his death. Things got worse when Paret pinned Benny against the rope and started punching him. Benny was already in a coma when the referee was able to break up the fight; he passed away ten days later.

13. Kevin Payne

Even though he had won the fight, American welterweight boxer Kevin Payne passed away in the ring from complications. Payne’s final triumph came in a fight against Ryan Maraldo in March 2006; it was his only one. After the match, a stretcher was used to help him out of the ring and transport him to the hospital. Payne’s internal brain bleeding was later determined to be the cause of his death.

14. James Murray

A bantamweight boxer from Scotland named James Murray lost his life while fighting. For the BBBofC in October 1995, Murray and Drew Docherty were fighting.

In the midst of the fight, Murray had a seizure and passed out; it was later discovered that he had a brain haemorrhage. After two days, he succumbed to a head injury.

15. Ed Sanders

, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Ed Sanders, also known as Big Ed, competed as a heavyweight boxer in the United States. Being a Naval officer and a professional boxer at the same time presented challenges for Sander.

Even with a shoulder X-ray and signs of previous headaches, Sanders took on Willie James for the final time in December 1964. According to their claims, Sanders began to show indications of exhaustion during the fight, and a simple series of strikes forced him to lose consciousness and fall to the ground. He died during surgery.

16. Jeanette Zacarias Zapata

When a fighter’s life is tragically cut short, it serves as a sobering reminder of the risks inherent in the brutal sport of boxing.

Such was the case with 18-year-old Mexican boxer Jeanette Zacarias Zapata, who succumbed to her injuries on September 2nd, 2021, five days after being knocked unconscious during a match against Quebec’s Marie-Pier Houle.

The coroner’s report revealed that Zapata had suffered from Second Impact Syndrome, a devastating condition caused by repeated blows to the head. The fateful bout, organized by the reputable Groupe Yvon Michel at Montreal’s IGA Stadium, ended in tragedy despite the best efforts of medical personnel.

Zapata’s untimely death serves as a poignant reminder of the fine line boxers tread between glory and peril, prompting calls for heightened safety measures within the sport.

17. Kazuki Anaguchi

The risk is ever-present when fighters step into the ring. Tragedy struck as Japanese boxer Kazuki Anaguchi, 23, lost his life after suffering a subdural hematoma in a grueling Tokyo bout on December 26th. 

Knocked down four times, he valiantly fought through the 10-round bantamweight clash, losing a narrow decision to Seiya Tsutsumi. The ESPN+ co-feature to Naoya Inoue’s title fight proved fateful for Anaguchi. 

Despite winning six rounds on two scorecards, he lost consciousness after the final bell. Emergency surgery failed to revive him, and he never regained awareness. A young life cut short, a stark reminder of boxing’s inherent dangers.

18. Hugo Santillan

Sometimes, the world of boxing is jolted by tragic events that remind us of the brutal reality behind the sport’s glamour. In 2019, the untimely death of 23-year-old Argentine boxer Hugo Santillan left the boxing community reeling.

After a hard-fought draw against Uruguayan champion Eduardo Abreu, Santillan collapsed as the judges’ decision was announced. He was rushed to San Felipe Hospital, where doctors battled to save his life, but the damage was severe.

Santillan’s brain had swollen, affecting his organs, and he never regained consciousness. Despite surgeries and resuscitation attempts, he ultimately succumbed to cardiac arrest, a devastating reminder of the risks these athletes face in pursuit of their dreams.

19. Boris Stanchov

If a fighter knew the risks, would they step into the ring? This chilling question lingers after the tragic death of Boris Stanchov during his bout with Ardit Murja.

In a shocking twist, it was revealed that Stanchov had illegally fought under his cousin Isus Velichkov’s license, a deception known to his coach. The featherweight clash seemed routine until Stanchov collapsed unconscious in the fifth round.

Despite frantic efforts by medical teams, he couldn’t be resuscitated. The Albanian television report of his demise prompted Velichkov to come forward, unveiling the harrowing truth.

This heartbreaking incident serves as a sobering reminder of the perils fighters face, and the grave consequences of compromising safety for personal gain.

20. Davey Browne Jr.

14 September 2015 was a dark day for Australian boxing when Davey Browne Jr tragically lost his life after a brutal bout. The 22-2-1 fighter had been in control early against Filipino Carlo Magali, but things took a turn in the later rounds.

Reports suggest Browne was knocked down in the 11th, and with just 30 seconds left in the 12th, a powerful punch landed, rendering him unconscious. Speculations arose that loose tape on his gloves may have been a distraction.

As Browne was rushed to the hospital, officials could only hope for a miracle, with the boxing federation president solemnly stating, “Now it’s in the hands of God, unfortunately.”

This regional IBF title fight ended in tragedy, a harsh reminder of the risks these warriors face in pursuit of glory.

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