It was British boxer Randolph Turpin’s last fight of the 1951 European tour in which he’d won six non-title bouts. But the clash for the world middleweight title against Sugar Ray Robinson on this day 65 years ago was serious business.
Sugar Ray was a living legend, unbeaten in 91 fights since 1943; he could be forgiven for taking the bout lightly. While Turpin didn’t have a knockout punch, he had good strength and kept Sugar Ray on a tight leash.
Turpin simply outlasted the legend and won the last two rounds to clinch the fight by a clear points margin.
Turpin thus became the first British boxer in 60 years to win the world middleweight title.
Here’s some other memorable events that happened on this day:
1994: Damon Hill wins his first British Grand Prix, something his two-time world champion father Graham never managed.
2012: South Africa wicketkeeper Mark Boucher retires from international cricket after sustaining a severe eye injury during a tour match against Somerset the day before.
2015: Mark Cavendish wins stage seven of the Tour de France, his 26th career stage win in all.