Ranking the Top 10 Scottish Fighters of All Time

Scotland has a proud history in the sport of boxing.

From Benny Lynch to Ken Buchanan to Ricky Burns, the nation has produced some great fighters through the years.

But who is the best Scot of the lot?

In an attempt to answer the question, Bleacher Report has looked back through the years and ranked the top 10 pugilists hailing from north of Hadrian's Wall.

Honourable Mentions

John Gichigi/Getty Images

Before beginning the countdown, here are some honourable mentions to those outstanding fighters who did not make the final cut.

Jim Brady was a bantamweight who had 173 fights in a career that spanned more than 15 years, while Peter Keenan was a British and Commonwealth champion in the same division.

Light heavyweight Chic Calderwood was another unfortunate to miss out, along with Bert Gilroy—also known as Antonio Rea—who was Scotland's national champion at middleweight and light heavyweight.

In more recent times, Alex Arthur deserves recognition.

He has a victory over fellow Scot Ricky Burns on a resume that also includes a stint as interim WBO super featherweight champion.

There were others—such as William Fisher and Murray Sutherland—who came under careful consideration before ultimately missing out on this top 10.

10. Pat Clinton

Record: 20-3 (9 KOs)

Pat Clinton became Scotland's first flyweight world champion in 26 years when he was a split-decision winner over Isidro Perez at Kelvin Hall, Glasgow in 1992.

Two of the three judges scored the bout in favour of the home fighter. In his report for the Scotsman, Hugh Keevins wrote, "It was a gritty victory for Clinton, who was chased for the entire 12 rounds by the durable little Mexican." 

Clinton successfully defended the title once, against Danny Porter, before losing it to Jacob Matlala. He had just one more outing before hanging up his gloves not long after turning 30

Before turning pro, he had been a member of Great Britain's boxing squad at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

9. Scott Harrison

Scott Heavey/Getty Images

Record: 27-3-2 (15 KOs)

Scott Harrison won, lost and then regained the WBO featherweight title in a career hampered by issues outside of the ring.

The Real McCoy became a world champion for the first time in 2002 before relinquishing his grip on the belt to Manuel Medina the following year. However, he gained revenge by triumphing in the rematch.

Harrison held the strap until it was stripped from him in 2006 for failing to make weight for a defence against England's Nicky Cook.

He made a comeback in 2012, winning twice before falling short in his bid to beat European champion Liam Walsh. In 2015, he was extradited to Spain to serve a prison sentence, according to FightNews.com.

Harrison's reign as world champion warrants him a place in the top 10, but he could've been higher had it not been for his problems outside of the sport.

8. Walter McGowan

Record: 32-7-1 (14 KOs)

Walter McGowan continued Scotland's proud record of producing flyweight world champions when he outpointed Salvatore Burruni to pick up the WBC crown in June 1966.

His reign lasted six months, with Chartchai Chionoi stopping him in Thailand.

The rematch, staged in London in 1967, ended the same way, with McGowan unable to continue because of cuts despite leading on the cards.

Still, the Queen handed McGowan, the son of a boxer, an MBE in the 1966 honours list. He retired in 1969.

7. Ricky Burns

Mark Runnacles/Getty Images

Record: 38-5-1 (12 KOs)

A two-weight world champion, Ricky Burns is still going strong in the lightweight division.

The Rickster told Colin Paterson of the Daily Record, "There are so many good fights at lightweight in Britain and I don’t just want to be in the shake-up—I want to prove I am the best of the bunch."

The Coatbridge boxer made his name at super featherweight, climbing off the canvas to claim the WBO belt with victory over Roman Martinez in 2010.

Burns stepped up to the 135-pound limit the following year. He notched wins over Michael Katsidis and Kevin Mitchell.

However, Terence Crawford ended his reign as WBO champion last year. Further defeats to Dejan Zlaticanin and Omar Figueroa Jr. have followed, making it tough to push Burns any higher than seventh in the list.

6. Tancy Lee

Record: 41-10-2 (27 KOs)

Flyweight Tancy Lee was the first Scotsman to get his hands on a Lonsdale belt when he defeated Jimmy Wilde in the 17th round in 1915 to become the British champion.

The man from Leith—who was stripped of the Amateur Boxing Association championship he won in 1908 for breaking the rules, per the Herald—would go on to also claim the British title at featherweight. 

After retiring, Lee continued to be involved in the sport as both a trainer and manager. He worked with Johnny Hill, who would create his own piece of Scottish boxing history in 1929.

Lee died at the age of 59 after being hit by a bus in Edinburgh. 

5. Johnny Hill

Record: 18-1-3 (9 KOs)

Johnny Hill was Scotland's first world champion. He got the better of Englishman Ernie Jarvis on points in 1929, claiming the British and European titles on the same night, too.

However, after seeing off Jarvis in a rematch three months later, the man from Leith died from pneumonia on the eve of his defence against New Yorker Frankie Genaro in September of the same year.

Boxing historian Brian Donald told the Edinburgh News, "In just 23 months of being a professional boxer, he had won the British Empire, European and world titles, which is a phenomenal achievement."

Although Hill's career came to a premature end at the age of just 23, he deserves his position in the rankings for his triumph over Jarvis at the Royal Albert Hall in London.

There is no footage of Hill available, so instead enjoy watching Willie Limond, another Scotsman, go up against the legendary Mexican Erik Morales in 2010.

4. Jim Watt

Bob Dear/Associated Press

Record: 38-8 (27 KOs)

Jim Watt stopped Alfredo Pitalua in his home city of Glasgow in 1979 to claim the WBA lightweight title that had been vacated by Roberto Duran.

The southpaw would go on to defend the crown four times before losing to Alexis Arguello in 1981. Watt did not fight again after the defeat—he has since gone on to become an analyst for Sky Sports.

According to the BBC, Watt's success was "the launching pad for an early 1980s renaissance in Scottish boxing." For that reason, he deserves his place at fourth in the list.

3. Jackie Paterson

Record: 63-25-3 (40 KOs)

Jackie Paterson became a world champion at flyweight when he stopped Peter Kane inside a minute at Hampden Park in June 1943. In the process, he became the first southpaw to win the world title in the division, per BBC Sport.

According to Wikipedia, he was stripped of his world crown in 1947 when he collapsed at the weigh-in before a fight with Dado Marino. After gaining an injunction to keep the strap, he eventually lost it in the ring to Rinty Monaghan.

Paterson—who was also British and Commonwealth title at both flyweight and bantamweight—moved to South Africa after his career ended with four straight defeats. He died in 1966 at the age of 46.

Despite those late losses, BoxRec ranks Paterson as the second best flyweight on their all-time list. 

2. Ken Buchanan

Record: 61-8 (27 KOs)

At his peak, Ken Buchanan was the undisputed world lightweight champion. He did it the hard way as well, winning the WBA and WBC titles on American soil against Ismael Laguna and Ruben Navarro, respectively.

His most famous bout, however, was against the legendary Roberto Duran in 1972. The Edinburgh-born boxer lost his WBA belt in controversial circumstances in a bad-tempered affair.

Duran was ahead on the scorecards when he fought with Buchanan after the bell had sounded to end the 13th round. The latter claimed he had been hit below the belt and had to be helped to his corner. The referee waved off the contest, which meant Duran was named the new champion.

Buchanan defeated compatriot Jim Watt to claim the British title in 1973, but Guts Ishimatsu dashed a bid to win the WBC belt for a second time two years later in Tokyo.

He is third on the all-time list for lightweights in Britain, per BoxRec.

But, despite a disappointing comeback from 1979 to 1982 that saw him lose his last four pro fights, his achievements in his prime are enough to see him sit second in our rankings.

1. Benny Lynch

TON/Associated Press

Record: 88-14-17 (34 KOs)

Benny Lynch was a flyweight who, despite his size, built a reputation for hitting hard. Paul Wheeler of Boxing News wrote that "despite his small stature, the Glaswegian possessed devastating punch power."

Born in the Gorbals, he became world champion when he travelled down to Manchester to defeat Jackie Brown, dropping his opponent eight times inside two rounds.

Lynch got the better of Small Montana in January 1937 to become the unified champion, but alcoholism cut short his career. He was finished in the ring by the end of 1938 and died in 1946, aged just 33.

In rating him seventh on his all-time list of flyweights, Scott Levinson of proboxing-fans.com wrote: "Lynch didn’t fight all the best guys during his era. But from 1933-1936, he was unbeaten in a run of over 40 fights. He was a refined fighter whose fights were some of the best in flyweight history."

That remarkable run of results, along with the fact he ended Peter Kane's 42-fight winning streak in 1937, sees Lynch ranked first. 

Do you agree with Lynch being top of the Scots? Was an obvious candidate overlooked? Have your say by using the comments section.