The Best-Ever British Boxing Nicknames
Perhaps no sport is as linked with nicknames as boxing, so much so that when Sylvester Stallone penned Rocky, he gave no fewer than five to fictional heavyweight champion Apollo Creed.
Fighters have always attracted monikers, going back to 19th-century champ Nonpareil Dempsey and beyond, but really took off around the 1920s, spearheaded by that era's heavyweight king Jack Dempsey—"The Manassa Mauler."
British boxing was not always so enamoured with the nickname, associating it more with the hoopla and razzmatazz of the US, where it was a sport for the press pack to coin a nom-de-guerre for upcoming contenders.
Plenty of British champions such as Benny Lynch, Ken Buchanan and John Conteh never attracted a moniker that stuck.
It's maybe not entirely coincidental that it was in the 1980s, the decade of the Big Bang and rampant commercialism, that the UK truly embraced the nickname. The likes of "Ragamuffin Man" Lloyd Honeyghan and "Clones Cyclone" Barry McGuigan won world titles and almost edge their way into this list.
Consequently, this countdown is dominated by fighters of more recent vintage or those who fought on American soil and picked up a nickname there.
Among those who just missed out are Sheffield super-bantamweight Kid Galahad, lightweight contender Anthony "Million Dollar" Crolla and the always enigmatic early 2000s light-middleweight Richard "The Secret" Williams—a name that divides opinion but lodges itself in the memory.
And now, here are the 15 best-ever nicknames in British boxing.
15. 'Our 'Enry' Henry Cooper
1 of 15
Heavyweight
Years Active: 1954-1971
Record: 40-14-1 with 27 KOs
This isn't strictly a boxing nickname, more a reflection of Henry Cooper's enormous popularity and the affection the nation held for him.
Cooper may have twice lost to Muhammad Ali on his biggest nights, but he dominated a strong era of heavyweight boxing in Britain, twice winning BBC Sports Personality of the Year before ultimately being knighted Sir Henry in 2000.
"Our 'Enry" remained a national hero and a great ambassador for the sport until his death in 2011.
14. 'The Pugilist Specialist' Lennox Lewis
2 of 15
Heavyweight
Years Active: 1989-2003
Record: 41-2-1 with 32 KOs
Early in his career, Lewis was known as "The Lion," but later on he coined his own more distinctive moniker as "The Pugilist Specialist."
It fit Lewis' self-styling as a cerebral fighter who talked of his fondness for chess, and although this didn't always go down well with American audiences, he ultimately emerged as the king of the 1990s heavyweights, avoided by Riddick Bowe before defeating Evander Holyfield and Mike Tyson.
This nickname may not inspire fear in the heart of opponents but suited a fighter who could systematically take opponents apart, ultimately registering wins over every man he faced.
13. Paul 'Silky' Jones
3 of 15
Light-Middleweight
Years Active: 1986-2002
Record: 31-12-1 with 11 KOs
Pictured above is Silky Jones on the left in a British title fight against one of the worst nicknamed Brits—"Spice Boy" Ryan Rhodes.
Before footballers had "good tekkers" or other such recent abominations, they had "silky skills." Paul Jones brought the term to boxing even if wasn't always as silky as he may have made out with 12 losses on his record, four by way of knockout.
However, he did claim the WBO light-middleweight title back in 1995 with a huge upset win over Verno Phillips, a great effort on the night and what remains his claim to fame.
With a distinctively British use of the word "silky" and the telling fact that he was often referred to in print as just Silky Jones, so that some may not even know his first name, this has to rank highly.
File alongside "Sugar" Ray Robinson and "Mantequilla" Jose Napoles.
12. 'Peerless' Jim Driscoll
4 of 15Featherweight
Years Active: 1901-1913, 1919
Record: 53-3-5 with 35 KOs (plus 8 "newspaper decisions")
Jim Driscoll wasn't literally undefeated, but like Nonpareil Dempsey before him, he lost very few fights at a time when top fighters took more risks and thus suffered more defeats.
Driscoll had lost just once when in 1909 he beat world featherweight champion Abe Attell on points in a fight where it was stipulated that only a KO could win the Welsh challenger the crown.
Despite winning 10 straight fights on US soil from late 1918 to early the next year, he never got the proper title shot he deserved but did claim the British and European belts.
On the back of his excellent form in America, it was the legendary cowboy and U.S. newspaperman Bat Masterson who dubbed him "Peerless Jim," a label he thoroughly deserved.
11. Ovill 'The Upsetter' McKenzie
5 of 15
Cruiserweight
Years Active: 2003-
Record: 23-12 with 12 KOs
Losing six of his first 11 fights, Ovill McKenzie was never supposed to get anywhere in the sport and hasn't benefited from major promotional backing at any point in his career.
His nickname, "The Upsetter," recognises that he is reduced to the role of the away fighter looking to spring a surprise on the local favourite—but it's a role he has relished with notable successes.
He nearly did for future world-title challenger Tony Bellew in Liverpool back in 2010, flooring Bellew hard in both of the opening two rounds before the Liverpudlian rallied.
After losing a rematch with Bellew, he has bounced back, latterly as a cruiserweight holding both British and Commonwealth titles with five of his last six fights being early KO wins.
London's Tony Conquest and County Durham's Jon-Lewis Dickinson are the two most recent victims to be upset in their backyards by McKenzie.
10. Martin 'The Immaculate' Concepcion
6 of 15
Light-Middleweight
Years Active: 2003-2014
Record: 19-11 with 12 KOs
This list largely eschews puns such as the infamous Chris P Bacon, but this one is just too good to overlook.
Leicester fighter Martin Concepcion kept an immaculate record for his first 11 fights before it all went wrong with four back-to-back losses.
He would lose on his three biggest nights against Mexican contender Alfonso Gomez, in a Commonwealth title fight against Bradley Price and a British title challenge against Sam Webb.
But none of that detracts from the brilliance of his ring name, the only theological reference on our countdown.
9. 'The Tonypandy Terror' Tommy Farr
7 of 15
Heavyweight
Years Active: 1926-1953
Record: 84-34-17 with 24 KOs
In the 100-year span between the two undisputed British heavyweight champions—Bob Fitzsimmons and Lennox Lewis—Tommy Farr probably came closest to claiming the crown.
He gave champion Joe Louis an unexpectedly tough night at Yankee Stadium in 1937, winning several rounds and going the distance whilst taking his own fair share of licks.
It was his impressive performances on a US tour that continued into 1938 that won him the respect of US sports-writers, which has often been in short supply for British heavies, and with it the sobriquet of "The Tonypandy Terror."
This evocative name was typical of the early 20th century and heavyweights such as "The Ambling Alp" Primo Carnera, "The Boston Gob" Jack Sharkey and "The Pottawatomie Giant" Jess Willard.
Farr was a British champion and registered a win over former world champion Max Baer.
8. Herol 'Bomber' Graham
8 of 15
Middleweight
Years Active: 1978-1992, 1996-1998
Record: 48-6 with 28 KOs
It has become something of a truism that Herol Graham was one of the best British fighters never to win a world-title, dropping a split-decision to Mike McCallum in 1989, knocked out by Julian Jackson the next year and stopped late against Charles Brewer on his comeback in 1997.
The British WBO champions of the early 1990s, Nigel Benn and Chris Eubank, were none too keen to face Graham, seeing him as a high-risk, low-reward opponent.
His nickname, "Bomber," was deliberately misleading, characterising him as a guy who would be looking for a big punch when he was in actuality a defensive maestro who could frustrate opponents with his unorthodox style and lightning reflexes.
The name stuck firm, however, and to this day he is mentioned in print and on the airwaves as just "Bomber" Graham. Latterly Tony Bellew has adopted the same moniker but with less resonance.
7. 'The War Machine' Larry Olubamiwo
9 of 15
Heavyweight
Years Active: 2008-
Record: 10-8 with 9 KOs
Larry Olubamiwo is proof that a great nickname can only take you so far. A confessed comicbook fan, he adopted "The War Machine" from an Iron Man character.
He was seen as something of a prospect, despite turning pro aged 30, and won 10 of his first 11 fights, all but one of them by KO.
The former bodybuilder's limitations were brutally exposed in 2011 at the York Hall when John McDermott finished him inside the first round.
Olubamiwo hasn't won since and sullied his reputation by failing a drugs test in 2012 before admitting to using 13 banned substances.
Perhaps it's a shame that a name that conjures so much didn't find a better home, but it's a really good one and deserves its high placing.
6. 'The Ghost with the Hammer in His Hand' Jimmy Wilde
10 of 15Flyweight
Years Active: 1911-1921, 1923
Record: 132-3-1 with 99 KOs (plus 8 "newspaper decisions")
Jimmy Wilde is arguably the best-ever British boxer pound-for-pound and was the world flyweight champion from 1916 to 1923.
He attracted several nicknames including "The Mighty Atom" and "The Tylorstown Terror," but the most pictorial remains "The Ghost with the Hammer in His Hand."
For much of his career, Wilde weighed in below 100 pounds when the flyweight limit is 112. At 5'2.5", he looked small and emaciated yet he still racked up an incredible 99 career knockouts.
In 1999, The Ring ranked him the 13th-best fighter of the 20th century across all weight classes.
5. 'Iron' Hague
11 of 15Heavyweight
Years Active: 1904-1915
Record: 19-8-1 with 16 KOs
Nearly 100 years before there was "Iron" Mike Tyson and Paul "Scrap Iron" Ryan, there was a Yorkshire heavyweight called Iron Hague.
He won the British and European heavyweight titles in 1906 by first-round KO but lost against pound-for-pound legend Sam Langford in the same year, the American fighter himself memorably dubbed "The Boston Tar Baby."
According to local historians from Mexborough, Hague's hometown, his was a childhood nickname bestowed on him for his iron self will and the ability to take severe corporal punishment without betraying any pain—good preparation for the prize ring.
Iron Hague is not to be confused with his namesake and fellow Yorkshireman William Hague, the former Foreign Secretary and one-time Conservative leader.
4. 'The Dark Destroyer' Nigel Benn
12 of 15
Super-Middleweight
Years Active: 1987-1996
Record: 42-5-1 with 35 KOs
Few fighters have embodied their nickname better than '"he Dark Destroyer" Nigel Benn, one of the flat-out most intimidating British boxers ever.
Benn came to destroy or be destroyed and only nine of his 48 fights went the distance—he was memorably outlasted by domestic rivals Michael Watson in 1989 and Chris Eubank in 1990.
The Ilford man is notable for his willingness to travel and take on tough challenges, winning world titles on the road in two weight classes, seeing off Doug DeWitt, Iran Barkley and Mauro Galvano along the way.
Benn was part of a glamorous era for British boxing when fights on ITV brought in more than 10 million viewers on several occasions.
With his flash suits, menacing persona and impressive KO ratio, Benn was a popular favourite who more than lived up to his billing.
3. David 'Hayemaker' Haye
13 of 15Heavyweight
Years Active: 2002-2012
Record: 26-2 with 24 KOs
Some things are just meant to be. A big-swinging, big-punching cruiserweight turned heavyweight with the surname of Haye could only become "The Hayemaker."
Incredibly the clip above shows that Haye made it many years in boxing before the lightning bolt struck and the seemingly most obvious of nicknames was adopted. A pre-national treasure status Clare Balding makes some terrible alternative suggestions as well.
Haye says in the interview, "I'm not going to use a nickname," which is probably the first of many occasions that he told the British public one thing and then did another.
"The Hayemaker," now nearly 34, has not fought since 2012, but if he can return to fitness, there are some big domestic fights available against young up-and-comers Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua.
2. Bombardier Billy Wells
14 of 15
Heavyweight
Years Active: 1910-1925
Record: 41-1 with 34 KOs
Technically this is not a nickname but a military rank because Stepney heavyweight Billy Wells was a bombardier in the British Army before he became a professional boxer, with the perfect moniker already at hand.
Wells followed Iron Hague as British heavyweight champion and also scored a win over Gunner Moir, who held the rank below bombardier in the Royal Artillery.
After the outbreak of World War One, many of Wells' opponents had military-inflected names such as Guardsman Charlie Penwill, Soldier Jones and the less-than-fearsome-sounding Bandsman Dick Rice.
Wells would not have much success on the international stage, twice being knocked out in European title challenges against France's Georges Carpentier who had the singular nom-de-guerre of "The Orchid Man."
1. Prince Naseem Hamed
15 of 15
Featherweight
Years Active: 1992-2002
Record: 36-1 with 31 KOs
"You know I bring drama, excitement, you know me, Larry—from my wicked entrance, my flip over the ropes, to a knock-out." So the Prince summed himself up speaking to HBO in 2000.
It was often remarked in the 1990s, a time when the Royal Family was perceived to be out of favour, that Prince Naseem was the most popular prince in the land, even if he wasn't too high up in the line of succession.
The long-time world featherweight king elevated himself with his own title early in his boxing career, a typical act of bravado from a showman who ran on confidence.
The story may well be apocryphal, but when Hamed arrived in America for his first showcase fight against Kevin Kelley (pictured) with a huge HBO advertising spend behind him, it was said that some US observers genuinely believed he was descended from Yemeni royalty.
Such was the pervasiveness and brilliance of the nickname Prince Naseem, a grandiose moniker which Hamed earned the right to bear with his hugely entertaining boxing career.
All boxer records from BoxRec.
.jpg?w=600 "🚨 Giants Picking 5th and 10th")
