History
Jack Root was a very good boxer, but he was a "tweener": Too big for the middleweight class, which then had a limit of 158 pounds, but not big enough to take on top heavyweights, who weighed 180 pounds and up.
Root's manager, Lou Houseman, in 1903, created a new division with an oxymoronic name and challenged any fighter of 175 pounds or less to take on his fighter for the light heavyweight title. The idea won general acceptance. On April 22, 1903, Root defeated Charles "Kid" McCoy to become the first light heavyweight champion, and the division has flourished ever since.
The lists below include generally recognized champions, as well as champions of the National Boxing Association/World Boxing Association (NBA/WBA), World Boxing Council (WBC) and International Boxing Federation (IBF).
Some other champions recognized by New York (NY), Great Britain (GBR), Europe and the European Boxing Union (EBU) are also included, if they seemed to be genuine claimants and /or later won recognition from an international body.
Only those bouts are included in which the championship changed hands or the championships of two or more governing bodies was unified.
Champions
Jack Root 1903George Gardner 1903
Bob Fitzsimmons 1903-05
Philadelphia Jack O'Brien 1905-12
Jack Dillon 1914-16
Battling Levinsky 1916-20
Georges Carpentier 1920-22
Battling Siki 1922-23
Mike Mctigue 1923-25
Paul Berlenbach 1925-26
Jack Delaney 1926-27
Jimmy Slattery (NBA) 1927
Tommy Loughran 1927-29
Jimmy Slattery 1930
Maxie Rosenbloom 1930-34
George Nichols (NBA) 1932
Bob Godwin (NBA) 1933
Bob Olin 1934-35
John Henry Lewis 1935-38
Melio Bettina (NY) 1939
Len Harvey (GBR) 1939-42
Billy Conn 1939-40
Anton Christoforidis (NBA) 1941
Gus Lesnevich 1941-48
Freddie Mills (GBR) 1942-46
Freddie Mills 1948-50
Joey Maxim 1950-52
Archie Moore 1952-62
Harold Johnson (NBA) 1961
Harold Johnson 1962-63
Willie Pastrano 1963-65
Eddie Cotton (Mich.) 1963-64
Jose Torres 1965-66
Dick Tiger 1966-68
Bob Foster 1968-74
Vicente Rondon (WBA) 1971-72
John Conteh (WBC) 1974-77
Victor Galindez (WBA) 1974-78
Miguel A. Cuello (WBC) 1977-78
Mate Parlov (WBC) 1978
Mike Rossman (WBA) 1978-79
Marvin Johnson (WBC) 1978-79
Matthew (Franklin) Saad Muhammad (WBC) 1979-81
Marvin Johnson (WBA) 1979-80
Eddie (Gregory)
Mustapha Muhammad (WBA) 1980-81
Michael Spinks (WBA) 1981-83
Dwight (Braxton) Muhammad Qawi (WBC) 1981-83
Michael Spinks 1983-85
J.B.Williamson (WBC) 1985-86
Slobodan Kacar (IBF) 1985-86
Marvin Johnson (WBA) 1986-87
Dennis Andries (WBC) 1986-87
Bobby Czyz (IBF) 1986-87
Leslie Stewart (WBA) 1987
Virgil Hill (WBA) 1987-91
Prince Charles Williams (IBF) 1987-93
Thomas Hearns (WBC) 1987
Donny Lalonde (WBC) 1987-88
Sugar Ray Leonard (WBC) 1988
Dennis Andries (WBC) 1989
Jeff Harding (WBC) 1989-90
Dennis Andries (WBC) 1990-91
Jeff Harding (WBC) 1991-94
Thomas Hearns (WBA) 1991-92
Iran Barkley (WBA) 1992
Virgil Hill (WBA) 1992-97
Henry Maske (IBF) 1993-96
Virgil Hill (WBA, IBF) 1996-97
Mike Mccallum (WBC) 1994-95
Fabrice Tiozzo (WBC) 1995-96
Roy Jones Jr. (WBC) 1996
Montell Griffin (WBC) 1996
D. Michaelczewski (WBA, IBF) 1997
William Guthrie (IBF) 1997-98
Lou Del Valle (WBA) 1997-98
Roy Jones Jr. (WBA, WBC) 1997-2000
Reggie Johnson (IBF) 1998-99
Roy Jones Jr. (WBA, WBC, IBF) 1999-2003
Silvio Branco (WBA) 2003-
Antonio Tarver (WBC, IBF) 2003-