The Tyson Fury-Deontay Wilder rivalry had a moment where Wilder mocked Fury for the "invisible" lineal heavyweight title that the Brit boasts about. That prompted the "Gypsy King" to inform "The Bronze Bomber" about the lineal championship's rich history in boxing, before snatching Wilder's physical WBC title for good measure.
Similarly, the Lonsdale Belt has a storied history as one of British boxing's most prestigious championships. Chris Billam-Smith and Tommy McCarthy clash in cruiserweight action for the Lonsdale title Saturday as part of Matchroom Boxing's Fight Camp 2 card at Matchroom HQ in Brentwood, Essex and streaming live and exclusively on DAZN.
The winner will be the latest Lonsdale Belt holder joining the likes of Lennox Lewis, Billy Joe Saunders, Kell Brook and many more.
Here, DAZN News takes a look at various aspects of the Lonsdale Belt's history, including its origin, current holders and outright winners.
Origin of the Lonsdale Belt
The Lonsdale Belt, a British boxing award, was founded by Lord Lonsdale, president of the National Sporting Club, in 1909, as reported by Britannica.com . The belt was first designed to be awarded to the champion in each division, having subsequently changed hands every time that champion suffered defeat. The very first Lonsdale Belt was awarded to lightweight Freddie Welsh, who received the honor after winning the NSC British Lightweight title in 1909. The shift from that came in 1929 when the British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC) assumed control of the designation of the Lonsdale Belt, awarding it to a champion who won three championshp bouts within a division — and not necessarily consecutively. In 2013, the BBBofC introduced the Lonsdale badge to be adorned on recipients' trunks to further entrench the award's prestige in British boxing.
Current holders of the Lonsdale Belt
- Vacant; Flyweight
- Vacant; Super Flyweight
- Lee McGregor; Bantamweight
- Brad Foster; Super Bantamweight
- Leigh Wood; Featherweight
- Anthony Cacace; Super Featherweight
- Maxi Hughes; Lightweight
- Akeem Ennis Brown.; Junior Welterweight
- Ekow Essuman; Welterweight
- Ted Cheeseman; Junior Middleweight
- Felix Cash; Middleweight
- Lennox Clarke; Super Middleweight
- Craig Richards; Light Heavyweight
- Vacant; Cruiserweight
- Joe Joyce; Heavyweight
Outright winners of the Lonsdale Belt
- Jim Driscoll; Featherweight (1910)
- Digger Stanley; Bantamweight (1912)
- Freddie Welsh; Lightweight (1912)
- Bombardier Billy Wells; Heavyweight (1913)
- Johnny Basham; Welterweight (1915)
- Joe Fox; Bantamweight (1917)
- Jimmy Wilde; Flyweight (1917)
- Tancy Lee; Featherweight (1917)
- Dick Smith; Light Heavyweight (1918)
- Pat O'Keeffe; Middleweight (1918)
- Jim Higgins; Bantamweight (1921)
- Johnny Brown; Bantamweight (1925)
- Jack Hood; Welterweight (1926)
- Len Harvey; Middleweight (1930)
- Johnny Cuthbert; Featherweight (1930)
- Jackie Brown; Flyweight (1932)
- Dick Corbett; Bantamweight (1934)
- Nel Tarleton ** ; Featherweight (1934)
- Jock McAvoy; Middleweight (1935)
- Jack Petersen; Heavyweight (1935)
- Johnny King; Bantamweight (1937)
- Eric Boon; Lightweight (1939)
- Ernie Roderick; Welterweight (1941)
- Jackie Paterson; Flyweight (1943)
- Nel Tarleton ** ; Featherweight (1945)
- Billy Thompson; Lightweight (1950)
- Ronnie Clayton ** ; Featherweight )1950)
- Peter Keenan ** ; Bantamweight (1951)
- Ronnie Clayton ** ; Featherweight (1953)
- Terry Allen; Flyweight (1953)
- Wally Thom; Welterweight; (1954)
- Randolph Turpin; Light Heavyweight (1956)
- Joe Lucy; Lightweight (1956)
- Peter Keenan ** ; Bantamweight (1957)
- Pat McAteer; Middleweight (1957)
- Charlie Hill; Featherweight (1958)
- Terry Downes; Middleweight (1960)
- Brian Curvis ** ; Welterweight (1961)
- Henry Cooper *** ; Heavyweight (1961)
- Freddie Gilroy; Bantamweight (1962)
- Howard Winstone ** ; Featherweight (1962)
- Howard Winstone ** ; Featherweight (1963)
- Chic Calderwood; Light Heavyweight (1963)
- Brian Curvis ** ; Welterweight (1964)
- Henry Cooper *** ; Heavyweight (1964)
- Walter McGowan; Flyweight (1966)
- Maurice Cullen; Lightweight 1966)
- Henry Cooper *** ; Heavyweight (1967)
- Johnny Pritchett; Middleweight 1967[96]
- Alan Rudkin; Bantamweight 1969[97]
- Jimmy Anderson; Super Featherweight (1969)
- Ralph Charles; Welterweight (1971)
- Ken Buchanan; Lightweight (1973)
- John McCluskey; Flyweight (1974)
- Evan Armstrong; Featherweight (1974)
- Chris Finnegan; Light Heavyweight (1975)
- Joey Singleton; Super Lightweight (1975)
- Alan Minter; Middleweight (1976)
- Maurice Hope; Super Welterweight (1976)
- Jim Watt; Lightweight (1977)
- Jimmy Batten; Super Welterweight (1978)
- Bunny Johnson; Light Heavyweight (1979)
- Colin Powers; Super Lightweight (1979)
- Johnny Owen; Bantamweight (1979)
- Pat Thomas; Super Welterweight (1979)
- Kevin Finnegan; Middleweight (1979)
- Clinton McKenzie; Light Welterweight (1979)
- Pat Cowdell; Featherweight (1980)
- Roy Gumbs; Middleweight (1982)
- Tom Collins; Light Heavyweight (1983)
- Dennis Andries; Light-heavyweight (1984)
- George Feeney; Lightweight (1984)
- Hugh Russell; Bantamweight (1985)
- Cohn Jones; Welterweight (1985)
- Lloyd Honeyghan; Welterweight (1985)
- Prince Rodney; Super Welterweight (1985)
- Tony Willis; Lightweight (1986)
- Robert Dickie; Featherweight (1986)
- Clinton McKenzie ** ; Light Welterweight (1987)
- Kirkland Laing; Welterweight (1987)
- Lloyd Christie; Super Lightweight (1987)
- Charlie Magri; Flyweight (1987)
- Tony Sibson; Middleweight; (1987)
- Horace Notice; Heavyweight; (1987)
- Herol Graham; Middleweight; (1988)
- Tony Wilson; Light Heavyweight; (1989)
- Pat Clinton; Flyweight (1989)
- Billy Hardy; Bantamweight (1989)
- Paul Hodkinson; Featherweight (1989)
- Johnny Nelson; Cruiserweight (1990)
- Colin McMillan; Featherweight (1991)
- John Doherty; Super Featherweight (1991)
- Carl Crook; Lightweight (1991)
- Andy Holligan; Super Lightweight (1992)
- Robbie Regan; Flyweight (1992)
- Lennox Lewis; Heavyweight (1992)
- Andy Till; Super Welterweight (1993)
- Crawford Ashley; Light Heavyweight (1994)
- Sean Murphy; Featherweight (1993)
- Neville Brown; Middleweight (1994)
- Drew Docherty; Bantamweight (1994)
- Francis Ampofo; Flyweight (1994)
- Billy Schwer; Lightweight (1994)
- Robert McCracken; Super Welterweight (1995)
- Ross Hale; Super Lightweight (1995)
- Sam Storey; Super Middleweight (1995)
- Delroy Bryan; Welterweight (1995)
- Michael Ayers; Lightweight (1995)
- Floyd Hazard; Super Featherweight (1995)
- Terry Dunstan; Cruiserweight (1996)
- Richie Wenton; Super Bantamweight (1996)
- Ryan Rhodes; Super Welterweight (1997)
- Paul Ingle; Featherweight (1997)
- Ady Lewis; Flyweight (1997)
- Ryan Rhodes; Welterweight (1997)
- Geoff McCreesh; Welterweight (1998)
- Jon Jo Irwin; Featherweight (1998)
- Charles Shepherd; Super Featherweight (1998)
- Michael Brodie; Super Bantamweight (1998)
- David Starie; Super Middleweight (1999)
- Ensley Bingham; Super Welterweight (1999)
- Derek Roche; Welterweight (1999)
- Julius Francis; Heavyweight (1999)
- Michael Gomez; Super Featherweight (2000)
- Bobby Vanzie; Lightweight (2000)
- Bruce Scott; Cruiserweight (2001)
- Nicky Booth; Bantamweight (2001)
- Michael Alldis; Super Bantamweight (2002)
- Danny Williams; Heavyweight (2002)
- Howard Eastman; Middleweight (2003)
- Neil Sinclair; Welterweight (2003)
- Mark Hobson; Cruiserweight (2004)
- David Barnes; Welterweight (2004)
- Dazzo Williams; Featherweight (2004)
- Jamie Moore; Super Welterweight (2005)
- Junior Witter; Super Lightweight (2005)
- Michael Hunter; Super Bantamweight (2005)
- Matt Skelton; Heavyweight (2005)
- Scott Dann; Middleweight (2005)
- Alex Arthur; Super Featherweight (2005)
- Graham Earl; Lightweight (2005)
- Carl Froch; Super Middleweight (2006)
- Carl Johanneson; Super Featherweight (2007)
- Ian Napa; Bantamweight (2008)
- Kell Brook; Welterweight (2009)
- Jason Booth; Super Bantamweight (2009)
- John Murray; Lightweight (2010)
- John Simpson; Featherweight (2010)
- Stuart Hall; Bantamweight (2011)
- Brian Rose; Super Welterweight (2012)
- Lee Selby; Featherweight (2013)
- Frankie Gavin; Welterweight (2013)
- Billy Joe Saunders; Middleweight (2013)
- Jon-Lewis Dickinson; Cruiserweight (2014)
- Bradley Skeete; Welterweight (2016)
- Martin J. Ward; Super Featherweight (2017)
- Ryan Walsh; Featherweight (2017)
- Lewis Ritson; Lightweight (2018)
- Kash Farooq; Bantamweight (2019)
- Brad Foster; Super Bantamweight (2020)
** Outright winner of two belts
*** Outright winner of three belts