Bruce Seldon

Bruce Seldon
250px Bruce Seldon (left) and son Isiah Seldon (right) ringside at Trump Taj Mahal in 2010 after Isiah's KO win
Statistics
Nickname(s)	"The Atlantic City Express"
Rated at	Heavyweight
Height
Reach	78 in (198 cm)
Nationality	American
Born	(1967-01-30) January 30, 1967 Atlantic City, New Jersey
Stance	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	48
Wins	40
Wins by KO	36
Losses	8
Draws	0

Bruce Samuel Seldon (born January 30, 1967) is a one-time world heavyweight champion, having won the World Boxing Association title in 1995. In forty-eight career fights, Seldon won forty with thirty-six knockouts.

Seldon fought from 1988 until 1996, and again from 2004 until 2009.

Amateur career

Seldon compiled an amateur record of 20–4 and won the New Jersey Golden Gloves Super Heavyweight Championship.

Professional career

Known as "The Atlantic City Express", Seldon began his career on October 4, 1988 with a first-round knockout of Joel McGraw and won his first 18 fights without a blemish. During his winning streak he defeated some notable boxers: Ezra Sellers (future world cruiserweight title challenger), Ossie Ocasio (former cruiserweight champion and heavyweight title challenger), David Bey (former world rated contender), and Jose Ribalta (former world title contender).

On April 18, 1991 future WBC heavyweight champion Oliver McCall handed Bruce his first defeat. Seldon was ahead on the scorecards but tired and was knocked down by McCall three times in the ninth. In his next fight Seldon was matched with future undisputed world heavyweight champion Riddick Bowe who defeated him.

Seldon returned in 1992 with a victory over Jesse Ferguson whom he stopped on an eye injury, but was knocked down and outpointed the same year by ex-champion Tony Tubbs. Seldon signed with promoter Don King in 1993 and boxed on a series of his undercards, most notably in August 1993 when he stopped ex-champion Greg Page in nine rounds.

WBA heavyweight title

In 1995, world heavyweight champion George Foreman was stripped of the WBA title for declining to defend it against Tony Tucker. As Seldon was the second-ranked contender, a fight between him and Tucker was arranged for the vacant belt on April 8, 1995 in Las Vegas. Seldon, the underdog, used his jab to great effect and swelled Tucker's eye shut, to the point where the fight was stopped by the ringside doctor after seven rounds.

On August 18, 1995, Seldon fought on the undercard of the Mike Tyson-Peter McNeeley fight that marked Tyson's return to boxing. In the first defense of his title, Seldon again used his jab to control Joe Hipp and stop him in the tenth round.

Seldon vs Tyson

Main article: Bruce Seldon vs. Mike Tyson

Seldon's next defense was scheduled against Tyson, who in early 1996 won the WBC title for a second time by knocking out Frank Bruno. The bout was originally to be a title unification fight, with both Seldon's WBA belt and Tyson's WBC belt at stake. However, the WBC mandated that Tyson defend his belt against former champion Lennox Lewis first. Since the fight with Seldon was already signed, Tyson vacated his belt and only Seldon's was on the line when the two fought on September 7, 1996.

The fight was marred by controversy as Seldon lost by knockout in the first round. His performance in the fight was vastly criticized, as he was knocked down twice on what appeared to be light or "phantom" punches from Tyson. Rumors started that Seldon had been paid to take a dive against Tyson, with the fans chanting "fix" following the decision. Although Seldon claimed in a post fight interview with Jim Gray that he did not take a dive, the criticism of his performance (including accusations that he took a dive) did not stop and Seldon elected to retire following the fight. The late rapper Tupac Shakur attended the fight on that night, and was shot on the journey home, leading to his death 5 days later

Comeback

Seldon attempted a comeback at age 37 in 2004. He defeated two journeymen before gaining a high profile fight on HBO with Gerald Nobles. Abandoning his jab and boxing style for a punch out, Seldon decked Nobles in the second and was ahead on points but ended up throwing in the towel due to an eye injury in the ninth. In his next bout, an overweight Seldon was stopped in two rounds by Tye Fields.

Seldon launched a second comeback in 2007, now into his 40s, and knocked out a series of journeymen before being knocked out himself by ranked contenders Kevin Johnson and Fres Oquendo. He was also KO'd in four during an exhibition with Alexander Povetkin.

Seldon is currently training his super middleweight son Isiah Seldon. While not officially 'retired', Seldon is more involved with his son's career at this time. Bruce Seldon's career record stands at 40 Wins and 8 losses, with 36 knockouts.

Professional boxing record

40 Wins (36 knockouts, 4 decisions), 8 Losses (7 knockouts, 1 decision), 0 Draws [1]
Result	Record	Opponent	Type	Round	Date	Location	Notes
Loss	40–8	Fres Oquendo	KO	9 (10)	24/07/2009	UIC Pavilion, Chicago, Illinois, United States	For Interim NABA heavyweight title.
Win	40–7	Gabe Brown	TKO	5 (8)	15/05/2009	Harrah's Marina Hotel Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win	39–7	Brad Gregory	TKO	2 (8)	07/11/2008	Bally's Park Place Hotel Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Loss	38–7	Kevin Johnson	TKO	5 (10)	05/09/2008	Bally's Event Center, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win	38–6	Livin Castillo	TKO	5 (8)	31/05/2008	Showboat Hotel & Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win	37–6	Jay Sweetman	KO	2 (8)	10/03/2007	Best Western Banquet Hall, Winchester, Virginia, United States
Win	36–6	Marcus Rhode	KO	1 (6)	10/02/2007	Klein Jewish Comm. Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Loss	35–6	Tye Fields	KO	2 (10)	28/10/2005	Orleans Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Loss	35–5	Gerald Nobles	TKO	9 (10)	15/05/2004	Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win	35–4	Lenzie Morgan	TKO	2 (6)	09/04/2004	Drexel National Guard Armory, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Win	34–4	Otis Tisdale	KO	3 (6)	06/03/2004	Blue Horizon, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Loss	33–4	Mike Tyson	KO	1 (12)	07/09/1996	MGM Grand, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States	Lost WBA heavyweight title.
Win	33–3	Joe Hipp	TKO	10 (12)	19/08/1995	MGM Grand, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States	Retained WBA heavyweight title.
Win	32–3	Tony Tucker	RTD	7 (12)	08/04/1995	Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States	Won vacant WBA heavyweight title.
Win	31–3	Bill Corrigan	KO	1 (?)	17/12/1994	Ruminahui Coliseum, Quito, Ecuador
Win	30–3	Tui Toia	TKO	3 (?)	02/07/1994	Mirage Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win	29–3	Nathaniel Fitch	TKO	4 (12)	19/02/1994	Coliseum, Charlotte, North Carolina, United States	Retained IBF Inter-Continental heavyweight title.
Win	28–3	Greg Page	TKO	9 (12)	06/08/1993	Coliseo Ruben Rodriguez, Bayamon, Puerto Rico	Retained IBF Inter-Continental heavyweight title.
Win	27–3	Mike Robinson	KO	2 (?)	17/04/1993	Fernwood Resort, Bushkill, Pennsylvania, United States
Win	26–3	Al Shoffner	TKO	7 (?)	15/02/1993	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Win	25–3	Alexander Popov	TKO	2 (12)	24/01/1993	Trump Taj Mahal, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States	Retained IBF Inter-Continental heavyweight title.
Loss	24–3	Tony Tubbs	UD	10	14/10/1992	Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win	24–2	Percell Davis	TKO	3 (?)	18/09/1992	Fernwood Resort, Bushkill, Pennsylvania, United States
Win	23–2	Mike Dixon	UD	10	09/07/1992	Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win	22–2	Larry Givens	TKO	2 (?)	22/06/1992	Greensburg, Indiana, United States
Win	21–2	Jim Taylor	TKO	1 (?)	16/04/1992	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States
Win	20–2	Dion Burgess	TKO	1 (?)	09/02/1992	Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win	19–2	Jesse Ferguson	TKO	5 (15)	19/01/1992	Taj Majal Hotel & Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States	Won vacant IBF Inter-Continental heavyweight title.
Loss	18–2	Riddick Bowe	KO	1 (10)	09/08/1991	Convention Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Loss	18–1	Oliver McCall	TKO	9 (10)	18/04/1991	Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win	18–0	Percell Davis	TKO	1 (10)	22/03/1991	Trump Castle, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win	17–0	Jose Ribalta	TKO	3 (10)	11/01/1991	Trump Taj Mahal, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win	16–0	David Bey	TKO	10 (10)	01/11/1990	Trump Taj Mahal, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win	15–0	John Morton	TKO	7 (?)	16/08/1990	Sheraton Hotel, Boston, Massachusetts, United States
Win	14–0	Tom Sandner	RTD	2 (10)	24/06/1990	Convention Center, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win	13–0	Ossie Ocasio	PTS	8	18/05/1990	San Jose, California, United States
Win	12–0	Danny Wofford	UD	6	07/04/1990	USA Flea Market, Miami Beach, Miami Beach, Florida, United States
Win	11–0	Jerry Jones	TKO	8 (8)	23/03/1990	Showboat Hotel & Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win	10–0	Amos Lisboa-Casillas	KO	1 (4)	18/02/1990	Resorts International, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win	9–0	Lorenzo Canady	RTD	2 (?)	15/01/1990	Convention Center, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win	8–0	Hassan Shabazz	TKO	5 (6)	28/11/1989	Alumni Arena, Buffalo, New York, United States
Win	7–0	Isaac Poole	KO	1 (4)	15/09/1989	Jai Alai Fronton, Miami, Florida, United States
Win	6–0	Ezra Sellers	TKO	2 (4)	22/08/1989	Showboat Hotel & Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win	5–0	Warren Thompson	TKO	3 (4)	25/06/1989	Convention Center, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win	4–0	Jesse McGhee	UD	4	30/05/1989	Trump Castle, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win	3–0	Mike Robinson	TKO	3 (4)	21/03/1989	Trump Castle, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win	2–0	Tyrone Barwell	KO	1 (4)	23/11/1988	Convention Hall, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Win	1–0	Joel McGraw	TKO	1 (4)	04/10/1988	Atlantis Hotel & Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States	Professional debut.

External links

• Professional boxing record for Bruce Seldon from BoxRec

Achievements
Vacant Title last held by George Foreman	WBA Heavyweight Champion April 8, 1995–September 7, 1996	Succeeded by Mike Tyson