List of heavyweight boxing champions

This is a chronological list of world heavyweight boxing champions since the introduction of the Marquess of Queensberry rules in about 1895. It does not include fights fought under Jack Broughton's rules or the London Prize Ring Rules.

Championship recognition

All champions

1885–1910

Champions were recognized by public acclamation. A champion in that era was a fighter who had a notable win over another fighter and kept winning afterward. Retirements or disputed results could lead to a championship being split among several men for periods of time. With only minor exceptions, the heavyweight division remained free from dual title-holders until the 1960s. For an early example, see the 1896 World Heavyweight Championship.

1910–1961

Organizations that awarded world championships

• The International Boxing Union (IBU), formed in Paris in 1910. Changed name to European Boxing Union in 1946. It organised world title fights from 1913 to 1963 after which it was incorporated into the World Boxing Council (WBC).
• The New York State Athletic Commission (NYSAC), formed in 1920. It organised world title bouts until the early 1970s when it became a member of World Boxing Council (WBC).
• The National Boxing Association (NBA) formed in the USA in 1921.
• Other bodies including the National Sporting Club in Great Britain and the California State Athletic Commission in the USA also occasionally chose to recognise their own separate world champions.

1961–present

Organizations awarding widely recognized championships

At present, there are five sanctioning organizations which award world championships which are widely accepted within professional boxing circles:

• The World Boxing Association (WBA), which began recognizing champions as the National Boxing Association (NBA) in 1921 and took its current name in 1962.
• The World Boxing Council (WBC), which recognized Heavyweight champions beginning in 1963.
• The International Boxing Federation (IBF), organized by a splinter group of WBA members and recognizing its first Heavyweight title holder in 1983.
• The World Boxing Organization (WBO), organized by a splinter group of WBC members and recognizing its first Heavyweight champion in 1989.
• The International Boxing Organization (IBO), organized in the 1990s and widely recognized, but whose championship lineage is not listed below.

List of champions

Reign began	Reign ended	Champion	Recognition	Nationality
August 29, 1885	September 7, 1892	John L. Sullivan	Universal	American
Sullivan defeated Paddy Ryan in 1882 for the bare-knuckle championship of America. With the lack of legitimate challengers from outside America Sullivan gradually gained recognition as champion of the world. On August 29, 1885, he outpointed Dominick McCaffrey in Chester Park, Cincinnati, in a bout described as being "to decide the Marquess of Queensberry glove contest for the championship of the world"
September 7, 1892	March 17, 1897	James J. Corbett	Universal^1	American
James J. Corbett announced his retirement from boxing in 1895 and nominated his protégé Steve O'Donnell as his successor. Tradition demanded that O'Donnell win the world title in the ring so he was matched against the erratic Irish boxer Peter Maher. The bout took place at the Empire Athletic club, Maspeth, New York on 11 November 1895, Maher surprisingly defeated O'Donnell via first round knockout. The general public had little acceptance of the new champion and even Maher himself expressed a wish to fight Corbett for the "real" title. Maher defended his "world title" against the British-born Bob Fitzsimmons in Coahuila de Zaragoza, Mexico on February 21, 1896, and was himself the victim of a first round knockout. Fitzsimmons then fought another Irish fighter, Tom Sharkey of Dundalk on December 2, 1896, in San Francisco, the bout being billed for the heavyweight title. Sharkey was awarded victory by disqualification in round 8 by the referee, Wyatt Earp. Corbett announced his return to the ring late in 1896 and the claims of Maher, Fitzsimmons (until 1897) and Sharkey to be champion are usually ignored. The champions of this version of the title were: November 11, 1895 to February 21, 1896 Peter Maher Ireland February 21, 1896 to December 2, 1896 Bob Fitzsimmons Great Britain December 2, 1896 to 1897 Tom Sharkey Ireland.
March 17, 1897	June 9, 1899	Bob Fitzsimmons	Universal	British
Fitzsimmons became an American citizen in 1898.
June 9, 1899	May 13, 1905^1	James J. Jeffries	Universal	American
Jeffries was the first modern champion to relinquish the title, announcing his retirement and declaring that the winner of a match between Marvin Hart and Jack Root would be the next legitimate champion. Jeffries would return to the ring to face Jack Johnson.
July 3, 1905	February 23, 1906	Marvin Hart	Universal	American
February 23, 1906	December 26, 1908	Tommy Burns	Universal	Canadian
December 26, 1908	April 5, 1915	Jack Johnson	Universal	American
Jack Johnson's refusal to honor an agreement made by his manager to defend against the British champion led the National Sporting Club in London, the most powerful body in boxing outside the USA, to withdraw recognition of Johnson as champion. They matched Canadian Sam Langford and the British champion William "Iron" Hague for their version of the title. Langford beat Hague on a fourth round knockout in London on May 24, 1909. Langford returned home to America and never pressed his claim to the title.
April 5, 1915	July 4, 1919	Jess Willard	Universal	American
July 4, 1919	September 23, 1926	Jack Dempsey	Universal	American
September 23, 1926	July 31, 1928^2	Gene Tunney	Universal^1	American
Tunney announced his retirement from professional boxing on July 31, 1928, relinquishing the championship.
June 12, 1930	January 7, 1931	Max Schmeling	Universal	German
Schmeling defeated Jack Sharkey to earn universal recognition as champion but was stripped of the NYSAC version of the title in 1931 for refusing a rematch with Sharkey. The NYSAC title remained vacant until the two men eventually did fight in 1932.
January 7, 1931	June 21, 1932	Max Schmeling	NBA & IBU	German
June 21, 1932	June 29, 1933	Jack Sharkey	Universal	American
June 29, 1933	June 14, 1934	Primo Carnera	Universal	Italian
June 14, 1934	June 13, 1935	Max Baer	Universal	American
In late 1934 the International Boxing Union ordered world champion Max Baer to defend his title against the reigning European champion, Pierre Charles (Boxer) of Belgium. When Baer instead opted to fight James J. Braddock they withdrew recognition of him as champion. The IBU matched Charles with the American heavyweight George Godfrey for their version of the title with the fight taking place in Brussels, Belgium on 2 October 1935. Godfrey won a fifteen round points decision but did not press any claim to the championship and was inactive for the next two years. The IBU then recognized Baer's successor, James J. Braddock, as champion.
June 13, 1935	June 22, 1937	James J. Braddock	Universal	American
June 22, 1937	March 1, 1949^1	Joe Louis	Universal	American
Louis holds the record for longest title reign (11 years, 8 months and 8 days) as well as most successful title defenses (25).
June 22, 1949	September 27, 1950	Ezzard Charles	NBA	American
Charles defeated Jersey Joe Walcott to win the vacant National Boxing Association title but was not universally recognized as champion until June 1951.
June 6, 1950	June 16, 1951	Lee Savold	EBU	American
On the retirement of Joe Louis in March 1949, the European Boxing Union announced that a fight in May 1949 between Lee Savold of the USA and British champion Bruce Woodcock would determine their version of the world heavyweight title. The NYSAC and the British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC) also decided to recognize the winner of the fight as their champion but it was postponed for over a year due to injuries Woodcock had suffered in a car crash. The NYSAC decided instead to recognize the winner of the upcoming bout in September 1950 between Ezzard Charles and Joe Louis as their champion. Louis was returning to the ring after an absence of 27 months. When the fight for the EBU and BBBofC world heavyweight titles eventually took place in June 1950, Savold defeated Woodcock in four rounds.
September 27, 1950	June 16, 1951	Ezzard Charles	NBA & NYSAC	American
June 16, 1951	July 18, 1951	Ezzard Charles	Universal	American
Following his defeat to Joe Louis in a non-title fight in June 1951, Lee Savold was no longer recognized as the world heavyweight champion by the EBU and the BBBofC, who both immediately transferred their recognition to Ezzard Charles who had defeated Louis by unanimous decision on September 27, 1950. Charles therefore became universally recognized as world heavyweight champion.
July 18, 1951	September 23, 1952	Jersey Joe Walcott	Universal	American
September 23, 1952	April 27, 1956^1	Rocky Marciano	Universal	American
Marciano announced his retirement from professional boxing, relinquishing the championship.
November 30, 1956	June 26, 1959	Floyd Patterson	Universal	American
Patterson, Tommy Jackson and reigning Light Heavyweight champion Archie Moore were matched in a three-man event to fill the title vacated by Rocky Marciano. Patterson defeated Jackson by controversial split decision on June 8, 1956, then defeated Moore to win the vacant title. After defeating Moore, Patterson would fight Jackson a second time so as to settle any perceived disputes about his legitimacy as champion, winning by TKO on July 29, 1957.
June 26, 1959	June 20, 1960	Ingemar Johansson	Universal	Swedish
June 20, 1960	September 25, 1962	Floyd Patterson	Universal	American
September 25, 1962	February 25, 1964	Sonny Liston	Universal	American
February 25, 1964	June 19, 1964	Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali)	Universal^2	American
The WBA and the NYSAC withdrew their recognition of Clay (now known as Muhammad Ali) as champion for agreeing to an immediate rematch against former champion Sonny Liston, a violation of the organization's rules at the time. The WBC and other organizations continued to recognize him. (See Ali versus Liston.)
June 19, 1964	February 6, 1967	Muhammad Ali	WBC	American
March 5, 1965	February 6, 1967	Ernie Terrell	WBA & NYSAC	American
Terrell defeated Eddie Machen to win the vacant WBA championship. He would defend the title twice before losing to Muhammad Ali.
February 6, 1967	April 29, 1967	Muhammad Ali	Universal^2	American
The WBA, WBC, the NYSAC and several other US state boxing commissions withdrew recognition of Ali as champion for his refusal to be inducted into the United States Army subsequent to being drafted in early 1967.
March 4, 1968	February 16, 1970	Joe Frazier	NYSAC	American
Frazier defeated Buster Mathis in a bout recognized by the athletic commissions of Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, New York and Pennsylvania as for the "world" championship title. Similar 'world championship' recognition would be bestowed upon him by the athletic commission of Texas after a victory over Dave Zyglewicz on April 22, 1969.
April 27, 1968	February 16, 1970	Jimmy Ellis	WBA	American
Ellis defeated Jerry Quarry to win the vacant WBA championship, the culmination of an eight-man, three-round tournament to fill the title. Ellis advanced to the championship match by defeating Oscar Bonavena in the semi-final and Leotis Martin in the first round. Quarry meanwhile advanced by defeating Thad Spencer and former champion Floyd Patterson, respectively. Former WBA champion Ernie Terrell and Karl Mildenberger also participated in the tournament. Joe Frazier was invited to participate, but would decline.
February 16, 1970	January 22, 1973	Joe Frazier	Universal	American
Frazier and WBA champion Jimmy Ellis fought on February 16, 1970 to unify the Heavyweight championship. Frazier entered the ring recognized as the 'world champion' by several American state boxing commissions, Ellis entered as the champion recognized by the World Boxing Association, and the World Boxing Council, whose title had remained vacant following its withdrawal of recognition from Muhammad Ali, awarded championship recognition to the winner, Frazier. Frazier ultimately would defeat Ali on March 8, 1971 to assert unquestioned claim to the title. (see Fight of the Century)
January 22, 1973	October 30, 1974	George Foreman	Universal	American
October 30, 1974	February 15, 1978	Muhammad Ali	Universal	American
February 15, 1978	March 18, 1978	Leon Spinks	Universal^2	American
March 18, 1978	September 15, 1978	Leon Spinks	WBA	American
For the first time, a sanctioning organization withdrew its recognition of a champion based on his refusal to box against its designated mandatory challenger Ken Norton. Spinks had instead agreed to a rematch with Muhammad Ali.
March 18, 1978	June 9, 1978	Ken Norton	WBC	American
In an unprecedented move in the Heavyweight division, Norton was immediately recognized as the WBC's champion when Leon Spinks signed a contract for a rematch with former champion Muhammad Ali. At the time, Norton had been designated the WBC's mandatory challenger based on a victory over Jimmy Young. Upon being named champion Norton was required to defend the title against the organization's new mandatory challenger, Larry Holmes. Norton would lose that bout, and the title.
June 9, 1978	December 11, 1983^1	Larry Holmes	WBC	American
Holmes relinquished his WBC title to assume the championship of the International Boxing Federation, a newly formed organization which had splintered off from the WBA.
September 15, 1978	April 27, 1979^1	Muhammad Ali	WBA	American
Believing his career over, Ali relinquished his WBA title in exchange for a payment from promoter Don King, who was trying to stage a bout between then-WBC champ Larry Holmes and John Tate for the undisputed title. The bout never materialized, but Ali would return to the ring in 1980 and lose to Holmes.
October 20, 1979	March 31, 1980	John Tate	WBA	American
Tate defeated Gerrie Coetzee to win the vacant title.
March 31, 1980	December 10, 1982	Mike Weaver	WBA	American
December 10, 1982	September 23, 1983	Michael Dokes	WBA	American
September 23, 1983	December 1, 1984	Gerrie Coetzee	WBA	South African
December 11, 1983	September 21, 1985	Larry Holmes	IBF	American
March 9, 1984	August 31, 1984	Tim Witherspoon	WBC	American
Witherspoon defeated Greg Page to win the vacant title.
August 31, 1984	March 22, 1986	Pinklon Thomas	WBC	American
December 1, 1984	April 29, 1985	Greg Page	WBA	American
April 29, 1985	January 17, 1986	Tony Tubbs	WBA	American
September 21, 1985	February 19, 1987^2	Michael Spinks	IBF	American
Spinks recognition as IBF champion was withdrawn when he signed to fight popular Heavyweight Gerry Cooney rather than the organization's #1 contender, Tony Tucker. He would retain wide recognition as the lineal champion (including Ring Magazine recognition) until his loss to Mike Tyson on June 27, 1988.
January 17, 1986	December 12, 1986	Tim Witherspoon	WBA	American
March 22, 1986	November 22, 1986	Trevor Berbick	WBC	Canadian
Jamaican-born Berbick was a naturalized Canadian citizen.
November 22, 1986	March 7, 1987	Mike Tyson	WBC	American
December 12, 1986	March 7, 1987	James "Bonecrusher" Smith	WBA	American
March 7, 1987	August 1, 1987	Mike Tyson	WBA & WBC	American
May 30, 1987	August 1, 1987	Tony Tucker	IBF	American
Tucker, the organization's #1 rated challenger, was matched against James "Buster" Douglas for the vacant championship. Winning the bout, Tucker was immediately matched with Mike Tyson to unify the IBF, WBA and WBC titles. Tucker's reign as Heavyweight champion holds distinction as the shortest ever.
August 1, 1987	May 6, 1989	Mike Tyson	Universal	American
While Tyson held recognition as champion by the IBF, WBA and WBC, he was not universally recognized as champion until June 27, 1988, when he defeated the holder of Ring Magazine championship recognition, Michael Spinks.
May 6, 1989	January 11, 1991	Francesco Damiani	WBO	Italian
Damiani defeated Johnny DuPlooy to become the first champion recognized by the fledgling World Boxing Organization, which had splintered off from the WBC in 1988. Despite this however, public perceptions of Mike Tyson as the division's true and lineal champion was unaffected.
May 6, 1989	February 11, 1990	Mike Tyson	IBF, WBA & WBC	American
February 11, 1990	October 25, 1990	James "Buster" Douglas	IBF, WBA & WBC	American
October 25, 1990	November 13, 1992	Evander Holyfield	IBF, WBA & WBC	American
January 11, 1991	December 24, 1991^2	Ray Mercer	WBO	American
May 15, 1992	February 3, 1993^2	Michael Moorer	WBO	American
Moorer defeated Bert Cooper to win the vacant title.
November 13, 1992	December 14, 1992^3	Riddick Bowe	IBF, WBA & WBC	American
Bowe's recognition as champion by the WBC was withdrawn when he refused to meet the organization's mandatory challenger, Lennox Lewis.
December 14, 1992	November 6, 1993	Riddick Bowe	IBF & WBA	American
December 14, 1992	September 24, 1994	Lennox Lewis	WBC	British/ Canadian
Following precedent set in 1978 when it awarded championship recognition to Ken Norton, following its withdrawal of recognition to Riddick Bowe as its champion, the World Boxing Council designated Lewis as champion, based on his October 31, 1992 victory in an "eliminator" bout over Donovan Ruddock.
June 7, 1993	October 29, 1993	Tommy Morrison	WBO	American
Morrison defeated George Foreman to win the vacant title.
October 29, 1993	March 19, 1994	Michael Bentt	WBO	American
November 6, 1993	April 22, 1994	Evander Holyfield	IBF & WBA	American
March 19, 1994	March 11, 1995	Herbie Hide	WBO	British
April 22, 1994	November 5, 1994	Michael Moorer	IBF & WBA	American
September 24, 1994	September 2, 1995	Oliver McCall	WBC	American
November 5, 1994	March 4, 1995^2	George Foreman	IBF & WBA	American
Foreman became the oldest heavyweight champion in history by knocking out Michael Moorer. Foreman's recognition as WBA champion was withdrawn when he signed to fight popular German heavyweight Axel Schulz rather than the organization's #1 contender, Tony Tucker.
March 4, 1995	June 28, 1995^2	George Foreman	IBF	American
The IBF withdrew its recognition of Foreman when he declined a rematch with Axel Schulz. Schultz was matched with Francois Botha for the vacant title. The bout took place on December 9, 1995 in Stuttgart, Germany and resulted in a split decision points victory for Botha. Botha however tested positive for illegal anabolic steroids in a post-fight drugs test and the result was changed to a no-contest. Foreman would continue to fight and be recognized as the lineal champion until controversially losing to Shannon Briggs by majority decision on November 22, 1997 upon which he retired.
March 11, 1995	May 1, 1996^1	Riddick Bowe	WBO	American
April 8, 1995	September 7, 1996	Bruce Seldon	WBA	American
Seldon, the WBA's #2 contender at the time it withdrew championship recognition of George Foreman, defeated Tony Tucker, the #1 rated contender, to win the vacant title.
September 2, 1995	March 16, 1996	Frank Bruno	WBC	British
March 16, 1996	September 7, 1996	Mike Tyson	WBC	American
June 22, 1996	November 8, 1997	Michael Moorer	IBF	American
Moorer defeated Axel Schulz to win the vacant title.
June 29, 1996	February 17, 1997^1	Henry Akinwande	WBO	British
Akinwande had been ranked the WBC's #2 contender when he won the vacant WBO title against Jeremy Williams. The WBC, as part of its long-standing policy following the formation of the WBO, removed Akinwande from its ratings altogether. In exchange for the opportunity to be matched against reigning WBC champion Lennox Lewis, Akinwande would relinquish his WBO title.
September 7, 1996	September 24, 1996^1	Mike Tyson	WBA & WBC	American
Tyson and former WBC champion Lennox Lewis had reached a tentative agreement to fight following his match with Bruce Seldon. Prior to the Tyson-Seldon bout, however, a finalized bout contract could not be agreed to. Lewis, believing the tentative agreement was legally enforcable, filed suit against Tyson. As part of a legal settlement which ensued, Tyson relinquished his WBC title.
September 24, 1996	November 9, 1996	Mike Tyson	WBA	American
November 9, 1996	November 8, 1997	Evander Holyfield	WBA	American
February 7, 1997	November 13, 1999	Lennox Lewis	WBC	British/ Canadian
Lewis defeated Oliver McCall to win the vacant title.
June 28, 1997	June 26, 1999	Herbie Hide	WBO	British
Hide defeated Tony Tucker to win the vacant title.
November 8, 1997	November 13, 1999	Evander Holyfield	IBF & WBA	American
June 26, 1999	April 1, 2000	Vitali Klitschko	WBO	Ukrainian
November 13, 1999	April 29, 2000^1	Lennox Lewis	IBF, WBA & WBC	British/ Canadian
In early 2000, WBA #1 contender John Ruiz filed suit against Lewis and the World Boxing Association, claiming the WBA was violating its own rules by not forcing a bout between Ruiz and Lewis. A New Jersey court ruled in favor of Ruiz, ordering Lewis to either meet Ruiz in his next defense or relinquish the WBA title. Lewis, opting to fight a more lucrative bout against contender Michael Grant, notified the WBA that he had signed a contract to fight Grant, and would relinquish his title "effective upon entering the ring."
April 1, 2000	October 14, 2000	Chris Byrd	WBO	American
April 29, 2000	April 22, 2001	Lennox Lewis	IBF & WBC	British/ Canadian
August 12, 2000	March 3, 2001	Evander Holyfield	WBA	American
Holyfield defeated John Ruiz to win the vacant title.
October 14, 2000	March 8, 2003	Wladimir Klitschko	WBO	Ukrainian
March 3, 2001	March 1, 2003	John Ruiz	WBA	American
Upon his victory over Evander Holyfield, Ruiz became the first person in history of Hispanic ancestry to become heavyweight champion.
April 22, 2001	November 17, 2001	Hasim Rahman	IBF & WBC	American
November 17, 2001	September 5, 2002^1	Lennox Lewis	IBF & WBC	British/ Canadian
Lewis relinquished the IBF title at the request of promoter Don King, who wished to stage a bout between Evander Holyfield and Chris Byrd for the vacant title. King reportedly paid Lewis $1 million (USD) in consideration.
September 5, 2002	February 6, 2004^1	Lennox Lewis	WBC	British/ Canadian
December 14, 2002	April 22, 2006	Chris Byrd	IBF	American
Byrd defeated Evander Holyfield to win the vacant title.
March 1, 2003	February 20, 2004^1	Roy Jones, Jr.	WBA	American
Upon defeating John Ruiz, Jones simultaneously held the WBA's Heavyweight and Light Heavyweight championship titles. At his request, the WBA suspended its own rules addressing such situations, designating Jones as its Heavyweight "Champion in Recess," and subsequently staging a bout between John Ruiz and Hasim Rahman for its interim title, won by Ruiz on December 13, 2003. Jones was subsequently given until February 29, 2004 to decide which of his titles he would defend. On February 20, 2004, he relinquished his heavyweight title in order to focus on lower weight divisions.
March 8, 2003	October 9, 2003^1	Corrie Sanders	WBO	South African
Sanders relinquished the WBO title in order to face Vitali Klitschko for the vacant WBC title.
February 20, 2004	December 17, 2005	John Ruiz	WBA	American
On December 13, 2003, Ruiz defeated Hasim Rahman for the WBA's interim championship. When Roy Jones, Jr. relinquished his status as "Champion in Recess," Ruiz was recognized as champion on the basis of that victory. On April 30, 2005, Ruiz would be defeated by James Toney in a championship defense, but ten days later it was announced that post-fight drug testing determined Toney had taken the anabolic steroid nandrolone, a violation of its rules. The bout's result was subsequently changed to a "no contest" by the New York State Athletic Commission, whereupon the WBA announced its recognition of Ruiz as champion would continue.
April 10, 2004	April 1, 2006	Lamon Brewster	WBO	American
Brewster defeated Wladimir Klitschko to win the vacant title.
April 24, 2004	November 9, 2005^1	Vitali Klitschko	WBC	Ukrainian
Klitschko defeated Corrie Sanders to win the vacant title. During this period Klitschko suffered a number of injuries. Ultimately the WBC designated him as its "Champion in Recess," and ordered a bout between former WBC champion Hasim Rahman and Monte Barrett for its interim championship. Klitschko continued to be dogged by repeated injuries and temporarily retired from boxing, relinquishing his title.
November 9, 2005	August 12, 2006	Hasim Rahman	WBC	American
On August 13, 2005, Rahman defeated Monte Barrett to win designation as the organization's interim champion. When Vitali Klitschko, the WBC's "Champion in Recess," relinquished the title three months later, Rahman's status was elevated to full championship recognition.
December 17, 2005	April 14, 2007	Nikolai Valuev	WBA	Russian
April 1, 2006	November 4, 2006	Siarhei Liakhovich	WBO	Belarusian
April 22, 2006	February 23, 2008	Wladimir Klitschko	IBF	Ukrainian
August 12, 2006	March 8, 2008	Oleg Maskaev	WBC	Russian
Born in Kazakhstan to Russian parents, Maskaev emigrated to the USA in 1999 and acquired US citizenship in 2004. He did not become a Russian citizen until September 2006.
November 4, 2006	June 2, 2007	Shannon Briggs	WBO	American
April 14, 2007	June 20, 2009^2	Ruslan Chagaev	WBA	Uzbekistani
During this period Chagaev suffered injuries, including a complete tear of his Achilles tendon while training for a mandatory title defense scheduled for July 5, 2008 in a rematch against Nikolai Valuev. Following this injury, the WBA designated Chagaev its "Champion in Recess," and ordered a bout between Nikolai Valuev and John Ruiz for the vacant title won by Valuev on August 30, 2008. Chagaev would return to the ring but would not face Valuev, instead losing to Wladimir Klitschko. Ultimately the WBA withdrew championship recognition of Chagaev.
June 2, 2007	February 23, 2008	Sultan Ibragimov	WBO	Russian
February 23, 2008	July 2, 2011	Wladimir Klitschko	IBF & WBO	Ukrainian
March 8, 2008	October 11, 2008	Samuel Peter	WBC	Nigerian
August 30, 2008	November 7, 2009	Nikolai Valuev	WBA	Russian
Valuev defeated John Ruiz to win the vacant title. Upon Chagaev's return to the ring, the WBA mandated that he box Valuev no later than June 26, 2009. When Chagaev failed to do so, Valuev was elevated to full championship recognition, and Chagaev's recognition as champion was withdrawn.
October 11, 2008	December 15, 2013^1	Vitali Klitschko	WBC	Ukrainian
November 7, 2009	July 2, 2011	David Haye	WBA	British
July 2, 2011	November 28, 2015	Wladimir Klitschko	IBF, WBO & WBA^3	Ukrainian
Upon defeating David Haye on July 2, 2011, all of the major heavyweight titles were held by the Klitschko brothers until Vitali Klitschko relinquished the WBC title.
August 27, 2011	October 5, 2013	Alexander Povetkin	WBA^4	Russian
Povetkin defeated Ruslan Chagaev to win the vacant WBA World Championship (commonly referred to as the "regular") title. Povetkin's reign as "regular champion" would end upon a loss to "super champion" Wladimir Klitschko, after which the "regular" title was vacant.
May 10, 2014	January 17, 2015	Bermane Stiverne	WBC	Canadian
Haitian-born Stiverne defeated Cristobal Arreola to win the vacant title.
July 6, 2014	March 5, 2016	Ruslan Chagaev	WBA^4	Uzbekistani
Chagaev defeated Fres Oquendo to win the vacant WBA "regular" title. To complicate matters, on October 17, 2015 the WBA recognized Luis Ortiz as its "interim" champion following his victory over Matias Ariel Vidondo, despite Chagaev having successfully defended his "regular" title just three months earlier.
January 17, 2015	Present	Deontay Wilder	WBC	American
November 28, 2015	December 8, 2015	Tyson Fury	IBF, WBO & WBA^2	British
Just ten days after winning its title, the International Boxing Federation withdrew its recognition of Fury as champion for refusing to defend it against Vyacheslav Glazkov, opting to participate in a rematch against Wladimir Klitschko.
December 8, 2015	Present	Tyson Fury	WBO & WBA	British
January 16, 2016	April 9, 2016	Charles Martin	IBF	American
Defeated Vyacheslav Glazkov for the vacant championship title. Subsequently lost title 85 days later, marking the second shortest championship reign in Heavyweight history.
March 5, 2016	Present	Lucas Browne	WBA^4	Australian
With "Super," "Regular" and "Interim" champions simultaneously, in early 2016 the organization mandated a tournament among seven boxers to 'unify' its titles. Browne defeated Chagaev in the first such bout, capturing the organization's "regular" title and "advancing" to a match against Fres Oquendo, a multiple-time unsuccessful title challenger in the division. Meanwhile, the winner of the planned rematch between Wladimir Klitschko and Tyson Fury (and thus, its "Super" champion) will allegedly be paired against the winner of a match between Ortiz and Alexander Ustinov (who in turn will hold the "Interim" championship). The survivor among those four in turn allegedly will face the Browne-Oquendo winner.
April 9, 2016	Present	Anthony Joshua	IBF	British
Joshua has announced an intent to defend the IBF title against Dominic Breazeale on June 25, 2016. Should that schedule hold and Joshua be defeated, his reign as heavyweight champion would be the shortest ever, besting the mark set by Tony Tucker in 1987.

Footnotes

1. Relinquished championship title.
2. Championship recognition withdrawn by sanctioning organization.
3. As a champion simultaneously recognized by multiple sanctioning organizations, was accorded the status of "Super Champion" by the World Boxing Association, whereupon its title of "World Champion" is deemed vacant.
4. Recognized as the World Boxing Association's "World Champion" while simultaneously recognizing a "Super Champion."

List of combined reigns

As of November 28, 2015. Only Top 10 of them are shown there. This list includes only major titles, and it does not include lineal championships.

Keys:

•      with boldface indicates the current champion and his days as champion
• WHC = officially recognized as World Heavyweight Championship too

	Name	Days as champion	Number Of Reigns	Title Recognition	Cumulative Title Defenses
1.	Wladimir Klitschko	4 382	2	IBF, WBA, WBO	23
2.	Joe Louis	4 270	1	NYSAC, NBA	25
3.	Vitali Klitschko	2 735	3	WBO, WBC	12
4.	Larry Holmes	2 661	1	WBC, IBF	20
5.	Jack Dempsey	2 638	1	WHC, NYSAC, NBA	5
6.	John L. Sullivan	2 566	1	WHC	4
7.	Muhammad Ali	2 363	3	NYSAC, WBC, WBA	19
8.	Lennox Lewis	2 346	3	WBC, IBF, WBA	14
9.	Jack Johnson	2 291	1	WHC	8
10.	Evander Holyfield	2 235	4	WBA, WBC, IBF	7

See also

• Longest reigning heavyweight champions

Further reading

• Florio, John; Shapiro, Ouisie (2013). One Punch from the Promised Land: Leon Spinks, Michael Spinks, and the Myth of the Heavyweight Title. Lyons Press. p. 279. ISBN 978-0-7627-8300-7.

References

• Arnold, Peter (1989). Encyclopedia of Boxing. London: WH Smith Books. ISBN 1-85435-200-8.
• World Title Lineages

External links

• Statistical comparison of eras and heavyweight boxing champions
• Jack Johnson