IN MEMORIAM Those Who Passed in 2025 The year of 2025 was one of triumph and loss. Less than a day after the most historic individual triumph of the year – Terence Crawford’s decision victory over Canelo Alvarez – the boxing world was devastated by news of Ricky Hatton’s passing.
George Foreman Former two-time heavyweight champ, oldest heavyweight to win a world title, The Ring’s 1973 and 1976 Fighter of the Year, Hall of Famer Arturo Gatti Jr. Amateur boxer and son of Hall of Famer Arturo Gatti Frank Gelb Former promoter who was prominent in the U.S. Northeast, especially Atlantic City, New Jersey
Ricky Hatton Former junior welterweight champ, former welterweight
That 24-hour period of witnessing a significant event and then learning of the death of a beloved figure defined much of the year. For every adrenaline high provided by Crawford, Naoya Inoue, Oleksandr Usyk, Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez, Fabio Wardley, Conor Benn, Chris Eubank Jr. and the other standouts of 2025, there was a heartbreaking low of losing another member of our close-knit community. Some were legends, like Hatton and George Foreman. Some, like Nino Benvenuti, Dwight Muhammad Qawi and Mike McCallum, were bona fide Hall of Famers. Others, like Greg Haugen and Livingston Bramble, were mainly known by older fans. Some, like Colin Hart, Don Elbaum, Michael Katz and Kenny Adams, carved out iconic careers during the course of long, full lives. The most tragic losses were the young ones like Georgia O’Connor, Shigetoshi Kotari and Hiromasa Urakawa, who had just begun their careers, and those who passed away unexpectedly, such as The Ring’s own Thomas Gerbasi. They will all be missed. The Ring acknowledges the members of the global boxing community who passed in 2025 (listed here in alphabetical order):
Alejandra Olivares Former four-division titleholder
titleholder, The Ring’s 2005 Fighter of the Year, Hall of Famer, recipient of the MBE for services to sport Greg Haugen Former junior welterweight titleholder and two-time lightweight titleholder Michael Katz Hall of Fame sports reporter and columnist, 1981 recipient of the BWAA Nat Fleischer Award Shigetoshi Kotari Junior lightweight professional
James Cook Former British and European super middleweight champ and Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE) for his work with youth John Cooney Junior lightweight professional Victor Conte Founder of Scientific Nutrition for Advanced Training (SNAC) and drug-testing consultant Floyd “Jumbo” Cummings Former heavyweight gatekeeper
Dwight Muhammad Qawi Former light heavyweight champ and cruiserweight titleholder, Hall of Famer Jose Santa Cruz Father and trainer of Leo Santa Cruz Hiromasa Urakawa Lightweight professional Kenny Vice Former lightweight gatekeeper and junior welterweight title challenger
Kenny Adams Hall of Fame trainer who was head coach for the 1988 U.S. Olympic team and worked with more than 25 world titleholders Rahaman Ali Brother of Muhammad Ali and former professional boxer
Nino Benvenuti Former junior middleweight champ, two-time middleweight champ and Hall of Famer
Thomas Gerbasi Combat sports writer, author, editor and publicist; 2024 recipient of the Nat Fleischer Award for excellence in boxing journalism from the Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA) Sina Ghami Exercise rehabilitation coach for Anthony Joshua Tony Graziano Former boxing trainer, manager and restaurant owner Colin Hart Hall of Fame journalist and commentator; 2011 recipient of the BWAA Nat Fleischer Award
Vanes Martirosyan 2004 U.S. Olympian and former junior middleweight contender Mike McCallum Former junior middleweight, middleweight and light heavyweight titleholder, Hall of Famer Paul McCullagh Jr. Former amateur standout, light heavyweight professional. Georgia O’Connor Former international-level amateur and junior middleweight professional
Livingstone Bramble Former lightweight titleholder Joe Bugner Former heavyweight contender and title challenger Paul Burke Former British and Commonwealth lightweight champ, former two-time Commonwealth junior welterweight champ
Don Elbaum Hall of Fame promoter Ebo Elder Former junior welterweight contender Luis Estaba Former junior flyweight titleholder
Joey Archer Former middleweight contender and title challenger Kevin Ayodele Strength and conditioning coach for Anthony Joshua
Alex Wallau Boxing commentator and network executive, Hall of Famer
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