Jimmy Ellis was born in Louisville, Kentucky, U.S. on February 24, 1940. He made his professional debut at the age of 21 years on April 19, 1961 against Arley Seifer. Ellis defeated Seifer via 3rd round TKO, making a successful beginning of his pro career.
Ellis became a world champion at the age of 28 after 30 professional fights. He challenged Jerry Quarry for the vacant WBA heavyweight title and defeated Quarry via 15-round majority decision, winning his first world title.
Ellis' last fight was a 1st-round KO victory over Carl Baker at age 35, on May 6, 1975.
Some of Jimmy Ellis' best fights were against George Chuvalo, Oscar Bonavena, Jerry Quarry, Leotis Martin, and Floyd Patterson (HOFer). For a complete list of Ellis' best fights and their details, refer to "Best fights of Jimmy Ellis".
Ellis has 12 losses on his record. For details about these losses refer to "Jimmy Ellis Losses".
# | Date | Age | Opponent | Res | Via |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
53 | May 06, 1975 | 35 | ![]() | win | KO 1 |
52 | Mar 02, 1975 | 35 | ![]() | loss | TKO 9 |
51 | Nov 12, 1974 | 34 | ![]() | loss | PTS 10 |
50 | Jul 16, 1974 | 34 | ![]() | loss | UD 12 |
49 | Mar 04, 1974 | 34 | ![]() | draw | SD 10 |
48 | Dec 12, 1973 | 33 | ![]() | loss | SD 10 |
47 | Oct 23, 1973 | 33 | ![]() | win | TKO 7 |
46 | Jun 18, 1973 | 33 | ![]() | loss | KO 1 |
45 | May 05, 1973 | 33 | ![]() | win | KO 5 |
44 | Apr 14, 1973 | 33 | ![]() | win | KO 2 |
43 | Mar 06, 1973 | 33 | ![]() | win | TKO 1 |
42 | Feb 21, 1973 | 32 | ![]() | win | KO 2 |
41 | Oct 26, 1972 | 32 | ![]() | win | TKO 7 |
40 | Sep 21, 1972 | 32 | ![]() | win | TKO 6 |
39 | Jun 13, 1972 | 32 | ![]() | win | KO 2 |
38 | May 16, 1972 | 32 | ![]() | win | TKO 6 |
37 | Jul 26, 1971 | 31 | ![]() | loss | TKO 12 |
36 | May 10, 1971 | 31 | ![]() | win | UD 10 |
35 | Mar 02, 1971 | 31 | ![]() | win | KO 10 |
34 | Nov 10, 1970 | 30 | ![]() | win | TKO 7 |
33 | Feb 16, 1970 | 29 | ![]() | loss | RTD 4 |
32 | Sep 14, 1968 | 28 | ![]() | win | PTS 15 |
31 | Apr 27, 1968 | 28 | ![]() | win | MD 15 |
30 | Dec 02, 1967 | 27 | ![]() | win | UD 12 |
29 | Aug 05, 1967 | 27 | ![]() | win | TKO 9 |
28 | Mar 22, 1967 | 27 | ![]() | win | KO 1 |
27 | Nov 14, 1966 | 26 | ![]() | win | KO 1 |
26 | Oct 27, 1966 | 26 | ![]() | win | KO 1 |
25 | Sep 10, 1966 | 26 | ![]() | win | PTS 6 |
24 | May 21, 1966 | 26 | ![]() | win | KO 1 |
23 | Mar 29, 1966 | 26 | ![]() | win | PTS 8 |
22 | Nov 15, 1965 | 25 | ![]() | win | UD 10 |
21 | May 25, 1965 | 25 | ![]() | win | KO 1 |
20 | Nov 30, 1964 | 24 | ![]() | loss | MD 10 |
19 | Oct 21, 1964 | 24 | ![]() | loss | SD 10 |
18 | Apr 21, 1964 | 24 | ![]() | win | KO 1 |
17 | Feb 28, 1964 | 24 | ![]() | loss | UD 10 |
16 | Sep 27, 1963 | 23 | ![]() | win | PTS 10 |
15 | Jun 18, 1963 | 23 | ![]() | win | KO 1 |
14 | Dec 03, 1962 | 22 | ![]() | win | UD 10 |
13 | Sep 01, 1962 | 22 | ![]() | loss | UD 10 |
12 | Jun 13, 1962 | 22 | ![]() | win | PTS 4 |
11 | Jun 13, 1962 | 22 | ![]() | win | PTS 4 |
10 | Jun 07, 1962 | 22 | ![]() | win | TKO 2 |
9 | May 04, 1962 | 22 | ![]() | win | UD 10 |
8 | Feb 17, 1962 | 21 | ![]() | win | MD 6 |
7 | Jan 11, 1962 | 21 | ![]() | win | KO 1 |
6 | Nov 29, 1961 | 21 | ![]() | loss | UD 10 |
5 | Oct 07, 1961 | 21 | ![]() | win | RTD 1 |
4 | Aug 22, 1961 | 21 | ![]() | win | MD 10 |
3 | Jul 22, 1961 | 21 | ![]() | win | SD 6 |
2 | May 06, 1961 | 21 | ![]() | win | UD 8 |
1 | Apr 19, 1961 | 21 | ![]() | win | TKO 3 |