Jack McAuliffe (March 24, 1866 – November 5, 1937) was an Irish boxer who fought mostly out of Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Nicknamed "The Napoleon of the Ring," McAuliffe is one of only fifteen world boxing champions to retire without a loss.McAuliffe at Cyber Boxing Zone He was the first boxer to hold the World Lightweight championship from 1886 to 1893. He was the first European boxer to retire as an undefeated World Champion.

He was inducted into The Ring Boxing Hall of Fame in 1954 and the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1995.

Early life

McAuliffe's parents were Cornelius McAuliffe and Jane Bailey, who were living at 5 Christ Church Lane, Cork, Ireland (then part of the United Kingdom), at the time of Jack's birth. McAuliffe emigrated to the United States in 1871, where he spent his early years in Bangor, Maine.

Amateur and professional career He made his first appearance as an amateur boxer in 1883. He turned professional soon after, fighting Jem Carney 78 rounds to a draw at Revere Beach, Massachusetts. He fought Billy Dacey for the lightweight championship and a $5,000 purse in 1888, and knocked him out in eleven rounds.Brooklyn Daily Eagle, August 26, 1894, p. 3 He was known as a strong two-handed fighter with "cat-like" reflexes. In 1897 he successfully defended his title against Billy Myer in a highly publicized match at the Olympic Club, New Orleans.

Personal life

McAuliffe was married twice, both times to stage actresses. His first wife was Katie Hart, who played in farce comedies. After her death, McAuliffe married Catherine Rowe in 1894, whose stage name was Pearl Inman, of the song and dance team The Inman Sisters. Between marriages he dated a third actress, Sadie McDonald. McAuliffe and Rowe moved back to Bangor, Maine, in 1894, where he undertook preliminary training for a fight later that year at the Seaside Athletic Club on Coney Island."Jack McAuliffe Married", Brooklyn Daily Eagle, July 30, 1894, p. 1

Death and retirement from the ring McAuliffe retired in 1897. According to the International Boxing Hall of Fame, he had 36 professional fights. McAuliffe was undefeated with 30 bouts, 22 by knockout. He had five draws, one no decision. He successfully defended his world lightweight title against six different boxers.

He died on November 5, 1937, at his home on Austin Street in Forest Hills, Queens.

Professional boxing record

All newspaper decisions are officially regarded as “no decision” bouts and are not counted in the win/loss/draw column. ResultRecordOpponentTypeRoundDateLocationNotes38Draw27–0–10 Tommy RyanPTS10Sep 30, 1897 37Win27–0–9 Jim CarrollPTS10Nov 20, 1896 36Win26–0–9 Sam RogersKO3 (4)May 8, 1896 35Win25–0–9 Harry PigeonKO7 (6)Apr 8, 1896 34Draw24–0–9 Owen ZieglerPTS3 (?)Nov 19, 1894 33Win24–0–8 Young GriffoPTS10Aug 27, 1894 32Win23–0–8 Jim RyanPTS6Jan 16, 1894 31Win22–0–8 Horace LeedsNWS4Apr 1, 1893 30Draw22–0–8 Billy MyerPTS6Dec 10, 1892 29Win22–0–7 Billy MyerKO15 (?)Sep 5, 1892 28Win21–0–7 Bill FrazierKO3 (6)Jun 2, 1892 27Win20–0–7 Austin GibbonsTKO6 (?)Sep 11, 1891 26Win19–0–7 Jim CarrollKO47 (?)Mar 21, 1890 25Draw18–0–7 Mike DalyPTS15Dec 5, 1889 24Win18–0–6 Paddy SmithTKO1 (4)Feb 28, 1889 23Win17–0–6 Billy BoltzKO1 (?)Feb 28, 1889 22Draw16–0–6 Billy MyerPTS64 (?)Feb 13, 1889 21Win16–0–5 Young Jacob HyamsKO9 (10)Dec 26, 1888 20Win15–0–5 Sam CollyerKO2 (6)Dec 17, 1888 19Win14–0–5 Bill DaceyKO11 (?)Oct 10, 1888 18Draw13–0–5 Patsy KerriganPTS10Sep 26, 1888 17Draw13–0–4 Jem CarneyPTS74 (?)Nov 16, 1887 16Draw13–0–3 Jimmy MitchellPTS4Mar 4, 1887 15Draw13–0–2 Bill FrazierPTS4Mar 2, 1887 14Draw13–0–1 Walter CampbellPTS4Feb 28, 1887 13Win13–0 Harry GilmoreKO28 (?)Jan 14, 1887 12Win12–0 Bill FrazierKO21 (?)Oct 29, 1886 11Win11–0 Charles Bull McCarthyPTS4 (?)Jul 24, 1886 10Win10–0 Bully CarrollKO1 (?)Jul 21, 1886 9Win9–0 Charles Bull McCarthyPTS4Jul 19, 1886 8Win8–0 Joe HeiserPTS4Apr 20, 1886 7Win7–0 Andy DrummTKO3 (?)Apr 1, 1886 6Win6–0 Jack HopperTKO17 (?)Feb 27, 1886 5Win5–0 Charles Bull McCarthyPTS4Jan 24, 1886 4Win4–0 Jack HopperTKO6 (6)Jan 13, 1886 3Win3–0 Buck McKennaKO2 (?)Dec 7, 1885 2Win2–0 Billy YoungDQ4 (6)Nov 19, 1885 1Win1–0 Joe MilletechiaTKO2 (?)Jul 25, 1885

See also List of lightweight boxing champions

References

External links

McAuliffe's Record at Cyber Boxing Zone McAuliffe at IBHOF