George Benton (May 15, 1933 – September 19, 2011) was an American boxer and boxing trainer from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Boxing career Fighting His first amateur bout was when he was thirteen. He turned professional three years later. He boxed professionally from 1949 to 1970 and defeated future world champions Freddie Little, Jimmy Ellis, and Joey Giardello. In seventy-six professional fights, he was never knocked down and was stopped just twice, on a cut against Luis Manuel Rodriguez and when he didn't come out for the final round of his fight with Bennie Briscoe. Benton had a professional record of 62–13–1 (37 KOs).

Benton became the #1 ranked middleweight in the world in the early 1960s, but he never got a shot at the world title. In 1962, after he beat Giardello, Benton thought that he would get a title shot. However, Giardello's manager, Lou Duva, was well connected and was able to get Giardello a fight with Dick Tiger for the World Middleweight Championship, which Giardello won by decision. "Yeah, I screwed George out of his shot," Duva said. "He didn't even know about it till I told him many years later."

Benton's boxing career ended in 1970 after he was shot. The shooter had tried to pick up Benton's sister in a bar, and Benton's brother beat him up. Vowing to kill someone from the Benton family, the man shot George in the back. He was in and out of the hospital for two years. The bullet remained lodged near Benton's spine for the remainder of his life.

Training With his boxing career over, he turned to training. He studied under Eddie Futch and was in Joe Frazier's corner for his third fight with Muhammad Ali, the Thrilla in Manila. He was also in the corner of Leon Spinks when he upset Ali to win the World Heavyweight Championship.

For seventeen years, Benton worked with Lou Duva and the Duva family's promotion company, Main Events, as the head trainer for many of their fighters. Among the fighters he trained were Evander Holyfield, Oliver McCall, Mike McCallum, Meldrick Taylor, and Pernell Whitaker. Also he coached Marvis Frazier during his amateur career.

Fighting style

Benton was known for his incredible defense. Boxer Jimmy Collins once said, “You couldn't hit him with a handful of rice.” He is credited with popularizing a variety of the crab style known as the Philly Shell, named for its use among Philadelphia fighters. Benton not only used this style throughout his career, but also taught it to Boxers he trained such as Pernell Whitaker.

Personal life Benton died on September 19, 2011, after a battle with pneumonia. A veteran of the United States Army, he was buried at the Washington Crossing National Cemetery in Upper Makefield Township, Pennsylvania.Spiritnews.org

Legacy In 1989 and 1990, Benton was named "Trainer of the Year" by the Boxing Writers Association of America.

In 2001, he was elected to the International Boxing Hall Of Fame.

Professional boxing record

ResultRecordOpponentTypeRoundDate,AgeLocationNotes75Loss Juarez de LimaUD10Apr 3, 197074Win61–12–1 Eddie OwensUD10Mar 25, 197073Win60–12–1 David BecklesKO1 (10)Jan 13, 197072Win59–12–1 Juarez de LimaSD10May 1, 196971Win58–12–1 Bobby WarthenTKO1 (10)Sep 24, 196870Win57–12–1 Danny GarciaTKO2 (10)Apr 15, 196869Win56–12–1 Oscar FreemanKO2 (10)Mar 11, 196868Win55–12–1 Hilton WhitakerKO8 (10)Nov 9, 196667Win54–12–1 Dick YoungKO4 (10)Oct 2, 196666Loss53–12–1 Bennie BriscoeRTD9 (10)Dec 5, 196665Loss53–11–1 Milo CalhounUD10Aug 25, 196664Loss53–10–1 Luis Manuel RodriguezTKO9 (10)Mar 7, 196663Win53–9–1 Larry BarrettTKO6 (10)Apr 12, 196562Win52–9–1 Jimmy EllisMD10Nov 30, 196461Win51–9–1 Johnny MorrisSD12May 18, 196460Win50–9–1 Ernest BurfordKO4 (10)Mar 16, 196459Loss49–9–1 Johnny MorrisUD10Nov 19, 196358Win49–8–1 John Henry SmithKO2 (10)Aug 31, 196357Win48–8–1 Allen ThomasUD10Jul 20, 196356Loss47–8–1 Rubin CarterSD10May 25, 196355Win47–7–1 Clarence RileyTKO6 (10)Apr 4, 196354Win46–7–1 Clarence AlfordTKO3 (10)Mar 7, 196353Win45–7–1 Allan HarmonTKO8 (10)Nov 19, 196252Win44–7–1 Joey GiardelloUD10Aug 6, 196251Win43–7–1 Jesse SmithUD10May 28, 196250Win42–7–1 Rudolph BentKO2 (10)Apr 12, 196249Win41–7–1 Eddie ThompsonTKO8 (10)Mar 8, 196248Win40–7–1 Joe Louis AdairKO4 (10)Feb 8, 196247Win39–7–1 Chico CorseyTKO3 (8)Nov 3, 196146Loss38–7–1 John McCormackPTS10Nov 2, 196045Win38–6–1 Freddie LittleMD10Oct 18, 196044Win37–6–1 Gene WashingtonTKO9 (10)Dec 10, 195943Loss36–6–1 Henry HankUD10Oct 26, 195942Loss36–5–1 Holly MimsUD10Jul 15, 195941Win36–4–1 Bobby BoydUD10May 18, 195940Win35–4–1 Young Beau JackKO1 (10)Feb 16, 195939Loss34–4–1 Charley JosephUD10Nov 17, 195838Win34–3–1 Charley JosephUD10Aug 26, 195837Loss33–3–1 Willie DockerySD10Jul 7, 195836Win33–2–1 Jim RobinsonKO4 (8)Jun 12, 195835Win32–2–1 Archie WhitfieldTKO6 (6)Apr 16, 195834Win31–2–1 Clarence HinnantMD8Oct 21, 195433Win30–2–1 Clarence HinnantSD8Sep 30, 195432Win29–2–1 Joe DorseyTKO7 (10)May 2, 195431Draw28–2–1 Leroy ColemanPTS8May 14, 195430Win28–2 Charolito SpirituanoUD10Apr 27, 195429Win27–2 Bobby JonesSD10Dec 28, 195328Win26–2 Jimmy FranklinTKO6 (8)Aug 13, 195327Win25–2 Chuck GoldsbyUD8Jul 23, 195326Loss24–2 Joe BlackwoodMD10Mar 24, 195325Win24–1 Lester FeltonPTS8Jan 27, 195324Win23–1 Bobby LeeTKO6 (10)Jan 20, 195323Win22–1 Charley JosephUD10Dec 23, 195222Win21–1 Leroy ColemanTKO3 (6)Dec 8, 195221Win20–1 Jackie BurkeTKO6 (6)Jun 5, 195220Win19–1 Moses WardTKO5 (8)Mar 26, 195219Win18–1 Bobby RosadoKO4 (6)Mar 21, 195218Win17–1 Holly MimsUD8Jan 10, 195217Win16–1 Chuck GoldsbyKO3 (8)Nov 29, 195116Win15–1 Georgie JohnsonKO5 (?)Oct 11, 195115Win14–1 Buddy NewbyTKO2 (6)Aug 24, 195114Win13–1 Emmett NorrisTKO6 (8)Jul 2, 195113Win12–1 Van ButlerPTS6Jun 11, 195112Win11–1 Jimmy MooreKO1 (6)Apr 19, 195111Win10–1 Jetson ArnoldPTS8Apr 16, 195110Win9–1 Billy WhyePTS6Mar 5, 19519Win8–1 Al NiangRTD1 (6)Feb 6, 19518Loss7–1 Al MobleyPTS6Jun 5, 19507Win7–0 Frank GubasTKO2 (6)May 15, 19506Win6–0 Bucky SlocumUD6Feb 2, 19505Win5–0 Gene LandersPTS6Jan 5, 19504Win4–0 Dave PetersUD6Nov 21, 19493Win3–0 Dave PetersTKO5 (6)Nov 3, 19492Win2–0 Whitman DorschPTS4Aug 8, 19491Win1–0 Chico WadeKO1 (4)Jul 18, 1949

References

External links Sports Illustrated "The Master" Boxing Writers Association of America Trainer of the Year Award George Benton International Boxing Hall of Fame George Benton's Professional Record