FORMER world heavyweight title challenger and British, Commonwealth and European champion Joe Bugner has passed away at his care home in Brisbane, Australia at the age of 75.
Bugner was a towering and durable heavyweight, and one of the most recognisable figures of the 1970s scene.
Born József Kreul Bugner in Szőreg, Hungary in 1950, he and his family fled the Soviet invasion six years later and found refuge in Britain. By 1967, aged just 17, Bugner made his professional debut at the Hilton Hotel in Mayfair, London. It ended in disaster, however, when he was knocked out in the third round by Paul Brown, a fighter who retired two years later with only two wins and 11 defeats.
Bugner is best remembered for having gone the distance with two heavyweight titans of his era – Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier. The achievement was all the more remarkable because he faced them back-to-back in a five-month period during 1973. In June 1975 Bugner challenged Ali for the undisputed heavyweight title but fell short over 15 rounds – three more than the 12 he lasted with both ‘The Greatest’ and ‘Smokin’ Joe’ two years earlier.
Before sharing the ring with Ali at the Merdeka Stadium in Kuala Lumpur, Bugner claimed his life had been threatened.
“People in Malaysia were very, very nice, but then you had the radical side who obviously didn’t want Muhammad Ali to lose,” he told author Fiaz Rafiq, who ghost-wrote My Brother, Muhammad Ali with Rahman Ali.
“So they decided to give me a hard time. And eventually a week before the fight, there was a phone call made to the police by some expressing that this is a disgrace because there’s a Christian fighting a Muslim and it’s wrong.
“Saying: ‘We are in position now that we have to take action against this fight because this fight should not take place.’
“Then the police chief came to the hotel where we were staying and said we’re going to shut this hotel down and we’re going to put soldiers on each floor.
“Every floor had police with machine guns. I’m thinking: ‘This is absolutely absurd. Here I am, I’m challenging Muhammad Ali for the greatest title in the world and these bloody people are trying to threaten me and are getting the word out.’”
Bugner may never have won a world title, but he was respected for his longevity and willingness to face the best. His breakthrough came in 1971 when he defeated British sporting hero Henry Cooper in what proved to be the final fight of ‘Our ’Enry’s’ career. That victory earned Bugner the British, Commonwealth and European titles, but it was not without controversy. Referee Harry Gibbs awarded the verdict to the up-and-comer, who had turned 21 three days earlier, by half a point.
Harry Carpenter, one of Britain’s greatest commentators, was stunned by the decision and famously asked, “how in the world can you take away the man’s three titles like that?” The verdict created a backlash against Bugner and, despite his achievements, he often found himself battling for acceptance from the British public.
After several comebacks, Bugner appeared to have retired for good following a loss to Frank Bruno – another British darling – in 1987. Having relocated to Australia, however, he returned once more and won the Australian heavyweight title in 1995. Retirement finally came in 1999 with a professional record of 69 wins, 13 defeats and one draw (41 KOs).
In 2014 Bugner survived a heart attack, and four years later he battled skin cancer. By 2023 it was revealed he was living in a Brisbane care home, suffering from severe dementia.
Speaking to The Sun’s Colin Hart, Bugner’s son Joe Jr said: “I’m afraid he remembers nothing about his boxing career.
“I found it heart-breaking when I visited him just before Christmas because he didn’t seem to know who I was.”
His record – facing the likes of Ali, Frazier, Jimmy Ellis, Ron Lyle and Earnie Shavers – speaks to a fighter who consistently competed at the highest level. Bugner leaves behind a legacy as one of the most enduring heavyweights of his era – a man who stood across the ring from legends, held his own, and carved out a career that spanned continents and generations.
Everyone at Boxing News would like to extend their condolences to the family and friends of Joe Bugner at this difficult time.
