Archie Moore

The Maxim-Moore fight took place in St. Louis and the hometown support helped Moore take thirteen of the fight's fifteen rounds, winning by a unanimous decision. Moore defended the title against Maxim in a June 1953 fight in Utah, which he won in another fifteen-round decision. In their third and final meeting, Moore repeated the feat and retained the title by decision after fifteen rounds. Moore subsequently retained the light-heavy-weight title in bouts against Harold Johnson in August 1954; Carl "Bobo" Olson in June 1955; Yolande Pompey in June 1956; and Tony Anthony in September 1957.

As he held on to the light-heavyweight crown, Moore made a number of attempts to claim the heavyweight title as well. His first heavyweight title bout came against Rocky Marciano in a fight staged at Yankee Stadium on September 21, 1955. After knocking down Marciano in the second round, it looked like Moore would take the title. Yet Marciano came back to deliver a knockout blow to Moore in the ninth round that ended the fight. After Marciano retired and vacated the heavyweight title, Moore met Floyd Patterson in a match to decide who would get the crown. The November 1956 bout ended when Patterson knocked Moore out in the fifth round. It was Moore's final attempt to win the heavyweight title.

Although he was disappointed in his quest for the heavyweight crown, Moore retained his light-heavy-weight title throughout the 1950s in a series of contests. The most notable challenge to his title came in a fight against Yvon Durelle at the Montreal Forum on December 10, 1958. Cheered along by the crowd, Canadian Durelle seemed to have the advantage early on in the fight, especially after sending Moore to the canvas three times in the first round and again in the fifth round. Moore's endurance and defense training were crucial in the remaining rounds, as he sent Durelle down in the seventh round and again in the tenth. In the eleventh round Moore knocked Durelle down for good with a punch that ended the fight. Moore's perseverance had led to one of the most impressive comebacks in boxing history. In recognition of his feat, the Boxing Writers Association named him the Fighter of the Year. His victory over Durelle also marked his 127th victory by a knockout, which set a record for the sport. In a rematch with Durelle in August 1959 in Montreal, Moore retained his title with a knockout victory in the third round.