Frankie Gavin (boxer)
Gavin in 2015 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Nickname(s) | Funtime King | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | Frankie Raymond Gavin 28 September 1985 Birmingham, West Midlands, England | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (178 cm) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Boxing career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stance | Southpaw | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Boxing record | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total fights | 30 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wins | 26 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Win by KO | 15 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Losses | 4 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Frankie Raymond Gavin (born 28 September 1985) is an English former professional boxer. He challenged for the IBF welterweight title in 2015 and, at regional level, held the British and Commonwealth welterweight titles. As an amateur, Gavin won a gold medal in the lightweight division at the 2007 World Championships, becoming England's first ever winner of that event. He also won lightweight gold at the 2006 Commonwealth Games.
Amateur career
Domestically as an amateur, Gavin represented the Birmingham's Hall Green Boxing Club with whom he won the English ABA championship in 2005 and 2007 and a Four Nations championship in 2005.
2006 Commonwealth Games
Representing England, Gavin defeated Giovanni Frontin of Mauritius to win the lightweight division gold at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, Australia.[1]
2007 World Championships
At the 2007 World Championships in Chicago, Gavin first beat reigning world silver medallist and fellow southpaw Romal Amanov of Azerbaijan scoring a knockdown. He then caused a huge upset by defeating Russian superstar Aleksei Tishchenko, unbeaten in four years, to reach the final where he beat Italian Domenico Valentino 19:10.[2][3]
2008 Summer Olympics
Gavin was arguably Great Britain's best hope of a boxing medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics, but was unable to make the required weight and was therefore unable to compete.[4][5]
Professional career
In October 2008, Gavin announced that he would turn professional. He signed a contract with promoter Frank Warren and agreed to be trained by Anthony Farnell in Manchester.[6][7] He made his pro-debut at the National Indoor Arena in his home city of Birmingham on 28 February 2009, stopping George Kadaria in the fourth round.[8]
On 18 September 2010 at LG Arena in Birmingham, he won his first professional title by defeating Michael Kelly in the fifth round for the Irish light-welterweight title. He qualified to fight for the title as his parents are Irish.[9]
Gavin won the British welterweight title on 1 November 2012, by dethroning defending champion Junior Witter via unanimous decision at York Hall in London.[10][11]
He made a successful first defense of the title with a seventh round stoppage win over Jason Welborn at the Town Hall in Walsall on 18 January 2013.[12][13]
Gavin faced unbeaten Commonwealth welterweight champion, Denton Vassell, at Liverpool Olympia on 28 June 2013, with both their titles up for grabs. He unleashed a heavy onslaught of blows in the seventh round leaving his opponent with a broken jaw which caused the fight to be stopped on the advice of the ringside doctor at the end of the round.[14][15]
On 21 September 2013 at the Copper Box Arena in London, he defended both his titles against David Barnes, winning by unanimous decision.[16][17]
At Metro Radio Arena in Newcastle on 29 Match 2014, Gavin survived being knocked to the canvas in the second round by Sacky Shikukutu to go on and retain his Commonwealth title via unanimous decision.[18][19]
In his next fight, he lost his unbeaten record and Commonwealth title to European welterweight champion, Leonard Bundu, suffering a split decision defeat at the Civic Hall in Wolverhampton on 1 August 2014. One of the ringside judges scored the fight 117–115 in his favour, but was overruled by his two colleagues who both saw it 114–113 for his opponent.[20][21]
Gavin retained the now vacant Commonwealth crown, and defended his British title, with a unanimous decision win over Bradley Skeete at ExCeL in London on 29 November 2014.[22]
He challenged IBF welterweight champion Kell Brook at The O2 Arena in London on 30 May 2015, losing by stoppage in the sixth round.[23][24]
Gavin lost to local rival Sam Eggington by eighth round technical knockout at Arena Birmingham on 22 October 2016.[25][26]
He was scheduled to challenge European welterweight champion Kerman Lejarraga at BEC Bizkaia Arena in Bilbao, Spain, on 17 November 2018, but failed to make the required weight by almost 5lbs.[27][28] The fight went ahead with the title no longer up for grabs and Gavin was knocked out in the fourth round.[29][30]
Gavin announced his retirement from professional boxing in May 2020.[31][32]
Bare-knuckle boxing
Gavin made his Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship debut against Jack Dugdale on 28 June 2025 at BKFC 77. He was knocked out inside the first minute of the opening round.[33][34]
Personal life
As of June 2025, Gavin was in a relationship with professional boxer Sian O’Toole with whom he has a son.[35][36]
Professional boxing record
| 30 fights | 26 wins | 4 losses |
|---|---|---|
| By knockout | 15 | 3 |
| By decision | 11 | 1 |
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 | Loss | 26–4 | Kerman Lejarraga | KO | 4 (12), 0:19 | 17 Nov 2018 | BEC Bizkaia Arena, Bilbao, Spain | For European welterweight title |
| 29 | Win | 26–3 | Kevin McCauley | PTS | 6 | 16 Sep 2018 | Holiday Inn, Birmingham, West Midlands | |
| 28 | Win | 25–3 | Felix Matamoros | TKO | 6 (6), 1:32 | 3 Jun 2017 | Lagoon Leisure Centre, Paisley, Scotland | |
| 27 | Win | 24–3 | Renald Garrido | PTS | 8 | 13 May 2017 | Barclaycard Arena, Birmingham, England | |
| 26 | Loss | 23–3 | Sam Eggington | TKO | 8 (12), 2:42 | 22 Oct 2016 | Barclaycard Arena, Birmingham, England | |
| 25 | Win | 23–2 | Ivo Gogosevic | TKO | 6 (6), 2:46 | 30 Jul 2016 | First Direct Arena, Leeds, England | |
| 24 | Loss | 22–2 | Kell Brook | TKO | 6 (12), 2:51 | 30 May 2015 | The O2 Arena, London, England | For IBF welterweight title |
| 23 | Win | 22–1 | Bogdan Mitic | PTS | 10 | 28 Mar 2015 | Motorpoint Arena, Sheffield, England | |
| 22 | Win | 21–1 | Bradley Skeete | UD | 12 | 29 Nov 2014 | ExCeL, London, England | Retained British welterweight title; Won vacant Commonwealth welterweight title |
| 21 | Win | 20–1 | Mate Hornyak | TKO | 2 (8), 2:47 | 24 Oct 2014 | Civic Hall, Wolverhampton, England | |
| 20 | Loss | 19–1 | Leonard Bundu | SD | 12 | 1 Aug 2014 | Civic Hall, Wolverhampton, England | Lost Commonwealth welterweight title; For European welterweight title |
| 19 | Win | 19–0 | Sacky Shikukutu | UD | 12 | 29 Mar 2014 | Metro Radio Arena, Newcastle, England | Retained Commonwealth welterweight title |
| 18 | Win | 18–0 | Bradley Pryce | PTS | 10 | 21 Dec 2013 | First Direct Arena, Leeds, England | |
| 17 | Win | 17–0 | David Barnes | UD | 12 | 21 Sep 2013 | Copper Box Arena, London, England | Retained British and Commonwealth welterweight titles |
| 16 | Win | 16–0 | Denton Vassell | TKO | 7 (12), 3:00 | 28 Jun 2013 | Liverpool Olympia, Liverpool, England | Retained British welterweight title; Won Commonwealth welterweight title |
| 15 | Win | 15–0 | Jason Welborn | TKO | 7 (12), 2:35 | 18 Jan 2013 | Town Hall, Walsall, England | Retained British welterweight title |
| 14 | Win | 14–0 | Junior Witter | UD | 12 | 1 Nov 2012 | York Hall, London, England | Won British welterweight title |
| 13 | Win | 13–0 | Laszlo Komjathi | RTD | 5 (8), 3:00 | 25 May 2012 | Newport Centre, Newport, Wales | |
| 12 | Win | 12–0 | Kevin McIntyre | TKO | 3 (8), 2:22 | 25 Feb 2012 | Motorpoint Arena, Cardiff, Wales | |
| 11 | Win | 11–0 | Curtis Woodhouse | SD | 12 | 16 Jul 2011 | Echo Arena, Liverpool, England | Retained WBO Inter-Continental welterweight title |
| 10 | Win | 10–0 | Young Mutley | UD | 12 | 21 May 2011 | The O2 Arena, London, England | Won vacant WBO Inter-Continental welterweight title |
| 9 | Win | 9–0 | Michael Lomax | TKO | 7 (12), 2:42 | 19 Feb 2011 | York Hall, London, England | |
| 8 | Win | 8–0 | Michael Kelly | TKO | 5 (10), 2:59 | 18 Sep 2010 | LG Arena, Birmingham, England | Won vacant Irish light-welterweight title |
| 7 | Win | 7–0 | Gavin Tait | TKO | 1 (8), 2:07 | 15 May 2010 | Boleyn Ground, London, England | |
| 6 | Win | 6–0 | Peter McDonagh | PTS | 6 | 13 Feb 2010 | Wembley Arena, London, England | |
| 5 | Win | 5–0 | Samir Tergaoui | TKO | 6 (6), 2:51 | 5 Dec 2009 | Metro Radio Arena, Newcastle, England | |
| 4 | Win | 4–0 | Steve Saville | TKO | 2 (6), 2:32 | 30 Oct 2009 | Echo Arena, Liverpool, England | |
| 3 | Win | 3–0 | Graham Fearn | TKO | 2 (4), 2:25 | 18 Jul 2009 | MEN Arena, Manchester, England | |
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | Mourad Frarema | TKO | 3 (4), 2:59 | 15 May 2009 | Odyssey Arena, Belfast, Northern Ireland | |
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | George Kadaria | TKO | 4 (4), 1:39 | 28 Feb 2009 | National Indoor Arena, Birmingham, England |
References
- ^ Cornwall, Philip (26 March 2006). "England stripped of gold". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 June 2025.
- ^ "Historic gold for Gavin". Sky Sports. Retrieved 29 June 2025.
- ^ "Boxing: Gavin's medal lifts hopes of golden age for Olympic hopefuls". The Independent. 5 November 2007. Retrieved 29 June 2025.
- ^ "Medal hope Gavin out of Olympics". BBC News. 7 August 2008. Retrieved 7 August 2008.
- ^ "Gavin departs training camp in tears after failing to make his weight". The Independent. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Gavin to join professional ranks". BBC News. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Gavin announces he is turning professional". RTE. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Birmingham's Frankie Gavin kicks off pro career with win". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Boxing: Frankie Gavin picks up Irish light-welterweight title". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Frankie Gavin beats Junior Witter to win British welterweight title". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Frankie Gavin defeats Junior Witter to claim British welterweight title". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Frankie Gavin defends British welterweight title". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Frankie Gavin Stops Welborn, Keane KO's McPhilbin". Boxing Scene. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Frankie Gavin Turns on the Style, Denton Vassell Retired with Broken Jaw". British Boxers. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Comfortable win for Frankie". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Frankie Gavin wins Lonsdale belt outright after points win over David Barnes". Sky Sports. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Frankie Gavin lands easy win with poor performance against David Barnes". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Commonwealth champion Frankie Gavin survives knockdown to beat Sacky Shikukutu". Sky Sports. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Brave Shikukutu loses in UK". Namibian Sun. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Boxing: Frankie Gavin's unbeaten record ended by Leonard Bundu". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Frankie Gavin loses split decision to Leonard Bundu in European welterweight bout". Sky Sports. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Frankie Gavin Edges Bradley Skeete Over Twelve". Boxing Scene. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Kell Brook beats Frankie Gavin, Anthony Joshua stops Kevin Johnson and Lee Selby wins the IBF world title - but there's heartbreak for Kevin Mitchell". The Independent. 31 May 2015. Retrieved 29 June 2025.
- ^ Nakrani, Sachin (30 May 2015). "Kell Brook proves his stature by overpowering Frankie Gavin". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 June 2025.
- ^ "Sam Eggington stuns and stops Frankie Gavin". Boxing News Online. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Sam Eggington knocks out Frankie Gavin in Birmingham". badlefthook.com. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Frankie Gavin Very Overweight For Kerman Lejarraga Clash". Boxing Scene. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Trainer, travel farce ends in five-pound weight failure for Frankie Gavin". World Boxing News. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Kerman Lejarraga Destroys Frankie Gavin – RESULTS". Boxing News 24. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Kerman Lejarraga Knocks Frankie Gavin Out in Fourth Round". Boxing Scene. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Frankie Gavin announces retirement at the age of 33 and considers future in bare knuckle boxing". Boxing News Online. 16 January 2020. Retrieved 29 June 2025.
- ^ "Birmingham boxer Frankie Gavin - dubbed 'Wayne Rooney of the ring' - announces retirement". Birmingham Mail. 21 May 2020. Retrieved 29 June 2025.
- ^ "Olympian obliterated in 40 seconds on humiliating bare-knuckle debut". bloodyknockout.com. 29 June 2025. Retrieved 29 June 2025.
- ^ "Ex-Team GB Olympic boxer suffers devastating 52-second KO in bare-knuckle debut". Talksport. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Maths teacher Sian O'Toole becomes Midlands Featherweight boxing champion as partner Frankie Gavin cheers on". Birmingham World. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Sian shares training camp with partner Frankie as she prepares for Independence Day defence". M6 Sport. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
External links
- Boxing record for Frankie Gavin from BoxRec (registration required)