60 Years of Top Rank: Bob Arum’s

First Fight Launched a Boxing Empire!

(March 29th) What began 60 years ago with a Muhammad Ali world title defense in Toronto became one of the most influential promotional runs in boxing history. 

On March 29, 1966, Bob Arum promoted his first fight, launching a six-decade journey that helped shape generations of champions, defining moments, and the global growth of the sport. That night, Ali handily defended his heavyweight crown against George Chuvalo, but it was a challenging entry into the industry for the 34-year-old.

Arum had no experience as a promoter and little background in boxing. A Brooklyn native and Harvard Law School graduate, he served as a federal prosecutor under then-U.S. Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy. In 1962, as head of the tax division for the Southern District of New York, he oversaw the seizure of the proceeds from the Floyd Patterson-Sonny Liston heavyweight championship fight. 

A few years later, he met Ali while working in private practice and, despite cities refusing to host the champion following his vocal opposition to the Vietnam War, stepped forward to stage the heavyweight championship defense at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto.

What followed was a Hall of Fame career that reshaped the fight game across generations. Arum promoted 27 Muhammad Ali fights and was a central figure in the Four Kings era of the 1980s, staging major bouts involving Sugar Ray Leonard, Marvin Hagler, Thomas Hearns and Roberto Duran. He later handled George Foreman’s comeback that led to a historic heavyweight title victory and guided Manny Pacquiao through championship runs in multiple weight classes.

The legendary 94-year-old has taken numerous fighters from pro debut to world champion, including Oscar De La Hoya, Floyd Mayweather Jr., Miguel Cotto, Michael Carbajal, Teofimo Lopez, Shakur Stevenson, Jose Ramirez, Oscar Valdez, Mikaela Mayer, Donald Curry, and Vasiliy Lomachenko. That tradition continues today with Keyshawn Davis, Xander Zayas, Abdullah Mason and Bruce Carrington.

“60 years is a lot of time. I’ve met some fabulous people, and it’s been a great adventure,” said Arum. “People ask what my toughest promotion was. My toughest promotion was my first fight, just getting the fight on. Everything else was easy in comparison.”

“The last thing I would envision myself at that point was to be a boxing promoter. When I first started, there were no satellites to deliver fight broadcasts to another country. That technology didn’t exist. Everything in boxing has since changed, from what I was doing at the start to what I’m doing now, 60 years later. The biggest lesson I’ve followed is that you’ve got to be flexible enough to know that things will not always be the same.”

“When I look back, what I’m most proud about of the 60 years that I’ve spent in this sport is to have lasted as long as I have, both physically and mentally. It’s not easy to be a promoter.”

Over six decades, Top Rank has promoted more than 2,200 cards and 700 world title fights, staged events in more than 200 American cities and dozens of countries and featured 75 Hall of Fame fighters under its banner.

Top Rank will commemorate the 60-year milestone throughout 2026 with special programming, archival features, and original digital content celebrating the company’s past, present, and future.

Top Rank By the Numbers

The following is an updated statistical summary compiled by Hall of Fame matchmaker Bruce Trampler, who has been with the company since 1980.

2,203 Boxing cards promoted by TR

 940 Boxing shows TR promoted on ESPN network

 722 World title fights promoted by TR

 570 Boxing shows TR promoted in Nevada

 416 Boxing shows TR promoted in New Jersey

 223 American cities in which TR has promoted

 204 Boxing shows promoted by TR in California

 157 Boxing shows promoted by TR in Texas

 129 Boxing shows TR promoted on HBO network

  98 Boxing shows promoted by TR on CBS network

  95 Foreign cities in which TR has promoted

  95 Boxing shows promoted by TR in New York State

  78 Boxing shows promoted by TR in Arizona

  75 Hall of Fame boxers promoted by TR

  73 Boxing shows TR promoted on ABC network

  66 Boxing shows promoted by TR in Puerto Rico

  62 Boxing shows promoted by TR in New York City

  43 States in which TR has promoted boxing

  42 Boxing shows promoted by TR in Mexico

  41 Miguel Cotto fights promoted by TR (HOF)

  41 Boxing shows promoted by TR in Pennsylvania

  39 Kelly Pavlik fights promoted by TR

  38 Michael Carbajal fights promoted by TR (HOF)

  37 Oscar De La Hoya fights promoted by TR (HOF)

  37 Donald Curry fights promoted by TR (HOF)

  36 Johnny Tapia fights promoted by TR (HOF)

  35 Floyd Mayweather Jr. fights promoted by TR (HOF)

  35 Oscar Valdez fights promoted by TR

  35 Boxing shows promoted by TR in Florida

  33 James Toney fights promoted by TR (HOF)

  32 Erik Morales fights promoted by TR (HOF)

  31 Micky Ward fights promoted by TR

  30 Countries where TR has promoted fights 

  29 Tommy Morrison fights promoted by TR

  27 Muhammad Ali fights promoted or co-promoted by TR (HOF)

  27 Iran Barkley fights promoted by TR

  27 Boxing shows promoted by TR on Closed-Circuit TV

  26 Manny Pacquiao fights promoted by TR (HOF)

  25 Freddie Roach fights promoted by TR (HOF)

  25 Roger Mayweather fights promoted by TR

  24 Terence Crawford fights promoted by TR

  24 Boxing shows promoted by TR in New Mexico

  22 Shakur Stevenson fights promoted by TR

  20 Marvelous Marvin Hagler fights promoted by TR (HOF)

  19 Juan Manuel Marquez fights promoted by TR

  19 Xander Zayas fights promoted by TR

  19 Abdullah Mason fights promoted by TR

  16 Robert Garcia fights promoted by TR

  15 Bruce Carrington fights promoted by TR

  14 George Foreman fights promoted by TR (HOF)

  14 Boxing shows promoted by TR in China

  14 Emiliano Fernando Vargas fights promoted by TR

  13 Thomas Hearns fights promoted by TR (HOF)

  11 Vasiliy Lomachenko fights promoted by TR

  11 Keyshawn Davis fights promoted by TR

  10 Alexis Argüello fights promoted by TR (HOF)

  10 Ray Mancini fights promoted by TR (HOF)

  10 Timothy Bradley fights promoted by TR (HOF)

  10 Naoya Inoue fights promoted by TR

  8 Roberto Duran fights promoted by TR (HOF)

  8 Tyson Fury fights promoted by TR

  7 Sugar Ray Leonard fights promoted by TR (HOF)

  7 Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. fights by TR (HOF)

  7 TR Staff HOFers: Arum, Teddy Brenner, Irving Rudd, Bruce Trampler, Lee      

  Samuels, Brad Jacobs, & Brad Goodman

  5 Carlos Monzon fights promoted by TR (HOF)

  5 Emile Griffith fights promoted by TR (HOF)

  4 Mike Tyson fights promoted by TR (HOF)

  1 Snake River Canyon jump Evel Knievel promoted by Bob Arum

  0 Boxing shows (so far!) promoted by TR in: Alabama, Alaska,

    Arkansas, Kansas, South Dakota, Vermont, Wyoming (and DC)

About Top Rank

Innovation has been the standard at Top Rank since it was established in 1966 by Hall of Fame promoter Bob Arum. The boxing industry’s leading promotional company, Top Rank has shaped, developed, and promoted the careers of top international pay-per-view superstars and Hall of Famers, including Muhammad Ali, Marvelous Marvin Hagler, Tommy Hearns, George Foreman, Sugar Ray Leonard, Aaron Pryor, Alexis Arguello, Oscar De La Hoya, Manny Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather Jr., Miguel Cotto, Erik Morales, Terence Crawford, and Vasiliy Lomachenko.

Top Rank has promoted some of the most memorable fights in the sport’s history, including 26 Ali events, Leonard vs. Hearns, Pryor vs. Arguello, Duran vs. Leonard, Hagler vs. Hearns, Leonard vs. Hagler, Foreman vs. Holyfield, Morales vs. Barrera, De La Hoya vs. Trinidad, and the most lucrative fight in boxing history, Mayweather vs. Pacquiao. In addition to the previously mentioned super fights, Top Rank possesses one of the largest sports libraries, which includes nearly 10,000 fights.

Known for creating strategic collaborations between athletes, sponsors, and television networks, Top Rank has been an architect of boxing’s global growth by staging high-profile events in landmark settings around the world, including Madison Square Garden, MGM Grand Garden Arena, Staples Center, Wembley Arena, Araneta Coliseum, The Venetian Macao, Yankee Stadium, Radio City Music Hall, The “Fabulous” Forum, and AT&T Stadium. Top Rank has also been the leader within the boxing industry in creating unforgettable in-arena experiences for fans and embracing 21st century technological advancements to distribute world-class fights and shoulder programming across a variety of platforms.