On This Day In Boxing History!

1962: Jacob Matlala Was Born!

Jacob "Baby Jake" Matlala was born on August 1, 1962, in Meadowlands, Johannesburg, South Africa. Inspired by his father, an aspiring boxer, Matlala began training in boxing at the age of 10. Despite standing only 4 feet 10 inches (147 cm) tall, he defied expectations through determination and skill. He turned professional in late 1979 and started his pro career on February 2, 1980, winning his debut fight against Fraser Plaatjie in Port Elizabeth under the tutelage of Theo Mthembu.

Quickly rising through the ranks, Matlala won the South African Junior Flyweight title within just four fights, though he later lost the title to Vuyani Nene. His first world title attempt came when he challenged Davie McCauley for the IBF flyweight championship in Belfast but was knocked out in the tenth round. Persistence paid off in 1993 when he defeated Pat Clinton in Glasgow to claim the WBO flyweight title, which he held until 1995. Matlala lost this title to Alberto Jiminez by a tenth-round stoppage.

In 1995, he captured the WBO junior flyweight (light-flyweight) title and held it until 1997. On July 19, 1997, he scored a major upset by defeating Michael Carbajal in Las Vegas to win the International Boxing Association (IBA) light-flyweight title. Later that year, he challenged Hawk Makepula for the vacant WBO junior flyweight title but lost. Around this period, he also suffered consecutive defeats, including a points loss to his former sparring partner Peter Culshaw for the World Boxing Union (WBU) flyweight title.

In February 1999, Matlala claimed the vacant WBU flyweight title. During this time, a scandal arose involving allegations of rape by gospel singer Julia Mnyamezeli, which also involved financial settlements reportedly reduced from 2 million to 250,000 rand.

Matlala continued fighting into the early 2000s, and in 2002, at Carnival City in Brakpan, he stopped Colombian Juan Herrera in the seventh round to retain the WBU junior flyweight title. This victory marked the culmination of a career that made him the only South African boxer to win four world championship titles across multiple organizations: WBO (flyweight and junior flyweight), IBA (light-flyweight), and WBU (junior flyweight). Over his career, he amassed a record of approximately 54 wins (27 by stoppage), 12 losses, and 2 draws in around 68 fights.

Matlala was highly respected in South Africa, often celebrated for his all-action fighting style, resilience, and ability to succeed despite his small stature. He was voted #72 in the "100 Greatest South Africans" poll conducted by SABC in 2004 and was known as one of Nelson Mandela's favorite boxers. Mandela and actor Will Smith notably attended Matlala’s farewell fight in 2002, where Matlala presented Mandela with one of his championship belts in an emotional moment.

Jacob "Baby Jake" Matlala passed away on December 7, 2013, in Johannesburg at the age of 51 due to a lung infection. He remains an iconic figure in South African boxing, symbolizing determination and success against the odds.

Jacob Matlala   

Born: August 1st,1962

Birth Place: Soweto, Gauteng, South Africa

Residence: Meadowlands, Soweto, Gauteng, South Africa

Pro-Debut: February 2nd, 1980

Alias: Baby Jake

Division: Light Flyweight

Stance: Orthodox

Height: 4′ 10½″  

Reach: 59″  

Bouts: 68

Rounds: 547

Record: 53-13-2, 26Ko’s

Ko’s: 38%

Died: Age 51, December 7th, 2013

Career

WBO Flyweight Champion

1993 May 15 – 1995 Feb 11         

WBO Light Flyweight Champion

1995 Nov 18 – 1997

August 1st

1901: Pancho Villa was born in Ilog, Negros Occidental, U.S. Military Government of the Philippine Islands

1950: Dado Marino W15 Terry Allen

1954: Trevor Berbick born in Norwich, Port Antonio, Jamaica

1961: Benny Medina W10 Don Jordan

1962: Jake Matlala was born in Meadowlands, South Africa

1967: Ben Villaflor KO8 Ben Aranas

Percy Pugh W10 Joe "Old Bones" Brown

1968: Cachorro Amaya KO1 Alexis Arguello (pro debut)

1975: Mike Rossman KO7 Mike Nixon

1976: Rigoberto Riasco W15 Dong Kyun Yum

1980: Wilfred Benitez TKO8 Tony Chiaverini

1981: Eusebio Pedroza KO7 Carlos Pinango

1987: Mike Tyson W12 Tony Tucker

Carlos De León KO1 Larry Phelps

1988: Julio Cesar Chavez KO3 Vernon Buchanan

Miguel Lora W12 Albert Davila

1992: Julian Jackson W12 Thomas Tate

Julio Cesar Chavez KO4 Frankie Mitchell

Héctor Camacho TKO4 Eddie VanKirk

1994: Yasuei Yakushiji KO11 Jung-Il Byun

Yuri Arbachakov KO8 Hugo Rafael Soto

1997: Chatchai Dutchboy Gym KO7 Juan Domingo Cordoba

Veteran trainer Johnny Tocco, 87, dies after a lengthy illness in Las Vegas where he ran Johnny Tocco’s Ringside Gym for 41-years.

Detroit’s Kronk Gym Trainer Alex Sherer passes age 43

1998: Miguel Lora W12 Albert Davila

2000: 1984 Olympic Gold Medalist Steve McCrory, 36, passes

2009: Isaac Hlatshwayo W12 Delvin Rodriguez

Devon Alexander KO8 Junior Witter

Timothy Bradley NC3 Nate Campbell

2013: Tomoki Kameda W12 Paulus Ambunda

Koki Eto W12 Suriyan Satorn

2015: Edith Soledad Matthysse W10 Jelena Mrdjenovich

Joseph Parker KO1 Bowie Tupou

Jeff Horn WTD7 Viktor Plotnikov

Carlos Zambrano W12 Jose Sanmartin

Jai Opetaia age 20 debuts W4 Isileli Fa

Danny Garcia TKO9 Paulie Malignaggi