Vintage boxing artwork
THE RING ALMANAC
THE RING ALMANAC
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Middleweight · Bare-Knuckle & Gloves (1880–1919)

Stanley Ketchel

"The Michigan Assassin"

51
Wins
7
Losses
3
Draws
46
KOs
90%
KO %
Born
1886
Died
1910
Nationality
USA
Career
1903–1910

A ferocious puncher who floored Jack Johnson in a heavyweight title fight before his murder at age 24.

Titles & Honours

Career Timeline

1903–1910
  1. Milestone

    First recorded professional bout

    vs Kid Tracy · W KO

    View fight record
  2. Milestone

    25th recorded win

    vs Jerry McCarthy · TKO. Newspaper decisions excluded.

    View fight record
  3. Title history

    Title reign begins

    World Middleweight Champion (1908–1910). Year from profile title history; exact title-winning bout not identified.

    View title / honour details
  4. Signature fight

    vs Philadelphia Jack O'Brien

    W NWS · National A.C., New York City, New York, U.S.. Archive selection: one of the first three wins over distinct fighters profiled here, not an expert-selected signature fight.

    View fight record
  5. Milestone

    Latest recorded bout

    vs Jim Smith · W KO. Not necessarily the retirement date.

    View fight record

Derived from the current archive and profile honours. Title-reign years are not exact bout dates; title claims are not independently verified. Signature fights use existing profile selections, or clearly labelled wins over other archived fighters when no selections exist. Year-only dates retain their original precision.

Photo Archive

Stanley Ketchel Stands over Billy Papke
Stanley Ketchel Stands over Billy Papke
Boxer Stanley Ketchel in a traditional fighting pose
Boxer Stanley Ketchel in a traditional fighting pose
Gravestone of boxer Stanley Ketchel
Gravestone of boxer Stanley Ketchel
Bain News Service,, publisher. Ketchel [between 1910 and 1915] 1 negative : glass ; 5 x 7 in. or smaller. Notes: Title from unverified data provided by the Bain News Service on the negatives or captio
Bain News Service,, publisher. Ketchel [between 1910 and 1915] 1 negative : glass ; 5 x 7 in. or smaller. Notes: Title from unverified data provided by the Bain News Service on the negatives or captio

4 archival photographs under their original licences.

Fight-by-Fight Record

DateResultOpponentMethodRoundVenue
1903-05-02WKid TracyKO1Butte , Montana, U.S.
1903-05-11LMaurice ThompsonPTS6Broadway Theater, Butte , Montana, U.S.
1904-06-20WJimmy QuinnKO3Butte , Montana, U.S.
1904-07-07WJim Kid McGuireKO1Butte , Montana, U.S.
1904-07-15WKid LeroyKO1Butte , Montana, U.S.
1904-07-17WJohnny GilseyKO4Butte , Montana, U.S.
1904-09-15WJimmy MurrayKO3Butte , Montana, U.S.
1904-10-15WBob MerrywellKO3Butte , Montana, U.S.
1904-10-21LMaurice ThompsonPTS10Butte , Montana, U.S.
1904-10-29WJimmy KellyKO1Miles City , Montana, U.S.
1904-11-08LKid LeeTKO8Lewistown , Montana, U.S.
1904-11-10WJoe MudroKO4Butte , Montana, U.S.
1904-12-08WKid HerrickKO7Butte , Montana, U.S.
1904-12-16WJack GrimesTKO10Union Hall, Butte , Montana, U.S.
1904-12-23WKid FoleyKO7Casino Theater, Butte, Montana, U.S.
1905-01-04WKid ThomasKO1Butte , Montana, U.S.
1905-01-20WJack BennettKO5Butte , Montana, U.S.
1905-03-25WSid LaFontiseKO24Butte , Montana, U.S.
1905-04-19DRudolph HinzPTS20Miles City , Montana, U.S.
1905-05-18WSid LaFontiseKO7Butte , Montana, U.S.
1905-06-04WCurley RhueKO12Gregson Springs, Montana, U.S.
1905-06-13WKid PecorKO5Butte , Montana, U.S.
1905-06-16WKid LeeTKO17Helena , Montana, U.S.
1905-07-04WJimmy KellyKO8Miles City , Montana, U.S.
1905-07-15WBob SenateKO17Miles City , Montana, U.S.
1905-07-19WRoy HartKO1Opera House, Miles City , Montana, U.S.
1905-08-29WKid FredericksKO11Miles City, Montana, U.S.
1905-09-14WBob SenateKO11Miles City , Montana, U.S.
1905-12-01WJerry McCarthyTKO12Great Falls , Montana, U.S.
1905-12-02WMarysville KidKO3Butte , Montana, U.S.
1905-12-16WJack BennettKO5Butte , Montana, U.S.
1905-12-19WJerry McCarthyKO11Great Falls , Montana, U.S.
1905-12-24WKid FoleyKO4Butte , Montana, U.S.
1906-02-12DMontana Jack SullivanPTS20Butte , Montana, U.S.
1906-03-19NCWarren ZurbrickND2Grand Opera House, Great Falls , Montana, U.S.
1906-05-11WPaddy HallKO1Gregson Hot Springs, Montana, U.S.
1906-05-18WMike TierneyKO7Butte , Montana, U.S.
1906-09-10WKid FoleyKO11Miles City , Montana, U.S.
1907-03-23WMike McClureKO7Redding , California, U.S.
1907-05-03WBenny HartKO8Marysville , California, U.S.
1907-05-23WGeorge BrownKO2Sacramento , California, U.S.
1907-07-04DJoe ThomasPTS20Marysville , California, U.S.
1907-09-02WJoe ThomasKO32Mission Street Arena, Colma , California, U.S.
1907-12-12WJoe ThomasPTS20Recreation Park, San Francisco , California, U.S.
1908-02-22WMike Twin SullivanKO1Mission Street Arena, Colma , California, U.S.
1908-05-09WJack Twin SullivanKO20Mission Street Arena, Colma , California, U.S.
1908-06-04WBilly PapkePTS10Hippodrome, Milwaukee , Wisconsin, U.S.
1908-07-31WHugo KellyKO3San Francisco Coliseum, San Francisco , California, U.S.
1908-08-18WJoe ThomasTKO2San Francisco Coliseum, San Francisco , California, U.S.
1908-09-07LBilly PapkeTKO12Jeffries' Arena, CoVernonlma , California, U.S.
1908-11-26WBilly PapkeKO11Mission Street Arena, Colma , California, U.S.
1909-03-26WPhiladelphia Jack O'BrienNWS10National A.C., New York City, New York, U.S.
1909-05-18WHugh McGannNWS6Duquesne Garden, Pittsburgh , Pennsylvania, U.S.
1909-06-02WTony CaponiKO4American A.C., Schenectady , New York, U.S.
1909-06-09WPhiladelphia Jack O'BrienTKO3National A.C., Philadelphia , Pennsylvania, U.S.
1909-07-05WBilly PapkeUD20Mission Street Arena, Colma , California, U.S.
1909-10-16LJack JohnsonKO12Mission Street Arena, Colma , California, U.S.
1910-03-23LFrank KlausNWS6Duquesne Garden, Pittsburgh , Pennsylvania, U.S.
1910-04-27LSam LangfordNWS6National A.C., Philadelphia , Pennsylvania, U.S.
1910-05-17WPorky FlynnKO3Armory A.A., Boston , Massachusetts, U.S.
1910-05-27WWillie LewisKO2National S.C., New York City, New York, U.S.
1910-06-10WJim SmithKO5National S.C., New York City, New York, U.S.

Showing 62 of 62 recorded fights · last updated 2026-10-11. Imported record tables are not independently verified and may be incomplete. Early-era logs include newspaper decisions (NWS), which are not counted in the official totals above.

Record notes

Fight record last retrieved: 2026-10-11. Title histories remain subject to archival review.

Historical-era totals differ between record-keeping conventions (newspaper decisions, exhibitions).

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