Nigerian Boxing Hall of Fame

Hall of Fame · No. 1

Dick Tiger

Dick Tiger was a professional Nigerian boxer born on the 14th day of August 1929 in Amaigbo, Orlu in Imo State Nigeria and died on the 14th December 1971. He held the title as World Champion in Middleweight and World Light Heavyweight.

He was formally admitted to the International Boxing Hall of Fames in 1991 as he was also referred to as the Fighter of the Year by the Boxing Writers Association of America and The Ring magazine in the 1960s.

In 1962, Tiger won the title as the world middleweight champion after he defeated an American professional boxer and a world middleweight champion, Lawrence Gene Fullmer. He also represented the country in America and other foreign countries as well.

The total number of fights he faced when he was alive was estimated at 82 which among them he won 60 and lost 19 whereas the remaining other three ended in a draw.

Read the full profile of Dick Tiger

Hall of Fame · No. 2

Peter Konyegwachie

Peter Konyegwachie is a Nigerian former boxer who hails from Ogwashi-Uku in Delta State, Nigeria. He was born on the 26th of November 1965, in Lagos. In 1982, he won the gold medal in the men’s featherweight at the Commonwealth Games in Brisbane, Australia.

He also won the country the first ever silver medal in the category of men’s Featherweight (54 57kg) during the 1984 Summer Olympics.

Peter became a professional boxer in 1986 and won his first 15 fights; he retired in 1990 with a record of 15 wins and 1 loss.

Hall of Fame · No. 3

Obisia Nwankpa

Obisia Nwankpa, nicknamed "Golden Gloves", was a Nigerian professional boxer who specialised in light welterweight boxing. He was born in Lagos on 14 June 1949 and died on 3 June 2025. He is one of the old Nigerian boxers who participated around the 1970s where he won the title as Nigerian lightweight boxer of the year, and in the 1980s as African Boxing Union light welterweight, and he also won the Commonwealth lightweight title.

Obisia won a gold medal after he defeated Issake Dabore of Niger in the light welterweight final at the 2nd edition of the All-Africa Games, held in Lagos from January 7th to January 18th, 1973. Similarly, he won another gold medal in the light welterweight category during the British Commonwealth Games held in Christchurch, New Zealand in 1974 after he defeated Joe Martey of Ghana in the final.

He fought 29 professional fights, winning 23 and losing only 6. He was one of the Nigerian professional fighters to challenge for a World Boxing Council title, meeting Saoul Mamby for the WBC light welterweight crown.

Hall of Fame · No. 4

Bash Ali

Bash Ali is one of the well-known world boxing champions produced by Nigeria. He was born on the 27th of February, 1956 in the city of Lagos state Nigeria.

Ali has won several titles in local and international boxing tournaments, he won the United States Boxing Association Cruiserweight Title on the 3rd of December, 1980; the USA California State Cruiserweight Title on the 12th September, 1984.

His other titles include the African Boxing Union Heavyweight Title, Nigerian Heavyweight Title, WBC International Cruiserweight Title and NABF Cruiserweight Title which he won on different occasions.

Hall of Fame · No. 5

Hogan “Kid” Bassey

Hogan Bassey was born Okon Asuquo Bassey on 3 June 1932 at Creek Town, Calabar, in today’s Cross River State. He was a Nigerian-British boxer and died on 26 January 1998 in Apapa, Lagos, Nigeria.

He was addressed as or nickname Kid Bassey as when he became professional in boxing; he was mentored and trained by George Biddles and also Jimmy August who helped him to achieve his dreams in becoming a professional boxer.

In his pursuit of a better career, Bassey travelled to the city of Liverpool in 1952 after contesting for several boxing competitions in Nigeria. He strived hard to become one of the best boxers, and after he had left Nigeria for a greener pasture he won the Empire featherweight championship, and not only that, he also defeated French Algerian Cherif Hamia in the year 1957 in Paris to win the World Crown.

In 1959, he was made a Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE). He lost the world title to Davey Moore that same year and retired, later becoming a coach in Nigeria, and he was also honoured with the national award of Member of the Order of the Niger (MON).

Hall of Fame · No. 6

Wale Omotoso

Wale Omotoso also was known as Lucky Boy as the nickname and is a Nigerian former professional boxer who competed in the welterweight and light middleweight divisions. He was born on 6th of May 1985, in the city of Lagos. Wale discovered his career on the street where he learnt how to fight and from their picked up boxing as his profession.

He fought 34 professional fights, winning 28 of them, 22 by knockout. The competition between Wale and King Davidson, who boxed in Australia, was one of the toughest fights he experienced.

In 2011, Wale signed with Top Rank Inc, a boxing promotion company in Las Vegas, Nevada, and was trained and managed by the American boxing trainer Freddie Roach at the Wild Card Gym in Los Angeles, California. After retiring from the ring, he became a trainer at Wild Card.

Hall of Fame · No. 7

Isaac Ekpo

Isaac Ekpo popularly known as Grenade is a Nigerian Olympic boxer who competes in the super-middleweight boxing division. Ekpo was born on the 22nd of October 1982 in the city of Abuja, FCT Nigeria, and his height measures 1.83m tall.

He joined the Nigerian Olympic team in 2004 when he was engaged in a fight with Utkirbek Haydarov, a Uzbekistani boxer (in 81kg weight) who competed in the light heavyweight during the course of the fight, he was defeated by Utkirbek in the first round.

Ekpo has fought 40 professional fights, winning 33 and losing 7. He won the Commonwealth super-middleweight title in 2014 and challenged three times for a world title between 2013 and 2018.

Hall of Fame · No. 8

Oto Joseph

Oto Joseph A.K.A Joe Boy is a Nigerian boxer born on 25 November 1992, in Akwa Ibom State of Nigeria. He was born into a family of five; among them were 2 girls and other three boys including Oto.

He has O’level qualification in Education and was an Okada rider before he discovered his talent in boxing. Oto started as a boxer when he picked interest from his brother who was a boxer and then began to grow in the field.

His recognition started in Lagos when he was chosen by a professional coach, Joe Mensah to play in the Monthly Boxing Hall of Fame at Rowe Park. In 2012, he won a gold medal at the National Sports Festival in Lagos. He represented Nigeria in World Boxing Championship in Kazakhstan in 2013 also in 2014 at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games.

He is always following the models of Mike Tyson and Segun Ajose. He turned professional in 2015, won the Nigerian lightweight title and has held the African lightweight title in two spells, from 2017 to 2020 and again from 2022. He has been a three-time best boxer at the GOtv Boxing Night and has won prizes on several occasions.

Hall of Fame · No. 9

Stanley Eribo

Stanley Eribor is a Nigerian boxer that was born on the 16th day of October 1989 in the town of Benin City Edo, Nigeria. His birth name is Igbinovia Stanley Johnson Ogbemudia but he is always known as Stanley Eribo.

His appearance in boxing tournament started on the 3rd of February, 2012. He is currently competing in the welterweight division. Additionally, he won the title in 2015.

Hall of Fame · No. 10

Larry Ekundayo

Larry Ekundayo alias "The Natural" is one of the professional boxers recognized in Nigerian and African at large. He was born on the 13th of June 1982 in the city of Lagos, Nigeria and resides in Stoke Newington, London, United Kingdom.

He won the African Boxing Union welterweight title (2015 to 2016) and the IBF European welterweight title (2018 to 2019), and is also known as a Light Middle Prizefighter winner and a Welterweight International Masters title holder.

Hall of Fame · No. 11

Samuel Peter

Samuel Peters (Samuel Okon Peter) is a Nigerian-American boxer that was born on 6th of September 1980 in Akwa Ibom, State Nigeria. Peter held the World Boxing Council (WBC) heavyweight title in 2008.

Samuel Peter became a popular boxer after his competition with Ukrainian heavyweight boxers, Klitschko brothers (but once with Vitali Klitschko, the brother to Wladimir Klitschko collectively called Klitschko brothers) and Wladimir Wladimirowitsch Klitschko twice, in 2005 and 2010.

He fought 47 professional fights between 2001 and 2019, winning 38 (31 by knockout) and losing 9. He has also won many titles such as the one of March 2008, when he won the WBC title in the world heavyweight championship by defeating Oleg Maskaev.

Read the full profile of Samuel Peter

Hall of Fame · No. 12

Olaide “Fijaborn” Fijabi

Olaide Fijabi always addressed by his nickname ’Fijaborn’ is a well-known boxer and a Nigeria’s super lightweight current champion that holds the National light welterweight boxing champion.

Fijaborn as he is fondly called by friends, fans and opponents have been maintaining unbeaten records in the boxing profession. He is currently participating in GOtv Boxing Night and in his pursuits targeting the continental title after he had won the West Africa light welterweight title.