World Boxing Union
Former boxing organization
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The World Boxing Union (WBU) was a boxing sanctioning body. The original WBU was founded in January 1995 by IBF European representative, boxing journalist, actor and former holder of the title of Britain's heaviest man [1][2] Jon W. Robinson. It sanctioned boxing with various promoters worldwide. Following Robinson's death in 2004, the organization became dormant and was 2009 dissolved.
| Abbreviation | WBU |
|---|---|
| Founder | Jon W. Robinson |
| Founded at | London, England |
| Purpose | Boxing sanctioning organization |
| Headquarters | Organization dissolved |
Region served | Worldwide |
president | Jon Robinson |
An organization serving the same purpose and with the same name, was formed in Germany in 2010 under the leadership of Torsten Knille.[3]
List of WBU heavyweight champions
| Name | Duration of reign | Defenses | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
 George Foreman (USA)[4] |
March 29, 1995 – 1997 | 2 | Foreman was recognized as champion after he was stripped of the IBF title |
 Corrie Sanders (RSA)[5] |
November 15, 1997 – May 20, 2000 | 3 | Defeated Ross Purity |
| Hasim Rahman (USA)[6] |
May 20, 2000 – April 21, 2001 | 0 | Relinquished the title in order to fight Lennox Lewis for the IBF, IBO and WBC titles |
 Johnny Nelson (GBR)[7] |
November 24, 2001 – December 4, 2001 | 0 | Defeated Alexander Vasiliev. Relinquished the title in order to concentrate on defending his WBO Cruiserweight title |
 Georgi Kandelaki (GEO)[8] |
December 21, 2002 – January 2004 | 0 | Defeated Alexander Vasiliev. Kandelaki either relinquished or was stripped of the title |
| Matt Skelton (GBR)[9] |
February 25, 2005 – January 26, 2009 | 0 | Skelton relinquished the title |
Other WBU champions (selected)
Other past WBU champions include Sirimongkol Singwancha, Sornpichai Kratingdaenggym, Pongsaklek Wonjongkam, Ricky Hatton, Eamonn Magee, Tony Oakey, Corrie Sanders, Enzo Maccarinelli, Lee McAllister, Angel Manfredy, George Scott, Hasim Rahman, Willie Limond, Craig Docherty, Michael Gomez, Kevin Lear, Anthony Farnell, Jimmy Lange, Derry Mathews, Choi Tseveenpurev, Jeremy Williams, Cristian Charquero, Wayne Elcock, Roy Jones Jr., David Burke, Vinny Pazienza, and Micky Ward.
In addition, Carlos Contreras defeated challenger Victor Rabanales by 8RTKO.