Elisha Obed

Obed entered the amateur ranks at age 12. Fighting almost weekly, he ran up an undefeated record of 46-0 (16 knockouts). At 14, he decided to turn professional.

For almost 6 years, he lingered on small promotions on the island of Nassau, in the Bahamas. He was billed as undefeated, but he had lost a fight by knockout to veteran Kid Carew. His loss to Kid Carew was unlisted for almost 8 years, as he was reported incorrectly as undefeated in the press until his loss to Eckhard Dagge.

Veteran trainer, manager, and promoter Moe Fleischer travelled to Nassau to "check-out" this upcoming prospect. Mike Dundee, nephew of Angelo Dundee, came in as his manager.

Soon after, Obed was fighting main events. He earned a top ten ranking by knocking out former title contender Bunny Grant. Obed made his U.S. debut in Florida. Knocked out every top middleweight boxer in Florida in the early 1970s, including state Champion Dennis Riggs and former champion Jimmy Williams.

In 1975, he captured the WBC Light Middleweight Title by defeating Miguel de Oliveira. He defended the title twice before losing the belt to Germany's Eckhard Dagge in 1976 when he quit, claiming he had blurred vision. Obed stated that he had been thumbed in the eye by a Dagger. In actuality, he was later found to have a detached retina and was legally blind in that eye.

Obed decided to enter the middleweight ranks. By 27, he was back to where he started from, fighting on local fight cards in Nassau. He retired in 1988.

• Boxing record for Elisha Obed from BoxRec (registration required)