Jesse Hart
WeightSuper middleweight
Light heavyweight
Height6 ft 3 in
Reach77+1/2 in
Birth dateAugust 14, 1989 (age 37)
Birth placePhiladelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
StyleOrthodox
Total33
Wins30
Ko24
Losses3

Jesse Hart (born August 14, 1989) is an American professional boxer who has challenged twice for the WBO super middleweight title; firstly in 2017 and again in 2018.[1]

Early life and amateur career

Jesse Hart is the son of former Philly middleweight contender Eugene Hart. Eugene trains his son to this day.[2] In 2011, Hart won the National Golden Gloves Championships, and the US National Championships at Middleweight.[3] He was, at one time, the number one rated amateur boxer at Middleweight in the US.[4] Hart failed to qualify to the 2012 Summer Olympics, losing to Terrell Gausha on countback at the final match of the US Olympic Trials. Hart accumulated an 85-11 record as an amateur.[5]

Professional career

Early career

Hart turned pro in June 2012, signing with promotional outfit Top Rank.[5] Hart won his first 16 fights against mediocre opposition, with 13 wins coming by way of knockout. In May 2015, Hart fought Mike Jimenez in the undercard of Mayweather-Pacquiao. Hart won in dominant fashion, breaking Jimenez down before winning by technical knockout in round 6. With the win, Hart claimed the USBA and the NABO super middleweight titles.[6][7] Hart defended his North American titles four times against the likes of Dashon Johnson and Andrew Hernandez. Johnson gave Hart an extremely tough fight, despite the former's 19-18-3 record going into the fight. Hart seemed to tire in the latter half of the fight and Johnson dropped Hart in the final round. In the end, Hart took the win by unanimous decision (98-91, 97-92, 95-94).[8]

Ramírez vs. Hart

Jesse Hart reached an agreement to fight WBO world champion Gilberto Ramírez on September 22, 2017 in Tucson, Arizona.[9] On August 22, the fight was made official and an announcement was made for the venue. The fight was to take place at the Convention Center.[10][11]

In front of 4,103 fans, Ramírez retained his WBO super middleweight title in a hard-fought battle against a game Hart, which went the 12 round distance. The final judges scorecards were 115-112, 115-112, and 114-113 in favour of Ramírez. He started off strong, dropping Hart in round 2 following a left uppercut, which Hart did not see coming. Hart beat the count and survived the round. In round 4, Hart took tremendous punishment, but managed to stay on his feet. The last 6 rounds saw the fight turnaround in favour of Hart. He landed many power shots to the head of Ramírez, who held his own. Ramírez seemed to have tired out during the closing rounds. Round 11 saw Hart rock Ramírez badly, but not realizing that his legs had given way, thus failing to go for the finish. Had Hart not been dropped in round 2, the fight would have ended via majority decision.[12][13] After the fight, Ramírez said, "This one was for all the Dreamers, all the people of Mexico and what they are going through with the earthquake. The plan was push, push, push and put a lot of pressure on him and keep him off balance. I wanted to put on a really big body attack every round. There was nothing easy in this fight." Hart was humble in defeat, "I take nothing away from him. He's a good champ. He has my respect. The knockdown was my fault. Zurdo's a really good fighter." Ramírez landed 220 punches from 690 thrown (32%), this included 40 of his 70 power shots thrown. Hart landed 132 of his 497 thrown (27%).[14]

On December 14, 2018, Hart faced Ramirez in a rematch for the WBO super middleweight title. Ramirez was punishing Hart throughout the fight, especially being efficient on the inside. Hart was able to hurt Ramirez back in the final round, but it was too late to make any significant impact on the scoring.[15] In the end, Ramirez won the fight via majority decision, with two judges seeing Ramirez as the winner, 115-113 and 115-113, and one scoring the fight a draw, 114-114.[16]

In his next fight, Hart battled veteran Sullivan Barrera. In what was his debut at light heavyweight, Hart managed to secure a win on points.[17] It was a dirty fight in which referee Jay Nady had to intervene multiple times and threaten the boxers with a point deduction.[18]

Professional boxing record

No.ResultRecordOpponentTypeRound, timeDateLocationNotes
31Win28–3David MurrayTKO3 (8), 2:20Dec 11, 20212300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
30Win27–3Mike GuyUD8Sep 17, 20212300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
29Loss26–3Joe Smith Jr.SD10Jan 11, 2020Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S.
28Win26–2Sullivan BarreraUD10Jun 15, 2019MGM Grand Garden Arena, Paradise, Nevada, US
27Loss25–2Gilberto RamirezMD12Dec 14, 2018Corpus Christi, Texas, U.S.For WBO super middleweight title
26Win25–1Mike GavronskiTKO3 (10), 0:52Aug 18, 2018Ocean Resort Casino, Atlantic City, U.SRetained NABF super middleweight title
25Win24–1Demond NicholsonTKO7 (10), 2:26Apr 28, 2018Liacouras Center, Philadelphia, U.SWon vacant NABF super middleweight title
24Win23–1Thomas AwimbonoTKO1 (10), 1:28Feb 3, 2018Bank of America Center, Corpus Christi, U.S.
23Loss22–1Gilberto RamírezUD12Sep 22, 2017Convention Center, Tucson, Arizona, U.S.For WBO super middleweight title
22Win22–0Alan CampaTKO5 (10), 0:44Apr 8, 2017MGM National Harbor, National Harbor, Maryland, U.S.Retained USBA and NABO super middleweight titles
21Win21–0Andrew HernandezTKO3 (10), 1:59Nov 4, 2016Treasure Island Casino, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.Retained USBA and NABO super middleweight titles
20Win20–0Dashon JohnsonUD10Mar 18, 20162300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.Retained USBA and NABO super middleweight titles
19Win19–0Andrik SaraleguiTKO1 (8), 0:54Dec 12, 2015Convention Center, Tucson, Arizona, U.S.
18Win18–0Aaron Pryor Jr.TKO9 (10), 2:51Sep 11, 2015Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.Retained USBA and NABO super middleweight titles
17Win17–0Mike JimenezTKO6 (10), 2:13May 2, 2015MGM Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.Retained NABF junior super middleweight title
Won vacant USBA and vacant NABO super middleweight titles
16Win16–0Samuel MillerTKO2 (8), 2:07Dec 13, 20142300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
15Win15–0Roberto AcevedoKO4 (8), 1:15Oct 4, 2014Bally's Atlantic City, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S.
14Win14–0Shujaa El AminTKO6 (8), 1:36Jun 14, 2014Bally's Atlantic City, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S.
13Win13–0Samuel ClarksonUD8Apr 11, 2014Mandalay Bay Events Center, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.
12Win12–0Derrick FindleyUD6Jan 25, 2014Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, U.S.
11Win11–0Tyrell HendrixTKO1 (6), 1:20Dec 7, 2013Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S.
10Win10–0Terrence WilsonKO1 (4), 1:57Sep 28, 2013Bally's Event Center, Atlantic City, U.S.
9Win9–0Steven TynerTKO1 (6), 1:20Aug 10, 2013Texas Station Casino, Las Vegas, U.S.
8Win8–0Eddie HunterTKO2 (6), 1:17Jul 12, 2013Bally's Event Center, Atlantic City, U.S.
7Win7–0Thomas TurnerTKO1 (6), 2:15Jun 1, 2013Radio City Music Hall, New York, U.S.
6Win6–0Marlon FarrTKO3 (6), 1:33Apr 13, 2013Temple University McGonigle Hall, Philadelphia, U.S.
5Win5–0Steven TynerUD4Dec 8, 2012Wynn Resort, Las Vegas, U.S.
4Win4–0Joshua MeyersTKO3 (4), 2:01Nov 10, 2012Harrah's Philadelphia, Chester, U.S.
3Win3–0Lekan ByfieldKO1 (4), 0:48Sep 14, 2012Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S.
2Win2–0Steven ChadwickTKO1 (4), 2:38Jul 7, 2012Bally's Atlantic City, Atlantic City, U.S.
1Win1–0Manuel EastmanTKO1 (4), 0:33Jun 9, 2012MGM Grand, Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas, U.S.

References

  1. ^ "BoxRec: Jesse Hart". boxrec.com. Retrieved 2019-11-19.
  2. ^ "A father's life and a brother's death propel Philly boxer Jesse Hart's dream: Be the best — NewsWorks". Archived from the original on 2017-10-02. Retrieved 2017-10-01.
  3. ^ "Philadelphia's Hart wins Olympic boxing trial". Philly.com. 2011-08-06. Retrieved 2013-08-10.
  4. ^ "TeamUSA | Home". Usaboxing.org. Archived from the original on 2012-03-21. Retrieved 2013-08-10.
  5. ^ "Hart, son of '70s contender 'Cyclone', turns pro". 20 April 2012.
  6. ^ "Hart 'grateful' to be on Floyd-Manny undercard". 12 March 2015.
  7. ^ "JESSE HART TALKS MIKE JIMENEZ CLASH: "NOW IS THE TIME TO SEPARATE THE GOOD FROM THE GREAT...SOMEBODY'S 0 HAS TO GO"|| FIGHTHYPE.COM". Archived 2015-03-20 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2026-01-28.
  8. ^ "Jesse Hart defeats Dashon Johnson ⋆ Boxing News 24". 19 March 2016.
  9. ^ "Gilberto Ramirez Expects Big Fireworks With Jesse Hart - Boxing News". www.boxingscene.com. 10 July 2017. Retrieved 2017-07-10.
  10. ^ "Valdez, Ramirez to defend titles on 9/22 ESPN show". Bad Left Hook. Retrieved 2017-08-26.
  11. ^ "The next Top Rank card on ESPN is official and it will include two world title fights in which the four combatants are a combined 108-0 with 73 KOs.". ESPN.com. 2017-08-21. Retrieved 2017-08-26.
  12. ^ "Gilberto Ramirez Drops, Decisions a Very Game Jesse Hart - Boxing News". www.boxingscene.com. 23 September 2017. Retrieved 2017-09-23.
  13. ^ "Oscar Valdez, Gilberto Ramirez retain titles with hard-fought decisions - The Ring". The Ring. 2017-09-23. Retrieved 2017-09-23.
  14. ^ "'Zurdo' Ramirez outpoints Hart, retains super middleweight title". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2017-09-23.
  15. ^ "Gilberto Ramirez outpoints Jesse Hart again, seeks greater challenges at 175 pounds". The Ring. 2018-12-14. Retrieved 2020-08-14.
  16. ^ "Ramirez vs Hart II - News, Tape, Ringwalk, TV, Streaming & Tickets". Box.Live. Retrieved 2020-08-14.
  17. ^ "Hart vs Barrera - News, Tape, Ringwalk, TV, Streaming & Tickets". Box.Live. Retrieved 2020-08-14.
  18. ^ Christ, Scott (2019-06-15). "Jesse Hart wins decision over Sullivan Barrera". Bad Left Hook. Retrieved 2020-08-14.