Leon Spinks is a St. Louis, Missouri-born American former boxer best known for beating Muhammad Ali to win the undisputed World Heavyweight Championship in 1978. Born on 11 July, 1953 Leon is also popular for winning the light heavyweight division at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal. One of the most popular personalities in the history of boxing, Leon was active in his profession from 1977 until 1995.
A very well-known personality who has managed to make history in the sport of boxing, one may wonder how rich is Leon Spinks? As estimated by sources, Leon counts his wealth at a total of $20,000 as of early 2016. Of course, the major source of his wealth has been his involvement in the field of boxing for around 18 years.
Leon Spinks Net Worth $20,000
St. Louis-raised Leon was interested in boxing from his childhood and before turning professional, he competed to win a bronze medal in 1974 World Amateur Boxing Championship in Havana, Cuba, and earned popularity as an amateur as he won a gold medal in the 1976 Olympics in Canada. His boxing teammates at the Olympics included Sugar Ray Leonard, Leo Randolph as well as Howard Davis Jr. Shortly afterwards he started his professional career in boxing in his mid-twenties, as he debuted on 15 January, 1977 beating Bob Smith in Las Vegas, Nevada. He continued by winning matches against famous boxers like Scott LeDoux, Alfredo Righetti, Pedro Agosto and others.
However, Leon made history and became truly famous as he defeated Muhammad Ali in a 15-round match that took place on 15 February, 1978. The win made him the undisputed world heavyweight champion, and was considered as one of the most upsetting events in boxing history. He lost his title after only seven months in a rematch with Muhammad Ali himself. During his professional career as a boxer, Leon managed to record 26 wins, 14 of which were by knockout. Noted for his toothless grin, Leon retired from professional boxing in 1995.
Apart from boxing, Spinks served actively in the United Marine Corps for three years between 1973 and 1976. He was also active in Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling, including winning the world title during the 1990s. He also appeared in the documentary “Facing Ali” in which he mentioned how his life changed after fighting the legendary Muhammad Ali, along with other boxers. Of course, being a part of all these fightsand projects has been very significant in adding to his net worth.
62 year-old Spinks is the father of Cory Spinks who is active in boxing and even held the undisputed world welterweight title while also being the International Boxing Federation Junior Middleweight champion for three years. Spinks has also been through personal crisis as his other son, Leon Calvin – also a professional boxer – was shot dead in 1990. For now, Spinks resides in Columbus, Nebraska living a decent life as catered to by his present net worth of $20,000.
