There are some records in boxing that will never be broken due to the changing nature of the sport over the past century.
As the number of fights that boxers take has diminished, the amount of money on offer has shot up, and changes in rules mean that records of the past have no chance of being broken, unless something massive changes in the sport.
Here are five incredible records in boxing that will likely never be broken, including Mike Tyson’s incredible title win at the start of his career.
5. Mike Tyson’s record as the youngest world Heavyweight champion
Mike Tyson broke the record for the youngest Heavyweight champion in history in 1986, knocking out Trevor Berbick at the age of just 20 years and 4 months.
“Iron Mike” overtook both Floyd Patterson and Muhammad Ali’s records to take the crown, with an achievement that will likely never be broken.
Moses Itauma has come out of nowhere to become a top Heavyweight in the division, and his fight with Dillian Whyte could make him the next world title contender.
However, even at 20 years and eight months old, he is already older than Tyson was when he knocked out Berbick, and has sixteen fewer fights to his name.
The fight game is so different in the modern era that boxers simply cannot have the number of fights at that age to ever dominate the way Tyson did, and it is likely his record as the youngest Heavyweight champion in history will never be topped.
4. Billy Bird’s record for the most knockout wins in history
The sheer number of knockouts that Billy Bird has is so unfathomably large that no modern boxer ever has even the faintest hope of coming anywhere close to it.
While famed knockout artist Deontay Wilder boasts one of the best KO rates, with 43 knockouts in 44 wins, his numbers pale in comparison to the legendary Bird.
Between 1920 and 1948, Bird fought a staggering 356 times, winning by knockout in 139 of those fights.
Fighters fought much more regularly in those days, as the money on offer was so much less that bouts seemed to happen on a weekly basis, so they could earn a living.
With many top fighters only stepping onto the ring once or twice a year in modern times, they would need to fight for hundreds of years to come close to breaking Bird’s record.
3. Joe Louis’s record 25 Heavyweight title defenses
Nobody will come close to breaking Joe Louis’s record in the modern day, for reasons similar to why Bird will remain the top knockout artist of all time.
The Brown Bomber defended his world Heavyweight titles 25 times between June 1937 and 1950, and averaged around two defenses per year over a 13-year period.
Given how much the top fighters pick and choose their opponents, it seems impossible for this to be matched.
Oleksandr Usyk has held the Heavyweight gold since 2021, yet has only had six defenses in the four years he has been on top.
The Ukrainian has won 24 fights in his whole career, spanning from his debut in 2013 to his win over Daniel Dubois in 2025, so the chance of him getting 25 title defenses is impossible.
Additionally, with the propensity for fighters to jump up weight classes on a regular basis, it is rare that fighters below Heavyweight stay in their division long enough to match Louis.
2. Julio Cesar Chavez’s record for the largest crowd in boxing history
The fight between Julio Cesar Chavez and Greg Haugen headlined a fantastic Don King-booked card in 1993 that shattered all records for the biggest boxing attendance.
At the peak of his popularity, in a fight taking place at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, Chavez managed to pack 132,274 into the outdoor stadium in an extraordinary event in boxing history.
This broke the previous highest-paid attendance in boxing history, which saw Jack Dempsey and Gene Tunney battle in 1926 in front of 120,557 fans.
However, as the years have gone on, promoters have realized that selling fewer, more expensive tickets is a better money maker, while charging fans more and more money to view the fights at home on pay-per-view.
While big fights can draw nearly 100,000 fans at venues like Wembley Stadium, there is unlikely to be another fight with as many people paying to be there as Chavez vs Haugen.
1. Henry Armstrong’s record of holding three world titles at three different weight classes
The rules now set by the various boxing councils mean that nobody will ever match what Henry Armstrong did in the ring during his pomp.
He is the only man to hold three world titles in different weight classes simultaneously, winning the featherweight, lightweight, and welterweight belts in the 1930s.
Recent changes to the rules mean that a fighter can’t do this any longer. If they go up or down a weight class to challenge for another title, they must relinquish their belts and forfeit any claim to being champion of that weight class.
While Manny Pacquiao won belts at eight different weight classes, they were all at separate times due to this rule, so he couldn’t match Armstrong due to the technicality.