Sport: Prizefighting’s Million-Dollar Gates

In appraising a bout, one criterion for many fans and the fight mob alike is the million-dollar gate. In the long history of boxing, there have been only 15 such matches—all involving heavyweights:

1921 Jack Dempsey v. Georges Carpentier $1,789,238

1923 Jack Dempsey v. Luis Firpo 1,188,603

1926 Gene Tunney v. Jack Dempsey 1,895,733

1927 Jack Dempsey v. Jack Sharkey 1,083,530

1927 Gene Tunney v. Jack Dempsey 2,658,660

1935 Joe Louis v. Max Baer 1,000,832

1938 Joe Louis v. Max Schmeling 1,015,012

1946 Joe Louis v. Billy Conn 1,925,564

1955 Rocky Marciano v. Archie Moore 2,248,117*

1960 Floyd Patterson v. Ingemar Johansson 2,468,278

1962 Sonny Listen v. Floyd Patterson 4,665,420

1963 Sonny Liston v. Floyd Patterson 4,747,690

1965 Muhammad Ali v. Sonny Liston 1,602,190

1965 Muhammad Ali v. Floyd Patterson 3,570,000

1966 Muhammad Ali v. Henry Cooper 1,200,000

* Receipts from this year on include totals from radio and closed-circuit TV coverage of fight.