Michael Bennett (boxer)
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Michael Bennett (born March 26, 1971 in Chicago) is a former US-American boxer who won the amateur world championships in 1999 and represented the United States at the 2000 Olympic Games in the heavyweight division (limit 201 lbs).
[edit] Amateur career
Bennett had a stellar amateur career prior to turning professional.
He won the world championships in Houston 1999 with wins over Patrick Mesters , Uzbek Serik Umirbekov and German Steffen Kretschmann but won the final only because Cuban superstar Felix Savon boycotted the final (forfeit).
As a member of the 2000 US Olympic Team, he beat Poland's Wojciech Bartnik in the 1st round of matches on a 11-2 decision before losing to Cuban Felix Savon on a 23-8 points stoppage (RSCO) in the 3rd round in his next match.
In addition to his Olympic accomplishments, Bennett was also a National Amateur Heavyweight Boxing Champion in 2000 with a win over Jason Estrada.
[edit] Professional career
Bennett turned professional in 2001 but only at Cruiserweight(200lbs, see record) not at Heavyweight , but his career quickly came to a crashing halt. He failed to show a world class chin as a professional, and after a series of knockout losses against limited opposition, Bennett retired in 2003.
