What happened on this day in boxing history?

On this day in 1958, former featherweight and super featherweight titlist Azumah Nelson was born in Accra, Ghana.

Nelson turned professional in 1979 and won the WBC Featherweight championship in 1984 with an 11th round knockout of Wilfredo Gomez. He successfully defended it seven times.

In 1987, he beat Mario Martinez by split decision to win the WBC Super Featherweight title and held it until 1994, when he lost a decision to Jesse James Leija. He won it back in 1995 with TKO of Gabriel Ruelas, but lost it again by split decision to Genaro Hernandez in 1997.

Nelson retired in 1998 with a record of 39-5-2. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2004, and now resides in his hometown of Accra.