[Rocco Del Sesto]

01/05/67 Thursday

Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Mac Foster – HW (1-0-0) vs. Bert Leroy Birmingham (4-3-1)

Mac Foster - USA HW Rating 5 already in game.

30 wins / 6 losses / 0 draw / 30 KO

Hometown: Fresno, CA
Birthplace: Alexandria, VA
Manager: Pat DiFuria

The following recap of Mac Foster's career is an article by Jim Amato on the website, Saddaboxing.com.

"Long before Mark McGwire was launching tape measure home runs in Oakland and acquiring the nickname “Big Mac”, West Coast sports fans used to cheer the feats of another “Big Mac”. MacArthur Foster a heavyweight boxer from Fresno, California won his first 24 professional bouts all by knockout. Six came in the first round, four in the second round and seven in the third round. By the spring of 1970 he was the number one rated contender for Joe Frazier’s crown.
Mac turned pro in November of 1966 and by the end of 1967 he had racked up nine kayos. Among his victims were veterans Floyd Joyner and Roy “Cookie” Wallace. He piled up seven more kayos in 1968 and in 1969 he made some serious noise in the heavyweight ratings. With Muhammad Ali banned from boxing, Joe Frazier and Jimmy Ellis shared the heavyweight crown. The division needed some new blood and much felt Foster was the answer. Mac added six more knockouts in 1969 stopping Roger Rischer, Thad Spencer, Roger Russell, Cleveland Williams (twice) and Bob Felstein. Although Williams was well past his prime he could still punch and Mac took all he had to offer and come back to win both times.
After stopping Jack O’Halloran in one round on April 9th, 1970 for his 24th straight kayo victory, Mac decided to come east to New York. In his Madison Square Garden debut was to take on veteran contender Jerry Quarry. A victory over Quarry would no doubt ensure a big money fight with Frazier. On June 17th as Jerry Quarry was to do several times during his exciting career, he upset the odds stopping a tentative Foster in six rounds. Quarry outboxed his less experienced foe until lowering the boom in the sixth. Mac showed none of his storied power. Quarry used the Foster victory as a springboard to match with the comeback Muhammad Ali. Three months later Mac returned to stop shopworn ex-contender Zora Folley in one round. Mac rolled off three more victories and then signed to meet Muhammad Ali. Ali had lost to Joe Frazier in the March 8, 1971 “Battle of the Century”. Now Ali was taking on all new comers proclaiming himself to be the “People’s Champion”. Mac met Ali on April 1st, 1972 in Tokyo, Japan. Although Mac went the fifteen round distance, Ali won by a very comfortable margin. Mac looked slow and ponderous and did not the power of a fighter with a record of 28-1, all 28 wins by knockout coming into this contest.
The loss to Ali was probably the highlight of Mac’s career. He would score knockouts over journeymen Sam McGill and Charley Williams. Then he was out-hustled over ten rounds by Bob Stallings. Mac closed out 1973 dropping a ten round duke in England to Joe Bugner. Foster had one fight in 1974 being outscored by slick Henry Clark. Mac took 1975 off and had his last bout in 1976 losing a ten rounder to Stan Ward.
Although overrated at the beginning of his career Mac proved to be a competent fighter. He finished with a 30-6 record, all wins coming by knockout and he was only stopped once, Mac’s biggest claim to fame may have been in a late 1960’s sparring session when he reportedly flattened Charles “Sonny” Liston!" writen by Jim Amato

Bert Leroy Birmingham - USA Rating 1
Heavyweight 1964-68

4 wins / 6 losses / 1 draw / 4 KO

Hometown: Oakland, CA

Rating by: Rocco Del Sesto

Of his 6 losses, Bert was stopped in 5 of those. His first 5 career fights were all against apponents who were fighting thier first fights according to BoxRec. Bert was only 2-3-0 and KO'd twice in those 5. Of those 5 first opponents, only the first, Don Koontz had any kind of a career as he went 11-5-0.
Bert then won 3 of his next 4 fights before climbing into the ring against Mac Foster on Jan. 5th, 1967. For Foster, it was his 2nd career fight. Foster KO'd Birmingham in the 1st round!

Next up for Birmingham was in late February of that year against Boone Kirkman, another up and coming young heavyweight of the time. Kirkman was 7-0-0 at the time. Again, first round, Bert is knocked out. He then didn't fight for close to 18 months when in early December 1968, Bert fought for the last time, loosing by 4th round TKO to JOhnny Caruso who would also end up 4 wins and 6 losses in his undistinguished career.

The fight.....

In what may very well have been a preliminary fight to the Leslie/Alongi bout, a young Mac Foster was making his 2nd professional appearance in the ring against Bert Leroy Birmingham (4-3-1). Foster quickly did away with Birmingham with a 1st round KO giving Mac the 2nd of 24 consecutive wins to start out his career. For Birmingham, it was the beginning of the end of his career. In the replay of this fight, the out come was not a whole lot different and probably not a whole lot longer in the making. Only 40 seconds into the 1st round, Mac lands a short, clean cross that caught Bert flush and sends him straight to the canvas. Somehow, Bert managed to get up at an 8 count. Foster lands a couple more shots, one high and one low then land a solid hook to Birmingham’s chin. Mac lands some straight punches and then another hook that has Birmingham retreating to a corner. Then with Mac pressuring and landing punches to the body, the referee, suddenly steps in waiving his hands and stops the fight!! Mac Foster is the winner at the 2:48 mark of the 1st round by TKO over Bert Leroy Birmingham!

Again, the Foster file is just bio info added...

Rocco