Jimmy Lennon Jr.
Born: Aug. 5, 1958
Induction: 2013
Born August 5, 1958 in Santa Monica, CA. As a child, Lennon had no intention of following his famous father – ring announcer Jimmy Lennon Sr. - into the boxing business. Instead, he graduated from UCLA with a psychology degree in 1981 and began teaching at a private school in Los Angeles.
But at his father’s urging, he stepped inside the ropes and announced his first fight in 1981 at The Forum in Inglewood, CA. Since then, Lennon has traversed the globe as one of boxing’s premier ring announcers – working in such locales as Hawaii, Australia, Japan, Indonesia, Thailand and Mexico. Widely hailed for his finesse, class and flawless pronunciation of difficult names, Lennon often introduces foreign fighters in their native tongue. Buster Douglas’ 1990 upset of Mike Tyson in Japan was the first mega-fight he announced and promoter Don King hired him for his major promotions since. Beginning in 1991 he has been the ring announcer for SHOWTIME Championship Boxing where he has popularized his pre-fight battle call “It’s Showtime!” Among the hundreds of fights he’s been center ring for include Chavez vs. Haugen in front of 135,000 fans in Mexico, both Tyson vs. Holyfield bouts, the Vazquez vs. Marquez trilogy, Hatton vs. Tszyu and Corrales vs. Castillo.
Still active, Lennon Jr. is one of the most sought after voices in the sport.