James Albert "Jimmy" Ellis (born February 24, 1940) was a prizefighter from Louisville, Kentucky. He held the WBA Heavyweight title from 1968 to 1970.

As an amateur, he was trained by Joe Elsby Martin, Sr., at Louisville's Columbia Gym. He turned professional, as a middleweight, in 1961. Early in his career, he was trained and managed by Bud Bruner. With Bruner, he compiled a record of 15-5 (5 KOs), and was ranked #10 in the world as a middleweight.

In 1965, Angelo Dundee became his trainer and manager. Dundee was also the trainer of Muhammad Ali, whom Ellis defeated when the two were young amateurs in Louisville.

By 1966, Ellis was fighting as a heavyweight. When Ali was stripped of the world title for refusing to enter the military, Ellis captured the vacant WBA World Heavyweight Championship by defeating Jerry Quarry on April 27, 1968. In his only success title defense, Ellis defeated Floyd Patterson by decision.

On February 16, 1970, Ellis fought Joe Frazier, who was recognized as World Heavyweight Champion by the New York State Athletic Commission, to unify the world title. Ellis went down twice in the fourth round, and Dundee stopped the fight before the start of the fifth round. It was the first knock out loss for Ellis.

The following year, Ellis fought Ali and was stopped in round twelve. In 1975, Ellis had a rematch with Frazier, and was stopped after the ninth round. Ellis' last fight was on May 6, 1975, which he won by a knock out in the first round. He retired with a record of 40-12-1 (24 KOs).

Today, though he suffers from dementia pugilistica, he remains active in the Louisville community, working with youth groups, senior citizens and young aspiring fighters.
Source : Wikipedia