Michael Bennett

Michael Bennett (born March 26, 1971 in Chicago, Illinois) is an American former boxer who won the amateur world championships in 1999 and represented the United States at the 2000 Summer Olympics in the heavyweight division (limit 201 lbs). Early years He began boxing in 1996, 25 years old, while in prison, as a way of staying in shape while serving a sentence for armed robbery. He spent seven years in prison, was just happy to have the opportunity to compete. 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 by forfeit only because Cuban superstar Félix Savón boycotted the final.