Lucian Bute

2.1. Birth and Background

Lucian Bute was born on February 28, 1980, in Pechea, Galați County, in what was then the Socialist Republic of Romania. He is the cousin of professional handball player Steluța Luca, who was also born in Pechea, Galați County.

2.2. Nationality and Residence

After competing for the Romanian national team as an amateur and winning multiple titles, Bute relocated to Laval, Quebec, Canada, to pursue his professional boxing career. He acquired Canadian citizenship in 2012 and resides in Montreal, Quebec.

3.1. Major Competition Results

Bute achieved notable success in various international amateur competitions:

• In 1998, he earned a bronze medal at the AIBA World Youth Championships held in Buenos Aires, Argentina, competing in the welterweight division.
• In 1999, Bute secured a bronze medal at the 1999 World Amateur Boxing Championships in Houston, Texas, also in the welterweight (148 lb ^{(67 kg)}) category. During this tournament, he defeated Nurhan Süleymanoğlu (Turkey) with a score of 9-5, Mihály Kótai (Hungary) 8-4, and Kejstutis Sandanavicius (Lithuania) 18-5, before losing to Timur Gaydalov (Russia) 7-10.
• He won a gold medal at the 2001 Jeux de la Francophonie in Ottawa-Hull, competing as a welterweight.
• In the 2001 World Amateur Boxing Championships held in Belfast, Northern Ireland, Bute competed in the middleweight (165 lb ^{(75 kg)}) division but was eliminated in the second round.
• Bute represented Romania at the 2003 World Amateur Boxing Championships in Bangkok, Thailand, as a middleweight (165 lb ^{(75 kg)}). He was defeated in the quarterfinals by the eventual middleweight champion, Gennady Golovkin of Kazakhstan, via knockout in the fourth round. Before the knockout, Golovkin was leading Bute by 13 points.

Despite his amateur achievements, Bute did not participate in the Olympic Games. He was discovered by a Canadian promoter, which led to his relocation to Canada to transition into professional boxing.

4.1. Debut and Early Career

Bute made his professional debut on November 22, 2003, at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, securing a technical knockout (TKO) victory in the second round against Robert Muhammad. His early career saw him rapidly accumulate wins and regional titles, demonstrating his potential.

• On December 3, 2004, Bute faced former two-division world champion Dingaan Thobela, defeating him by TKO in the fourth round.
• He won his first regional title on February 19, 2005, by defeating Carl Handy via TKO in the fourth round to claim the vacant NABF light-heavyweight title at Pavillon de la Jeunesse in Quebec City.
• On March 18, 2005, Bute secured the vacant NABA super-middleweight title by defeating Christian Cruz via TKO in the twelfth round at the Bell Centre.
• He continued to collect titles on September 16, 2005, winning the vacant NABF and WBC Continental Americas super-middleweight titles with an eighth-round TKO victory over Kabary Salem at the Bell Centre.
• Bute recorded his first non-knockout victory on March 24, 2006, successfully defending his WBC Continental Americas title against Andre Thysse via a unanimous decision (with all three judges scoring it a shutout) after 12 rounds at the Bell Centre.
• On May 16, 2006, he added the WBO Inter-Continental super-middleweight title to his collection by defeating Lolenga Mock via unanimous decision at the Bell Centre.

4.2. IBF Super-middleweight Champion

Bute's consistent victories led him to a shot at a world title, which he successfully claimed and defended for an extended period.

• On June 15, 2007, he faced Sakio Bika at the Bell Centre in Montreal in an IBF title eliminator. Bute won the bout by unanimous decision, with scores of 116-111, 118-109, and 118-109, securing his opportunity for the IBF title.
• Bute challenged Alejandro Berrio for the IBF Super-middleweight Championship on October 19, 2007, at the Bell Centre. He defeated Berrio via TKO in the eleventh round, becoming the third professional boxing world champion from Romania, following Leonard Doroftei and Mihai Leu. This victory also marked him as the third champion in InterBox's history.

4.3. Key Title Defenses (2007-2011)

Lucian Bute's reign as IBF Super-middleweight Champion included nine successful title defenses, establishing him as a dominant force in the division through a series of notable bouts.

• His first defense came on February 29, 2008, when he defeated William Joppy by TKO in the tenth round at the Bell Centre.
• On October 24, 2008, Bute faced Librado Andrade. He won by unanimous decision, but the fight ended with controversy as Bute was knocked down with two seconds remaining in the twelfth and final round. The referee, Marlon B. Wright, temporarily stopped the count when the final bell rang and signaled Andrade to return to his corner, allowing Bute to survive the round.
• Bute defeated three-time world title challenger Fulgencio Zúñiga on March 13, 2009. In the fourth round, Bute knocked Zúñiga down with a left uppercut to the body, and the referee stopped the fight shortly after due to Bute's continued assault.
• A rematch against Librado Andrade took place on November 28, 2009, at Colisée Pepsi in Quebec City, Canada. Bute won by knockout in the fourth round, retaining his IBF title. Andrade was the aggressor in the early rounds, but Bute landed a short left hook to Andrade's jaw, sending him down, followed by a left uppercut to the body for the final count at 2:57 of the round.
• On April 17, 2010, Bute stopped Edison Miranda at 1:22 of the third round at the Bell Centre, retaining his IBF Super-middleweight title. Miranda was knocked out with a left uppercut to the jaw.
• His sixth title defense was on October 15, 2010, against mandatory challenger Jesse Brinkley at the Bell Centre. Bute scored an impressive ninth-round knockout. He dropped Brinkley with a left uppercut to the body in the fifth round, again in the eighth, and knocked him out with an uppercut in the ninth.
• Bute dominated and stopped European Super Middleweight Champion Brian Magee in the tenth round on March 19, 2011, at the Bell Centre. Bute knocked Magee down three times-once in the sixth, again in the seventh, and a final time in the tenth round with an uppercut, stopping the bout at 2:04 of the round. This marked his seventh consecutive successful defense.
• His eighth title defense took place in Romania on July 9, 2011, against the previously unbeaten Jean-Paul Mendy of France, who was the IBF's number one contender and mandatory challenger. This was Bute's first defense in Romania and his second fight there since 2005. The event was held at Romexpo in Bucharest, where Bute won by knockout in the fourth round.
• Bute's final defense of this reign was on November 5, 2011, against Glen Johnson at Colisée Pepsi in Quebec City. Bute won by unanimous decision, with judges' scorecards reading 119-109 and 120-108 twice.

4.4. First World Title Defense Failure

This section details the fight that ended Lucian Bute's long reign as IBF Super-middleweight Champion.

4.5. Move to Light-heavyweight

Following his loss to Carl Froch, Lucian Bute transitioned to the light-heavyweight division, seeking new challenges.

4.6. Return to Super-middleweight and Later Career

After his stint in the light-heavyweight division, Bute returned to the super-middleweight class for subsequent fights, including further title challenges.

4.7. Second Challenge in Light-heavyweight

Following his two world title challenges in the super-middleweight division, Bute announced his decision to move back up to the light-heavyweight division for his final professional bout.

4.8. Retirement

After months of contemplation regarding his future in boxing, Lucian Bute officially announced his retirement from professional boxing on March 21, 2019. He had not competed in over two years since his last fight against Eleider Álvarez. He concluded his career with a professional record of 32 wins, 25 of which were by knockout, and 5 losses.