{{short description|Irish boxer}} {{for|the entomologist|Gordon Floyd Ferris}} {{Use dmy dates|date=March 2020}} {{EngvarB|date=March 2020}} {{Infobox boxer | name = Gordon Ferris | image = | image_size = | alt = | caption = | realname = | nickname = | weight = Heavyweight | height = | reach = | nationality = British, Irish | birth_date = {{Birth date|df=y|1952|11|21}} | birth_place = Enniskillen, Northern Ireland | death_date = | death_place = | style = | total = 26 | wins = 20 | KO = 11 | losses = 6 | draws = 0 | no contests = | medaltemplates = | show-medals = | relatives = Finlay Bealham (first cousin once removed) }} '''Gordon Ferris''' (born 21 November 1952) is a Northern Irish former heavyweight boxer who was both Irish and British champion in the early 1980s.
==Career== Born in Enniskillen, Northern Ireland, and a lock-keeper by trade,<ref name="BT">"[http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/jack-magowan-great-irish-heavyweights-are-few-and-far-between-28530771.html Jack Magowan: Great Irish heavyweights are few and far between]", ''Belfast Telegraph'', 6 December 2008. Retrieved 28 September 2014</ref> Ferris had a distinguished amateur career, winning a bronze medal at the 1974 Commonwealth Games and five Irish amateur titles.<ref name="IR">"[http://www.impartialreporter.com/sport/roundup/articles/2010/10/22/392431-boxing-stopped-me-going-off-the-rails/ 'Boxing stopped me going off the rails'] {{Webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20140928151639/http://www.impartialreporter.com/sport/roundup/articles/2010/10/22/392431-boxing-stopped-me-going-off-the-rails/ |date=2014-09-28 }}", ''The Impartial Reporter'', 22 October 2010. Retrieved 28 September 2014</ref><ref>"[http://www.gbrathletics.com/commonwealth/boxing.htm Boxing]", gbrathletics.com. Retrieved 28 September 2014</ref>
After missing out on selection for the 1976 Olympic Games, Ferris took the decision to turn professional and made his pro debut in December 1977 with a win over Keith Steve Johnson. He won 14 of his first 18 pro fights, leading to a final eliminator for the British heavyweight title in September 1980 against Tommy Kiely, with the Irish and Northern Ireland Area titles also at stake; He won on points over 12 rounds, leading to a fight with Billy Aird for the vacant British title. He won by a 15-round points decision to become British champion.<ref name="BT" /><ref>"[https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2507&dat=19810331&id=R8BAAAAAIBAJ&sjid=0aUMAAAAIBAJ&pg=6539,6961509 Ferris the New Champion Heavy]", ''Glasgow Herald'', 31 March 1981, p. 28. Retrieved 28 September 2014</ref> He lost the title in his first defence, against Neville Meade in October 1981, losing by a first-round knockout.<ref name="BT" /> He attempted to get another shot at the title but was beaten in a final eliminator in June 1982 by David Pearce, after which he retired from boxing.<ref name="IR" />
He subsequently ran pubs in Gloucester and Stoke-on-Trent.<ref name="IR" />
The Irish rugby union player, Finlay Bealham is his first cousin once removed.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.the42.ie/finlay-bealham-canberra-2399232-Jul2025/|title='We had to say to Finlay, mate, you're allowed to be a kid. He was so driven'|first=Murray|last=Kinsella|date=9 July 2025|website=The 42}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ferris, Gordon}} Category:1952 births Category:Living people Category:Male boxers from Northern Ireland Category:Heavyweight boxers Category:Sportspeople from Enniskillen Category:Boxers at the 1974 British Commonwealth Games Category:Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for Northern Ireland Category:Medallists at the 1974 British Commonwealth Games Category:Boxers from County Fermanagh Category:Commonwealth Games bronze medallists in boxing