undefeated in 27 straight fights prior to 1788. Bare-knuckle fights ended when an opponent was knocked out or unable to continue, or by foul or draw. Mendoza defeated the following opponents between 1780–82: Tom Wilson, John Horn, John Lloyd, Thomas Monk, John Hand, Bill Move, John Williams, Richard Dennis, George Cannon, Al Fuller, Tom Spencer, William Taylor, John Braintree, William Byrant, John Matthews, George Hoast, George MacKenzie, John Hall, William Cannon, George Barry, George Smith, William Nelson. Despite the general prohibition on boxing at the time, the sport was widely popular; Mendoza's fight against Sam Martin was arranged by the Prince of Wales. Early career highlights 1780–90 Mendoza's first fight occurred in 1780 when he was 16. At the time, he was working for a tea dealer in Aldgate, London. The fight was not a prize fight for a purse, but a contest to settle a dispute with a porter over payment for a consignment of tea. The porter had demanded twice the agreed price for the consignment and Mendoza said the porter behaved in a manner unfit for a gentleman. After much arguing between the porter and the proprietor of the tea dealership, the porter challenged the owner to settle the dispute by a duel with fists. Believing the porter was cheating his frail employer, Mendoza accepted the challenge on his behalf. Richard Humphries acted as Mendoza's second. Humphries would later act as a manager for Mendoza, arranging training facilities and securing payment for fights. The duel with the porter took place in the street outside the tea dealership in a hastily constructed ring. The fight lasted for forty-five minutes, ending when the porter declared he was unable to continue. This victory brought a small measure of fame to Mendoza, as stories of the fight spread through the surrounding neighborhoods and portrayed Mendoza as the talented whippersnapper who had not just beaten, but thrashed his larger opponent. Bout with Harry the Coalheaver, 1784 Turning professional at 18, Mendoza fought at Mile End in 1784 against Harry the Coalheaver. After an incredible 118 rounds, lasting forty minutes, Mendoza brought the larger man into submission. Bouts with Tom Tyne, 1785 and 1786 Mendoza then fought Tom Tyne, a tailor from Bermondsey. The exact date of this fight is unclear. Mendoza himself claims 1783 but other events in the narrative of his autobiography suggest a date closer to 1786/7. Wheldon (2019) notes