Following on from Part Two, we will now be venturing across the Big Pond to look at four of America’s finest heavyweight fighters to lace em-up, who never achieved their crowning moment in the square ring. BVB
EARNIE SHAVERS
Earnie Dee Shavers was bestowed the moniker of The Acorn by Muhammad Ali, with his distinctive shaven head, but he was better remembered for his knockout power which was and still is arguably the hardest puncher of all time.
Born into farm surroundings in Garland, Alabama in 1944, the Shavers family soon relocated to Youngstown, Ohio due to the constant fear of racist threats from the Klu Klux Klan. Earnie’s introduction to boxing was comparatively late, lacing up the gloves for the first time at 22. After a short, yet successful amateur career which saw young Earnie winning the AAU (Association of American Universities) heavyweight title in 1969, the 6ft powerhouse turned pro later the same year.
Within two years, Shavers had fought 35 times, won the Nevada heavyweight title, incurred two losses and won 33 fights…..all by knockout. However, it was 1973 that put Shavers on the map. On 19 February he knocked out fellow uncrowned champion Jimmy Young in three rounds, followed by a first-round demolition of former WBA champ, Jimmy Ellis in June. Unfortunately, on 14 December 1973, Shavers was knocked out in two minutes and 21 seconds of the opening stanza against the smaller, yet highly aggressive Jerry Quarry.
In his next seven fights, the boxing afficionados started to question Shavers’ validity at world level, as he won four, lost two, including a devastating stoppage against Ron Lyle and drew against former foe, Jimmy Young, which had onlookers wondering if the first time was a fluke.
As he stepped into 1976, 31-year-old Shavers now boasted a record of 50-4-1 and there were serious doubts as to whether he had anything left in the tank. Shavers however, had faith in his resolve and ability, and put on two back to back performances which showed he belonged with the best. On 29 September 1977, with the WBC world heavyweight championship on the line, Shavers lost a unanimous decision against Muhammad Ali against a captive audience at Madison Square Garden, losing the fight by three rounds on the judges scorecards. Ali would publicly admit that The Acorn was the hardest puncher he had ever shared a ring with.
A few months later, Ali lost his crown in an upset against Leon Spinks, then shortly after Spinks refused to defend the WBC segment of his titles. Consequently, the strap was up for grabs and on 25 March 1978, Shavers took on Larry Holmes in a WBC heavyweight title eliminator. Sadly, for Shavers, Holmes was simply too ring savvy, too quick and commanded every round to win a 12-round landslide win.
After racking up a further five victories, which included a first-round shellacking of Ken Norton, Shavers locked horns again with Holmes, but this time the WBC crown was on the line. On 28 September 1979, at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, aware that he would not be able to outfox the Easton Assassin, Shavers went looking for the knockout and almost achieved his aim. Behind on the scorecards, in the seventh round, Shavers threw one of the most devastating overhand rights ever seen in the square ring, which not only put Holmes firmly on the canvas, but looked like he wasn’t going to be getting up anytime soon. Somehow, Holmes beat the 10 count with a fraction of a second to go and through his amazing powers of recovery, not only managed to see the round out, but came back and stopped Shavers in the eleventh.
Shavers never had the opportunity to fight for a world title again and finished his career with 76 victories (70 knockouts), 14 losses and one draw. His power would be valid in any era, but unfortunately, with a lack of stamina and a suspect chin meant he never achieved world honours.
CLEVELAND WILLIAMS
Born on 30 June 1933, in Griffin, Georgia, Cleveland ‘Big Cat’ Williams began boxing as a professional at only 14 years of age. After clocking up a handful of wins, he was barred on the grounds of being too young and would not be allowed to lace up the gloves again until the age of 18. Obviously not one to follow the script, he had his first ‘official’ pro fight on 25 March 1949, at the age of 15.
By the age of 20 he had already clocked up 30 victories, one draw and by January 1959, Williams he was now flying high with 47 wins, two losses and one draw. As management started to propel him towards that all important title shot, he was derailed by the fearsome Sonny Liston on 15 April 1959, via third round stoppage. After two victories of his own, Williams rematched Liston 11 months after their first encounter, only to be stopped in the second round this time. Props to Liston, because he stated publicly that Williams was the hardest puncher he had ever shared a ring with.
Undeterred by the losses to the future world heavyweight champion, Williams bounced back in impressive style, and in the next six years gained a further 20 victories, including the likes of a seventh-round stoppage over Ernie Terrell. A draw against Eddie Machen in 1962 acted as a speedbump en route to title honours and the only loss he incurred during this time was also against Terrell, with the 6ft 6inch resident edging a split decision victory on 13 March 1963. However, what happened in the interim borders on the miraculous in terms of comebacks.
On 29 November 964, during civil unrest of the American Civil Rights Movement, Williams was stopped by a policeman in his car near Houston, Texas, for apparently speeding. Williams allegedly resisted arrest and a gun went off. Ther bullet launched into Williams’ stomach and eventually lodged into his hip. After several operations over a seven-month period, Williams eventually needed to have his right kidney removed in the summer of 1965. The peripheral damage from said bullet also affected muscles to his knee and hip, and forced a long section of his small intestine to be removed. A large number of people came to visit Williams in hospital, including old foe, Sonny Liston. Incredibly, Williams was still charged $50 for the incident.
Despite getting close to the gates of death, on 14 November 1966, Williams took on a peak Muhammad Ali at the Astrodome, Houston for the WBC world heavyweight title. Unfortunately for Williams, Ali put on debatably his career best performance and stopped him in the third round.
In a 97-fight career which included 82 victories (62 KO’s), 13 losses and two draws, spanning over 25 years, Cleveland Williams certainly paid his penance to boxing. His defining losses against the likes of Liston and Ali tend to be what Big Cat will be remembered for, but if he was operating in today’s era, he may well have been world champion. Sadly, Williams was knocked down by a car in September 1999 whilst walking across the road and consequently died from his injuries a week later. He was 66.
JERRY QUARRY
Known by many as ‘Irish Jerry Quarry,’ the future multi-time world title challenger was born on 15 May 1945 in Bakersfield, California into a cauldron of boxing enthusiasts.
After his father Jack, handed young Jerry a pair of boxing gloves at the ripe age of three, he had his first fight at five and by the age of 10 had won a Junior Golden Gloves title. After winning the accolade for the next three years, Quarry was destined for great things as a junior amateur, however, after developing an inflammatory condition called nephritis, which affected his kidneys, his ability to continue with boxing was brought to a halt.
Thankfully, the Californian native was able to reconnect with his sporting passion in his late teens, bouncing back with explosive gusto. In March 1965, at the age of 19, Quarry took part in the US National Golden Gloves Championships held in Kansas and knocked out all five of his opponents on route to claiming the heavyweight title. He finished his amateur career with a very impressive record of 170 victories and only 13 losses.
Quarry made his heavyweight pro debut on 7 May 1965 at 183lbs, and within 12 months was undefeated in 19 outings, which included 17 victories and two draws. Then in 1967, Quarry, alongside Leotis Martin, Jimmy Ellis, Oscar Bonavena, Karl Mildenberger, Floyd Patterson, Ernie Terrell and Thad Spencer, competed in a WBA Elimination tournament for the world heavyweight title. Having had a draw against Floyd Patterson in June 1967, with the lure of the world title in his sights, Quarry defeated his old foe on points on 28 October 1967, in a fight which saw ‘Irish’ knock down the former world champion a number of times. Four months later, Quarry took on Thad Spencer, who just beaten Ernie Terrell and was ranked No2 by Ring Magazine at the time. Despite being a massive underdog in the fight and the tournament in general, Quarry knocked down Spencer twice before stopping him in the twelfth and final round.
Two months later, on 27 April 1968, Quarry took on Jimmy Ellis in the tournament final, despite having fractured his spine a few weeks earlier from a diving board accident. With both fighters weighing around 196lbs (four pounds below the modern-day cruiserweight limit), they locked horns at the Colosseum Arena in Oakland, California, to fight for the vacant WBA world heavyweight title. Despite putting up an incredible performance, 22-year-old Quarry lost by a majority decision. Unfortunately, this is the closest he would get to winning the most revered title in boxing, albeit, it wasn’t through the want of trying. A very critical Quarry said after the fight, "If they'd given me the decision, I'd have given it back. I didn't deserve it."
On 23 June 1969, Quarry returned to Madison Square Garden to take on Fraizer for his world heavyweight title. With similar height and only 5lbs weight difference in Frazier’s advantage, the pair battled it out toe to toe in a contest which earned the title of Ring Magazine’s ‘Fight of the Year,’ for 1969. Although it seemed Frazier was starting to pull away on the cards, it was certainly not a done deal, but unfortunately for Quarry, after the seventh round, referee Arthur Mercante brought the contest to a halt due to a nasty cut which Quarry had sustained over his eye.
On 26 October he took on The Greatest, Muhammad Ali at the Municipal Auditorium, Atlanta. This was Ali’s return after his three-year enforced absence and he had approached every heavyweight ranked in the top 10, in order to show his validity in the division. Quarry was the only one to accept the challenge. After three one sided rounds, with Ali peppering the smaller man with punches at will, once again Quarry was victim to a nasty cut eye and was forced to retire. He did however earn his biggest purse of $338,000 for the contest.
With a deep-rooted belief that he could beat Ali in a rematch, the pair met once again at the Convention Centre, Las Vegas on 27 June 1972, with the North American heavyweight title on the line. Despite having elements of success this time round, it was still a one-sided contest and Quarry was dispatched in seven rounds.
On 17 June 1974, Quarry had another go at Joe Frazier, who had since been dethroned by George Foreman. Without a belt on the line, the pair battled it out at a packed Madison Square Graden, but it was only ever going to go one way, as a more polished Smoking Joe chopped a lesser version of Quarry down, before the referee, legendary Joe Louis stopped the contest in the fifth round.
Quarry retired with a professional record of 53 wins (32 KO’s), nine losses and four draws. In addition to being inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame in 1995, three years later, The Ring ranked Quarry as the 27th greatest heavyweight of all time. He will be remembered as one of the most charismatic boxers to never win a world heavyweight title.
SAM LANGFORD
Standing a fraction over 5ft 6in, Samuel Edgar Langford was given the moniker of the ‘Greatest Fighter Nobody Knows.’ The supremely talented fighter was a feared and avoided man from lightweight through to heavyweight for 23 years.
Born on 4 March 1883, Langford was the grandson of an American slave who had headed to Weymouth Falls in Nova Scotia, Canada in search of a better life. Unfortunately, due to taking relentless beatings from his father, he left Canada and headed Stateside to Boston, Massachusetts.
After winning the amateur featherweight championship in Boston, aged 15, Langford had his professional debut on 11 April 1902, shortly after his 16th birthday against Jack McVicker at the Lenox Athletic Club, Boston, stopping his opponent in the firth round.
In his first 24 months as a professional, Langford had fought 42 times, however, his record did not do the teenager justice. Despite clocking up 26 victories, many by stoppage, he had two dubious losses and an incredible 14 draws, many of which had been pre-agreed by the managers of both opponents.
On 5 September 1904, Langford challenged the Barbados Demon, Joe Walcott, for his world welterweight title at Lake Massabesic Colosseum, New Hampshire, in front of 1,200 people. Both fighters weighed in at 142lbs, with Walcott boasting a record of 87-15-17, however, it was Langford who was the aggressor, putting the champion on the canvas in the third session and dominating the fight. Despite coming away unscathed and the champions face bludgeoned, the judges awarded a draw. This would very sadly be as close as Langford came to winning a non-coloured title.
Over the next 19 months, the Boston Bonecrusher fought a further 25 times, once again, with suspect results. Despite winning 14 of the contests, he also lost two, drew seven and had two no-contests. Having worked his way through the various weight divisions from lightweight upwards, beating some formidable opposition such as Jack Blackburn and Joe Jeanette, Langford was now pitted against arguably one of the best heavyweights of all time, challenging the Galveston Giant, Jack Johnson for his ‘world coloured heavyweight title.’ Despite giving away a six inch height differential and 30lbs in weight, on 26 April 1906, Langford gave a good account of himself, however, after being floored in the sixth round, the scores at the end of the full 15 heavily favoured Johnson.
On 24 May 1909, Langford, now an 87-fight veteran (58-6-23), travelled across the pond to Covent Garden and took on Yorkshireman, William ‘Iron’ Hague, for what was billed as the English Heavyweight Title. Despite only one loss in 19 fights, the Boston Terror effortlessly knocked out Hague in four rounds.
Two months later, Langford took on Klondike Haynes for the vacant World Coloured Heavyweight Title, after Jack Johnson vacated it after refusing to fight the Boston favourite. Despite a newspaper decision victory for Langford, he claimed the title and proceeded to defend it multiple times over the coming years.
In the meantime, Joe Jeanette and Sam McVey had fought for ‘the’ title, with McVey defeating Jeanette. As a result, there were now two champions claiming the World Coloured Heavyweight Championship, which inevitably put the pair on a collision course. On 6 September 1910, Langford beat Jeanette on points with a carefully crafted performance over 15 rounds. Watching from the shadows, world heavyweight champion, Jack Johnson refused to give Langford a shot.
By 1913, Langford had become possibly the most feared fighter on the planet. The reigning world heavyweight champion, Jack Johnson had beaten Langford on points in their one and only encounter in 1906, but refused to fight the Canadian born favourite on the grounds that he could earn more fighting white boxers. However, Johnson quickly contradicted his claim by giving Battling Jim Johnson a shot at the title on 19 December 1913. At a later date he admitted that he feared the loss.
By 1920, Langford’s sight was perishing at a rapid rate due to injuries sustained in the ring and he fought on instinct and a desperate need for income. However, that’s not to say he was washed up entirely. On 5 June 1922, Langford knocked out Tiger Flowers in the second round. Flowers went on to beat the formidable Harry Greb four years later for the world middleweight title.
Langford’s final contest was on 2 August 1926, where he was stopped in the opening stanza by Brad Simmons. By now, 43-year-old Sam was completely blind and had racked up an unofficial record of 314 fights (210 wins, 44 losses and 52 draws), however, he was sadly penniless.
On 12 January 1956, Sam Langford died at the age of 72 in Massachusetts. He may never have secured that all important world heavyweight title, but he was however inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame in 1955 and the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990. Without a doubt, Langford is one of the greatest boxers of all time. Minus the colour prejudice restricting his choice of opponents, his development was surely stunted. In another era, with the correct management and promotion, he would have earned plaudits as a multi-weight world champion and it’s safe to say the majority of his draws and a number of his losses would have been straight wins.
Paul Zanon, has had 11 books published, with almost all of them reaching the No1 Bestselling spot in their respective categories on Amazon. He has co-hosted boxing shows on Talk Sport, been a pundit on London Live, Boxnation and has contributed to a number of boxing publications, including, Boxing Monthly, The Ring, Daily Sport, Boxing News, Boxing Social, amongst other publications.
