After defeating Antonio Margarito two years ago, the big-money fights Paul Williams longed for should have followed. Such a high-magnitude victory usually translates into a winning lottery ticket, especially given the abundance of superstars who were making a living at 147 pounds. (Miguel Cotto, Shane Mosley, Floyd Mayweather Jr., etc)
But ironically, Williams’s performance had the inverse effect. One by one, boxing’s top welterweights explored every possible option other than stepping into the ring with “The Punisher”. His lottery ticket remained uncashed.
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"You see a lot of other guys on TV, they say they're the best and they'll fight everybody and all this and that, but when it comes down to it, they won't fight anybody," said Williams. "It's gotten to the point where I don't want to call guys out anymore, because it's gotten to where, if I call them out, they don't want to fight."
It’s hard to blame anyone for thinking twice about fighting Williams. He is far from your traditional prizefighter.
Though he has chosen to bounce around weight classes in search of any opponent willing to fight him, Williams feels most comfortable at welterweight (147 lbs), a division where his wiry 6’1’’ frame gives him a distinct competitive advantage. The average welterweight ranges from 5’7’’-5’9’’. Margarito, considered a giant at welterweight, is just 5’11’’.
Not since Tommy Hearns has a great fighter possessed similar physical attributes—Williams likens a created player in Fight Night Four much more than a real human being. Did I mention he is a southpaw, with an awkward aggressive style unlike any in the sport?
Throw in the fact he combines the reach of a heavyweight (his 82-inch reach is longer than both Klitchko brothers) with the workrate of a lightweight (rounds of 100-plus punches are the norm), and it’s easy to see why “The Punisher” has stolen Margarito’s moniker of the “most feared man in boxing”.
So while boxers in three different weight classes take turns avoiding the South Carolinian, one fellow southpaw—who also knows a thing or two about being avoided—has finally stepped up to fight Williams.
Former junior middleweight champion Winky Wright will challenge Williams in a middleweight bout Saturday night on HBO World Championship Boxing. It will be Wright’s first in-ring action since a 2007 loss to Bernard Hopkins.
Wright sympathized with Williams’s struggle to find worthwhile opponents. "It's tough when nobody wants to fight you and you see all these other fighters getting fights," Wright told reporters recently. "You can't get the fight just because nobody wants to fight you. It ain't because you ain't good enough. It's just they don't want to fight you. So, you know, I know how Paul feels about being avoided."
Wright attributes his current 21-month layoff to a lack of opponents willing to risk looking bad against a fighter of his defensive prowess. Even those who defeat him, generally look boring or unimpressive when doing so.
As a result, Wright poses a much different threat than Williams.
On Saturday night, two of the sport’s most avoided fighters will demonstrate against each other, what type of threat that is.
Williams has been searching for the fight that will propel him to boxing superstardom. An impressive victory over Wright can do the trick.
But what if Williams gets too impressive and delivers the first knockout of Wright’s legendary career?
The most feared man in boxing will probably have to move up to heavyweight to find an opponent for his next fight.
Prediction
Paul Williams wins via 12-round split decision.
Williams simply has too much to lose. A victory over Wright brings him one step closer to becoming the superstar that he deserves to be—at which point, great fighters will be forced to fight him.
That said, Wright possesses an excruciatingly tough defensive style to look great against. I think he’ll keep Williams honest with his jab and win the fight on one scorecard but Williams’s activity and workrate will prevail in a very close fight.
