Earnie Shavers

2013-03-05T22:03:49Z

Vasalike: /* Amateur Career */ I changed Don Foley to Dave foley.. Dave is my brother who fought Ernie at the 1968 National Golden Gloves in Salt Lake City.

[[File:Shavers79.jpg|left|thumb|200px|Earnie Shavers]]
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'''Amateur Trainers:''' [[Pedro Tomez]], Bob Saffold <br>
'''Professional Trainers:''' [[Chappie Roberts]], [[Ted Bentham]]<br>
'''Managers:''' [[Dean Chance]], [[Blackie Gennaro]]<br>

'''[[:Category:Earnie Shavers Gallery|Earnie Shavers Gallery]]'''

'''Earnie Shavers''', who started boxing at age 22 as an amateur, is recognized as one of the hardest hitters in boxing history. [[Muhammad Ali]] said Shavers was the hardest hitter he ever faced: "Earnie hit me so hard, he shook my kinfolk back in Africa!" [[Larry Holmes]] said: "Shavers was the hardest hitting fighter I met in the ring." In comparing Shavers to [[Mike Tyson]], Holmes said, "Being hit by Mike Tyson was like getting hit by a speeding Ferrari. Being hit by Earnie Shavers was like being hit by a Mac Truck!" Shavers is #10 on the [[The Ring Magazine]]'s list of the [[The 100 Greatest Punchers of All-Time!|100 Greatest Punchers of All-Time]].

== Amateur Career ==
'''Record:''' 20-6
*1967: Youngstown Golden Gloves Open division Heavyweight runner-up.
** Lost to [[Mike Boswell]] on points in the finals.
*1968: Cleveland [[Golden Gloves]] Novice division Heavyweight Champion.
** Defeated [[Mike Boswell]] in the finals.
*1968: National Golden Gloves in Salt Lake City, UT
** Defeated Dave Foley.
** Lost to [[Frank Steele]] on points in the quarterfinals.
*1969: Youngstown Golden Gloves Open division Heavyweight Champion.
*1969: Cleveland Golden Gloves Open division Heavyweight Champion.
*1969: Ohio Golden Gloves Open division Heavyweight Champion.
*1969: Won the National [[AAU]] Heavyweight Championship in San Diego, CA.
** Defeated Morris Hill by knockout.
** Defeated Wayne McGee by knockout in quarterfinals.
** Defeated Otis Evans in semifinals.
** Defeated [[Jim Lee Elder]] by knockout in finals.

== Pro Career ==
In 1973, Shavers stopped former [[WBA]] Heavyweight Champion [[Jimmy Ellis]] in the first round. In his next fight, Shavers was knocked out in the first round by [[Jerry Quarry]]. Shavers fought [[Ron Lyle]] in 1975. In the second round, Shavers almost scored a knockout when he dropped Lyle with a left hook, but Lyle was able to come back and knock out Shavers in the sixth round.

Shavers fought Ali for the World Heavyweight Championship in 1977. He hurt Ali badly with a right hand in the second round, but Ali survived the round and went on to win by a unanimous decision in a grueling fight.

In 1978, Shavers fought Holmes in a [[WBC]] title eliminator. Holmes won by a lopsided decision. In March 1979, former WBC Heavyweight Champion [[Ken Norton]] was knocked out by Shavers in the first round. Shavers fought Holmes for the WBC Heavyweight Championship in September 1979. After losing the first six rounds, Shavers dropped Holmes with a devastating right in the seventh round. The champion fell as though he had been hit by a sledgehammer, but he got up. Holmes stopped Shavers in the eleventh round.

After retiring from boxing, Shavers became an ordained minister.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shavers, Earnie}}
[[Category:United States Amateur Champions|Shavers, Earnie]]
[[Category:African American Boxers|Shavers, Earnie]]
[[Category:Cleveland Golden Gloves Champions]]
[[Category:Nevada State Champions]]

BoxRec - User contributions [en]

Earnie Shavers