James Scott vs. Eddie Mustafa Muhammad

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James Scott (left) vs. Eddie Mustafa Muhammad

James Scott 176 lbs beat Eddie Mustafa Muhammad 178 lbs by UD in round 12 of 12

Notes

  • The fight took place at Rahway State Prison in New Jersey, where James Scott was an inmate. He was serving a sentence of 30 to 40 years for armed robbery.
  • The fight was held in the same auditorium at Rahway State Prison where seven years earlier convicts waged a bloody riot and seized six hostages, including the warden. Over 450 paying customers from outside the prison walls sat in the audience while virtually Rahway's entire inmate population watched on three large screens set up in the Drill Hall.
  • The fight was televised live on HBO.
  • Eddie Gregory, who would change his name to Eddie Mustafa Muhammad after winning the WBA light heavyweight title in 1980, entered the fight as the WBA's No. 1-ranked light heavyweight contender.
  • Gregory was a 4 to 1 betting favorite.
  • Gregory said before the fight: "They say Scott is tough, but how tough can he be? So he fought a couple of stiffs inside the walls and he knocked them out. He hasn't had a real pro fight in almost four years. And now he wants to fight the top contender. You know he's got to be crazy. He's been in here too long. It happens when you stay in these places too long. I'll carry him for 11 rounds and knock him out in the 12th. It'll be a good workout."
  • Pat Putnam of Sports Illustrated reported: "Scott took charge from the start, swarming over Gregory at close quarters, firing punishing hooks from both sides. In the fourth round, he raised an ugly lump under Gregory's left eye. . . . Scott won the fifth round, then coasted through the sixth and seventh, which he lost on all cards. From Round 8 on, he resumed command and never let up. Always it was the same: inside and savage. At the end, with his corner screaming for him to go for a knockout, Gregory was barely able to hang on."
  • Jimmy DiPiano, the father and manager of WBC light heavyweight champion Mike Rossman, was ringside. After the fight, DiPiano was asked if he would allow his son to enter Rahway State Prison and grant Scott a title shot. DiPiano said, "It's going to take an awful, awful lot of money before I'll let my son in the same ring with that monster."
  • Harold Lederman, who was one of the official judges for the fight, recalled in 2012: "On that day, I thought James Scott was the greatest light heavyweight I ever saw in my life. That's how great he was. On that one day when he beat Gregory, he was the best light heavyweight I ever saw. I never saw a performance like that — anywhere. I don't think Bob Foster was as good as that. I don't think Archie Moore was that good. He was prepared like I never saw in my life."

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