By Vivek Wallace – In an era of the sport where the mythical pound-for-pound mantle is handed out like ice cubes in the summer, an ever-present irony continues to manifest. The revelation of this irony is that despite the many fighters we’ve seen hold this highest honor over the last few years, it’s the one with perhaps the most legitimacy for his claim that has yet to earn the title. Back in May of 2006, only days after his 10th round TKO over Walter Matthyssee, I sat at a table in a restaurant talking to a local radio personality in Miami, Florida who stated that the sport of boxing has “no new up-and-comers” and that the sport was essentially dying as a result. Despite the evolving talent of a young and developing Floyd Mayweather jr., as well as plenty others, in an effort to tip my hat to the less popular new kid on the block, I immediately felt compelled to ask that individual, as well as all others at the table, “Do they know (about Paul Williams)”? No one had much of a response at the time, but as the days went by, the buzz about this freakish figure who stood above 6ft tall and had such an amazing punch rate began to spread like wildfire, but despite the inquisitive listeners and spectators, the attention he rightfully deserved would barely come to fruition. Always eager to find tomorrows star today, rather than honing in on Williams, many turned their attention to a then squeaky clean young Mexican warrior from the west coast (Antonio Margarito) who had all of a sudden been dubbed the “baddest man on the planet”. Rather than rolling the dice on this low risk/high reward opponent, the king of the division, Floyd Mayweather jr., opted instead take equal money for facing the lineal champion, Carlos Baldomir, while sidestepping this opponent like everyone else who mattered on the welterweight landscape. But the very moment it began to appear that no one had the guts to step in and face this granite-chinned warrior, promoter Dan Goosen stepped up and asked anyone willing to listen, “Do they know (about Paul Williams)”? After the two met and put everything on the line in an epic battle, the results were quite clear relative to who the true emerging star in the sport was..
Only months later, Williams would have a temporary lapse in focus, accompanied with a challenge to make weight, which resulted in his lone career loss to date. At the time, it would appear that the very durable image which he had carefully crafted for himself was forever torn down, but when he finally got the chance to avenge the loss some 7 months later, the man of few words let his actions speak loudly in a performance that yet again posed the question to the world, “Do they really know (about Paul Williams)? Shortly after this time, we saw the departure from the sport of Floyd Mayweather jr and a sheer silence from Miguel Cotto and all others relevant within the welterweight ranks, forcing Williams to take his show on the road and head north in weight to seek a shot at anyone brave enough face him in that neck of the woods. With no one in the jr. middleweight ranks showing the heart to step up and face him, the answer to the million dollar question became very clear. It was never a situation where those in his path didn’t know Williams, it was simply a case where they all chose not to say his name, opting instead to look the other way. And the more we get to see Paul Williams in action, the more such a move makes sense. It’s one thing to hold a height advantage or a reach advantage, but the other intangibles that Williams has on his side in comparison to many others in the sport are accented even more as a result of the unknown. Few things in life play a bigger role in victory than the element of surprise, and in the case of Williams, it continues to make a difference, because few have an inclination for what they’re truly against until they enter the ring to face him. It’s quite odd, but in a rare case, a rather super-sized contender has been forced to stay under the radar while clearly playing above the rim, and it all comes down to the fact that a huge agenda by most marquee fighters to avoid him has kept most of us from getting to actually know him.
A perfect example of this can be seen in his sport wide reputation as a fighter who has this innate ability to morph from one size to another, taking on all comers between the welterweight and middleweight realm with ease. Sounds great for marketing purposes, but the reality here is that half the fans who marvel his ability to jump from weight to weight never knew that he actually started his career as a jr. middleweight, and remained there for 13 fights before testing the waters elsewhere, making such a move at this stage in his career more of a homecoming than a mission going. Famed trainer Nasim Richardson once spoke of Filipino Manny Pacqiuao, saying that “just like the devils biggest deceit was his ability to make the world think he was an angel, Pacquiao’s biggest deceit is his ability to make the world think that he was smaller”. To some, such a statement is off par for the course, but rather than agree with false steroid accusations, Richardson’s theory was that Pacquiao was a bigger man all along who had the ability to perform greatly while small. In an odd way, Williams, a pound-for-pound contender himself, also has this trick down pat, as his ability to scale the weight ranges with success is purely a mastered skill that few can comprehend, let alone attempt to conquer. Such attributes are clear DNA of the great ones, as Armstrong, Pacquiao, and to a lesser degree, fighters like De la Hoya, and Mayweather have all used this tool to extend their wingspan of greatness in the sport. To date, Williams’ still evolving resume includes the likes of not only Margarito, but a slick southpaw in Carlos Quintana, as well as one of the most gifted defensive fighters of this era in ‘Winky’ Wright. Next up will be another southpaw on a mission, as the still-in-his-prime Sergio Martinez has remained undefeated throughout his career, with the lone exception being a chance encounter with Antonio Margarito some 9 years ago. How the evening turns out is anyones guess, but win, lose, or draw, the one thing that isn’t a question is the aforementioned title. History showed us…….in the Margarito fight, Mayweather’s retirement, and Mosley’s silence, the answer was provided……Yes, they all know! And that answer holds the key to why you will soon, too.
(Vivek Wallace can be reached at vivexemail@yahoo.com, 954-292-7346, YouTube (VIVEK1251), Twitter (VIVEK747), Facebook, and Myspace).