Roy 'Tiger' Williams ~ "I hit Earnie Shavers with 'Bombs', and he would not fall."

[Bill Paxtom]

December 11, 1976

The Aladdin Casino and Hotel ~ Las Vegas, Nevada

[AdamGB]

Fuck off.

[Bill Paxtom]

I'll follow up later, I'm Fucking my Mum.

Be easy on her Adam.

[AdamGB]

Oh wow, look... It knows how to edit text, soon it'll be able type something which isn't garbage.

[Bill Paxtom]

Roy 'Tiger' Williams

They said that Earnie had no stamina, no heart or chin.

Well, he was arm-weary and gassed out at the end of Round 9. I hit that 'bastard'
with everything that I had.

I'm 6' 5" and 230 lbs., and when I hit somebody 'flush', they fall. Ask anybody in
Philadelphia, or up at Ali's Camp in Deer Lake.

Look at Round 9. I nailed Earnie with '8' monster left-hooks to the head, and several
right-hands flush in his face. He was F***ing out man.

Yet, just before the Bell, he came back with a 'right-left' and spun my head at the
Bell with another long right-hand.

I had him pinned in the front-left Corner, and his legs were all 'Jello'. Yet still, he
had the 'balls' to fight back, and put power in those last '3' punches.

He was 'Amazing Earnie'.

[Bill Paxtom]

Roy 'Tiger' Williams

In my corner at the end of Round 9, Joe Louis told me to set Earnie up, and to back
him up.

Earnie could not fight backing up, as he needed space to 'wind-up'.

Earnie was 'done' at the end of Round 9, and I figured that I would only have to land
a few punches on him, and that he would either fall from exhaustion, or that the Referee
Buddy Baslico would stop it.

[Bill Paxtom]

Roy 'Tiger' Williams

I was managed by Joe Louis in 1976.

And our 'fight plan' was to let Earnie punch himself out. Earnie was 'gassed' by the end of
Round 8, and I had him in my 'web'.

I was waiting for him in Round 9, and was setting him up for a late Round barrage.

I hit him with my best punches at the end of Round 9, and he would not fall.

Nobody ever took punches like that from me. And I sparred with Muhammad Ali,
George Foreman, Joe Frazier, Jimmy Young, Larry Holmes and Jeff Merritt.

[holmcall]

The last round was an all-time great one.

[Bill Paxtom]

'Amazing Earnie'

Earnie dominated the first 5-Rounds, and out-punched Roy Williams {10 to 1}.

After 5-Rounds, the Scorecards read all in Earnie's favor.
* 30-25 > {5-0-0}
* 30-25 > {5-0-0}
* 30-26 > {4-0-1}

Roy was getting beat, but he showed no signs of damage.
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'Round 6'

Roy made a very good rally at the start if the Round, and slammed Earnie with several big left-hooks,
jarring him on '3' separate occasions.

Roy also added in several more left-hooks over the second-half of the session, and 'rocked' Earnie
twice more.

But Earnie showed 'heart-and-courage', and came rallying back big over the last 25-Seconds, including
rocking Roy with a barrage over the last 10-Seconds.

Roy won Round 6 on all '3' Scorecards.
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[Bill Paxtom]

"Round 7'

Earie came out looking a bit spent, but >

Earnie unloaded a total of '111' punches in Round 7.

He threw '57' thru the first-half of the Round, and nailed Roy 'twice' with big
right-hand bombs.

By the mid-way point in the session, Earnie looked very arm-weary as he was
punching wide and slow.

But, Earnie kept punching as he kept Roy along the Ropes.

Roy did tag Earnie with a couple of hard left-hooks, but he did not follow up.

Then Earnie put forth a big rally over the last 45-Seconds, and hammered Roy with
a barrage of punches.

Roy was now sporting a 'cut' inside his mouth and a brusied right-eye.

Earnie won the Round on all '3' Scorecards.

Scorecards thru 7-Rounds :
* 39-34 > {6-1-0}
* 39-34 > {6-1-0}
* 39-35 > {5-1-1}

[Bill Paxtom]

'Round 8'

Earnie was very busy early, and bombed away by unloading '31' hard-punches over the
first {1:00}.

Roy Williams did little, other than lay back on the Ropes.

Earnie continued to band away from the next 30-Seconds, up to the {1:30 Mark}.

At the {1:34 Mark}, Roy caught Earnie coming in with a big left hook/uppercut to the jaw.
Earnie was 'stunned' for a flash-second.

But Roy was too slow to follow up, and Earnie came right back at Roy and backed him into
the left-side Ropes.

Earnie caught a brief 'second-wind', and slammed away at Roy with medium-power punches
for the next minute.

Roy continued to wait for opening.

At the {2:00 Mark} Earnie was working, but he had little behind his punches at this point in the Round.

Earnie continued to work, but his punches had little steam on them. At the {2:30 Mark}, Earnie was
nearly 'gassed' out.

Roy then moved Earnie backwards and across the Ring, to the right-side Ropes.

At the {2:45 Mark}, Roy caught Earnie with '2' vicious left hook/uppercuts to the chin.

Earnie 'wobbled' sideways on shaky pins.

Roy added in one more 'grazing' left-hand into Earnie's head just before the Bell>
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Earnie still threw '72' punches in total.

Roy 'Tiger' Williams was stronger at the end of the Round, but he was only in control over the
last 30-Seconds.

All '3' Officials scored Round '8' for Earnie, based upon the high work-rate.

Scorecards thru 8-Rounds, all for Earnie Shavers.
* 44-38 > {7-1-0}
* 44-38 > {7-1-0}
* 44-39 > {6-1-1}

[holmcall]

The last round began, and Shavers came out visibly exhausted. Williams
appeared confident and ready to emerge as a serious heavyweight contender. He
quickly moved Shavers into a corner and applied brutal, nonstop punishment
until the referee called a standing eight count. Tiger thought the fight had been
stopped, turned around, and raised his hands in victory, but, when he turned
back to see a determined Shavers still standing, his spirit visibly sagged. Still, he
came on and hit Shavers with blows that would surely have knocked out anybody
else. Then, all of a sudden, Shavers started to connect with some medium hard
blows to Williams’s body that slowed him down. Then Shavers connected with
one of his deadly uppercuts with Tiger on the ropes, and it straightened him up.
He was now hurt and Shavers sensed it.




He moved the Tiger into a corner and began throwing his own bombs. Williams
could not withstand the ferocious onslaught, and the referee now gave him a
standing eight, incredibly the second in the round! Shavers stood poised, albeit
exhausted, and ready to go. As the referee ordered Williams to begin fighting, he
took a step forward, hesitated, and then collapsed in the corner, a beaten man.
Shavers sagged over the ropes, too tired to celebrate. The fight was over. Shavers
had won, but the Tiger had indeed roared.

[holmcall]

"I wouldn’t drive through Philadelphia because I didn’t want to take a
chance on running into Williams." —Ernie Shavers

[p4pking]

Jerry Quarry ~ "I hit Earnie Shavers with totally average HW punches, and he didn't make it a round"

Roy 'Tiger' Williams- " Shavers was the only remotely decent fighter I ever almost beat! If his chin was even worse than it was I could have done it"

Bill Paxtom ~ "Man am I a boring piece of shit!"

[Bill Paxtom]

'The Skinny'

Earnie was completely exhausted at the end of Round 8. Mostly because he threw
puhnces at a hugh-rate, and burned up his reserve energy.

Roy, who patiently waited, unloaded on a 'gassed out' Shavers at the end of the Round.

Earnie still won Round 8 on all '3' Scorecards.

Scorecards thru 8-Rounds;
* 44-38 > {7-1-0}
* 44-38 > {7-1-0}
* 44-39 > {6-1-1}

All Earnie had to do to win. Was box, move and stay away from Roy for the last 2-Rounds,
and Earnie would have won by a wide-points Decision.
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'Round 9'

Both fighters meet at Center-Ring, with Roy on the left and Earnie on the right.

At {0:03} Roy opens up the Round, and lands a big left-hook on Earnie's head. The punch
wobbles Earnie who teeters to his left and toward the front-center Ring area.

Earnie then circles {270*} to his left and around Roy while jabbing on shaky pins.

At the {0:15 Mark}, Earnie steps forward, buy Roy slams Earnie with a big left-hook.

> {0:17} > Roy comes back with '2' hard left hook/uppercuts into Earnie's head.

At the {0:19 Mark}, Earnie wobbles to the back-left Neutral Corner. Then, Roy unloads with a
hard left-hook to the body.

Stunned, Earnie falls back into the left-back Ropes.

> {0:23} > Roy lands a hard left-hook high on Ernie's head, and then fires in a short left-hook.
> {0:25} > Earnie backs out away from the back-left Ring area.

Earnie regroups for a few seconds, and surprisingly steps in and fires a hard 'right-left' at Roy's face.

But, Earnie is still wobbly as his legs were weak, and he falls to the back Ropes at the {0.33 Mark}.

> {0:39} > Roy lands a good left-hook into Earnie.

But Earnie fires back with a sharp 'left-right-left' at Roy's head.

> {0:45} > Roy suddenly looks tired as well.
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Roy regroups, and at the {0:57 Mark} he tee's off on Earnie with a hard 'right-left' to the head.

Earnie comes back with a straight right-hand.

Earnie who is tired, rests for 15-Seconds on the inside, as Roy is not punching either.

> {1:14} > Earnie then starts 'winging' punches as he drives Roy over to the left-side Ropes.
> {1:20} > Roy is resting and leaning on the Ropes.
> {1:23} > Earnie is holding Roy with his left-hand, and whipping in right uppercuts.
> {1:33} > Referee Buddy Basilico moves in and calls 'Break'.

At the {1:45 Mark}, Earnie goes back to working with more punching for the next 20-Seconds.

> {2:09} > Earnie attempts a long right-hand from way outside.
> {2:10} > Roy times Earnie and counters him with a big left-hook to the jaw.
> {2:12} > Roy sends in a short right-hand to the body.

Earnie wobbles to the left-side Ropes, as Roy follows him in.

Earnie smartly spins Roy, and now Roy is on the left-side Ropes.

> {2:15} > Earnie backs out, and out to left Center-Ring.

With Earnie still 'stunned', Roy takes a moment, and then comes back with '2' jarring right-hands to
Earnie's head at the {2:17 Mark}.

> {2:20} > Roy unloads another right-hand, and Earnie is 'hurt'.
> {2:22} > Earnie wobbles over to the front-left Corner.

Amazingly, Earnie works himself out of the Corner, and to Center-Ring at the {2:26 Mark}.

> {2:29} > Earnie unloads a 'big' right-hand on Roy's face.
> {2:30} > The punch shakes Roy, and sends him backwards to the front-center Ropes, where he leans back.

Earnie moves in close to maul, and then grabs the top Rope strand to buy time, as he is tired.

> {2:36} > Roy lands a hard left-uppercut into Earnie's chest.
> {2:37} > Earnie backs off 2-steps.

> {2:39} > Roy shoots out a 'quick' chopping right-hand to Earnie's jaw.
> {2:40} > Roy lands another quick short right-hand to the jaw.
> {2:41} > Roy whips in a big long right-hand to Earnie's jaw.

> {2:42} > The punch sends Earnie wobbling over to the left-side Ropes.

Roy moves in, and fires a hard 'right-left' on Earnie who now is hurt.

> {2:44} > Earnie wobbles to his right, and into the front-left Corner, and is near 'out-on-his-feet'.