Cleveland Williams
| Cleveland "Big Cat" Williams | |
|---|---|
| Statistics | |
| Real name | Cleveland Williams |
| Nickname(s) | Big Cat |
| Rated at | Heavyweight |
| Height | 6' 3" (1.905 m) |
| Nationality |
 American
|
| Born |
June 6, 1933 Griffin, Georgia |
| Died | September 3, 1999 (aged 66) Houston, Texas |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 92 |
| Wins | 78 |
| Wins by KO | 58 |
| Losses | 13 |
| Draws | 1 |
Cleveland "Big Cat" Williams (June 6, 1933 – September 3, 1999) was an American heavyweight boxer who fought in the 1950s through the 1970s. A Ring Magazine poll once rated him as one of the finest boxers never to win a title. He made an imposing figure, tall with an impressive athletic broad shouldered build.
Williams turned professional in 1951 and fought many of the best heavyweights of his era. He is best known for the two brutal bouts he had with Sonny Liston. Critics felt the second match was overrated and quickly over. Liston often said Williams was the hardest puncher he ever fought.
During the late 1950s and early 1960s, the 6 ft 3 in Williams was a top-rated heavyweight. His quest to obtain a title fight, however, was consistently derailed. First he was knocked out by Liston on April 15, 1959, after hurting Liston early and breaking Liston's nose.
Williams recovered from the Liston fight to score more wins, but was again stopped by Liston in 2 rounds in their rematch on March 21, 1960. His quest for the title was later stalled when he was held to a draw by Eddie Machen on July 10, 1962, and when he dropped a split decision on March 13, 1963 to Ernie Terrell, a fighter he had previously knocked out in 7 rounds in 1962. During this time frame, he defeated Billy Daniels.
Williams had been inactive the entire year of 1965 while recovering from a gunshot wound he suffered during a scuffle with police officer Dale E. Witten after a traffic stop. Williams was shot with a .357 Magnum in the abdomen, barely survived, and suffered permanent kidney damage, a loss of over ten feet (3m) of his small intestine, and nerve damage from the bullet, which affected his left leg above the knee and caused it to atrophy as a result. He was fined $50 and briefly jailed after pleading no contest to charges arising from the incident. Witten visited Williams the day before his fight with Muhammad Ali, and the two men bore no malice against each other.
It was in the aforementioned physical condition that Williams fought for the heavyweight championship against a peak Muhammad Ali on November 14, 1966 and was stopped easily in the third round.
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