Antonio Tarver
Antonio Deon Tarver (born
November 21,
1968), nicknamed the "Magic Man", is a professional
boxer from
Orlando, Florida, who is the former
undisputed Light heavyweight champion of the world. He built an impressive amateur career, which included winning a bronze medal while representing the
United States at the
1996 Atlanta Olympic Games.
The Early Years
Tarver made his professional debut at the age of 28 on
February 18,
1997, with a second round
knockout victory over
Joaquin Garcia at the legendary "
Blue Horizon" in
Philadelphia.
Tarver won his first ten fights, eight of which came by knockout, before stepping up on his level of competition. After taking most of his first ten fights in either his native Florida or at the "Blue Horizon," for his eleventh fight he met veteran
Rocky Gannon in
Chester, West Virginia on
August 30,
1998. Tarver knocked Gannon out in the second round.
On
February 29 of
2000, he fought
Ernest Mateen, who had previously fought and lost to
James Toney, over whom he proceeded to score a first round knock out victory in
Las Vegas, Nevada.
Later that year, Tarver suffered his first career loss when he was knocked down in the eleventh round by
Eric Harding, en route to a unanimous decision loss on
June 23 in
Biloxi, Mississippi.
However, he rebounded from this defeat by racking up four straight wins, including a knockout of Harding in round five of their rematch.
Winning The Light Heavyweight Titles
On
April 26,
2003, Tarver received his first world title shot, when he faced former world champion
Montell Griffin for the
IBF and
WBC world Light-Heavyweight titles that had been vacated by Roy Jones Jr., who had gone on to beat
John Ruiz for the
WBA world Heavyweight title the previous month. After dropping Griffin in both of the first two rounds, Tarver was crowned world Light-Heavyweight champion after winning a unanimous decision.
Tarver vs. Jones I & II
Next,
Roy Jones Jr. decided against defending his Heavyweight title and instead announced his plan to return and take back the Light-Heavyweight belts. Given little chance of winning, Tarver surprised both fan and expert alike by taking Jones the distance and losing the fight by a close majority decision on
November 8 of
2003 in
Las Vegas, Nevada. Because some of those that saw the fight thought that Tarver had actually done enough to win the fight, a small but well-publicized controversy ensued, leading to the pair's second fight.
Because of Jones's proven ability to adjust to opponents' styles during rematches, experts did not believe Tarver would pose much of a threat in the second fight on
May 15 of
2004 in
Las Vegas, Nevada. Nevertheless, Tarver produced the upset and recovered the world titles by knocking Jones out in the second round. In the eyes of most observers, it wasn't as shocking that Tarver had beaten
Roy Jones Jr. as it was that he had knocked him out; in fifty previous fights,
Roy Jones Jr. had been sent to the floor only once, and he had never lost a fight by knockout.
In addition to the surprising result, Tarver-Jones II will also be remembered as the "No Excuse Fight" as a result of Tarver's memorable comments in the middle of the ring just prior to the match. When referee
Jay Nady asked if the fighters had any questions, Tarver surprised everyone (though he had told his trainer,
James (Buddy) McGirt, he would do this) by replying: "I have a question." Then, looking straight at Jones, asked, "You got any excuses tonight, Roy? You got any excuses, Roy?".
Rise In Popularity
Tarver became a mainstream celebrity after his rematch win over Jones, making appearances at late-night shows, appearing on the cover of both
Ring and
KO Magazine, being spotted by
television cameras as a spectator at various boxing fights, and co-hosting
ESPN's "Friday Night Fights" for one telecast.
Tarver vs. Johnson I & II
Later in 2004, the WBC decided to strip Tarver of the world title after he decided against fighting their mandatory challenger, instead choosing to fight
IBF world champion
Glencoffe Johnson December 18 in
Temecula, California. Interestingly, Johnson himself had been stripped of his IBF world championship before the bout with Tarver for the same reason. Both fighters were celebrated for their decision to fight each other rather than bow to the pressure from what has become known as "The Alphabet Soup" sanctioning bodies (WBC, WBA and IBF). Instead, Tarver and Johnson, who most believed to be the top two fighters in the Light-Heavyweight division, fought each other. Ring Magazine announced that the winner would be declared its recognized champion.
Tarver, considered a favorite to win the fight, suffered an upset loss to Johnson by way of a split decision in a fight that he did not appear to be in top shape for.
However, he avenged the loss six months later with a unanimous decision over Johnson at the
FedEx Forum in
Memphis, Tennessee. After out-boxing and out-working the aggressive Johnson, Tarver won the bout handily and regained the Light Heavyweight Championship.
Rubber Match Against Jones
In their third fight, Tarver won a unanimous decision over
Roy Jones Jr. on
October 1 of
2005 in
Tampa, Florida, almost knocking Jones out in the 11th round.
Rocky Balboa
On October 28, 2005, he was confirmed for the role of fictional boxer Mason 'The Line' Dixon in the upcoming film,
Rocky Balboa (formerly called
Rocky VI).
Tarver vs. Hopkins
On June 10th, 2006, Tarver faced former Undisputed Middleweight Champion
Bernard Hopkins for Tarver's Light-Heavyweight title at The
Boardwalk Hall in
Atlantic City, NJ. Hopkins, a 3-to-1 underdog, dominated the fight winning via unanimous decision. The fight was scored 118-109 by all three judges. Tarver was knocked down in the 5th round. As a result of a clause in the fight contract, Tarver was forced to pay $250,000 to a charity of Hopkins' choice since he did not knock Hopkins out before the fifth round. Hopkins announced his retirement immediately following the fight.
His record now stands at 24 wins and 4 losses, with 18 wins coming by way of knockout.
*
List of male boxers*
List of WBC world champions*
Antonio Tarver's career boxing record
