William Torelle Joppy (born September 11, 1970) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1993 to 2011, and held the WBA middleweight title three times between 1996 and 2003.

William Joppy
Born
William Torelle Joppy

(1970-09-11) September 11, 1970 (age 54)
Statistics
Weight(s)
Height5 ft 9 in (175 cm)
Reach72+12 in (184 cm)
StanceOrthodox
Boxing record
Total fights49
Wins40
Wins by KO30
Losses7
Draws2

Professional career

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Turning pro in 1993, Joppy built up a record of 21–0–1 (17 KO) before getting his first shot a world title.

WBA middleweight champion

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Joppy won his first of two WBA middleweight titles in June 1996 by stopping defending champion Shinji Takehara in Japan with a flurry of punches in the ninth round. He then would make a couple defenses of his crown. However, on August 23, 1997, Joppy lost a decision to Julio César Green. Joppy's very next fight, on January 31 of the next year, saw him avenge that loss with a decision win by a wide margin. This fight won Joppy the WBA title for the second time. After recovering from a neck injury, Joppy stopped Green on cuts in the seventh round in a rubber match (Green had been the interim champion while Joppy recovered), and made a few more defenses, including a 3rd-round TKO of a 47-year-old Roberto Durán.[1]

Losing his title against Trinidad

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Joppy lost the title a second time, however, on May 12, 2001, to Félix Trinidad in the middleweight unification tournament.[2] Joppy was knocked down in rounds one and four before finally being stopped in the fifth. He would credit Trinidad's power after the fight saying "I've never been hit like that before."[3]

Post title

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After Bernard Hopkins beat Trinidad, Joppy had the chance to fight for the new WBA (Regular) belt. He claimed the title from British contender Howard Eastman in a close majority decision where he was knocked down by Eastman in the final few seconds.

On December 14, 2003, Joppy was stripped of his title following a challenge to undisputed champion Bernard Hopkins, losing by a wide points margin on all three judges' cards. A year later, Joppy lost another lopsided unanimous decision against Jermain Taylor.

Joppy returned as a Super Middleweight on July 29, 2005 knocking out journeyman Rashaan Blackburn in the third round. Joppy said then that he hoped to have one final title run as a Super Middleweight before retirement. After a string of five victories against lesser opponents, Joppy obtained a title fight against the new IBF champion Lucian Bute on February 29, 2008. Bute won by way of technical knockout in round 10 and Joppy retired after the bout, only to come back two years later.

Retirement

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Following a close decision loss to Sebastien Demers in March 2010 Joppy announced his retirement from boxing, although it was not the first time that Joppy has announced that he is leaving the sport.[4] He returned to the ring later that year, fighting Baltimore native Cory Cummings to a draw, and subsequently defeated Cummings by unanimous decision in a 2011 rematch.

Professional boxing record

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49 fights 40 wins 7 losses
By knockout 30 3
By decision 10 4
Draws 2
No. Result Record Opponent Type Round, time Date Location Notes
49 Win 40–7–2 Cory Cummings UD 10 Mar 12, 2011 Patriot Center, Fairfax, Virginia, U.S.
48 Loss 39–7–2 Beibut Shumenov KO 6 (12), 0:15 Jan 8, 2011 Sport Palace, Shymkent, Kazakhstan For WBA and IBA light heavyweight titles
47 Draw 39–6–2 Cory Cummings MD 10 Nov 6, 2010 Patriot Center, Fairfax, Virginia, U.S.
46 Loss 39–6–1 Sébastien Demers MD 10 Mar 6, 2010 Montreal Casino, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
45 Loss 39–5–1 Lucian Bute TKO 10 (12), 1:08 Feb 29, 2008 Bell Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada For IBF super middleweight title
44 Win 39–4–1 Etianne Whitaker TKO 1, 1:58 Nov 16, 2007 Beauséjour Stadium, Gros Islet, Saint Lucia
43 Win 38–4–1 Virgil McClendon RTD 1 (10), 3:00 Apr 27, 2007 D.C. Armory, Washington, D.C., U.S.
42 Win 37–4–1 Jonathan Corn KO 5 (10), 2:18 Jul 8, 2006 Savvis Center, St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
41 Win 36–4–1 Eric Howard TKO 5 (8), 2:12 Jan 7, 2006 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S.
40 Win 35–4–1 Rashaan Blackburn TKO 3 (8), 2:08 Jul 29, 2005 The Plex, North Charleston, South Carolina, U.S.
39 Loss 34–4–1 Jermain Taylor UD 12 Dec 4, 2004 Barton Coliseum, Little Rock, Arkansas, U.S. For WBC Continental Americas middleweight title
38 Loss 34–3–1 Bernard Hopkins UD 12 Dec 13, 2003 Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. For WBA (Undisputed), WBC, IBF, and The Ring middleweight titles
37 Win 34–2–1 Naotaka Hozumi TKO 10 (12), 2:48 Oct 10, 2002 Ryōgoku Kokugikan, Tokyo, Japan Retained WBA (Regular) middleweight title
36 Win 33–2–1 Howard Eastman MD 12 Nov 17, 2001 Mandalay Bay Events Center, Paradise, Nevada, U.S. Won vacant WBA (Regular) middleweight title
35 Loss 32–2–1 Félix Trinidad TKO 5 (12), 2:25 May 12, 2001 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S. Lost WBA middleweight title
34 Win 32–1–1 Jonathan Reid TKO 4 (12), 2:43 Dec 2, 2000 Mandalay Bay Events Center, Paradise, Nevada, U.S. Retained WBA middleweight title
33 Win 31–1–1 Hacine Cherifi UD 12 Sep 16, 2000 MGM Grand Garden Arena, Paradise, Nevada, U.S. Retained WBA middleweight title
32 Win 30–1–1 Rito Ruvalcaba TKO 1 (12), 1:53 May 20, 2000 Grand Casino, Tunica, Mississippi, U.S. Retained WBA middleweight title
31 Win 29–1–1 Fernando Zuniga UD 10 Mar 3, 2000 Caesars Palace, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.
30 Win 28–1–1 Julio César Green TKO 7 (12), 1:52 Sep 24, 1999 MCI Center, Washington, D.C., U.S. Retained WBA middleweight title
29 Win 27–1–1 Napoleon Pitt TKO 1 (10), 2:38 Jul 24, 1999 Flamingo Hilton, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.
28 Win 26–1–1 Roberto Durán TKO 3 (12), 2:54 Aug 28, 1998 Las Vegas Hilton, Winchester, Nevada, U.S. Retained WBA middleweight title
27 Win 25–1–1 Julio César Green UD 12 Jan 31, 1998 Ice Palace, Tampa, Florida, U.S. Won WBA middleweight title
26 Loss 24–1–1 Julio César Green UD 12 Aug 23, 1997 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S. Lost WBA middleweight title
25 Win 24–0–1 Peter Venancio UD 12 May 10, 1997 Coconut Grove Convention Center, Miami, Florida, U.S. Retained WBA middleweight title
24 Win 23–0–1 Ray McElroy TKO 7 (12), 1:41 Oct 19, 1996 The Show Place Arena, Upper Marlboro, Maryland, U.S. Retained WBA middleweight title
23 Win 22–0–1 Shinji Takehara TKO 9 (12), 2:29 Jun 24, 1996 Yokohama Arena, Yokohama, Japan Won WBA middleweight title
22 Win 21–0–1 Dave Boone TKO 2 (10), 1:42 Feb 10, 1996 MGM Grand Garden Arena, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.
21 Win 20–0–1 Israel Figueroa KO 1 Dec 7, 1995 The Show Place Arena, Upper Marlboro, Maryland, U.S.
20 Draw 19–0–1 Rodney Toney MD 12 Sep 16, 1995 The Mirage, Paradise, Nevada, U.S. For NABF middleweight title
19 Win 19–0 Joaquin Velasquez PTS 10 Apr 29, 1995 USAir Arena, Landover, Maryland, U.S.
18 Win 18–0 Tony McCrimmion KO 3 (10), 2:02 Mar 1, 1995 War Memorial Auditorium, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, U.S.
17 Win 17–0 Tony Cartel KO 2 Sep 20, 1994 Washington, D.C., U.S.
16 Win 16–0 Richard Evans PTS 8 Aug 13, 1994 Convention Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S.
15 Win 15–0 Miguel Angel Hernandez KO 3 (6), 1:08 Jul 30, 1994 Silver Nugget, North Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.
14 Win 14–0 Carlos Christie PTS 6 Jun 15, 1994 Elephant and Castle Shopping Center, London, England
13 Win 13–0 Carl Sullivan TKO 4 May 13, 1994 The Show Place Arena, Upper Marlboro, Maryland, U.S.
12 Win 12–0 Muhammad Shabazz TKO 5 Apr 14, 1994 Richmond, Virginia, U.S.
11 Win 11–0 Kenneth Parker KO 2 Apr 8, 1994 The Show Place Arena, Upper Marlboro, Maryland, U.S.
10 Win 10–0 Tony McCrimmion TKO 2 Feb 27, 1994 Circus Maximus Showroom, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S.
9 Win 9–0 Robert Harris KO 1 Feb 17, 1994 The Show Place Arena, Upper Marlboro, Maryland, U.S.
8 Win 8–0 Willie Taylor TKO 3 Jan 7, 1994 The Show Place Arena, Upper Marlboro, Maryland, U.S.
7 Win 7–0 Tyrone Haywood KO 2 Oct 21, 1993 Washington, D.C., U.S.
6 Win 6–0 Ivory Teague KO 2 Sep 25, 1993 Prince George's Community College, Largo, Maryland, U.S.
5 Win 5–0 George Taylor KO 3 Aug 13, 1993 Prince George's Community College, Largo, Maryland, U.S.
4 Win 4–0 Tim Tisdale KO 1 Jun 18, 1993 Total Sports Pavilion, Woodbridge, Virginia, U.S.
3 Win 3–0 Shane Martin TKO 3 (4), 2:29 May 12, 1993 Baltimore Arena, Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
2 Win 2–0 Ken Ruffin TKO 1 Apr 30, 1993 Total Sports Pavilion, Woodbridge, Virginia, U.S.
1 Win 1–0 Dwayne Tennet UD 4 Feb 26, 1993 Camp Hill, Pennsylvania, U.S. Professional debut

References

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  1. ^ Duran suffers loss; Hopkins triumphs, Deseret News article, 1998-08-29, Retrieved on 2024-06-02
  2. ^ Lena Williams (15 March 2001). "PLUS: BOXING; Middleweights Descend on Garden". New York Times. Retrieved 30 September 2024.
  3. ^ Associated Press (12 May 2001). "Trinidad unbeaten in 40 fights". espncdn.com. New York: ESPN. Retrieved 30 September 2024.
  4. ^ "Martin Cruz » fightnews.com".
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Sporting positions
Minor world boxing titles
Vacant
Title last held by
Félix Trinidad
as champion
WBA middleweight champion
Regular title

November 17, 2001 – December 13, 2003
Lost bid for Super title
Vacant
Title next held by
Maselino Masoe
Major world boxing titles
Preceded by WBA middleweight champion
June 24, 1996 – August 23, 1997
Succeeded by
Preceded by
Julio César Green
WBA middleweight champion
January 31, 1998 – May 12, 2001
Succeeded by