"Merciless" Ray Mercer - Still Some Fight in Him By Ken Hissner, Doghouse Boxing (April 9, 2011) Doghouse Boxing - Tweet
Former WBO Heavyweight Champion “Merciless” Ray Mercer was to return to the ring in Canada on February 25th while his two-time former opponent Tommy “Gunn” Morrison was to headline. Seems Morrison balked at some drug testing and the show got cancelled. Mercer turned 50 on April 4th.
“I really wanted to fight again,” said Mercer. It’s been 3 years since he defeated “The Dutch Sonny Liston”, Richel Hersisia, 30-2, in Sweden, January of 2008. His last 3 bouts have been out of the country with another victory by KO1 over Sweden’s Mikael Linblad, 24-5, in September of 2007. “Thanks to Don Elbaum for those matches in Sweden,” said Mercer. In between those 2 fights was a loss to Derrick Rossy, 17-1, over 12 rounds in China. Matchmaker Elbaum is going into the PA and NJHOF this year.
“I worked with Ray a few years back in Sweden when he fought “The Swedish Sonny Liston. Well good old Ray beat the crap out of this young buck. Ray is a great guy to go on the road with! The Swedish people took to him so well,” said Joey Eye (one of the top cut-men in boxing).
Joey Eye has also gotten into the promoting business at Harrah’s in Chester, PA, outside of Philly. “The ring announcer made a bigger deal about me being in his corner announcing I had been in a few of the Rocky movies. Ray started laughing saying he didn’t know he had such a celebrity working his corner. I apologized and he said, no man, you deserve it, with that big grin of his,” said Eye.
“After the fight he kept calling me Rocky and we painted the town red, and became good friends. Ray is a true champion in and out of the ring! I was honored to have been the cut-man for even just the one fight,” said Eye.
In 1988 Mercer was the AAU and Olympic heavyweight champion. Olympic teammate Riddick Bowe was the Silver medalist in the super heavyweight division. Mercer defeated future WBO champ Michael Bentt twice to get to the Olympic trials. He won a split decision over Morrison in the Olympic trials.
In the Olympics at Seoul, Korea, Mercer, representing the US Army, drew a bye in the first round and then swept through Rudolf Gavencizk, CZ, Luigi Gaudiano, IT, Arnold Vanderlyde, NETH, and Baik Hyun-Man, RSK, all by knockout!
In turning professional Mercer was signed by Marc Roberts along with Al “Ice” Cole and Charles “the Natural Murray, known as the “Triple Threat”. Each would win a world championship starting with Mercer in 1991, Cole in 1992 and Murray in 1993.
At Atlantic City in February of 1989 Mercer stopped Jesse McGhee, 5-2, in 3 rounds under the main event of Roberto Duran and Iran Barkley. Olympic teammates Michael Carbajal, Andrew Maynard and Kennedy McKinney were also on the card. The next month Mercer scored a first round knockout in Bismark, ND, under the Bobby Czyz-Virgil Hill title bout.
By the end of 1989 Mercer scored 12 straight wins ending with former WBA Cruiser champ Ossie Ocasio, 22-6-1, by split decision in Las Vegas, under Leonard- Duran. In February of 1990 he won the vacant IBF Inter-Continental title beating Kimmuel Odum, 12-2, over 12 rounds.
In Mercer’s sixteenth fight he went to “war” with “Smokin” Bert Cooper, in Atlantic City in August of 1990. “It was voted the “Fight of the Year”, said Mercer. Though on the cards Mercer took a lopsided decision, 119-108, 117-110 and 117-106, it was a fight to remember! Cooper was down in the first.
“I had a broken blood vessel and I looked like Dizzy Gillespie my cheek swelled so much. I was in the hospital for 2 days from that and dehydration,” said Mercer. It would be 5 months before Mercer would fight again. “It was a brutal fight. I was working for Triple Threat at the time. I was with Ray afterwards in the hotel room. He was puffy and spent,” said KO Obermayer. He is a long time writer and NJHOF inductee.
“I met Ray when he was a member of the “Triple Threat” stable. He’s a great person in and out of the ring. He’s a strong, technically sound heavyweight fighter. I was the referee when he was in with Holmes and with Darroll Wilson. He never complained. A very competitive fighter,” said Steve Smoger. He is one of the top referee’s in the world and an inductee to the NJHOF. “I also was a judge in a fight in Sweden when Ray scored a sensational first round knockout over local hero, M. Lindblad effectively ending his comeback,” said Smoger.
In January of 1991 Francesco Damiani, 27-0, was brought in from Italy to defend his WBO belt. He was in both the 1980 and 1984 Olympics. In 1982 at the World Games he defeated the legendary Cuban Teofilo Stevenson but lost to America’s Tyrell Biggs. In the finals of the 1984 Olympics he again lost to Biggs to earn the Silver medal. He won the newly created WBO title in 1989 and was making his second defense.
Mercer was giving up height and reach to Damiani. He knew going into the ninth round he could only win by a knockout. Scores at the time were 79-73, 79-74 and 78-74 for Damiani. “I hit him with a left uppercut on the tip of the nose and down he went,” said Mercer. Damiani would be out of action for 14 months.
Mercer was the new WBO heavyweight champion. In July the former WBO light heavyweight Michael Moore stopped Alex Stewart and became the No. 1 contender. “I was going to be stripped of my title for not fight him. I knew I should have fought him,” said Mercer. Instead his management chose Morrison, 28-0, in Atlantic City in October. It was a war for 4 rounds with Morrison winning 3 of them. In the fifth round Mercer scored a devastating knockout leaving Morrison hanging on the ropes before referee Tony Perez stepped in to rescue him.
In February of 1992 the 41 year-old former world champion Larry Holmes was matched with Mercer. Holmes had won 5 in a row over mediocre opposition since his knockout loss to Mike Tyson. Only one judge had it close at 115-113. Holmes gave Mercer a boxing lesson that earned him a losing June title fight with Evander Holyfield.
Mercer bounced back with 2 knockouts and went to Madison Square Garden to meet Jesse “Thunder” Ferguson, 18-9 on the Bowe-Dokes undercard. There were talks of the winner getting a shot at the title but Mercer-Bowe had been talked about since they were teammates on the 1988 team.
Losing to Ferguson was a low point in Mercer’s career. It would take several years to get a rematch. In the meantime it was Ferguson getting a losing title bout with Bowe. Mercer would be off for 18 months before a return with a couple of wins and a rematch win over Ferguson by split decision.
Next, in July of 1994 a television show had Morrison coming off the canvas twice to end up in a draw with Ross Puritty, 8-8, while Mercer was in a draw with iron jawed Marion Wilson, 7-9-2. Wilson was known for one of the best jaws in the game while Mercer wondered if it could get any worse.
Mercer ended up getting a fight with the former champ Lennox Lewis at Madison Square Garden. Mercer gave Lewis a beating. The judges didn’t quite see it that way giving Lewis the majority decision. Lewis would never enter the ring with Mercer again. “That was a bad decision,” said Mercer. That was 3 fights without a win yet his next opponent would be another champion.
The Bowe-Golota rematch and 4 other 10 round bouts were on the card in Atlantic City. Mercer was matched with former champion “Terrible” Tim Witherspoon, 45-4, who was on an 8 fight winning streak. Mercer’s win would be the start of a 7 fight winning streak of his own.
After 11 years the now 41 year-old Mercer, would finally get another title bout for his old WBO title against Wladimir Klitschko, 38-1, in Atlantic City. It was Klitschko’s fourth defense. After a gallant effort it would be the first time in Mercer’s career he would be stopped when the referee waved it off in the sixth round. This would be his last chance at a world title.
Mercer came back in the ring 14 months later stopping Mario Cawley, 22-9, in FL, Shawn Robinson, 15-7, in IND, and decision Darroll Wilson, 27-7-2, in Atlantic City in June of 2005. Several months later Mercer would meet Shannon Briggs, 42-4-1, who had won 6 of his previous fights. This was a close fight with Mercer pressing Briggs throughout the first 5 rounds. In round 7 it would be the second time Mercer was stopped. At 44 it seemed the end of the line for Mercer.
Never say never in the fight game. Mercer at 46 got a call from his good friend Don Elbaum. Boxing was again legalized in Sweden with no fights allowed past 6 rounds. As reported earlier Mercer posted a knockout over Linblad and then a loss in China to Rossy and on a return trip to Sweden posted a win in his final fight “up to now” in September of 2008 over Hersisia. “I frustrated him and boxed him just like Holmes did to me,” said Mercer.
“Holyfield was the toughest,” said Mercer. He fought Bert Cooper, Tommy Morrison, Larry Holmes, Lennox Lewis, Tim Witherspoon, Wladimir Klitschko, Shannon Briggs and Holyfield. We didn’t get into his MMA matches b ecause it’s not of any interest to this writer. There is only one sport like boxing and when you hear the name “Merciless” Ray Mercer what sport do you think about?
