ANOTHER BOXER HIT BY TRAGIC ACCIDENT
By Ronnie Nathanielsz
PhilBoxing.com
Tue, 29 May 2012
Paul Williams.
Paul ?The Punisher? Williams lies paralyzed after a motorcycle crash in the suburbs of Atlanta, Georgia on Sunday morning.
His manager George Peterson told the Associated Press that he is unlikely to continue his career as a fighter because "From the waist down, he has absolutely no movement. He's in very good spirits, though." In fact Peterson said Williams ?still believes he's going to fight again."
The report said the 30 year old Williams who was scheduled to face undefeated Mexican star and WBC middleweight champion Saul ?Canelo? Alvarez on September 15 in Las Vegas, severed his spinal cord after falling on his back and head when he was thrown from his motorcycle. Peterson said Williams has been listed in serious but stable condition on Monday at an undisclosed hospital.
The accident comes a couple of days after former multi-titled champion Johnny Tapia was found dead in his home in Albuquerque, New Mexico and a few days after undefeated IBF Pan Pacific super bantamweight champion Thangthong ?Machine Gun? Kuttaweesuk, his wife and their two six year old twins were killed on the spot in a card accident in Chanthaburi, Thailand last Friday, according to the Bangkok Post newspaper.
The Associated Press reported that the Williams crash happened when the boxer tried to avoid another car in the next lane that was negotiating a curve and then had to maneuver to avoid an oncoming car. Williams was in the area to attend his brother's wedding Sunday afternoon.
Peterson said "I know he's going to make a statement after surgery on Wednesday, because he's that kind of person. He's 100 percent coherent and still has the will to want to get back on the motorcycle."
His longtime promoter, Dan Goossen, confirmed the cancellation of the fight on Monday evening and said "Right now, there's no thinking about any fights right now except for the fight that's facing Paul right now ? to get movement back in his body and keep the movement that's above his waist."
Peterson said he continues to hope with Williams that the boxer's career isn't over.
Williams won the welterweight title in July 2007 with a decision over Antonio Margarito. He earned victories over Carlos Quintana, Winky Wright, Sergio Martinez and Kermit Cintron, but Martinez abruptly stopped Williams' rise in November 2010 with a second-round victory in their rematch. Williams ended up face-down on the canvas with his eyes wide open in perhaps the most spectacular knockout in recent boxing history.
Williams was unimpressive in his next two fights, but his bout with Alvarez ? the popular young Mexican star ? at Las Vegas' MGM Grand Garden was his return to the big time ? and a chance to win Alvarez's WBC 154-pound belt.
"We want his fans to know he's going to be all right and he'll be back," Peterson said. "He said if he wasn't going to be boxing, he's going to be a stand-up comedian."
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Ronnie Nathanielsz.
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