 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date | March 9, 1984 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Venue | The Riviera, Winchester, Nevada | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Title(s) on the line | WBC heavyweight title | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tale of the tape | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Result | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Witherspoon wins via MD (117–111, 117–111, 114–114) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Greg Page vs. Tim Witherspoon , billed as True Vindication was a professional boxing match contested on March 9, 1984, for the vacant WBC heavyweight title. [1]
Greg Page had become the number-one ranked heavyweight contender after defeating fellow contender Renaldo Snipes on May 20, 1983. The victory put Page in line for a title shot against the winner of the fight between reigning WBC heavyweight champion Larry Holmes and challenger Tim Witherspoon. [2] After Holmes narrowly defeated Witherspoon by split decision, the WBC ordered Holmes to make his next defense against Page, his mandatory challenger or risk being stripped of his title. [3] Holmes, disappointed by the $2.5 million purse he was being offered to fight Page, opted to take a more lucrative fight with Marvis Frazier which would pay him $3.1 million. [4] WBC president José Sulaimán reiterated that Holmes would be stripped of his title should he chose to fight Frazier instead of Page confirming that Holmes had signed a WBC contract with promoter Don King to fight Page and expected Holmes to respect the contracts terms. [5] Days later Sulaimán had a change of heart and decided against stripping Holmes, but refused to sanction his fight against Frazier as Frazier was not among the WBC's top-10 contenders. [6] Holmes then opted to make a title defense against Scott Frank before facing Frazier stating he would "get around to Page" after the holidays if the "deal was right". [7]
With Holmes not keen to fight fight him, Page was forced to take a tune-up fight against Rick Kellar in lieu of a heavyweight title bout for which he expressed frustration telling the media "I'm the No. 1 contender. I'm supposed to be the one Larry's reckoning with. But that No. 1 don't mean a thing. It's just a number." He also expressed doubt that Holmes would ever agree to fight him saying it was like Holmes was saying "To hell with him, let's keep him in the wings." [8] After defeating both Frank and Frazier, Holmes was still unable to come to terms with Page and on December 11, 1983, officially relinquished the WBC heavyweight title in favor of recognition from the newly-formed IBF. That same day the WBC announced that the still number-one ranked Page and the number-two ranked Witherspoon would meet for the now-vacant WBC heavyweight title. Having waited for a title opportunity for the better part of a year, Page expressed both excitement and disappointment stating that while the title shot was "something I waited for for a long time" he "would've liked to face Larry." [9] After the fight was officially announced in early February, both Page, who entered the fight as 7–5 favorite, and Witherspoon bashed Holmes in the press. Page labeled Holmes a "chicken" while Witherspoon, whom had been defeated by Holmes the previous year and had hoped for a rematch, shared Page's sentiments stating "The I.B.F., that ain't nothing. Holmes is running. He's supposed to be fighting Greg Page and give me a return match. How you gonna get a lot of respect running?" [10]
The two fighters fought a relatively close but lackluster fight and appeared sluggish as the fight went on leading to crowd to boo the lack of action, though Witherspoon served as the aggressor throughout and did just enough to earn a majority decision victory. One judge scored the fight a draw at 114–114 while the two other judges scored the fight at 117–111.[ citation needed ]
Witherspoon admitted having trouble with Page stating after the fight "I knew if I could get him in the center of the ring, I knew I could knock him out, but he wouldn't let me. Page, meanwhile, was so upset about his loss that he contemplated retirement saying "This is my retirement, man. I'm through with it. It's not worth it."[ citation needed ]
Holmes, now the IBF heavyweight champion, attended the fight as did then-WBA heavyweight champion Gerrie Coetzee. Holmes criticized the performance of both men telling media "I always told you neither of them could fight." When asked by someone at ringside who was ahead in the fight he jokingly answered "Where's there a fight?" [11]
Confirmed bouts: [12]
| Weight Class | Weight | vs. | Method | Round | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heavyweight | 200+ lbs. | Tim Witherspoon | def | Greg Page | MD | 12/12 | Note 1 |
| Cruiserweight | 190 lbs. | Carlos De León (c) | def. | Anthony Davis | UD | 12/12 | Note 2 |
| Featherweight | 126 lbs. | Azumah Nelson | def. | Hector Cortez | UD | 10/10 | |
| Heavyweight | 200+ lbs. | David Bey | def. | Leroy Caldwell | UD | 10/10 |
^Note 1 For WBC heavyweight title
^Note 2 For WBC and The Ring cruiserweight titles
| Country | Broadcaster |
|---|---|
 Australia | Seven Network |
 Canada | Superchannel |
 Mexico | Televisa |
 Philippines | MBS 4 |
 United Kingdom | BBC |
 United States | HBO |
Larry Holmes is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1973 to 2002 and was world heavyweight champion from 1978 until 1985. He is often considered to be one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time. He grew up in Easton, Pennsylvania, which led to his boxing nickname of the "Easton Assassin".
Tim Witherspoon is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1979 to 2003. He was a two-time world heavyweight champion, having held the WBC title in 1984, and the WBA title in 1986. He beat Heavyweight World Champions Greg Page, James Smith, Tony Tubbs, Frank Bruno and Cruiserweight World Champions Alfonzo Ratliff and Al Cole. He is best known for his fight against undefeated Heavyweight World Champion Larry Holmes in which he lost by Split decision. Witherspoon also worked as a regular sparring partner for Muhammad Ali.
James "Bonecrusher" Smith is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1981 to 1999 and held the WBA heavyweight title from 1986 to 1987.
Michael Dokes vs. Gerrie Coetzee, billed as "The Buckeye Homecoming", was a professional boxing match that took place on September 23, 1983, at the Richfield Coliseum in Richfield Township, Ohio, United States for Dokes' WBA heavyweight title.
Mike Tyson vs. Michael Spinks, billed as Once and For All, was a professional boxing match which took place on June 27, 1988. Both fighters were undefeated and each had a claim to being the legitimate heavyweight champion. At the time, Tyson held the belts of all three of the major sanctioning organizations while Spinks was The Ring and Lineal champion. The fight was held at the Convention Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey U.S., it was at the time the richest fight in boxing history, grossing some $70 million, of which Tyson earned a record purse of around $22 million and Spinks $13.5 million. Tyson won the fight, knocking out Spinks in 91 seconds.
Evander Holyfield vs. Riddick Bowe was a professional boxing match that took place on November 13, 1992 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The fight was contested for the undisputed world heavyweight championship, which consisted of the WBA, WBC, and IBF championships.
Riddick Bowe vs. Michael Dokes, billed as The Homecoming, was a professional boxing match contested on February 6, 1993 for the WBA and IBF heavyweight championships. The fight emanated from Madison Square Garden in New York, New York.
Mike Tyson vs. Pinklon Thomas, billed as Hard Road to Glory, was a professional boxing match contested on May 30, 1987, for the WBA and WBC heavyweight championships.
Lennox Lewis vs. Oliver McCall, billed "Whose Moment of Glory", was a professional boxing match contested on 24 September 1994 for the WBC Heavyweight Championship.
Mike Tyson vs. Marvis Frazier was a professional boxing match contested on July 26, 1986. The fight took place at the Glens Falls Civic Center in Glens Falls, New York, USA.
Chris Byrd vs. Evander Holyfield was a professional boxing match contested on December 14, 2002 for the vacant IBF heavyweight championship.
The heavyweight unification series, also known as the Heavyweight World Series, was a sequence of professional boxing matches held in 1986 and 1987 to crown an undisputed champion of the heavyweight class. The series was produced by HBO Sports and promoted by Don King. It ended with Mike Tyson as undisputed champion, holding the championship belts of the International Boxing Federation (IBF), World Boxing Association (WBA), and World Boxing Council (WBC).
Thomas Hearns vs. Roberto Durán, billed as Malice at the Palace, was a professional boxing match contested on June 15, 1984 for the WBC and The Ring super welterweight titles.
José Manuel Ribalta is a Cuban former professional boxer who competed in the heavyweight division from 1982 to 1999. A talented and physically imposing gatekeeper, Ribalta is best known for his brave performance against Mike Tyson in 1986.
The second fight between Tim Witherspoon and James "Bonecrusher" Smith was contested on December 12, 1986. The bout took place at Madison Square Garden in New York City and was contested for Witherspoon's WBA heavyweight championship. It was Witherspoon’s second defence of the championship he had won from Tony Tubbs in January 1986.
Tony Tubbs vs. Tim Witherspoon, billed as King's Dream was a professional boxing match contested on July 19, 1986, for the WBA heavyweight title.
Ken Norton vs. Larry Holmes was a professional boxing match contested on June 9, 1978, for the WBC heavyweight title.
Larry Holmes vs. Leon Spinks, billed as A Tribute to Joe Louis was a professional boxing match contested on June 12, 1981, for the WBC heavyweight title.
Michael Spinks vs. Gerry Cooney, billed as The War at the Shore was a professional boxing match contested on June 15, 1987, for the The Ring and lineal heavyweight titles.
Michael Spinks vs. Steffen Tangstad was a professional boxing match contested on September 6, 1986, for the IBF, The Ring and lineal heavyweight titles.