Raymond Anthony Mercer (born April 4, 1961) is an American former
professional boxer
Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional bouts are supervised by a regulatory autho ...
,
kickboxer, and
mixed martial artist
Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorpo ...
who competed from 1989 to 2009. Best known for his boxing career, Mercer won a
heavyweight
Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling.
Boxing Professional
Boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 3 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation, the Wo ...
gold medal at the
1988 Summer Olympics as an
amateur, and later held the
WBO heavyweight
Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling.
Boxing Professional
Boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 3 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation, the Wo ...
title from 1991 to 1992 as a professional. Boxrec ranks him as the world's No.9 heavyweight of 1990.
As a mixed martial artist, he scored a notable first-round
knockout win over former two-time
UFC
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...
heavyweight champion
Tim Sylvia
Timothy Deane Sylvia (born March 5, 1976) is an American retired mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter, professional wrestler, and a former two-time UFC Heavyweight Champion. He has competed as a Super Heavyweight and Heavyweight. While he is best kn ...
in 2009.
Early life
Mercer, being the son of retired
Army NCO Raymond Mercer Sr., grew up as a
military brat
A military brat ( colloquial or military slang) is a child of serving or retired military personnel. Military brats are associated with a unique subcultureDavid C. Pollock, Ruth E. van Reken. ''Third Culture Kids: Growing Up Among Worlds'', Rev ...
in
Fort Benning, Georgia
Fort Benning is a United States Army post near Columbus, Georgia, adjacent to the Alabama–Georgia border. Fort Benning supports more than 120,000 active-duty military, family members, reserve component soldiers, retirees and civilian employees ...
, and later in
Hanau, West Germany. He later recalled:
Mercer played
linebacker
Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, ...
at high school in
Hanau, didn't plan to go for a college education. After graduating from
Richmond County Military Academy in
Augusta, Georgia
Augusta ( ), officially Augusta–Richmond County, is a consolidated city-county on the central eastern border of the U.S. state of Georgia. The city lies across the Savannah River from South Carolina at the head of its navigable portion. Georgi ...
, he coasted for a year before enlisting in the Army.
Military service
Mercer served with the
USAREUR
United States Army Europe and Africa (USAREUR-AF) is an Army Service Component Command (ASCC) /Theater Army responsible for directing United States Army operations throughout the U.S. European Command (EUCOM) and U.S. Africa Command (AFRICO ...
,
V Corps 5th Corps, Fifth Corps, or V Corps may refer to:
France
* 5th Army Corps (France)
* V Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars
* V Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Ar ...
,
infantry
Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...
, he was stationed with Company D, 1st Battalion,
39th Infantry, in
Baumholder
Baumholder () is a town in the Birkenfeld district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, in the Westrich, an historic region that encompasses areas in both Germany and France. The town of Baumholder is the administrative seat of the like-named ''Verba ...
,
West Germany
West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...
.
His latest military rank was
sergeant.
Amateur boxing career
Mercer started boxing at the age of 23 while serving in the U.S. Army in West Germany. Mercer said he had never even put on a pair of gloves until after he enlisted, "The Army taught me everything I know about boxing," explained Mercer.
While he had
street fights as a youth, it wasn't until he was offered a chance to avoid a 30-day field exercise in the winter of 1984 by serving as a
sparring partner
Sparring is a form of training common to many combat sports. Although the precise form varies, it is essentially relatively ' free-form' fighting, with enough rules, customs, or agreements to minimize injuries. By extension, argumentative debate ...
for the post's heavyweight champion that he found a sanctioned way to use his aggression. The beginnings were tough. "I came back from that first day of sparring with a bleeding nose and my lips swollen. For two months I got pounded. But then it became a challenge. I'm not a quitter. I figured the other guy learned the moves, so could I." He learned quickly enough, winning military titles and a
United States Amateur Boxing Federation title.
He became 1985 U.S. Army and inter-service heavyweight champion, along with
Wesley Watson
Wesley Page Watson Jr. (born September 16, 1962, in Bristol, Tennessee) died January 4, 2021, in Wilmington, Delaware). He was an American heavyweight boxer best known for his successful amateur boxing career.
Early years
Watson, former Howard ...
, who was inter-service superheavyweight champion (Mercer later beat Watson as a professional). But in 1985, when Army Coach Hank Johnson sought to recruit Mercer for a stateside training camp for the 1988 Olympics, Mercer turned down the offer. "I was in my prime at partying. The training was not a sacrifice I wanted to make. I told Hank, you won't see me until the Olympics", he said.
He first boxed in organized competition in 1983 at
Schweinfurt, West Germany. He first won the brigade title after winning the battalion box-off. After that, Mercer claimed, "I won the VII Corps novice and open championships and finished second at U.S. Army, Europe. When he was reassigned to Baumholder, he won three USAREUR crowns while carrying the banner for V Corps
(he won the USAREUR Championship less than a year after his first amateur fight.) As he served with USAREUR, for that reason in 1986—1987 Mercer had several international bouts in Germany, he also competed internationally at Western Europe
open tournaments.
In summer of 1988 he again won the inter-service heavyweight championship. His next step was to apply for the all-Army boxing trial camp and win a spot on the Army team.
"Right now, I want to be the 'woodwork' man. I'm 26 years old and relatively unknown. My plans are to stay healthy, and I need to do well in international competition prior to the Olympics to build confidence."
He won the 1988
United States amateur heavyweight championship.
At the USA vs. Cuba match-up, Mercer twice staggered
Félix Savón
Félix Savón Fabre (born 22 September 1967) is a retired Cuban amateur boxer, who competed from 1980 to 2000. Considered one of the all-time greatest amateur boxers, he became three-time Olympic gold medalist, and the World Champion six times ...
, but was impeded from doing further damage by questionable intervention by the Cuban referee, Alfredo Toledo. At the USA vs. Europe match-up, Mercer with a hard right to the nose turned it into a "''No mas!''" fight for Yugoslavian
Željko Mavrović
Željko Mavrović (; ; born 17 February 1969) is a Croatian former professional boxer who competed from 1993 to 1998. In 1998, as an undefeated challenger, he faced Lennox Lewis for the WBC heavyweight title, but lost in what would be his fin ...
.
1988 Olympics
Going to the Olympic Team, he was one of the most highly regarded American Olympic boxers. Of all the U.S. 1988 Olympians,
Angelo Dundee
Angelo is an Italian masculine given name and surname meaning "angel", or "messenger".
People People with the given name
*Angelo Accattino (born 1966), Italian prelate of the Catholic Church
*Angelo Acciaioli (bishop) (1298–1357), Italian Rom ...
, a legendary trainer, chose Ray Mercer and
Andrew Maynard, as the most likely to develop into world champions after they would have turned into professionals: "Mercer's 27, but that's not too old. The maturity is there. And the punch. Give him 10 fights as a pro and he'd be ready to start moving up," Dundee said on Mercer's potential as a pro. According to Kelvin Richardson of the '88 All-Army Team, Mercer was such a hard puncher, that even 16-ounce gloves weren't of much help for his sparring partners from being knocked off the ring, and his superheavyweight Olympic teammate,
Riddick Bowe, didn't want to spar with Mercer for that reason.
Before one of Maynard's fights, Mercer and
Anthony Hembrick
Anthony Hembrick (born February 22, 1966) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1989 to 1996. He twice challenged for a world light-heavyweight title in 1992 and 1993. As an amateur, he was a member of the 1988 US Olympics t ...
took off with their flags and good-naturedly dodged the people who tried to get in their way. A few tried to trip the pair, another tried to tackle the heavyweight Mercer, and one security guard even stopped him and tried to steer him back to his seat. Mercer would have none of it. "He didn't speak English, and I don't speak Korean, so he talked his stuff and I talked mine. I didn't think we connected, so I just kept on going." said Mercer. Soldiers from his unit back in Germany were rooting for him. Right before the Olympics they made a large banner with everyone's signature on it and shipped it overnight to Seoul. "They've been a big part of my support, and a gold medal would mean almost as much to them as it would to me. That banner really picked me up. I'm fighting for the people of the United States, but especially for the ones back in my unit," he told his audience during one of his post-fight interviews.
Mercer knocked out all four of his Olympic opponents, winning Gold of the
1988 Olympics in
Seoul
Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...
as a heavyweight. When asked if he thought he needed to stop the South Korean in order to win the gold medal, he replied: "Definitely. Or I'll make him wish he was knocked out. One of the two." He was the oldest member of the United States Olympic Boxing Team at 27.
Highlights
USAREUR Boxing Championships (heavyweight),
Darmstadt, West Germany, May 1985:
*Finals: Defeated Gregory Ellerbee
USA–USSR Duals (heavyweight),
Troy, New York
Troy is a city in the U.S. state of New York and the county seat of Rensselaer County. The city is located on the western edge of Rensselaer County and on the eastern bank of the Hudson River. Troy has close ties to the nearby cities of Albany ...
, October 1985:
* Defeated Renat Trishev (Soviet Union) by split decision, 2–1
United States Armed Forces Championships (heavyweight),
Camp Lejeune, North Carolina
Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune () is a United States military training facility in Jacksonville, North Carolina. Its of beaches make the base a major area for amphibious assault training, and its location between two deep-water ports ( Wilming ...
, November 1985:
* (no data available)
Stockholm Box Open (heavyweight),
Stockholm, Sweden, January 1986:
*Finals: Lost to
Magne Havnå
Magne Havnå (16 September 1963 – 29 May 2004) was a Norwegian professional boxer who once held the WBO world title in cruiserweight, beating Boone Pultz (USA) in 5 rounds in May 1990. His son Kai Robin Havnaa is also a boxer in the cruiserwei ...
(Norway) by split decision, 2–3
USA–FRG Duals (heavyweight),
West Berlin, West Germany
West Berlin (german: Berlin (West) or , ) was a political enclave which comprised the western part of Berlin during the years of the Cold War. Although West Berlin was de jure not part of West Germany, lacked any sovereignty, and was under ...
, July 1987:
* Defeated Andre Hoth (West Germany) RSC 2
USA–FRG Duals (heavyweight),
Peissenberg,
West Germany
West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...
, July 1987:
* Defeated Andre Hoth (West Germany) by unanimous decision, 3–0
USA–FRG & Austria Duals (heavyweight),
Neuhausen, West Germany, July 1987:
* Defeated Peter Neyer (Austria) by decision
Copenhagen Cup (heavyweight),
Copenhagen, Denmark
Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
, December 1987:
*Finals: Lost to
Maik Heydeck (East Germany) by unanimous decision, 0–5
United States Armed Forces Championships (heavyweight),
Naval Air Station San Diego
Naval Air Station North Island or NAS North Island , at the north end of the Coronado peninsula on San Diego Bay in San Diego, California, is part of the largest aerospace-industrial complex in the United States Navy – Naval Base Coronado (N ...
,
San Diego, California
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...
, March 1988:
* Defeated Leonard Conway RSCH 1
United States National Championships (heavyweight),
Colorado Springs, Colorado, March–April 1988:
*1/16: Defeated Mike Sharp KO
*1/8: Defeated Lyle McDowell RSC 2
*1/4: Defeated Ike Padilla RSC 2
*1/2: Defeated Carlton Hollis RSCH 1
*Finals: Defeated Jerry Goff by unanimous decision, 5–0
USA–Cuba Duals (heavyweight),
Caesars Atlantic City,
Atlantic City, New Jersey, April 1988:
* Lost to
Félix Savón
Félix Savón Fabre (born 22 September 1967) is a retired Cuban amateur boxer, who competed from 1980 to 2000. Considered one of the all-time greatest amateur boxers, he became three-time Olympic gold medalist, and the World Champion six times ...
(Cuba) by split decision, 1–2
USA–Europe Duals (heavyweight),
Las Vegas Convention Center
The Las Vegas Convention Center (commonly referred to as LVCC) is a convention center in Winchester, Nevada. It is owned and operated by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.
As one of the largest convention centers in the world, it h ...
,
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
, June 1988:
* Defeated
Željko Mavrović
Željko Mavrović (; ; born 17 February 1969) is a Croatian former professional boxer who competed from 1993 to 1998. In 1998, as an undefeated challenger, he faced Lennox Lewis for the WBC heavyweight title, but lost in what would be his fin ...
(Yugoslavia) RSC 1
Olympic Trials (heavyweight),
Concord Pavilion
Concord Pavilion (formerly known as Sleep Train Pavilion and Chronicle Pavilion) is an amphitheatre located in Concord, California. It is owned by the City of Concord and operated by Live Nation. The Pavilion has a capacity of 12,500 people and op ...
,
Concord, California
Concord ( ) is the largest city in Contra Costa County, California. According to an estimate completed by the United States Census Bureau, the city had a population of 129,295 in 2019 making it the eighth largest city in the San Francisco Bay ...
, July 1988:
*1/4: Defeated
Tommy Morrison
Tommy "The Duke" Morrison (January 2, 1969 – September 1, 2013) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1988 to 2008, and held the WBO heavyweight title in 1993. He retired from boxing in 1996 when he tested positive for HIV. Mo ...
by unanimous decision, 5–0
*1/2: Defeated Carlton Hollis by unanimous decision, 5–0
*Finals: Defeated
Michael Bentt
Michael Bentt (born September 4, 1965) is a British-born American film and television actor, and retired professional boxer who competed from 1989 to 1994. Of Jamaican heritage, he was born in East Dulwich, London, but raised in the Cambria Hei ...
by unanimous decision, 5–0
Olympic Box-offs (heavyweight),
Caesars Palace,
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
, July 1988:
*Day 1: Defeated
Michael Bentt
Michael Bentt (born September 4, 1965) is a British-born American film and television actor, and retired professional boxer who competed from 1989 to 1994. Of Jamaican heritage, he was born in East Dulwich, London, but raised in the Cambria Hei ...
by split decision, 3–2
USA–Canada Duals (heavyweight),
Charlotte Coliseum
Charlotte Coliseum was a multi-purpose sports and entertainment arena located in Charlotte, North Carolina. It was operated by the Charlotte Coliseum Authority, which also oversees the operation of Bojangles' Coliseum (which was called Charlott ...
,
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...
, August 1988:
* Defeated Wayne Bernard (Canada) RET 2
Summer Olympics (heavyweight),
Seoul, South Korea
Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 o ...
, September–October 1988:
*1/8: Defeated
Rudolf Gavenčiak (Czechoslovakia) RSCH 3
*1/4: Defeated
Luigi Gaudiano (Italy) KO 1
*1/2: Defeated
Arnold Vanderlyde
Arnold Petrus Maria Vanderlyde (born 24 January 1963) is a Dutch former amateur boxer, who participated in three Summer Olympics (1984, 1988 and 1992) and won three bronze medals in the heavyweight division (≤91 kg). He started boxing a ...
(Netherlands) RSCH 2
*Finals: Defeated
Baik Hyun-Man (South Korea) KO 1
Mercer had a total of 70 fights as an amateur, competing all his amateur career in the 201-pound class, and compiling an amateur record of 64 wins, 6 losses (no stoppages.) Upon winning the Olympic Gold Medal, Mercer was approached by boxing promoter
Bob Arum
Robert Arum (born December 8, 1931) is an American lawyer and boxing promoter. He is the founder and CEO of Top Rank, a professional boxing promotion company based in Las Vegas. Prior to becoming a boxing promoter, Arum was employed as an attorn ...
, with whom he signed a contract to turn professional. Under the deal, he was to be trained in Las Vegas, Nevada, under Hank Johnson of Fort Bragg, who was the All-Army Coach, and the assistant Olympic coach. Also under the deal, Arum got the rights to promote a certain number of televised bouts, leaving the boxer free to fight for others.
Upon winning the 1988 Olympics, he was named Armed Forces Athlete of the Year in November 1988 (which was quite an achievement, considering that the Army branch alone produced 19 Olympians in 1988.) In January 1989, being
honorary discharged, Mercer left the Army to pursue a professional boxing career.
Professional boxing career
Mercer turned pro in January 1989 and debuted with a 3rd TKO of Jesse Hughes. He scored a series of knockouts and in August 1990 knocked down and outpointed big punching Smokin'
Bert Cooper
Bertram Cooper (January 10, 1966 – May 10, 2019), nicknamed Smokin' Bert Cooper, was an American professional boxer who competed between 1984 and 2012. He fought Evander Holyfield, George Foreman, Riddick Bowe, Michael Moorer, Chris Byrd, Ray ...
in a spectacular 12 round brawl that earned him Cooper's
NABF title. In January 1991 he challenged undefeated
Francesco Damiani
Francesco Damiani (born 4 October 1958) is an Italian former professional boxer who competed from 1985 to 1993. He was the first WBO heavyweight champion, having held the title from 1989 to 1991, as well as the European heavyweight title from 19 ...
for the
WBO heavyweight title, scoring a one punch knockout victory in the 9th when behind on points. At that time the WBO championship wasn't considered a major championship, it didn't become a major belt equal to the WBA WBC and IBF belts until 2004. Later that year he beat undefeated puncher
Tommy Morrison
Tommy "The Duke" Morrison (January 2, 1969 – September 1, 2013) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1988 to 2008, and held the WBO heavyweight title in 1993. He retired from boxing in 1996 when he tested positive for HIV. Mo ...
in five, and with a major world title fight on the horizon vacated his WBO belt and fought 42-year-old legend
Larry Holmes
Larry Holmes (born November 3, 1949) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1973 to 2002 and was world heavyweight champion from 1978 until 1985. He grew up in Easton, Pennsylvania, which led to his boxing nickname of the "Ea ...
rather than mandatory challenger
Michael Moorer
Michael Lee Moorer (born November 12, 1967) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1988 to 2008. He won a world championship on four occasions in two weight classes, having held the WBO light heavyweight title from 1988 t ...
. It proved an unwise decision, as the crafty Holmes conned Mercer out of the fight, outjabbing the puzzled Mercer and gaining both the points decision, and Mercer's world title fight with heavyweight king
Evander Holyfield.
Having split fights with dangerous veteran
Jesse Ferguson
Jesse Ferguson (born March 20, 1957) is a retired American boxer who fought in several noteworthy boxing matches in the 1980s and 1990s. His professional career is filled with matches with champions and contenders and his name is linked with nu ...
(Mercer was investigated for allegedly asking Ferguson to "throw the fight" during their first encounter), labored when overweight to a draw with trialhorse
Marion Wilson, and saw a proposed 1994 bout in Hong Kong with
Frank Bruno
Franklin Roy Bruno, (born 16 November 1961) is a British former professional boxer who competed from 1982 to 1996. He had a highly publicised and eventful career, both in and out of the ring. The pinnacle of Bruno's boxing career was winning ...
fall through, Mercer enjoyed an unexpected run of form in major fights, losing on points in a thrilling brawl with Holyfield in May 1995, losing a controversial decision in another wild punch up, this time with
Lennox Lewis, in June 1996, and scoring a controversial points win over ex-champ
Tim Witherspoon
Tim Witherspoon (born December 27, 1957) 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. Witherspoon also wo ...
in yet another high action bout in December 1996. In the frame for a bout with
Andrew Golota
Andrzej Jan Gołota (; born 5 January 1968), best known as Andrew Golota, is a Polish former professional boxer who competed from 1992 to 2013. He challenged four times for a heavyweight world title (by all four major sanctioning bodies), and as ...
in 1997, Mercer suffered a neck injury and was out of action for 14 months. He returned February 1998 with a 2-round KO of Leo Loiacono, but contracted
Hepatitis B
Hepatitis B is an infectious disease caused by the ''Hepatitis B virus'' (HBV) that affects the liver; it is a type of viral hepatitis. It can cause both acute and chronic infection.
Many people have no symptoms during an initial infection. Fo ...
and was again inactive, this time for 20 months.
Comeback
In February 2001 a 39-year-old Mercer launched a final comeback, knocking out four journeymen before being matched with WBO title holder
Wladimir Klitschko
Wladimir Klitschko; an equivalent English spelling is Vladimir Klichko . His full name in uk, label=Ukrainian is, Володимир Володимирович Кличко, Volodymyr Volodymyrovych Klychko, . ( uk, Володимир Вол ...
in a high-profile bout on HBO. Once famed for his incredible
iron chin, Mercer looked his age and was knocked down in the first and stopped in the first time in his career, the 6th. A brief dalliance in the mixed martial arts nixed a 2004 bout with
DaVarryl Williamson
DaVarryl Jerome Williamson (born July 25, 1968) is an American former professional boxer. A highly-touted amateur, he challenged once for the IBF world heavyweight title in 2005.
Early and personal life
Williamson was raised in poverty in th ...
. However, Mercer did return to boxing in 2005, now aged 44, but he was stopped in seven rounds by
Shannon Briggs
Shannon Briggs (born December 4, 1971) is an American former professional boxer. He is a two-time heavyweight champion, having held the lineal heavyweight championship from 1997 to 1998, and the WBO title from 2006 to 2007. Briggs is known for h ...
.
Kickboxing career
Continuing to seek a fighting career, Mercer opted to travel to Japan and challenged
Musashi in the kickboxing combat sport
K-1 on June 6, 2004. Mercer held a reasonable account of himself, but his age and inability to successfully defend kicks was evident as he went on to lose the bout via unanimous decision. On March 19, 2005, he had one more
K-1 bout against
Remy Bonjasky
Remy Kenneth Bonjasky (born January 10, 1976) is a Surinamese-Dutch former kickboxer. He is a three-time K-1 World Grand Prix heavyweight champion, winning the title in 2003, 2004, and 2008. Bonjasky has been known for his flying kicks, knee att ...
, to whom he lost via verbal submission. The first and only strike of the night, a head kick, landed square on the head of Mercer. It wasn't your typical fight; Mercer took the head kick and then quit the fight.. As Mercer put it, "I got the shit kicked out of me"
Mixed martial arts career
After a series of scheduled boxing matchups fell through (including a proposed bout against former champion
Hasim Rahman
Hasim Sharif Rahman (born November 7, 1972) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1994 to 2014. He is a two-time world heavyweight champion, having held the unified WBC, IBF, IBO and lineal titles in 2001; and the WBC t ...
), Mercer decided to try
mixed martial arts (MMA)
Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorp ...
and approached Felix Martinez, co-founder of
Cage Fury Fighting Championships
Cage Fury Fighting Championships (CFFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion primarily operating in the Northeastern United States. Founded by Felix and Amy Martinez, they promoted their first shows in Atlantic City, New Jersey, l ...
, about working with the promotion. On March 21, 2007, Cage Fury announced that Mercer had signed to face underground street fighter and Internet legend
Kimbo Slice at Atlantic City's Boardwalk Hall on June 23, 2007, as part of ''
Cage Fury Fighting Championship 5''. The bout was a non-sanctioned exhibition under the New Jersey Unified MMA rules.
Kimbo Slice won the fight in the first round with a
guillotine choke
The guillotine choke, also known as Mae Hadaka Jime (前裸絞, "front naked choke"; compare to a rear naked choke) in judo, is a chokehold in martial arts applied from in front of the opponent, often on the ground but can also be done while stan ...
submission. Mercer later stated in the press conference at Adrenaline III: Bragging Rights, when he was scheduled to fight
Tim Sylvia
Timothy Deane Sylvia (born March 5, 1976) is an American retired mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter, professional wrestler, and a former two-time UFC Heavyweight Champion. He has competed as a Super Heavyweight and Heavyweight. While he is best kn ...
under MMA rules instead of Boxing rules, that he had expected Kimbo Slice to box with him, and said that he did not really train in any other aspect of
MMA
Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on strike (attack), striking, grappling and ground f ...
and was unprepared for the
guillotine choke
The guillotine choke, also known as Mae Hadaka Jime (前裸絞, "front naked choke"; compare to a rear naked choke) in judo, is a chokehold in martial arts applied from in front of the opponent, often on the ground but can also be done while stan ...
.
On June 13, 2009, Mercer made a big splash when he defeated former UFC Heavyweight Champion Tim Sylvia at Adrenaline III: Bragging Rights. He won the fight via knockout in 9 seconds with a huge right hand to the chin, becoming the first man to ever defeat Sylvia by knockout.
In March 2010, it was announced that Mercer had signed with the
King of the Cage
King of the Cage (KOTC) is a mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion based in Southern California, United States.
History
KOTC was founded in 1998 by Terry Trebilcock. KOTC features mostly amateur as well as up and coming MMA stars and former mainstr ...
organization, although no bouts would materialize.
Professional boxing record
Kickboxing record
Mixed martial arts record
Professional record
, -
, Win
, align=center , 1–0
,
Tim Sylvia
Timothy Deane Sylvia (born March 5, 1976) is an American retired mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter, professional wrestler, and a former two-time UFC Heavyweight Champion. He has competed as a Super Heavyweight and Heavyweight. While he is best kn ...
, KO (punch)
, Adrenaline MMA 3: Bragging Rights
,
, align=center , 1
, align=center , 0:09
,
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County, Alabama's most populous county. As of the 2021 census estimates, Birmingham had a population of 197,575, down 1% fr ...
, United States
,
Exhibition record
, -
, Loss
, align=center , 0–1
,
Kimbo Slice
, Submission (guillotine choke)
,
Cage Fury Fighting Championship 5
,
, align=center , 1
, align=center , 1:12
,
Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
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References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Mercer, Ray
1961 births
African-American boxers
African-American mixed martial artists
American male kickboxers
American male mixed martial artists
Boxers at the 1988 Summer Olympics
Boxers from Florida
Heavyweight boxers
Heavyweight mixed martial artists
Mixed martial artists utilizing boxing
Kickboxers from Florida
Living people
Mixed martial artists from Florida
Olympic boxers of the United States
Sportspeople from Jacksonville, Florida
Heavyweight kickboxers
United States Army soldiers
Winners of the United States Championship for amateur boxers
World Boxing Organization champions
World heavyweight boxing champions
American male boxers
Olympic gold medalists for the United States in boxing
Medalists at the 1988 Summer Olympics
21st-century African-American people
20th-century African-American sportspeople