Riddick Bowe vs. Jesse Ferguson

Riddick Bowe vs. Jesse Ferguson, billed as "The Heavyweight Debate", was a professional boxing match contested on May 22, 1993, for the WBA and Lineal Heavyweight championships. The fight took place in RFK Stadium in Washington, DC, was Bowe's second defense of the title he had won from Evander Holyfield in November 1992, and was the main event of a card that included a fight between Roy Jones Jr. and Bernard Hopkins for the vacant IBF middleweight championship, which Jones won.

The Heavyweight Debate

Date	May 22, 1993
Venue	RFK Stadium, Washington, D.C.
Title(s) on the line	WBA and Lineal Heavyweight Championships
Tale of the tape
Boxer Riddick Bowe Jesse Ferguson Nickname "Big Daddy" "The Boogieman" Hometown Brooklyn, New York Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Purse $7,000,000 $500,000 Pre-fight record 33–0 (28 KO) 19–9 (13 KO) Age 25 years, 9 months 36 years, 2 months Height 6 ft 5 in (196 cm) 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) Weight 244 lb (111 kg) 224 lb (102 kg) Style Orthodox Orthodox Recognition WBA, IBF and Lineal Heavyweight Champion WBA No. 12 Ranked Heavyweight
Result
Bowe defeated Ferguson via 2nd round knockout

Background

Since winning what was then the undisputed world heavyweight championship from Evander Holyfield in November 1992, Bowe had made one title defense. That came in February 1993 in a fight against former champion Michael Dokes, whom he knocked out in the first round to retain the WBA, IBF, and lineal championships he still held (he was forced to relinquish the WBC championship after refusing to defend against their number one contender, Lennox Lewis).

Ferguson, meanwhile, had largely been a journeyman fighter over the course of his career. His resume featured bouts against a series of former and future champions, but he had never once fought for a world title and had been defeated nine times when he entered a bout with 1988 Olympic gold medalist and rising contender Ray Mercer on the same night Bowe fought Dokes. Despite being a significant underdog, Ferguson outboxed Mercer and won a decision victory.

Bowe, who had been seeking a fight with Mercer, instead chose to make his next defense against Ferguson. However, the IBF did not have Ferguson in its contender rankings and refused to allow Bowe to defend their title against him; therefore, when the bout was signed, only the WBA and lineal championships were placed at stake. Despite his limited success and his status as a 40-1 underdog, Ferguson remained confident that he could defeat Bowe, vowing to get the victory by knockout. Bowe responded to Ferguson's claims by calling him a "knucklehead" while also threatening to "punish" his competitor.

Bowe was a 40-1 favourite on fight night.

The Fights

Jones Jr. vs. Hopkins

The Heavyweight Debate: Roy Jones Jr. vs. Bernard Hopkins

Title(s) on the line	IBF Middleweight title
Tale of the tape
Boxer Roy Jones Jr. Bernard Hopkins Nickname "Junior" "The Executioner" Hometown Pensacola, Florida Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Pre-fight record 21–0 (20 KO) 22–1 (15 KO) Age 24 years, 4 months 28 years, 4 months Height 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) 6 ft 1 in (185 cm) Weight 159+1⁄2 lb (72 kg) 159 lb (72 kg) Style Orthodox Orthodox Recognition IBF No. 2 Ranked Middleweight IBF No. 1 Ranked Middleweight
Result
Jones Jr. wins via 12-round unanimous decision (116-112, 116-112, 116-112)

In the chief support, 1988 Olympics Silver medalist Roy Jones Jr. faced Bernard Hopkins for the IBF middleweight belt vacated by James Toney following his victory over Iran Barkley to win the IBF super middleweight title in February.

Both fighters were appearing in their first world title bout.

Gil Clancy on the HBO broadcast would some up the match up by saying "Bernard Hopkins is by far the best boxer and puncher Roy Jones has fought, but conversely, Roy is the most talented boxer Bernard Hopkins has ever fought."

The fight

Jones would prove too fast and too strong for Hopkins, largely controlling the action with his speed and unorthodox style. The more orthodox Hopkins would have some success whenever he backed Jones to the ropes, but these were sporadic and brief.

At the end of 12 rounds all three judges would score the bout 116–112 in favour of Jones, giving him a unanimous decision victory. Unofficial HBO scorer Harold Lederman scored it 118–110 and Boxing Illustrated had 117–111 both for Jones.

Jones landed 206 of 594 punches (35%) while Hopkins connected on 153 of 670 (23%).

Aftermath

Speaking to Larry Merchant after the bout Jones said "I was very tight coming into the fight, I had so much build-up on me. Being like I am, I kind of expected that, but I thank God I made it through that one and it won’t happen no more. That was my first title and that was that."

Jones would claim he had entered the bout with a broken right hand.

The two would have a rematch 17 years later at Light Heavyweight, where Hopkins would avenge his defeat with a dominant unanimous decision victory of his own.

Main Event

Much like in his previous fight, Bowe was able to dominate the entire duration of the fight. Bowe was the aggressor from the opening bell, constantly having Ferguson on the defensive throughout the first round by effectively using his left jab. With less than 30 seconds left in the round, a left hook from Bowe sent Ferguson back into the ropes which led to Bowe landing another left hook 10 seconds later that dropped Ferguson to the canvas. Ferguson barely was able to answer the referee's 10 count, just managing to get up at the count of nine as the round ended. Only seconds into round 2, Bowe was able to land an 8-punch combination that again sent Ferguson to the mat. This time Ferguson was unable to get up and Bowe was announced the winner by knockout.

Aftermath

After Bowe's two successful title defenses over marginal competition, the much anticipated Bowe–Holyfield rematch was announced to take place on November 6, 1993. Like the previous fight, the two fighters again went the full 12 rounds, this time though, it was Holyfield who would earn the victory, becoming the only man to defeat Bowe in his professional career.

Undercard

Confirmed bouts:

Winner	Loser	Weight division/title belt(s) disputed	Result
Roy Jones Jr.	Bernard Hopkins	vacant IBF middleweight title	12th round Unanimous decision
Non-TV bouts
Egerton Marcus	Andrew Maynard	NABF Light Heavyweight Title	8th round RTD.
Sharmba Mitchell	Kenny Baysmore	Catchweight (10 rounds)	1st round KO.
George Scott	John Stewart	Welterweight (8 rounds)	Unanimous decision.
Jorge Luis Gonzalez	Dwayne Hall	Heavyweight (8 rounds)	1st round TKO.
Shannon Briggs	Bruce Johnson	Heavyweight (6 rounds)	1st round TKO.
Ben Simmons	Anthony Hardy	Super Featherweight (4 rounds)	Majority decision.

Broadcasting

Country	Broadcaster
Mexico	Televisa
United Kingdom	ITV
United States	HBO