By Brett Mauren: 2007 saw the emergence of several stars in the squared circle; Kelly Pavlik, Michael Katsidis, and Chad Dawson are just a few in the newly formulating constellation of boxing, but one of the brightest of those stars was born this summer at the Home Depot Center, A 6’1 welterweight by the name of Paul Williams.
Although very early in his career, perhaps too early to consider the young Williams an elite fighter, his 1,000 punches thrown in a unanimous decision over Antonio Margarito cannot be ignored. It was two of the most avoided fighters in their division, with Williams emerging bearing a WBO strap. The effort proved to be almost baffling, posing several questions for boxing’s deepest division, the most outstanding being; what can you do with this guy? Well on Feb. 9 Carlos Quintana will take a crack at answering that question.
It is the same Quintana who quit on his stool against Miguel Cotto in 2006, but also the same Quintana who many believe was neck and neck with Cotto before being dropped in the 5th, oh yeah, it’s also the same Quintana who handed prospect Joel Julio his only loss to date. Williams will undoubtedly have his work cut out, just as he did with margarito, but work didn’t seem to bother “The Punisher” this summer. Paul looked 100% relaxed throughout the stretch of his showcase with Margarito, despite every attempt by Margarito to beat the young Williams mentally. Paul was slated to unify with fellow champion Kermit Cintron, but is certainly not catching a break with the replacement for the injured IBF champ.
A welterweight unification would have done wonders in clearing up the welterweight pecking order, and probably would have led to another unification with Miguel Cotto, and perhaps eventually a bout with Floyd Mayweather after his apparent rematch with Oscar De la Hoya this September. It is, as mentioned, too early to compare Williams with the Floyd Mayweather’s of the world, but he does have the hardware that serves as a golden ticket into immediate discussion of welterweight supremacy.
Every so often an athlete comes along with a trait that presents a problem for competitors. Just as Shaquielle O’Neil’s monstrous size was a plague for NBA defenders through the 90’s. Or just as Randy Moss’ blend of speed, height, and jumping ability proved to be almost frightening for cornerbacks. Now a new problem presents itself in the sweet science, it’s the 82’’ reach accompanied by the alarming punch rate of the southpaw, Williams. Whether or not Williams can capitalize on his early success has yet to be uncovered, but he certainly has laid the groundwork.