The eyes of the boxing world were on Las Vegas, Nevada this Saturday night, November 2, and for junior welterweight Ricardo Williams Jr., the bout against Terronn Millett provided an opportunity to showcase his goods, to prove he is for real.

"I can't think of a better place to come back than on a big card like Barrera-Tapia on HBO," said Williams in a pre-fight interview. "It's going to be a great night for boxing and an even better night for me."

The ten rounder, held at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, and televised live by HBO's World Championship Boxing was the Olympic Silver medallist's first bout since suffering a hand injury in a win over Anthony Washington in February.

"I missed boxing when I was out," admitted Williams in that interview. "I've been counting the days until I can step through the ropes on November 2."

His opponent was no pushover, no easy opponent to ease Williams back into battle after his injury. In Terronn Millett (27-3-1, with 19 KO's), Williams faced a former IBF champion who has been in the ring with the likes of Vince Phillips, Arturo Gatti, and Zab Judah.

"You can't take any opponent lightly," said Williams. "Millett is a former world champion, and if I want to win a championship I have to beat guys like him to get there. This is an opportunity I've been waiting for, so I don't feel any pressure."

Lou DiBella, President of DiBella Entertainment, added: "This is Ricky's first big step towards boxing super stardom. Millett is a tough fight for him, but I know he's well prepared for this. The real winners on November 2 will be boxing fans."

Mr. DiBella was not far off the mark; Ricardo Williams defeated the veteran Millett in convincing fashion, gaining some valuable experience in the process, as he was head butted, elbowed and otherwise roughed up by a frustrated Millett.

Williams is definitely a work in progress, but his performance tonight has to be considered a major step in the right direction. Nevertheless, there is work to be done, flaws were exposed and Williams must be focused and dedicated enough to go back to the gym, and back to square one, as most fighters like to say.

His jab has great potential, although sometimes he backhands it, and it could be thrown with more power behind it. He head hunted, neglecting to work Millett's body for the most part of the fight. More work needs to be done with combinations, as Williams would benefit from setting punches behind his jab, rather than throwing the jab and backing out. Being elbowed and head butted seemed to have unraveled him a bit, a rude awakening of sorts, although to his credit, he hung in there and added another W to his flawless record.

The issue of the weight should be of some concern as well; it's hard to imagine Williams being able to remain in the junior welterweight division.

On the plus side he showed good foot work and defensive skills. He is fast thinking in the ring, and for someone with such limited professional experience, Team Williams has to be encouraged at the dominance displayed by their man over a gritty veteran. The officials certainly were impressed with his performance, awarding him a unanimous decision, 98-92, 99-91 and 100-90. Our unofficial scorecard had Williams the winner 99-91.

Larry Merchant recapped it best when he said: "Millett is a shot fighter, Williams is still shooting."

11-02-2002

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