After his huge knockout of Ken Norton on ABC tv on March 23, 1979, Earnie Shavers was back in the ring two months later against Eddie Parotte at the Richfield Coliseum in Richfield, Ohio. Earnie knocked him out in three rounds, which set up a shot at Larry Holmes’ WBC heavyweight championship in September.
At this point in my life, I was getting to love boxing more every time I saw a bout on television. Larry Holmes had become my favorite fighter at the time, and when I tuned in on Friday, September 28, 1979 to watch him take on Earnie Shavers, it was pure excitement. I vividly recall Earnie talking about the home he had bought for his family in Ohio, and you couldn’t help but like him. Wanting him to win was another story.
Larry showed off his superior boxing skills from the outset, and kept his beautiful jab in Shavers’ face consistently. Holmes was a great boxer, and he was developing more every time he fought, and it didn’t seem there was any way Earnie could win the fight. Until round seven that it is, when in Larry’s own words “Lighting struck!” A perfect overhand right caromed of of Holmes’ head, dropping him like he had been hit by a rifle. Ever the champion, he got up on wobbly legs, and managed to survive the round. By the next round, his head had cleared, and in the eleventh, stopped Earnie on the ropes via a TKO.
Shavers came very close to capturing the crown that night at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas, but close only counts in horseshoes.
Six months later, Earnie would lose by TKO again to Bernardo Mercado at the Playboy Resort in McAfee, New Jersey in seven rounds. Shavers would become a trial horse the remainder of his career, and never challenge for the title again. He would fight 19 more times until early 1983, fighting fringe contenders and a few name fighters as well. He even made a foolish comeback, and fought three more times, once in 1987, and twice in 1995. He retired with a professional record of 76 wins, 14 losses, and 1 draw,
Whenever I think of Earnie Shavers today, I smile. I remember his kind nature, and friendly personality, and most of all, his tremendous punching power, Ask any heavyweight who ever fought him, and they’ll tell you that ‘No one hit harder than Earnie Shavers did!’ Incredibly, he has not been inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame, and passed away on September 1, 2022 at 78 years of age. Rest in peace Champ.
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