The history of boxing is loaded to the brim of fighters who have found redemption through this sport. Pro fighters have long had the opportunity to atone for past failures. In other sports, an athlete who goes off the tracks is likely to remain derailed or is forced to find success in a different area. There are simply not many second opportunities to be had in other sports. You don’t see too many 26 and 27-year olds coming out of nowhere to become NBA or NFL stars. In those sports, you need to be on the right track from a young age to make it big.
Boxing is often portrayed as a sport that is awfully hard on its participants. True enough, but one of the beautiful things about boxing is that it never completely shuts its doors on a guy with talent. It’s not so much about what a man did in the past, but more about where he is now in his life. If we look at the sport’s history and find names like Bernard Hopkins, we see that this is a sport for second chances. Come-from-behind guys can turn their lives around and forge a fruitful and meaningful path. Some fighters, like Hopkins, become legends.
“Dangerous” Dannie Williams, 26, made his bones coming up in St. Louis during that city’s renaissance boxing period. He worked with trainer Kevin Cunningham and championship fighters like Cory Spinks and Devon Alexander. He won 9 national amateur boxing competitions, including the 2004 National Golden Gloves. His road to this point hasn’t always been smooth, but when you see him fight, you hear that little voice from within saying, “This guy is gonna need to be reckoned with.”
Williams is locked onto a good path now and you get the feeling that he wants to keep it that way. A testament to his growing maturity and dedication, Williams left his hometown and moved to Youngstown, now training full-time with Jack Loew. It speaks well of a young man’s desire who is willing to leave his beloved hometown in order to have the best chance to succeed. According to Loew, the difference between his former and present stomping grounds is like night and day. If the 16-1 (13 KOs) Williams can beat Manuel Leyva on April 15, he will win the WBC Continental Americas Title and have his foot in the door—making all the sacrifices start to seem very worthwhile.
Williams’ only loss was to top 130-pound unbeaten prospect/contender Eloy Perez. He was dropped and also had Perez down twice, but losing ten pounds right before the fight left him weakened in the later rounds. The setback is also what led Williams to move to Youngstown and change his environment–making it a possible blessing in disguise. Now at 135, the 26-year old powerpuncher sets his sights on a rip-roaring division replete with an endless list of tasty potential matchups. I spoke with him about his career. Here’s what he had to say:
Proboxing-fans.com: Dannie, you got a big fight coming up against 18-2 Manuel Leyva, a fighter many felt beat ex-champ Casamayor in his last fight. After looking so good against Cuello in your last fight, how important is it for you to have another impressive performance to keep building that heat?
Dannie Williams: It’s very important. This is the biggest fight of my career. This could put me in the top ten in the world. The good thing about it is that my last two fights are back-to-back. Before I fought Cuello, I hadn’t fought in 7 months. This is kinda like back-to-back, so there’s no ring rust because I just fought. That whole time I’ve been training, so I’m ready to get in there and show my power.
Does it help that the last guy you fought is also a southpaw so you don’t have to change your approach in the gym too much from last fight?
Dannie Williams: Um, not really. We’ve been getting great sparring from Miguel Gonzalez (a southpaw) out of Cleveland, Ohio who is 15-2. I was around Devon Alexander coming up in the amateurs in St. Louis, so I’ve been around a lot of southpaws, so we’ll be all right.
So this is nothing new for you?
Dannie Williams: No, not at all.
In the amateurs, you beat guys like Rios and Bey. How does it make you feel seeing those guys, especially Rios, doing as well as they are now?
Dannie Williams: Yeah, I beat Rios, dropped him and everything. I like it (seeing how well he’s doing). All I can do is keep checking on these guys and maybe I can compete with these guys again.
It gives you motivation, right.
Dannie Williams: Exactly.
Got some fights coming up tonight. Are you a guy who will make a point of watching a Pay Per View if there’s guys on the card in your weight class? You got Guerrero-Katsidis going tonight.
Dannie Williams: Oh, yeah!
Any thoughts on that fight?
Dannie Williams: It’ll be a good, tough fight. Guerrero wins a lot of his fights with his boxing, but Katsidis is a pressure fighter who can fight 12 rounds unless he knocks you out. It’s gonna be a good fight, so we’ll see.
Everything you hear now is that you’re doing well, staying dedicated. What’s the difference in your drive and motivation now from a couple years back? What changed?
Dannie Williams: A lot changed! Me getting away from my hometown of St. Louis, staying away from a lot of people. I mean, I did have a downfall. I went to jail for a minute, but I got out in 2008 and got back on the horse. I’ve been riding the horse again as far as fighting, training. I got away and hooked up with Jack Loew. All the people love me in Ohio now. So it was a big step for me—a big sacrifice. You gotta sacrifice to get where you want to be.
You’re no stranger to training with good fighters. You mentioned Devon Alexander. Is it helping you to be around a championship-level fighter like Kelly Pavlik?
Dannie Williams: Aw, yeah! We’ve been working, he’s getting ready for the fight on May 7. So we’ve been down in the gym. We’ve both been working out. I was just watching him spar, so it’s just real good. I’m lovin’ it.
Why do you think it is that Youngstown, a town where the population is always near 100,000, has a deeper history of successful boxers than places with over a million people like here in San Diego? How is that possible?
Dannie Williams: For me, it’s all about…it’s not where you live, it’s all about people—dedication and hard work. It’s all about what you put into it. You’re gonna get out what you put in. If you put a lot in, you’re gonna get it out—you’re gonna get a championship belt. If you fail to prepare, you prepare to fail.
You came up in St. Louis, a town that has a rich boxing tradition of its own. Was there anyone you looked up to on your way up?
Dannie Williams: Actually, I was training in the amateurs with Cory Spinks and Alexander. We went through the amateurs, went to all the national tournaments together. Devon Alexander and Cory Spinks—I looked up to those guys.
Dannie, do you think the one thing that’s gonna end up separating you from other guys is your tendency to be in really good fights?
Dannie Williams: Yeah, definitely. Plus my power, you know? I have a lot of knockouts. Every fight I’ve been in, I dropped the guy at least twice. So my power and getting good fights, getting the right fights—that’s gonna make me stand out. Once they see me get in there with my power putting someone down, and watch me fight, they’re gonna love me.
A lot of times a guy are either a boxer or a puncher and with you I see a little bit of both. If you had to describe your style to someone who’s never seen you, what would you say?
Dannie Williams: My style is like…well, look at my nickname “Dangerous.” You never know what you’re gonna get. You’re gonna get a little bit of speed and you’re definitely gonna get the power. I’m naturally strong, but I don’t depend on my power. I’ll box, box, box, but once I see that you don’t have heart or can’t stand the pain—I wanna take you out.
Ok, so just to clarify: you’re at 135 for good now or is 130 still in the picture?
Dannie Williams: Actually, if I could get that fight again with Eloy Perez, who I lost to…I probably should have finished him. I had him down 3 times. But if I can get that fight, I’d probably take it again maybe at a catchweight of 132, but I would go to 130 just to get that revenge, but they don’t want to fight me. They don’t want me again.
You look at 135 pounds now and it’s a division that’s starting to shape up to be one of the top weight classes. You’ve got such a nice mix of established veterans, young championship-level guys, and a lot of up-and-comers. How exciting is it for you to know the opportunities that lie ahead in this division?
Dannie Williams: Oh, I’m very excited. For me, it’s about competing with the best—going against the top dogs. I’m a guy who always tried to fight the best, so I’ve always been competitive. So I just say, “Bring it on, whoever it is. Just bring it on.”
Is there a guy at lightweight whose name we might know where you’ve seen this guy fight and you just think “Man this guy is the perfect style matchup for me. Get me this guy.”
Dannie Williams: Actually, I’ve been watching a lot of guys, but there is no one in particular. But I’m just saying we can schedule a fight, just give us good time to train for the fight, and I’m ready to take on anybody. Any up-and-coming prospect—anybody! You know? I ain’t ducking nobody.
I want to know what you think about a couple of the big names from your weight classes? What about Juan Manuel Marquez?
Dannie Williams: I think he’s exciting. Excellent. He doesn’t waste any punches. I like Juan Manuel Marquez.
You’re fighting for a WBC Continental Americas belt on the 15th. So what do you think about WBC champ Humberto Soto?
Dannie Williams: He’s tough. He just brings a lot of heart and desire into the game. A lot of heart.
This guy you’re fighting next week, Manuel Leyva, he had a pretty tough fight with Joel Casamayor. Maybe Casamayor has lost a step, but do you think if you beat Leyva, that it will make a statement that you’re on that higher level?
Dannie Williams: Oh, yes sir! Anytime you fight a good Mexican…well, Mexicans are always good. They’re good steppingstones because they always come to fight and they’re always ready. He just fought Casamayor. He was dropped (and went the distance in a close fight), so it would be really good if I can knock him out. I have a game plan. My game plan is to go to the body, you know, start at the body. I’ll go to the body for a few rounds, then end up at the head. So we’re looking at 5-7 rounds—we’re gonna get him out of there.
That’s a good, go-get-‘em attitude. Dannie, I appreciate you taking the time to talk so close to your fight. Good luck next week, OK?
Dannie Williams: All right, thanks. Thanks a lot.
