Boxing has its “Superman” — light heavyweight champion Adonis Stevenson — and from the same country comes “Batman” — super middleweight contender Schiller Hyppolite (13-0-1, 9 KOs). The 28-year-old Hyppolite, like Stevenson, was born in Haiti and he also lives in Montreal. Hyppolite has won eight straight fights and is world rated by the International Boxing Federation (IBF) at No. 15, as well as No. 19 by the WBC.
The multi-talented boxer-puncher headlines a show November 21, presented by his promoter Camille Estephan’s company, Eye of the Tiger Management (EOTTM), against Alan Campa (10-1, 7 KOs) in the 12-round main event.
If not for a major attitude adjustment after suffering his lone loss as a professional in 2012, to then 7-0 Francy Ntetu by six-round split decision, Hyppolite would probably be a struggling journeyman instead of one of the hottest prospects in boxing, “Batman.”
“I was undisciplined when I lost that fight,” Hyppolite explained. “I was not doing well at that time, but I had an opportunity to spar for a month with Tavoris Cloud and that changed my life. I started doing what I was supposed to be doing to accomplish my goals in the ring. That changed everything and now I work hard every day in the gym. I’m definitely ‘The Next One’ out of Canada. I work so hard that I can’t see why I won’t be the next great fighter from up here.”
Cloud was preparing to fight living legend Bernard Hopkins, who Hyppolite not only idolizes but is somewhat similar to, style-wise, in the squared circle. “I would love to spar with Bernard Hopkins,” Schiller gushes. “He’s so smart in the ring. I’m sneaky like him; I move around a lot and make adjustments, too. I’m a boxer but can go to war when I have to. My heart is with Bernard for his fight with (Sergey) Kovalev.
A native of Haiti, Hyppolite has closely followed his fellow countrymen in Canada: Stevenson and former world light heavyweight champion Jean Pascal, as well as his EOTTM stable-mates, WBC heavyweight champion Bermane “BWare” Stiverne, and former world junior lightweight title challenger Dierry “Dough Style” Jean.
“I’m glad to be with other Haitian fighters here who have done so well in boxing,” Hyppolite noted. “Today, when people here about a Haitian boxer, they know he’s a good fighter.”
“Someday, ‘Batman’ will out do ‘Superman,'” Estephan commented. “He’s always been a nice kid but he had a bad attitude. He was kicked off the Canadian National Team. His coach, 1996 Canadian Olympian and NABF heavyweight champion Jean Francois Bergeron, asked me about getting Hyppolite a fight. I saw him in the gym and liked what I saw. I got him a six-round fight. He clearly won five rounds but was showboating. The judges didn’t like him and he lost a split decision. Schiller needed to and made an attitude adjustment after that fight and since then he’s won eight fight with seven knockouts. He’s also worked very hard on strength and conditioning for the past two years.
“Schiller is more talented than (Lucian) Bute, Stevenson or Pascal at the same point in their careers. He’s slick, dangerous and fast. Sparring with Cloud really changed things for him. His confidence improved after that training camp and another in which he sparred with (Gennady) Golovkin. He proved himself against those guys as being a very talented fighter capable of adjusting during a fight. Schiller is EOTTM’s top prospect and I’m confidence that he will eventually surpass Bute, Stevenson and Pascal.”
Unlike these aforementioned Canadian fighters who graduated from super middleweights to light heavyweights, Hyppolite has no plans to move up from 168 to 175 pounds, at least in the immediate future. In 2015, hopefully, he’ll get a world title shot.
“I figure in a year, 1 ½ years, I will be fighting for a world title,” Hyppolite concluded. “I know that Camille will get me a world title shot, as long as I keep winning and improving. I don’t really care which world champion I fight but, if I had a choice, I’d want to fight Andre Ward because he’s the best super middleweight in the world right now.”
