Vernon Forrest

Vernon Forrest was an American professional boxer who competed from 1992 to 2008 in the light welterweight, welterweight, and light middleweight categories. During his career, he fought a total of 45 times and won 41 fights, with 29 by way of knockout. He won five world titles across two weight classes, successfully defended his titles twice, and won one title-fight via knockout.

Forrest's professional career spanned more than 15 years, and he made his professional debut on November 25, 1992, at the age of 21, against Charles Hawkins. In his first 32 professional fights, he defeated all his opponents, including Raul Frank, for the welterweight IBF title and Shane Mosley for the WBC and The Ring welterweight titles. Forrest also made history by ending Mosley's unbeaten streak of 38 fights.

Forrest's notable victories include wins over Hall-of-Famer Shane Mosley, Sergio Mora, Edgar Ruiz, Ike Quartey, Michele Piccirillo, Sergio Rios, and Elco Garcia. His exceptional performance against Vince Phillips on January 22, 2000, marked the first notable performance of his career, where he won via a 12th round unanimous decision.

Despite his success, Forrest suffered three losses in his professional career, all of them in title bouts. He suffered his first loss against Ricardo Mayorga via a third-round TKO on January 25, 2003, ending his 35-fight win streak. He was also stopped once and lost twice by decision.

Forrest retired in 2008 after winning his last fight against Sergio Mora to reclaim the WBC super-welterweight title. He had a total of 45 fights during his professional career, with 41 wins, 29 by way of knockout, three losses, and no draws.

Forrest was nicknamed "The Viper" and had a height of 6 feet (183 cm) with a reach of 72+1⁄2 in (184 cm). He fought in the Orthodox stance, and his first professional boxing debut was in November 1992 at the age of 21. Vernon Forrest was born in Augusta, Georgia, on February 12, 1971, and passed away on July 25, 2009, due to murder.

Career Summary

Vernon Forrest's career started on November 25, 1992, against Charles Hawkins when he made his professional debut. He went on to win the next 30 consecutive fights, 24 via stoppages, and had his first world title fight at the age of 30 on May 12, 2001, against Raul Frank for the welterweight IBF (vacant) title. His victory through unanimous decision made Forrest the welterweight champion of the world.

Forrest won five world titles at two weight classes in his career. His world titles include the WBC, IBF, Ring Magazine, and lineal welterweight titles won between 2002 and 2003, and the WBC super welterweight title twice between 2007 and 2009.

The most notable fight of Vernon Forrest's career was against Shane Mosley on January 26, 2002. Forrest won the WBC and The Ring welterweight titles by beating Mosley on unanimous decision in what was considered an upset. Forrest would then defend both titles against Mosley in a rematch on July 20, 2002, using his superior ring generalship and effective jabbing to earn another unanimous decision win.

On August 5, 2006, Vernon Forrest fought Ike Quartey in what would become one of the most cherished fights of his career. After ten rounds, Forrest emerged victorious via unanimous decision, further solidifying his status as a true heavyweight contender.

Apart from his victories over Mosley and Quartey, Vernon Forrest had many notable victories in his career, including wins against Sergio Mora, Edgar Ruiz, Michele Piccirillo, Sergio Rios, and Elco Garcia.

Career Highlights

Forrest's career highlights include several key victories that served as turning points in his career. On January 22, 2000, Forrest put on his first notable performance and defeated Vince Phillips via 12th round unanimous decision. Victory against Phillips showed Forrest's potential, and he went on an unprecedented unbeaten run.

On May 12, 2001, Forrest won his first world title by defeating Raul Frank via unanimous decision, becoming the IBF welterweight world champion. Later, on January 26, 2002, Forrest won the WBC and The Ring welterweight titles from Shane Mosley, defeating Mosley via unanimous decision.

Another highlight of Forrest's career was his August 5, 2006 victory against Ike Quartey via unanimous decision. Forrest defeated Quartey by relying on his jabbing and superior footwork.

Forrest's greatest comeback occurred on September 14, 2008, when he won back the WBC super welterweight title from Sergio Mora. Forrest had lost the title to Mora three months earlier, and victory in the rematch was a remarkable comeback against the young contender.

Losses

While Vernon Forrest's record is impressive, he did suffer three losses in his professional career – all of which occurred during world title bouts. His first defeat was against Ricardo Mayorga on January 25, 2003, and was a third-round TKO. In this bout, Mayorga was able to dominate Forrest by dropping him in the first and third rounds, leading to the fight being called off by the referee.

Forrest had his first rematch against Mayorga six months later but lost again, this time by a majority decision. The fight was close, with Mayorga mostly chasing Forrest and Forrest fighting from outside, leading to a decision in Mayorga's favour, prompting Forrest to

Vernon Forrest Fight Record