“Prince” Charles Williams IBF Light Heavyweight Champion!
By: Ken Hissner
“Prince” Charles Williams turned professional in 1978 dropping his first bout before going 8-0-2. He would suffer his first loss to future IBF cruiserweight champion Jeff Lampkin, 12-0, fighting for the OH state light heavyweight title.
Two fights later Williams would lose to Reggie Gross, 8-0, but bounce back in his next fight defeating Anthony Witherspoon, 7-0, brother of heavyweight champion “Terrible” Tim Witherspoon. In 1984 he would lose to former WBC and WBA light heavyweight champion Marvin Johnson, 35-5. After winning his next four fights he found himself again in the ring with his conqueror Jeff Lampkin, 24-8-1, but this time he defeated Lampkin in Atlantic City, NJ, which was his fifth straight win. It would be 13 months later when he would take the IBF light heavyweight title from Bobby “Chappie” Czyz, 32-1, stopping him in the ninth round due to a closed right eye. He would then spend the next three fights fighting in France starting with a non-tile win and then a pair of defenses starting with former European champion Richard Caramanolis, 36-2-2 and a knockout in three rounds. Then some four months later he won over former French champion Rufino Rangulo, 29-12-3, blasting him out in three rounds.
Some twenty months after taking the title from Czyz, 34-4, Williams gave him a rematch in Atlantic City and this time stopping him in the tenth round due to a closed left eye and being knocked down earlier. Next in his fourth title defense he stopped Frankie Swindell, 18-3, who retired at the end of the eighth round in Atlantic City.
In January of 1991 Williams made his fifth defense in Italy defeating Italy resident though from the Congo Mwehu Beya, 14-6-4, over 12 rounds. In his sixth defense he stopped James “The Heat” Kinchen, 48-7-2, in two rounds in Atlantic City. In his third defense in six months he returned to Italy and stopped American Vincent Boulware, 23-3-1, in three rounds.
In Williams’ fourth title defense in 1991 and his eighth defense in October he would stop Puerto Rico’s Freddy Delgado, 19-1-1, in two rounds. In March of 1993 he would take the big task of going to Germany and fighting their Gold Medal Olympian Henry Maske, 19-0, losing over 12 rounds.
“Charles presented himself in the ring as the heavy opponent. He was at the time the dreaded light heavyweight boxer. With his entire appearance inside and out of the ring, he earned a great respect from the opponents and the audience. In the fight we both had to go our limit. After the last gong he confessed his defeat. He proved greatness with his gesture. I saw Prince Charles for the first time during a fight in London. We were both spectators. From the first moment I knew this was a great one. I wish for him he has found a good way to his sporty careers. Please order Charles cordial greetings from me,” said Henry Maske.
In the second fight back from losing his title Williams would stop Booker T. Word, 21-3-1, in two rounds. He would go onto win the WBC Continental Americas title some six months later defeating Ernest Mateen, 21-0-1, stopping him in the tenth round. This fight would earn him another chance to re-gain a world title dropping down to super middleweight losing to IBF champion James “Lights Out” Toney, 43-0-2, being stopped in the 12th round.
In January of 1995 Williams after nine straight wins in Atlantic City was involved in a technical draw against Merqui Sosa, 24-4-1, after seven rounds when neither fighter could continue per the ringside physician for the vacant NABF title. Williams was cut over his left eye in the first round. Sosa’s right eye was near closed.
It would be five months later in Philadelphia for the same title in a rematch that Williams was stopped by Sosa in the tenth round. The hand writing was on the wall it looked like the end of the line for Williams. In March of 1996 he ended his career knocking out his final opponent American Chris Vernon, 3-3-1, in France. He ended up 37-7-3 (28), for this Mansfield, OH, former world champion.
This writer ran into Williams at a boxing event in Wilmington, DE, recently when he was in for his former trainer Marty Feldman’s funeral.
