Ossie Ocasio
 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
Nickname | Jaws |
| Nationality | Puerto Rican |
| Born | Osvaldo Ocasio August 12, 1955 |
| Height | 5 ft 11+1⁄2 in (182 cm) |
| Weight | |
| Boxing career | |
| Reach | 74 in (188 cm) |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 37 |
| Wins | 23 |
| Win by KO | 12 |
| Losses | 13 |
| Draws | 1 |
| No contests | 0 |
Osvaldo "Ossie" Ocasio (born August 12, 1955) is a Puerto Rican former boxer who held the inaugural WBA cruiserweight title from 1982 to 1984. He was also a top heavyweight contender prior to his cruiserweight run. He scored notable wins against former cruiserweight champion Dwight Muhammad Qawi and top heavyweight contenders Jimmy Young (twice) and Pierre Coetzer, as well as drawing with future heavyweight champion Michael Dokes. Nicknamed "Jaws," his peculiar nickname was the result of him accidentally biting another boxer during a sparring session.
Heavyweight contender
Ocasio originally campaigned in the heavyweight division, turning pro in 1976 and putting together ten wins before signing with Don King and making a name for himself outpointing King fighter Kevin Isaac.
In 1978, on the undercard of the Ken Norton vs. Larry Holmes title fight, Ocasio scored a major upset when he outpointed the highly regarded Jimmy Young, who had both outpointed George Foreman and fought Ken Norton to a split decision loss the year prior. In a rematch staged in Puerto Rico, Ocasio underlined his superiority by again outpointing a this time in-shape Young. It was Ocasio's career high in the heavyweight division.
This earned him his only world heavyweight title shot, against Larry Holmes in 1979. Attempting to become the first Hispanic world heavyweight champion, Ocasio was badly outclassed and knocked out in the seventh round.[2][3]
In 1980, he fought red-hot undefeated prospect Michael Dokes to a draw. However, a rematch saw Ocasio surprisingly knocked out in one round. The following year, he traveled to the UK and made little effort against local prospect John L. Gardner, before collapsing without getting hit in the sixth round.
Cruiserweight World Champion
| External audio | |
|---|---|
 You may watch Ossie Ocasio vs Dwight Muhammad Qawi here |
He later went down in weight to fight in the then-newly created cruiserweight division. In 1982, he was matched with Robbie Williams in South Africa for the inaugural WBA title. Ocasio became a world champion by beating Williams by a 15-round split decision. He shared honors as world champion of that division with countryman Carlos De León, the WBC world champion.
Ocasio made three successful defenses, winning 15-round decisions over Young Joe Louis and Randy Stephens, appearing on Jet Magazine the week before the Stephens bout,[4] and knocking out John Odhiambo in the 15th round in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico. After the bout, Ocasio turned down a fight with British fighter David Pearce, after Morgans Palle had provided contracts to make the fight in the USA, due to the BBBoC not sanctioning the cruiserweight division in the UK. Ocasio eventually decided to return to South Africa, where he lost his title to Piet Crous by a 15-round decision. One month before losing the title, his brother had been murdered.
Ocasio, during his championship run, was able to buy a house in Trujillo Alto, where he maintained a large farm. He also participated in a Puerto Rican movie, playing a slave in the production.
He made a comeback in 1986 and won two fights, including a controversial ten-round majority decision over former world champion Dwight Muhammad Qawi in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Most observers had Qawi winning all ten rounds. He attempted to regain his world championship against Evander Holyfield in Marseille, France, but lost by a knockout in 11 rounds.
Return to Heavyweight
He returned to the heavyweight division in 1988, defeating Pierre Coetzer in South Africa, but losing the decision in a rematch. After this fight, he was relegated to "trial horse" status.
In 1989, he gave Ray Mercer a tough fight, losing an eight-round split decision. In 1990, he dropped decisions to Tyrell Biggs and Bruce Seldon, then travelled to the UK for two fights, losing and being the first opponent to take Lennox Lewis to the distance and scoring an upset when stopping Jess Harding in eight rounds. Ocasio then traveled to Australia, where he was outpointed by the erratic Mike Hunter.[5]
One last comeback in 1992 resulted in a dreary points loss to ex-contender Carl Williams, but it was hard-hitting Mexican–American prospect Alex García who convinced the usually durable Ocasio to retire—he decked Ocasio several times before knocking him out in the eighth.
He retired from boxing with a record of 23 wins, 13 losses, and one draw, with 12 knockout wins. He currently resides in Orlando, Florida.
Professional boxing record
| 37 fights | 23 wins | 13 losses |
|---|---|---|
| By knockout | 12 | 5 |
| By decision | 11 | 8 |
| Draws | 1 | |
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 37 | Loss | 23–13–1 | Alex Garcia | TKO | 8 (10), 1:59 | Nov 23, 1992 | Great Western Forum, Inglewood, California, US | |
| 36 | Loss | 23–12–1 | Carl Williams | UD | 10 | Aug 20, 1992 | Trump Taj Mahal, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US | |
| 35 | Loss | 23–11–1 | Mike Hunter | UD | 10 | Dec 14, 1990 | Hordern Pavilion, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia | |
| 34 | Win | 23–10–1 | Jess Harding | RTD | 8 (10), 3:00 | Oct 3, 1990 | Festival Hall, Basildon, Essex, England, UK | |
| 33 | Loss | 22–10–1 | Lennox Lewis | PTS | 8 | Jun 27, 1990 | Royal Albert Hall, Kensington, London, England, UK | |
| 32 | Loss | 22–9–1 | Bruce Seldon | UD | 8 | May 18, 1990 | San Jose, California, US | |
| 31 | Loss | 22–8–1 | Tyrell Biggs | UD | 10 | Jan 11, 1990 | Trump Plaza Hotel, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US | |
| 30 | Loss | 22–7–1 | Ray Mercer | SD | 8 | Dec 7, 1989 | Mirage Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada, US | |
| 29 | Loss | 22–6–1 | Pierre Coetzer | UD | 10 | Nov 26, 1988 | Standard Bank Indoor Arena, Johannesburg, South Africa | |
| 28 | Win | 22–5–1 | Pierre Coetzer | UD | 10 | Mar 6, 1988 | Good Hope Centre, Cape Town, South Africa | |
| 27 | Loss | 21–5–1 | Evander Holyfield | TKO | 11 (15), 1:24 | Aug 15, 1987 | Saint-Tropez, Var, France | For WBA and IBF cruiserweight titles |
| 26 | Win | 21–4–1 | Dwight Muhammad Qawi | MD | 10 | May 15, 1987 | Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada, US | |
| 25 | Win | 20–4–1 | Narcisco Maldonado | UD | 10 | Mar 23, 1986 | Lawlor Events Center, Reno, Nevada, US | |
| 24 | Loss | 19–4–1 | Piet Crous | UD | 15 | Dec 1, 1984 | Superbowl, Sun City, South Africa | Lost WBA cruiserweight title |
| 23 | Win | 19–3–1 | John Odhiambho | TKO | 15 (15), 2:24 | May 5, 1984 | Mets Pavilion, Guaynabo, Puerto Rico | Retained WBA cruiserweight title |
| 22 | Win | 18–3–1 | Randy Stephens | UD | 15 | May 20, 1983 | Dunes Outdoor Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada, US | Retained WBA cruiserweight title |
| 21 | Win | 17–3–1 | Eddie Taylor | UD | 15 | Dec 15, 1982 | Aragon Ballroom, Chicago, Illinois, US | Retained WBA cruiserweight title |
| 20 | Win | 16–3–1 | Robbie Williams | SD | 15 | Feb 13, 1982 | Rand Stadium, Johannesburg, South Africa | Won inaugural WBA cruiserweight title |
| 19 | Loss | 15–3–1 | John L. Gardner | KO | 6 (10), 0:19 | Mar 17, 1981 | Wembley Arena, London, England, UK | |
| 18 | Win | 15–2–1 | Barry Funches | UD | 10 | Oct 23, 1980 | Felt Forum, New York City, New York, US | |
| 17 | Loss | 14–2–1 | Michael Dokes | TKO | 1 (10), 2:33 | Jun 28, 1980 | Coliseo Roberto Clemente, San Juan, Puerto Rico | |
| 16 | Draw | 14–1–1 | Michael Dokes | SD | 10 | Apr 19, 1980 | Coliseo Pedrin Zorrilla, San Juan, Puerto Rico | |
| 15 | Win | 14–1 | Jack Sterling | TKO | 1 (10), 1:10 | Nov 20, 1979 | Convention Hall, Miami Beach, Florida, US | |
| 14 | Loss | 13–1 | Larry Holmes | TKO | 7 (15), 2:38 | Mar 23, 1979 | Las Vegas Hilton, Las Vegas, Nevada, US | For WBC heavyweight title |
| 13 | Win | 13–0 | Jimmy Young | UD | 10 | Jan 27, 1979 | Coliseo Roberto Clemente, San Juan, Puerto Rico | |
| 12 | Win | 12–0 | Jimmy Young | SD | 10 | Jun 9, 1978 | Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada, US | |
| 11 | Win | 11–0 | Kevin Isaac | UD | 10 | Apr 8, 1978 | Estadio Juan Ramon Loubriel, Bayamón, Puerto Rico | |
| 10 | Win | 10–0 | Tom Nickson | KO | 4 (6) | Jul 12, 1977 | Orlando Sports Stadium, Orlando, Florida, US | |
| 9 | Win | 9–0 | Frank Schram | TKO | 4 (?) | Jun 25, 1977 | Estadio Juan Ramon Loubriel, Bayamón, Puerto Rico | |
| 8 | Win | 8–0 | Clarence Morris | KO | 2 (6), 1:37 | Jun 14, 1977 | Orlando Sports Stadium, Orlando, Florida, US | |
| 7 | Win | 7–0 | Gene Idelette | KO | 1 (?) | Mar 17, 1977 | Coliseo Roberto Clemente, San Juan, Puerto Rico | |
| 6 | Win | 6–0 | Ed Turner | KO | 2 (?) | Feb 12, 1977 | Estadio Juan Ramon Loubriel, Bayamón, Puerto Rico | |
| 5 | Win | 5–0 | Aaron Solomon | KO | 1 (?) | Aug 16, 1976 | San Juan, Puerto Rico | |
| 4 | Win | 4–0 | Ed Turner | PTS | 8 | Jul 17, 1976 | San Juan, Puerto Rico | |
| 3 | Win | 3–0 | Luis Reins | KO | 1 (?) | Apr 27, 1976 | Coliseo Roberto Clemente, San Juan, Puerto Rico | |
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | Rafael Guerrero | KO | 2 (?) | Apr 5, 1976 | Coliseo Roberto Clemente, San Juan, Puerto Rico | |
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Lorenzo Simons | KO | 3 (?) | Feb 20, 1976 | Coliseo Roberto Clemente, San Juan, Puerto Rico |
See also
References
- ^ "This Week in Boxing History: August 10th – August 16th". The Boxing Tribune. August 10, 2015. Archived from the original on November 2, 2019.
- ^ "Larry Holmes KOs Ossie Ocasio This Day March 23, 1979 and Keeps Crown". Archived from the original on April 8, 2023. Retrieved November 2, 2019 – via www.youtube.com.
- ^ "The History of the Heavyweight Championship - 1979". sports.yahoo.com. March 7, 2019.
- ^ Jet. Johnson Publishing Company. May 9, 1983.
- ^ "Almost Getting to the Sunshine - Boxing.com". www.boxing.com.
External links
- Boxing record for Ossie Ocasio from BoxRec (registration required)