Willie "The Worm" Monroe (June 5, 1946 - June 22, 2019) was a middleweight boxer who competed from 1969 to 1981. He was most notable for defeating Marvelous Marvin Hagler in 1976 before Hagler went on an eleven year undefeated streak.
Monroe received his nickname "the Worm" for his slippery fighting style from Yank Durham. He died on Saturday, June 22, 2019, after complications with Alzheimers.
He was inducted into the Pennsylvania boxing hall of fame in 1990 and is the great-uncle of American boxer Willie Monroe Jr.
Early life and amateur career
Monroe was born in Alabama as the 13th of 17 children and spent his early years in Crestview, Florida. He started boxing in Rochester, New York where he claimed an undefeated 43-0 amateur record. He arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the autumn of 1969 to train for his pro-debut.
Professional career
Monroe started his professional career with a perfect record of 20-0 before being stopped in a controversial split decision against Max Cohen.
A string of mixed results would follow with a notable win over Eugene Hart and losses to Alvin Philipps and Bobby Watts.
Monroe would go on to defeat Marvelous Marvin Hagler on March 9, 1976 in decisive fashion. Unfortunately no footage of the fight exists as a snowstorm in the area prevented filming. Two rematches would follow which were both won by technical knockout by Hagler
Professional boxing record
ResultRecordOpponentTypeRound, timeDateLocationNotes51Loss Willie EdwardsKO4 (6)Oct 24, 198150Win40–9–1 Jimmy McClainUD10Jul 28, 198049Loss39–9–1 Dwight DavidsonUD10Nov 15, 197948Loss39–8–1 Curtis ParkerUD10Jul 16, 197947Win39–7–1 Keith BroomUD10May 31, 197946Loss38–7–1 Richard OfosuPTS10Mar 3, 197945Win38–6–1 Frank LucasTKO8 (10)Apr 22, 197844Loss37–6–1 Marvelous Marvin HaglerTKO2 (12), Aug 23, 197743Win37–5–1 Larry DavisPTS10Jun 15, 197742Loss36–5–1 Marvelous Marvin HaglerTKO12 (12), Feb 15, 197741Win36–4–1 Lenny HardenTKO3 (10)Jan 21, 197740Win35–4–1 Angel Robinson GarciaTKO7 (10), Dec 3, 197639Loss34–4–1 David LoveTKO4 (10), Aug 16, 197638Win34–3–1 Felton MarshallTKO7 (10), May 19, 197637Win33–3–1 Marvelous Marvin HaglerUD10Mar 9, 197636Win32–3–1 Carlos MarksUD10Jan 28, 197635Win31–3–1 Carlos Marks10Jun 2, 197534Win30–3–1 Rennie PinderKO4 (10)Apr 28, 197533Loss29–3–1 Bobby WattsUD10Nov 12, 197432Win29–2–1 Billy DouglasUD10Aug 19, 197431Win28–2–1 Stanley HaywardTKO7 (10)Apr 8, 197430Win27–2–1 Eugene HartUD10Feb 18, 197429Draw26–2–1 Fabio BettiniPTS10Nov 5, 197328Win26–2 Jose GonzalezUD10Aug 14, 197327Win25–2 Roy McMillanTKO3 (10), May 10, 197326Win24–2 Don CobbsUD10Mar 5, 197325Win23–2 Roy LeeTKO1 (10), Jan 22, 197324Win22–2 George DavisTKO6 (10), Dec 5, 197223Win21–2 Leroy RobertsKO1 (10)Oct 24, 197222Loss20–2 Alvin PhillipsSD10Sep 6, 197221Loss20–1 Nessim Max Cohen10Mar 27, 197220Win20–0 Luis Miguel GalvanUD10Mar 21, 197219Win19–0 Alvin Phillips10Jan 15, 197218Win18–0 Willie WarrenUD10Oct 19, 197117Win17–0 Elgie WaltersTKO4 (10)Jul 14, 197116Win16–0 Abraham CabreraKO3 (10), May 27, 197115Win15–0 Adam MooreKO2 (10)Apr 12, 197114Win14–0 Alvin Phillips10Jan 18, 197113Win13–0 Luis VinalesTKO6 (6), Nov 17, 197012Win12–0 Nojeen AdigunKO4 (8)Oct 6, 197011Win11–0 Adam MooreTKO3 (6)Sep 14, 197010Win10–0 Oscar CoorTKO2 (6), Jul 20, 19709Win9–0 Santiago RosaTKO2 (10), Jul 13, 19708Win8–0 Harold GlaspyTKO2 (6), Jul 6, 19707Win7–0 Ruben FigueroaKO2 (8)Jun 15, 19706Win6–0 Alberto MillanKO3 (8)May 18, 19705Win5–0 Luis Ted HamiltonKO1 (6)Apr 22, 19704Win4–0 Luis RiveraTKO1 (6)Mar 25, 19703Win3–0 Fred ThomasKO1 (6)Feb 25, 19702Win2–0 Joe Williams4 (4)Dec 9, 19691Win1–0 Vince Neratka1 (4)Nov 11, 1969
References
External links Footage of the second and third bout against Marvin Hagler