Rocky Lockridge

Rocky Lockridge (born January 30, 1959) is an American former boxer. As a professional, he is best known for handing Roger Mayweather his first defeat—a first-round knockout after just 98 seconds—earning him the WBA Junior Lightweight championship.

Amateur career

Lockridge started boxing as an amateur out of the Tacoma Boys Club. Being one of four world champions to originate from Tacoma (including Freddie Steele, Leo Randolph and Johnny Bumphus), his highlights as an amateur include:

• 1977 National AAU Bantamweight Champion, stopping David Douglas of the U.S. Army in the second round of the final.
• 1978 National Golden Gloves Runner Up in Bantamweight Class
• 1978 Runner Up in National AAU Championships in Bantamweight Class, losing to Jackie Beard in Biloxi, MS
• Defeated in the quarter-finals of the World Amateur Boxing Championships in Belgrade, Yugoslavia by Fazlija Šaćirović (2-3)

Retirement and later years

For the past two decades, Lockridge has suffered drug problems; he became homeless and suffered a stroke that forced him to walk with a cane. He was featured on A&E's Intervention TV series, claiming that the intervention and the help of his sons saved his life.^[1] His appearance on the show is noted for an infamous moment where his son Lamar says that somewhere deep down in his heart, he still loves him, which caused Lockridge to break down crying hard enough to the point where he was screaming at the top of his lungs. This spawned the internet meme "Best Cry Ever".^[2] He was also caught on video defending himself by knocking out a bully with a single one two jab-cross combination near a convenience store.^[3] In interviews, he has expressed a desire to be drug-free, stating that he had never been this clean, even in his fighting days. "I feel so good today that if I hadn't suffered the stroke I would go for a title shot," he stated. He is also interested in becoming a boxing trainer.

References

External links

• Professional boxing record for Rocky Lockridge from BoxRec