Greg Page (boxer)

Greg Page (born October 25, 1958) is a former American boxer. He was the World Boxing Association Heavyweight champion from 1984 to 1985. His professional record after his retirement in 2001 was 58-17-1 with 48 Knockouts.

Early career

Page started out his career at 13-0 and then captured the USBA Heavyweight title on February 11, 1980 from Stan Ward. Page continued to run his record to 19-0 and was considered a contender for the world title.In fact, he actually told the WBA to drop his ranking from #2 WBA( he was #3 WBC) due to his belief he was not ready prior to his defense against Jimmy Young. His title quest was derailed when he lost a 10-round decision to future WBC heavyweight champion Trevor Berbick of Canada. Following that loss, he rebounded with 4 more wins to remain in championship contention. Ironically, in 1981 Page was considered for WBA belt in a potential fight with future victim James Tillis, provided if champ Mike Weaver had refused to fight Tillis in a title defense. At the time of his fight with Tim Witherspoon, Page was the #1 undisputed contender.

First title shot

In 1984 Larry Holmes abandoned the WBC Heavyweight title in favor of the IBF Championship. Page and Tim Witherspoon were the top two contenders who fought for the vacant title. Page was considered a favorite to win title, but Witherspoon pulled an upset, winning a 12-round decision on March 9, 1984. Following that fight, on August 31, 1984 Page dropped another 12-round decision to David Bey, who took Page's USBA title.

econd title shot

Following the losses to Witherspoon and Bey, many considered Page's days as a heavyweight championship contender to be over. However, South African Gerrie Coetzee agreed to put his WBA heavyweight championship on the line. Coetzee had pulled a stunning upset over Michael Dokes to win the title and was considered an overwhelming favorite—especially since the fight was taking place in his native Sun City. Page made the most of his opportunity and scored a stunning 8th-round knockout on December 1, 1984 to win the WBA title from Coetzee.

Downward spiral

Page's championship reign was short-lived. On April 29, 1985, in his first defense, he lost a 15-round decision to Tony Tubbs and lost his WBA Heavyweight championship. Following that loss, Page did not fight until 1986 where he lost a January 17, 1986 decision to future heavyweight champion James "Buster" Douglas.

Page continued fighting, but his career spiraled into oblivion, including losses to journeymen fighters Joe Bugner and Mark Willis. On February 15, 1992 Razor Ruddock scored an 8th-round TKO over Page; however, three months later on June 26, 1992, Page scored a 10-round decision over former WBA Heavyweight Champion James "Bonecrusher" Smith.

Perhaps the greatest post-championship highlight was his knockdown (see video link below) of Mike Tyson during a sparring session while Tyson was sparring for his fight with Douglas.

On August 6, 1993, Page lost by TKO in the ninth round to future WBA Heavyweight Champion Bruce Seldon and temporarily retired.

Comeback and tragedy

Page returned to the ring in 1996 and won 14 straight fights (including 10 in 1997). Tragedy would soon strike, however. After a loss to up-and-coming contender Monte Barrett in 1998, Page's ring skills noticeably began to diminish and he morphed from comeback former champion to journeyman foe. Then in a March 9, 2001 fight against Dale Crowe, Page suffered brain damage and slipped into a coma. The damage left him paralyzed on his left side and confined him to a wheelchair.

There has been much debate over what precisely caused Page's injury, and many have lobbied for more strict enforcement of officiating since the injury. Doctors and journalists have debated over whether Page's injuries were caused by a punch,cite news|url=http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2001/May-07-Mon-2001/sports/15958052.html|title=Page winning fight for life|work=Las Vegas Review-Journal|publisher=Stephens Media Group|author=Royce Feour|first=Royce|last=Feour|date=2001-05-07] as Page's knockdown was the result of a push from Crowe. Journalists have also questioned the padding of the ring,cite news|url=http://www.cincypost.com/2001/mar/15/page031501.html|title=Page still hospitalized in critical condition|author=Kellie Taylor|first=Kellie|last=Taylor|work=The Cincinnati Post|publisher=E. W. Scripps Company|date=2001-03-15|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20041120202645/http://www.cincypost.com/2001/mar/15/page031501.html|archivedate=2004-11-20] while others have questioned the medical support available at the site as contributing to Page's condition. [http://www.jamaicanpride.com/Boxing/IBOP/OpenLetter.htm]

Recovery

Since that fight, Page has suffered many complications. On March 1, 2005 Page was hospitalized from pneumonia and put on a ventilator. On February 24,2006 Page was hospitalized for acute respiratory failure, sepsis, hypothermia, and seizures. On November 27, 2006 he was hospitalized again with pneumonia, but was released a month later. [cite news|url=http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/boxing/news/story?id=2708863|author=Associated Press|title=Ex-heavyweight champ out of hospital after falling ill|work=ESPN.com|publisher=ESPN|date=2006-12-26] Recently, Page accepted a 1.2 million settlement from the state of Kentucky concerning the Crowe fight.

In 2006, due to the injuries suffered by Greg Page in his final fight, the governing body of Kentucky, the Kentucky Boxing and Wrestling Authority revamped the boxing regulations in the State of Kentucky bringing them more in line with the Federal regulations. As part of Page's lawsuit settlement, these regulations are named "The Greg Page Boxing and Safety Initiative."

Amateur achievements

*1977 National AAU Heavyweight champion, defeating Woody Clark. Page was named the tournament's outstanding boxer.
*1978 National AAU Heavyweight champion
*1978 National Golden Gloves Heavyweight Champion
*Decisioned Igor Vysotsky, the man who twice beat Cuban legend Teofilo Stevenson.
*Beat future champ Tony Tubbs six out of seven times during their amateur career.
*Lost close decision to Michael Dokes in semifinals of 1976 National Golden Gloves in Miami.
*Won the 1976 Ohio State Fair, upsetting National AAU champion Marvin Stinson.
*Entered the 1974 Nationals as an underaged 15 year old.
*Finished career at 90-11, 55 knockouts.
*Lost a close decision to John Tate in the 1975 National Golden Gloves Tournament in quarterfinals.
*Beat future pro foes James Tillis and Renaldo Snipes in National Golden Gloves fights.
*1977 National Golden Gloves Finalist, losing to Jimmy Clark.

References

External links

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* [http://youtube.com/watch?v=O--qqlE1oI8 Knockdown of Tyson]