Paul Williams (born July 27, 1981) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 2000 to 2012. He held the WBO welterweight title twice between 2007 and 2008, the WBO interim junior middleweight title in 2008, and challenged once for the unified middleweight title in 2010. Nicknamed "The Punisher", and standing at a height of 6 feet 2 inches, Williams was unusually tall for the three divisions in which he competed. His career was cut short in 2012 after a motorcycle accident left him paralyzed from the waist down. During 2010 he was ranked 5th in The Ring Pound for Pound Rankings.
His debut was in the year 2000. He is promoted by the Goossens. In 2005 he outpointed former Olympic bronze medalist Terrence Cauthen and, later that year, he knocked out Alfonso Sanchez in 5 rounds.
BoxRec-style profile
- Birth name: Paul Williams
- Born: July 27, 1981 — Augusta, Georgia, U.S.
- Nationality: American
- Height: 6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
- Reach: 78 in (198 cm)
- Stance: Southpaw
- Pro debut: Jul 21, 2000 (Win by PTS vs Jeremy Mickelson)
- Last bout: Feb 18, 2012 (Win by UD vs Nobuhiro Ishida)
- Total rounds boxed: 207 (summed from the bout table below)
- Divisions: Welterweight, Light middleweight, Middleweight
- KO percentage: 65.9% (27 KO wins in 41 wins)
- Titles held (major, with reign dates): WBO welterweight title July 14, 2007 – February 9, 2008 (won from Antonio Margarito; lost to Carlos Quintana); WBO welterweight title (second reign) June 7, 2008 – 2008 (regained from Carlos Quintana; no defense appears in the bout table before the move up in weight); WBO interim junior middleweight title November 29, 2008 (won from Verno Phillips, per the bout table) — all dates per the bout table
Record at a glance
- Total bouts: 43
- Wins: 41
- Wins by KO: 27
- Losses: 2
- Losses by KO: 1
- Draws: 0
- No contests: 0
- Born: July 27, 1981 — Augusta, Georgia, U.S.
- Nationality: American
- Height: 6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
- Reach: 78 in (198 cm)
- Stance: Southpaw
- Divisions: Welterweight, Light middleweight, Middleweight
Fight-by-fight record
| No. | Date | Opponent | Result | Method | Round/Time | Venue / Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jul 21, 2000 | Jeremy Mickelson | Win | PTS | 4 | Coliseum Complex, Greensboro, North Carolina, U.S. |
| 2 | Aug 1, 2000 | Matt Hill | Win | TKO | 1 | Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| 3 | Aug 18, 2000 | Richard Burns | Win | KO | 1 (4), 1:56 | Southeastern Livestock Pavilion, Ocala, Florida, U.S. |
| 4 | Sep 30, 2000 | Adrian McNeil | Win | KO | 1 | Augusta, Georgia, U.S. |
| 5 | Oct 19, 2000 | James Young | Win | TKO | 3 | Columbus, Georgia, U.S. |
| 6 | Oct 28, 2000 | Eleser Ortega | Win | TKO | 1 | Jarrell's Boxing Gym, Savannah, Georgia, U.S. |
| 7 | Dec 9, 2000 | Rohan Nanton | Win | TKO | 1 | Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S. |
| 8 | Dec 14, 2000 | Miguel Aquila | Win | TKO | 2 | Columbus, Georgia, U.S. |
| 9 | Jan 27, 2001 | Henry Hawkins | Win | TKO | 1 | Augusta, Georgia, U.S. |
| 10 | Mar 31, 2001 | Miguel Aquila | Win | TKO | 3 | Augusta, Georgia, U.S. |
| 11 | Jul 3, 2001 | Rhon Roberts | Win | TKO | 4 | Six Flags Over Georgia, Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. |
| 12 | Aug 25, 2001 | Robert Muhammad | Win | TKO | 5 | Savannah, Georgia, U.S. |
| 13 | Sep 29, 2001 | Willie McDonald | Win | TKO | 1 (6) | Jarrell's Boxing Gym, Savannah, Georgia, U.S. |
| 14 | Dec 7, 2001 | Mahan Washington | Win | TKO | 3 (6), 1:44 | Fantasy Springs Resort Casino, Indio, California, U.S. |
| 15 | Jan 4, 2002 | Agustin Silva | Win | UD | 4 | American Airlines Arena, Miami, Florida, U.S. |
| 16 | Apr 5, 2002 | Laatekwei Hammond | Win | UD | 6 | Alumni Arena, Buffalo, New York, U.S. |
| 17 | Jul 27, 2002 | Gary Grant | Win | TKO | 2 (6) | Jarrell's Boxing Gym, Savannah, Georgia, U.S. |
| 18 | Oct 18, 2002 | Joshua Onyango | Win | UD | 6 | HSBC Arena, Buffalo, New York, U.S. |
| 19 | Jan 3, 2003 | Earl Jackson | Win | TKO | 2 (6), 2:52 | Thunderbird Wild West Casino, Norman, Oklahoma, U.S. |
| 20 | Aug 26, 2003 | Benjie Marquez | Win | DQ | 3 (6) | Sandia Casino, Albuquerque, New Mexico, U.S. — Marquez disqualified for hitting after the bell |
| 21 | Nov 7, 2003 | Arturo Rodriguez | Win | KO | 1 (8) | Desert Diamond Casino, Tucson, Arizona, U.S. |
| 22 | Feb 6, 2004 | Rodolfo Gomez | Win | TKO | 4 (10), 2:43 | Desert Diamond Casino, Tucson, Arizona, U.S. |
| 23 | May 7, 2004 | Luis Hernandez | Win | UD | 10 | Foxwoods Resort Casino, Ledyard, Connecticut, U.S. |
| 24 | Sep 23, 2004 | Javier Hector Valadez | Win | TKO | 1 (10), 1:08 | HP Pavilion, San Jose, California, U.S. |
| 25 | Nov 11, 2004 | Sammy Sparkman | Win | TKO | 4 (8) | Hilton, Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| 26 | Apr 22, 2005 | Terrance Cauthen | Win | UD | 10 | Chumash Casino Resort, Santa Ynez, California, U.S. |
| 27 | Sep 30, 2005 | Marteze Logan | Win | UD | 8 | Cache Creek Casino Resort, Brooks, California, U.S. |
| 28 | Dec 2, 2005 | Alfonso Sanchez | Win | KO | 5 (10), 1:12 | Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino, Lemoore, California, U.S. |
| 29 | Apr 12, 2006 | Sergio Rios | Win | KO | 2 (10), 2:24 | Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino, Lemoore, California, U.S. — ★ Title fight — Won WBC–USNBC welterweight title |
| 30 | May 27, 2006 | Walter Matthysse | Win | TKO | 10 (12), 1:56 | Home Depot Center, Carson, California, U.S. — ★ Title fight — Won vacant WBO–NABO welterweight title |
| 31 | Aug 19, 2006 | Sharmba Mitchell | Win | KO | 4 (12), 2:57 | Events Center, Reno, Nevada, U.S. — ★ Title fight — Retained WBC–USNBC and WBO–NABO welterweight titles |
| 32 | Nov 4, 2006 | Santos Pakau | Win | TKO | 6 (10), 2:16 | Mandalay Bay Events Center, Paradise, Nevada, U.S. |
| 33 | Jul 14, 2007 | Antonio Margarito | Win | UD | 12 | Home Depot Center, Carson, California, U.S. — ★ Title fight — Won WBO welterweight title |
| 34 | Feb 9, 2008 | Carlos Quintana | Loss | UD | 12 | Pechanga Resort & Casino, Temecula, California, U.S. — ★ Title fight — Lost WBO welterweight title |
| 35 | Jun 7, 2008 | Carlos Quintana | Win | TKO | 1 (12), 2:15 | Mohegan Sun Arena, Montville, Connecticut, U.S. — ★ Title fight — Won WBO welterweight title |
| 36 | Sep 25, 2008 | Andy Kolle | Win | TKO | 1 (10), 1:37 | Soboba Casino, San Jacinto, California, U.S. |
| 37 | Nov 29, 2008 | Verno Phillips | Win | TKO | 8 (12), 3:00 | Citizens Business Bank Arena, Ontario, California, U.S. — ★ Title fight — Won WBO interim junior middleweight title |
| 38 | Apr 11, 2009 | Winky Wright | Win | UD | 12 | Mandalay Bay Events Center, Paradise, Nevada, U.S. |
| 39 | Dec 5, 2009 | Sergio Martínez | Win | MD | 12 | Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. |
| 40 | May 8, 2010 | Kermit Cintrón | Win | TD | 4 (12), 3:00 | Home Depot Center, Carson, California, U.S. — Split TD: Cintrón unable to continue after falling out of the ring |
| 41 | Nov 20, 2010 | Sergio Martínez | Loss | KO | 2 (12), 1:10 | Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. — ★ Title fight — For WBC and The Ring middleweight titles |
| 42 | Jul 9, 2011 | Erislandy Lara | Win | MD | 12 | Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. |
| 43 | Feb 18, 2012 | Nobuhiro Ishida | Win | UD | 12 | American Bank Center, Corpus Christi, Texas, U.S. |
Titles & notes
Major title reigns (start–end): WBO welterweight title July 14, 2007 – February 9, 2008 (won from Antonio Margarito; lost to Carlos Quintana); WBO welterweight title (second reign) June 7, 2008 – 2008 (regained from Carlos Quintana; no defense appears in the bout table before the move up in weight); WBO interim junior middleweight title November 29, 2008 (won from Verno Phillips, per the bout table) — all dates per the bout table
- Apr 12, 2006 vs Sergio Rios: Won WBC–USNBC welterweight title
- May 27, 2006 vs Walter Matthysse: Won vacant WBO–NABO welterweight title
- Aug 19, 2006 vs Sharmba Mitchell: Retained WBC–USNBC and WBO–NABO welterweight titles
- Jul 14, 2007 vs Antonio Margarito: Won WBO welterweight title
- Feb 9, 2008 vs Carlos Quintana: Lost WBO welterweight title
- Jun 7, 2008 vs Carlos Quintana: Won WBO welterweight title
- Nov 29, 2008 vs Verno Phillips: Won WBO interim junior middleweight title
- Nov 20, 2010 vs Sergio Martínez: For WBC and The Ring middleweight titles
Photo: Chamber of Fear via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0). Featured image: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7f/Paul_Williams_%28boxer%29.jpg?utm_source=en.wikipedia.org&utm_campaign=api&utm_content=original
Record source: Wikipedia professional boxing record table (cross-checked against the bout list), retrieved 2026-11-02.
