Rock Hill’s Craig Parker wins by KO in 16 seconds, extends undefeated pro boxing record
Sixteen seconds.
Craig Parker, the cruiserweight/light heavyweight boxer who lives in Rock Hill, landed a vicious left-handed hook 16 seconds into his match on Saturday night in the Rock Hill Gymnastics Center — and it was the last punch the fan-favorite needed in order to win by knockout and extend his professional boxing career record to 8-0 (with eight KO’s).
“All of these people are the reason why I’m here,” Parker told The Herald after his match, seated among a 20-plus person contingent with black and gold “Team Parker” shirts on. “I like to get to know some new people, and I’m blessed to have people come after the pandemic happened. You know, it’s been hard for a lot of people, who’ve been out of jobs. And they came to support me. And I’m blessed for that to happen.
“When they come around, it brings me joy in my heart because I know I’m putting in the hard work to give them something exciting to see.”
Parker, coached by Hall of Fame trainer Jesse Reid, Rock Hill native Anthony Burkett and accomplished trainer Elijah Thomas, defeated Anthony Williams of Whitesville, W. Va.
Williams stayed on the boxing ring’s canvas after Parker’s punch long enough for the event staff to call for a stretcher. A few minutes after Parker was named the winner, though, Williams was able to walk under his own power.
After the match, the event’s ring announcer asked Reid — who has trained world champions like Roger Mayweather, Johnny Tapia and Orlando Canizales in his career — how good he thinks Parker could be. Reid smiled and spoke to a sea of iPhones recording the moment: “Craig will be my 30th world champion.”
Parker grew up in Chicago and moved to San Bernardino, Calif., in 2016 to escape poverty and to “be something in life” after two people he was close with, his mother and his first boxing trainer/mentor Terry McGroom, passed away. He soon after moved to Las Vegas, which is where he was introduced to Reid and then Burkett.
In 2018, he moved to Rock Hill.
“I know where I want to go in life,” Parker said on Saturday night. “I know where I came from. And I ain’t trying to go back. So I always just stay focused, man. I just come to win. Whatever I do, I just come to win.”
The event in the Rock Hill Gymnastics Center was put on by SouthPaw Promotions and St. Michaels Boxing Club and featured eight fights, including the nightcap headliner, which was a belt match for the United States Boxing Organization’s lightweight title.
Billy Blea of SouthPaw Promotions told The Herald that 250 people were present for Saturday’s event, the capacity for facilities like the center under South Carolina government executive order. He said he was happy that the event went so well.
“You just look around: People are having fun,” Blea said, adding that Saturday night proved events like these are ones families can enjoy. “Ultimately the goal is to turn SouthPaw Promotions boxing events into a social thing in Rock Hill.”
Blea, in addition to helping run the event with Mike Englart and others, also did the play-by-play commentating on the event’s pay per view stream, which drew in audiences from different parts of the country, including Dallas, Texas, Blea said.
Rock Hill Gymnastics Center boxing results
Bout 1: Dell Long of W. Va., defeated Donald Haynesworth of Greensboro, N.C., in a unanimous decision (four rounds).
Bout 2: DeAndre Pettus of Columbia, S.C., defeated Darius Taylor of Wilson, N.C., by knockout.
Bout 3: Rafael Morel of Statesville, N.C., defeated Owen Hylton of Lynchburg, Va., by knockout.
Bout 4: Vaughn Williams of Columbia S.C., defeated Kahlee Williams of Wilson, N.C., by knockout.
Bout 5: Craig Parker of Rock Hill, S.C., defeated Anthony Williams of Whitesville, W. Va., by knockout.
Bout 6: Vit Y of Rock Hill, S.C., defeated Shaquille Harris of Wilson, N.C., by knockout.
Bout 7: Donyeh Cosby of Charlotte, N.C., defeated Jyrell Briggs of Wilson, N.C., by knockout.
Bout 8: Manuel Rojas of Dallas, Texas, defeated Noel Echevarria of Kernersville, N.C., in a unanimous decision (10 rounds).
This story was originally published August 30, 2020 at 12:46 AM.
.jpeg)