Former Boxer Antwun Echols Passes Away At The Age Of 52

Former middleweight and super-middleweight boxer Antwun Echols has died at the age of 52. 

According to reports, Echols was found dead at his home on July 2nd, 2023. And in doing so, the boxer left behind a boxing record that stood at 32–22-4, as the star retired in 2016.

This followed on the back end of 10 losses in a row. While Echols may not have been the biggest name, the star did leave quite an impression.

He lost on his professional debut when he was knocked out in the first round against Anthony Ivory. Thereafter, the boxer got his revenge in the rematch as his career excelled. 

Antwun Echols, Middleweight Contender, Passes Away at 52 https://t.co/kGfchpGY0g pic.twitter.com/dpmiwhunJY

— BoxingScene.com (@boxingscene) July 4, 2023

That reached a point when Echols fought for the world title. Two attempts against Bernard Hopkins for the IBF middleweight title were unsuccessful, as Echols suffered a unanimous-decision loss and a TKO defeat respectively. 

In addition, Echols also came up short against Anthony Mundine, as he lost out for the WBA super-middleweight title via a unanimous decision as the boxer could not get over the line. 

But the star’s biggest win did arrive in 2001. A third-round TKO win over Charles Brewer was a huge upset, but thereafter, Echols became a journeyman. 

And yet, through it all, Echols has left a lot to be admired. 

Reaction

"He had the hardest punch. Antwun and I go way back. We were childhood friends. I started working with Antwun when he was an amateur at the Davenport Boxing Club.

"I worked with him and once Antwun got himself together he beat everybody in the gym. His hit was like a mule kick," Leonard Overstreet Sr. (Echols’ former trainer).

"I saw Antwun boxing and I sparred with him and I thought, ‘This dude hits hard. The power he had was tremendous. He had heavy hands.

"It’s too bad he didn’t go down a weight in boxing. That would have put Echols in the junior middleweight class at 154 pounds.

"If he could have gotten down to 154 he would have been the hardest hitting junior weight," Partick Pena (Echols’ former sparring partner).

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