Donovan "Razor" Ruddock (born December 21, 1963) is a Jamaican-born Canadian former
professional boxer
Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional fights are supervised by a regulatory auth ...
who competed from 1982 to 2001 and in 2015. He is known for his two fights against Mike Tyson in 1991, a fight against Lennox Lewis in 1992, and a fight with Tommy Morrison in 1995. Ruddock was also known for his exceptionally heavy punching; some of the best examples of his left hand and overall power were his
knockout
A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving striking, ...
Michael Dokes
Michael Marshall Dokes (August 10, 1958 – August 11, 2012) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1976 to 1997, and held the World Boxing Association, WBA heavyweight title from 1982 to 1983. As an amateur boxing, amateur he won a ...
in 1990, and Greg Page in 1992. His favoured weapon at the ring proved to be a highly versatile half-hook, half-uppercut left-handed punch he called "''The Smash''" which accounted for the majority of his knockout wins—it also happened to be his major downside throughout his career. Being a left-handed puncher fighting out of the orthodox stance, he didn't throw right handed punches during most knockout flurries.
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...
. At age 11, he left Jamaica with his family and moved to
Toronto
Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
, settling in the city's
Weston
Weston may refer to:
Places Australia
* Weston, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra
* Weston, New South Wales
* Weston Creek, a residential district of Canberra
* Weston Park, Canberra, a park
Canada
* Weston, Nova Scotia
* W ...
amateur boxer
An amateur () is generally considered a person who pursues an avocation independent from their source of income. Amateurs and their pursuits are also described as popular, informal, self-taught, user-generated, DIY, and hobbyist.
History
...
, Ruddock had a win over Lennox Lewis in March 1980 in Toronto at the
Ontario
Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...
Junior Boxing Championship, winning via a
split decision
A split decision (SD) is a winning criterion in boxing, most commonly in full-contact combat sports, in which two of the three judges score one particular competitor as the winner, while the third judge scores for the other competitor.
A split de ...
He turned pro in 1982, but his career started slowly, having only 11 fights between 1982 and 1985. He won eight of his first nine fights, but drew his fifth. More controversy would follow in April 1985 when he lost to
journeyman
A journeyman is a worker, skilled in a given building trade or craft, who has successfully completed an official apprenticeship qualification. Journeymen are considered competent and authorized to work in that field as a fully qualified employee ...
David Jaco, who would be KO'd by a young Mike Tyson the next year. After eight rounds Ruddock's corner threw in the towel when he complained of breathing problems. Jaco was awarded a TKO victory. It was discovered Ruddock had a rare respiratory illness and doctors told him his career would be over.
Return to the ring
To his doctors' surprise, Ruddock made a full recovery within 10 months and resumed his boxing career by winning nine straight fights. Eight were by KO, with the ninth a win by decision win over former WBA heavyweight title-holder Mike Weaver. Ruddock would win the Canadian heavyweight championship in 1988 on a first-round knockout of Ken Lakusta.
In 1989, after two more wins by KO, a fight was arranged with another former WBA heavyweight champion -- James "Bonecrusher" Smith. Ruddock was knocked down in round two but got up, regrouped and stopped Smith in the seventh round.
This victory placed him in line for a title bout against undisputed heavyweight champion Mike Tyson, scheduled for November 1989 in
Edmonton
Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...
,
Alberta
Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...
. Tyson, claiming illness, canceled and opted instead to fight James "Buster" Douglas in
Tokyo
Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...
in February 1990. Tyson would go on to lose in one of the biggest upsets in boxing history.
Ruddock vs. Dokes
In 1990, Ruddock fought former heavyweight champion
Michael Dokes
Michael Marshall Dokes (August 10, 1958 – August 11, 2012) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1976 to 1997, and held the World Boxing Association, WBA heavyweight title from 1982 to 1983. As an amateur boxing, amateur he won a ...
. Ruddock went into the fight as underdog but put on one of the best performances of his career knocking out Dokes in the 4th round. Dokes appeared to be seriously stunned on the ropes after taking Ruddock's famous "Smash" left hook. A right hand followed, which appeared to put Dokes out, but Ruddock threw another two hooks to knock Dokes out cold for several minutes.
After another KO win over Kimmuel Odum in 1990, Ruddock had difficulty finding a marquee opponent. Ruddock hoped to fight
Evander Holyfield
Evander Holyfield (born October 19, 1962) is an American former professional boxer who competed between 1984 and 2011. He reigned as the undisputed championship (boxing), undisputed champion in the cruiserweight (boxing), cruiserweight division ...
(fresh from a KO win over James "Buster" Douglas for the heavyweight championship). Instead, Holyfield opted to fight 42-year-old
George Foreman
George Edward Foreman (January 10, 1949 – March 21, 2025) was an American professional boxer, businessman, minister, and author. In boxing, he competed between 1967 and 1997, and was nicknamed "Big George". He was a two-time world heavyweig ...
.
Ruddock vs. Tyson
With no big name opponent, Ruddock took a warm up fight against Mike Rouse in December 1990 winning by 1st round knockout. In January 1991, Mike Tyson accepted Ruddock's challenge and fight was scheduled for March 18. It would pit Tyson, the number #1 contender, against Ruddock who was number #2, for the right to fight the winner of Holyfield-Foreman. Ruddock was dropped in round three but fought back until referee
Richard Steele
Sir Richard Steele ( – 1 September 1729) was an Anglo-Irish writer, playwright and politician best known as the co-founder of the magazine ''The Spectator (1711), The Spectator'' alongside his close friend Joseph Addison.
Early life
Steel ...
stopped the fight in Tyson's favor during round 7. Some fans were unhappy with the decision and fights erupted in the stadium. Steele had to be escorted out of the ring after the angry protests.
Ruddock vs. Tyson II
A rematch was held June 28, 1991 and lasted a full 12 rounds. Tyson knocked Ruddock down twice during the bout, and won by unanimous decision. Both fighters were injured; Ruddock had a broken jaw and Tyson suffered a perforated eardrum. ''
Sports Illustrated
''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellen ...
'' reported that Ruddock's jaw may have been broken as early as the fourth round. Tyson was magnanimous after his triumph, praising Ruddock as a great heavyweight: "Man this guy is tough, he'll be champion of the world one day if he stays dedicated and doesn't slip up."
Ruddock vs. Lewis
After losing to Tyson for the second time, Ruddock picked up victories over former heavyweight champion Greg Page and got a win over undefeated hope Phil Jackson; both fights again were won by KO. Those victories set up a bout with Lennox Lewis in London on Halloween 1992. The bout was an official WBC Final Eliminator and seen as an elimination bout for the opportunity to face the winner of the upcoming Bowe - Holyfield match. Ruddock was knocked out in the second round.
Ruddock vs. Morrison
After more than two years out after the Lewis defeat Ruddock came back in 1994 with a points win over Anthony Wade which led to a fight with Tommy Morrison in 1995. In the first round he put Morrison down, but let the opportunity for an early stoppage slip, and was given a count himself in the second round after grabbing the ropes after being caught by a Morrison uppercut. Again, like the first Tyson fight, Ruddock was controversially stopped on his feet in the 6th round.
Retirement
After the loss to Morrison, Ruddock disappeared for 3 years until he returned once again in 1998. Ruddock was scheduled to challenge
Vitali Klitschko
Vitalii Volodymyrovych Klychko (; ; born 19 July 1971), known as Vitali Klitschko, is a Ukrainian politician and former professional boxer. He serves as mayor of Kyiv,Egerton Marcus in October 2001, then retired with a record of 38 wins (28 KOs), 5 losses and 1 draw.
Comeback and second retirement
On March 28, 2015, Ruddock, aged 51, returned to the ring with a fifth round knockout win over Raymond Olubowale and scored a 6 round majority points decision over Eric Barrak two months later. Ruddock, in his third and final comeback bout, was defeated by 3 round KO by Dillon Carman on September 11, 2015 in a bid for the Canadian heavyweight title.
Exhibition bout
Ruddock made a comeback to the ring at age 59 on November 11, 2023, when he fought 55-year-old James Toney, a former three-division world champion and hall of famer, in Kingston, Jamaica. The fight went all six rounds and was scored a draw, with the first two rounds being a standard three minutes, while the later four were shortened to two minutes. Both men were criticized for their lousy athletic appearances and sluggish slow pace, as both were clearly showing their senior age. Nevertheless, the fight went the distance.
Legacy
Ruddock was ranked 70th on ''The Ring'' magazine's list of "The 100 Greatest Punchers of All-Time".
Life after boxing
In the late 1990s, Ruddock had filed for bankruptcy as a number of failed investments, including $1 million that he lost when his Fort Lauderdale nightclub "Razor's Palace" went under; had left him cash poor. A contract dispute ruined a close relationship with his brother and former manager, Delroy.
In 2006, Ruddock invented a non-electrical garbage compactor called The Boxer which he hoped would become a success. Ruddock marketed the device he designed one day after becoming increasingly frustrated with the amount of waste his family was collecting, and sold it from his website Razorruddock.com. As of November 2013, the site is no longer online and the product is listed on Amazon as unavailable with no indication for future availability.