Vernon Forrest, nicknamed "The Viper", (January 12, 1971 – July 25, 2009) was an American professional boxer

Professional Boxing

Professional boxing, or prizefighting, emerged in the early twentieth century as boxing gradually attained legitimacy and became a regulated, sanctioned sport. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse which is divided among the fighters and promoters as determined by contract...

 who became a world champion in the welterweight

Welterweight

Welterweight is a weight class division in combat sports. Originally the term "welterweight" was used only in boxing, but other combat sports like kickboxing, taekwondo and mixed martial arts also began to use it for their own weight division system...

 and light middleweight

Light middleweight

Light Middleweight , is a weight division in professional boxing, above 147 pounds and up to 154 pounds ....

 divisions and noted for his two victories over Shane Mosley

Shane Mosley

“Sugar” Shane Mosley is an American professional boxer from Pomona, California who has held world titles in three weight divisions.-Amateur career:Mosley was an amateur standout, capturing various amateur titles, including:...

 and upset losses to Ricardo Mayorga

Ricardo Mayorga

Ricardo Mayorga , is a Nicaraguan professional boxer. He is the former WBA/WBC Welterweight champion and the former WBC light middleweight champion. He holds a record of 29-8 with 23 knockouts and 1 draw 1 no contest. He was featured for the first time on the cover of Ring Magazine on the December...

.

Early years and amateur career

Forrest began boxing at the age of 9. After achieving an impressive 225-16 record as an amateur, he became the 1992 US junior welterweight champion, and won silver in the 1991 World Amateur Boxing Championships

1991 World Amateur Boxing Championships

The Men's 1991 World Amateur Boxing Championships were held in Sydney, Australia from November 15 to 23. The sixth edition of this competition, held nearly a year before the Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain, was organised by the world's governing body for amateur boxing AIBA.- Medal winners...

 . Forrest was the first in his family to graduate from high school receiving his diploma from Marquette Senior High School in Marquette, Michigan

Marquette, Michigan

Marquette is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Marquette County. The population was 21,355 at the 2010 census, making it the most populated city of the Upper Peninsula. Marquette is a major port on Lake Superior, primarily for shipping iron ore and is the home of Northern...

. Staying in Marquette, Forrest was on scholarship to Northern Michigan University

Northern Michigan University

Northern Michigan University is a four-year college public university established in 1899 located in Marquette, in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. With a population of nearly 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students, Northern Michigan University is the Upper Peninsula's largest...

 where he majored in business administration through the U.S. Olympic Education Center. Forrest continued to train with the US National Team under head coach Al Mitchell

Al Mitchell

Albert Edwin Mitchell was a professional American football player for the Buffalo Bisons, playing six games in 1924. He went to Thiel College. He was born in Greenville, Pennsylvania. He was a tailback, a center and an end....

.

He was a member of the 1992 US Olympic Team

Boxing at the 1992 Summer Olympics

Boxing at the 1992 Summer Olympics took place in the old Pavelló Club Joventut de Badalona in Barcelona. The boxing schedule began on July 26 and ended on August 9...

 during the Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. He earned his Olympic position by beating Shane Mosley

Shane Mosley

“Sugar” Shane Mosley is an American professional boxer from Pomona, California who has held world titles in three weight divisions.-Amateur career:Mosley was an amateur standout, capturing various amateur titles, including:...

 in the trials. After that fight, Forrest was the gold medal

Gold medal

A gold medal is typically the medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture...

 favorite heading in to the tournament, he would then have to fight Cuban fighter Hector Vinent

Héctor Vinent

Héctor Vinent Cháron was a Cuban boxer, who won the Light Welterweight Gold medal at the 1992 Summer Olympics and 1996 Summer Olympics.-External links:**...

, a gold medalist, before reaching that goal. However, he was stricken with food poisoning a day before his first round bout and was beaten by Peter Richardson. He returned home to Augusta, then moved to Las Vegas, and made his professional debut on November 25, 1992.

Professional career

In his professional debut in November 1992, Forrest defeated Charles Hawkins. Through 1996, Forrest stopped 13 out of 15 opponents. Five were stopped in the first round.

As the years went by Forrest won a few minor title belts. It the year 2000 Forrest finally got his chance to fight for the IBF

International Boxing Federation

The International Boxing Federation or IBF is one of four major organizations recognized by IBHOF which sanction world championship boxing bouts, alongside the WBA, WBC and WBO.- History :...

 welterweight title against Raul Frank. A cut caused by an accidental head butt ended the bout in round three and the fight was ruled a no contest.

IBF champion

Forrest met Frank again in a rematch at Madison Square Garden

Madison Square Garden

Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG and known colloquially as The Garden, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New York City borough of Manhattan and located at 8th Avenue, between 31st and 33rd Streets, situated on top of Pennsylvania Station.Opened on February 11, 1968, it is the...

 on May 15, 2001, on a Félix Trinidad

Félix Trinidad

Félix 'Tito' Trinidad, Jr. is a Puerto Rican professional boxer, considered one of the best in Puerto Rico's history. After winning five National Amateur Championships in Puerto Rico, he debuted as a professional when he was 17. He won his first world championship when he defeated Maurice Blocker...

 undercard. Forrest dominated his opponent and won the fight by a unanimous decision

Unanimous decision

A unanimous decision is a winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts and others sports involving striking in which all three judges agree on which fighter won the match....

 to claim the title.

Forrest vs Mosley I & II

In 2001, Forrest fought the WBC

World Boxing Council

The World Boxing Council was initially established by 11 countries: the United States, Argentina, United Kingdom, France, Mexico, Philippines, Panama, Chile, Peru, Venezuela and Brazil plus Puerto Rico, met in Mexico City on February 14, 1963, upon invitation of the then President of Mexico, Adolfo...

 welterweight champion, Shane Mosley

Shane Mosley

“Sugar” Shane Mosley is an American professional boxer from Pomona, California who has held world titles in three weight divisions.-Amateur career:Mosley was an amateur standout, capturing various amateur titles, including:...

. Many considered Mosley to be the best fighter in the world, and he was the betting favorite to win the fight. However, Forrest scored an upset and beat Mosley by a unanimous decision. Six months later, Forrest once again defeated Mosley by a unanimous decision. His two wins over Mosley earned Forrest the Ring

The Ring (magazine)

The Ring is an American boxing magazine that was first published in 1922 as a boxing and wrestling magazine. As the sporting legitimacy of professional wrestling came more into question, The Ring shifted to becoming exclusively a boxing oriented publication...

2002 fighter of the year award.

Setbacks against Mayorga

In January 2003, Forrest fought the WBA

World Boxing Association

The World Boxing Association is a boxing organization that sanctions official matches, and awards the WBA world championship title at the professional level. It was previously known as the National Boxing Association before changing its name in 1962...

 welterweight champion, Ricardo Mayorga

Ricardo Mayorga

Ricardo Mayorga , is a Nicaraguan professional boxer. He is the former WBA/WBC Welterweight champion and the former WBC light middleweight champion. He holds a record of 29-8 with 23 knockouts and 1 draw 1 no contest. He was featured for the first time on the cover of Ring Magazine on the December...

 and suffered his first professional loss when Mayorga knocked him out in the third round. Later that year, he fought Mayorga again and lost by a majority decision.

On the comeback trail

Forrest took two years off from fighting because of injuries; Forrest had complete reconstructive surgery

Reconstructive surgery

Reconstructive surgery is, in its broadest sense, the use of surgery to restore the form and function of the body, although Maxillo-Facial Surgeons, Plastic Surgeons and Otolaryngologists do reconstructive surgery on faces after trauma and to reconstruct the head and neck after cancer.Other...

 on his left arm. He had three surgeries two on his shoulder to repair a torn rotator cuff

Rotator cuff tear

Rotator cuff tears are tears of one or more of the four tendons of the rotator cuff muscles. A rotator cuff injury can include any type of irritation or damage to the rotator cuff muscles or tendons....

 and one on his left elbow to repair torn cartilage and nerve damages.

In his first fight since losing twice to Mayorga, Forrest knocked out Sergio Rios in two rounds. After the fight against Rios, Forrest stopped Elco Garcia in the tenth round.

Forrest won a somewhat controversial ten round unanimous decision over Ike Quartey

Ike Quartey

Ike "Bazooka" Quartey is a former WBA Welterweight champion boxer. He has fought numerous world champion boxers including Oscar De La Hoya, Fernando Vargas, Vernon Forrest and Ronald "Winky" Wright.-Biography:...

 on August 5, 2006, at Madison Square Theatre, New York City. The judges at ringside scored the fight, 95-94, 95-94, and 96-93.

On July 28, 2007, Forrest won a unanimous decision against Carlos Baldomir in Tacoma, Washington

Tacoma, Washington

Tacoma is a mid-sized urban port city and the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. The city is on Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, and northwest of Mount Rainier National Park. The population was 198,397, according to...

, frequently firing off heavy right blows at Baldomir. After twelve rounds, Forrest won a lopsided 118-109, 116-111, 118-109 decision to take the vacant WBC light middleweight title.

On December 1, 2007, at Foxwoods Resort Casino

Foxwoods Resort Casino

Foxwoods Resort Casino is a hotel-casino in Mashantucket, Connecticut, United States. Together with the MGM Grand at Foxwoods, it is one of the largest casino complexes in the world in terms of floor space for gaming. The entire resort comprises of space. The casino has over 380 gaming tables...

, he successfully defended his light middleweight title against Italian Michele Piccirillo

Michele Piccirillo

Michele Piccirillo is a professional boxer in the welterweight division.- Professional career :...

, scoring an eleventh round TKO.

Losing the title

On June 7, 2008, Forrest lost his title to The Contender

The Contender (TV series)

The Contender is a reality television series that follows a group of boxers as they compete with one another in an elimination-style competition, while their lives and relationships with each other and their families are depicted. Produced by Mark Burnett, the show is hosted by Sugar Ray Leonard,...

winner Sergio Mora

Sergio Mora

Sergio "The Latin Snake" Mora is a Mexican American professional boxer trained by Dean Campos. He is the former WBC Light Middleweight Champion and also the first champion of NBC's The Contender....

 via a 12 round majority decision. In the build-up to the fight, Forrest referred to Mora as "the pretender" and threatened to send him "out on a stretcher". However, Mora succeeded in pulling off the upset victory. The final scores were 114-114, 115-113 and 116-112 in favor of Mora.

Reclaiming the title

Forrest reclaimed his WBC 154-pound title on September 14, 2008, against Sergio Mora

Sergio Mora

Sergio "The Latin Snake" Mora is a Mexican American professional boxer trained by Dean Campos. He is the former WBC Light Middleweight Champion and also the first champion of NBC's The Contender....

 via unanimous decision, the judges scores were 118-109, 117-110, and 119-110.

Professional boxing record

| style="text-align:center;" colspan="8"|41 Wins (29 knockouts, 12 decisions), 3 Losses, 0 Draws, 1 No Contest
|- style="text-align:center; background:#e3e3e3;"
| style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|Res.
| style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|Record
| style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|Opponent
| style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|Type
| style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|Rd., Time
| style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|Date
| style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|Location
| style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|Notes
|- align=center
|Win
|align=center|
||align=left|  Sergio Mora

Sergio Mora

Sergio "The Latin Snake" Mora is a Mexican American professional boxer trained by Dean Campos. He is the former WBC Light Middleweight Champion and also the first champion of NBC's The Contender....

|
|
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|align=left|
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|Loss
|align=center|
||align=left|  Sergio Mora

Sergio Mora

Sergio "The Latin Snake" Mora is a Mexican American professional boxer trained by Dean Campos. He is the former WBC Light Middleweight Champion and also the first champion of NBC's The Contender....

|
|
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
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|Win
|align=center|
||align=left|  Michele Piccirillo

Michele Piccirillo

Michele Piccirillo is a professional boxer in the welterweight division.- Professional career :...

|
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|
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|Win
|align=center|
||align=left|  Carlos Baldomir

Carlos Manuel Baldomir

Carlos Manuel Baldomir is an Argentine boxer and the former WBC & The Ring welterweight champion.- Boxing Style :...

|
|
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|- align=center
|Win
|align=center|
||align=left| Ike Quartey

Ike Quartey

Ike "Bazooka" Quartey is a former WBA Welterweight champion boxer. He has fought numerous world champion boxers including Oscar De La Hoya, Fernando Vargas, Vernon Forrest and Ronald "Winky" Wright.-Biography:...

|
|
|
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|Win
|align=center|
||align=left|  Elco Garcia
|
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||align=left|  Sergio Rios
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|Loss
|align=center|
||align=left|  Ricardo Mayorga

Ricardo Mayorga

Ricardo Mayorga , is a Nicaraguan professional boxer. He is the former WBA/WBC Welterweight champion and the former WBC light middleweight champion. He holds a record of 29-8 with 23 knockouts and 1 draw 1 no contest. He was featured for the first time on the cover of Ring Magazine on the December...

|
|
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Loss
|align=center|
||align=left|  Ricardo Mayorga

Ricardo Mayorga

Ricardo Mayorga , is a Nicaraguan professional boxer. He is the former WBA/WBC Welterweight champion and the former WBC light middleweight champion. He holds a record of 29-8 with 23 knockouts and 1 draw 1 no contest. He was featured for the first time on the cover of Ring Magazine on the December...

|
|
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
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|Win
|align=center|
||align=left| Shane Mosley

Shane Mosley

“Sugar” Shane Mosley is an American professional boxer from Pomona, California who has held world titles in three weight divisions.-Amateur career:Mosley was an amateur standout, capturing various amateur titles, including:...

|
|
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
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|Win
|align=center|
||align=left| Shane Mosley

Shane Mosley

“Sugar” Shane Mosley is an American professional boxer from Pomona, California who has held world titles in three weight divisions.-Amateur career:Mosley was an amateur standout, capturing various amateur titles, including:...

|
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||align=left| Edgar Ruiz
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|align=center|
||align=left| Raul Frank
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|style="background: #DDDDDD"|NC
|align=center|
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|align=center|31-0||align=left| Vince Phillips

Vince Phillips

Vincent Edwards Phillips Sr. is an American boxer best known for upsetting and beating then undefeated Kostya Tszyu for the junior welterweight title.- Early life :...

|
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|align=center|30-0||align=left| Santiago Samaniego

Santiago Samaniego

Santiago Ryce Samaniego is a professional boxer in the super welterweight division.- Professional career :...

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|align=center|29-0||align=left| Ed Goins
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|align=center|28-0||align=left| Steve Martinez
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|align=center|27-0||align=left| Mark Fernandez
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|align=center|26-0||align=left| Ed Griffin
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|align=center|25-0||align=left| Adrian Stone
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|align=center|24-0||align=left| Gilberto Flores

Gilberto Flores

Gilberto Flores is a Brazilian soccer midfielder.Gilberto was signed by the MetroStars from Brazilian club Ginásio Pinhalense de Esportes Atléticos after impressing in La Manga Cup in 2004...

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|align=center|23-0||align=left| Ray Oliveira

Ray Oliveira

"Sucra" Ray Oliveira in New Bedford, MA, USA is a former professional boxer who plans on coming out of retirement in an attempt to gain his 50th career win...

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|align=center|22-0||align=left| Jaime Lerma
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|align=center|21-0||align=left| Pedro Saiz
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|align=center|20-0||align=left| Francisco De Assis
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|align=center|19-0||align=left| Mike Rios
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|align=center|18-0||align=left| Chris Slaughter
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|align=center|17-0||align=left| Isaac Cruz
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|align=center|16-0||align=left| Tony Ortiz
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|align=center|15-0||align=left| Marlon Thomas
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Charity work

Forrest was involved directly with the creation of the Not for Profit Destiny's Child, a group home that assists people with developmental, emotional, and psychological disabilities and needs. Forrest was also involved directly with helping the clients by organizing Destiny's Child's activities.

Murder

At about 11:00 pm EDT

Eastern Time Zone

The Eastern Time Zone of the United States and Canada is a time zone that falls mostly along the east coast of North America. Its UTC time offset is −5 hrs during standard time and −4 hrs during daylight saving time...

 on July 25, 2009, Forrest stopped at a gas station in the Atlanta neighborhood of Mechanicsville

Mechanicsville (Atlanta)

Mechanicsville is a neighborhood of Atlanta, Georgia. It sits in the shadow of both downtown Atlanta and Turner Field. The neighborhood is bounded by:* I-20 on the north, across which is Castleberry Hill and Downtown Atlanta...

. With him was his 11-year-old godson. As the boy went inside the gas station, Forrest went to the back of his car to add air to a low tire. As this occurred, a man robbed him at gunpoint and fled. Forrest, who was armed, went after the man and shots were exchanged. After a short distance, Forrest gave up the chase and began talking to a second man. It was this man that shot Forrest seven to eight times in the back. According to police, the shooter and a second person left the scene in a red Pontiac. Forrest was pronounced dead at the scene and the death was ruled a homicide. Atlanta Police have arrested and charged 25-year-old Jquante Crews, 20-year-old Demario Ware, and 30-year-old Charman Sinkfield for his murder. It is believed that Sinkfield was the shooter, Ware was the robber, and Crews was the driver.

External links

• Official Website {dead link}
• boxen-artur.de – Encyclopedia
• Obituary in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution
• Vernon Forrest - Daily Telegraph obituary

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