A rocky road to success

Anthony Dirrell has been near perfect inside the ring, but his challenges have been formidable outside of it. So much so that perhaps his nickname should be “The Underdog.”

The 168-pounder has survived non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, battled back from a motorcycle crash that broke an arm and a leg, and mistakenly been arrested for an armed bank robbery.

He’s also stepped out of the shadow of his older brother, Andre, a talented fighter who won a bronze medal at the 2004 Olympics.

A champion from childhood

Anthony Dirrell was born in the tough town of Flint, Michigan.

The Dirrell brothers started boxing in elementary school with their grandfather, Leon "Bumper” Lawson Sr., and uncle, Leon Jr., guiding their careers as trainer. The elder Lawson was a former sparring partner for Muhammad Ali.

Dirrell’s 192-20 amateur career included moving up to the 178-pound weight division for the 2004 Olympic trials, while brother Andre fought at 168.

He fought with a broken hand, but finished third and didn’t make the team.

Overcoming cancer

Dirrell made his professional debut at the age of 20, gaining a first-round TKO of Henry Dukes on January 27, 2005.

Over the next two years, Dirrell racked up 11 more wins, including a first-round TKO of James Hopkins on December 22, 2006, in his hometown of Flint.

Just days later, he received the biggest blow of his life: Chest pain he’d been experiencing during training was diagnosed as non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a cancer that starts in cells in the body’s immune system.

Dirrell underwent two years of chemotherapy, but kept up his training between treatments.

Before resuming his boxing career, though, Dirrell was pulled over on his way to chemotherapy on suspicion of armed robbery.

The suspect was driving a car similar to Dirrell’s, and the boxer spent a night in jail. He was released the next day, and no charges were ever filed.

Yet another setback

Dirrell returned to the ring on October 11, 2008, after a nearly two-year absence, defeating Andy Mavros in a four-round unanimous decision in Las Vegas.

He continued his undefeated streak with 11 more wins, earning him a 168-pound contender eliminator match with Renan St-Juste on December 2, 2011. Dirrell defeated the Canadian by fourth-round TKO.

In position for a title bout, Dirrell suffered another setback in May 2012 after being struck by a vehicle while test-driving a motorcycle.

The crash left him with a fractured arm and broken leg, sidelining him for nearly 18 months.

Nearing the goal

In his first bout after the accident, Dirrell won an eight-round unanimous decision over Don Mouton in Las Vegas on May 3, 2013.

Two months later, he dispatched Anthony Hanshaw in three rounds in San Antonio, putting him within reach of his goal of becoming the first cancer survivor to win a boxing world championship.

Getting his first shot at a title

Dirrell got his shot against champion Sakio Bika on December 7, 2013, in Brooklyn, New York.

Dirrell dropped Bika in the fifth round, and Bika was docked a point in the 11th round for a low blow, but the action-packed 12-round fight was ruled a draw, allowing Bika to retain his title.

The heart of a champion

Dirrell and Bika met in a rematch in Carson, California, on August 16, 2014.

Dirrell relied heavily on his defense to outbox Bika in another rugged fight, winning the 12-round brawl by unanimous decision to take the 168-pound title.

He just missed his chance to become the first known cancer survivor to win a world championship, as Daniel Jacobs, who overcame bone cancer, won a 160-pound title one week earlier.

Experiencing defeat for the first time

Dirrell put his title on the line on April 24, when he faced challenger Badou Jack in Chicago in a Premier Boxing Champions bout that was broadcast on Spike TV.

Dirrell was the aggressor early on, and switched to southpaw in the fourth round in an attempt to thwart Jack.

Jack picked up the pace in the middle rounds, though, and pressed Dirrell for the remainder of the 12-round bout.

Dirrell tried to rally late, but it wasn't enough as Jack won a majority decision by scores of 116-112, 115-113, 114-114 to take the title.

Back on the winning track

After losing to Badou Jack in April 2015, Dirrell went on a three-fight winning streak. He won almost every second of every round in a unanimous 10-round decision over veteran Marco Antonio Rubio on September 6, 2015, at the American Bank Center, in Corpus Christi, Texas on a Premier Boxing Champions card on CBS.

Seven months later, Dirrell needed a mere 109 seconds to stop Caleb Truax on April 29, 2016, in the first round at the Trump Taj Mahal, in Atlantic City, New Jersey, on Spike TV. It marked Dirrell’s first stoppage victory since he beat Anthony Hanshaw by third-round TKO on July 27, 2013.

Dirrell made it three straight by beating Norbert Nemesapati with another stoppage, a sixth-round TKO on January 13, 2017 in a Premier Boxing Champions fight on Spike TV at the Hialeah Park Racing & Casino, in Hialeah, Florida.

Dirrell's next fight occurred in his hometown of Flint as he faced Denis Douglin on Friday, November 17, 2017 from the Dort Federal Credit Union Center, live on FS1. Dirrell won a six-round technical decision. Scores of the bout were 49-46, and 48-47 twice in favor of Dirrell.

Dirrell had Douglin hurt in the first, but the latter escaped and worked his way back into the bout. Ultimately, a bad cut over Dirrell's left eye, ruled to be caused by a headbutt, forced the ringside doctor to halt the fight on account of Dirrell's vision being impaired.

Dirrell returned on April 28, 2018, dropping Abraham Han in the first, and dominating him over the course of the bout to win a 10-round unanimous decision at Don Haskins Center in El Paso, Texas. 

A ROLLER COASTER RIDE

On February 23, 2019, Dirrell took on Avni Yildirim for the vacant WBC world super middleweight crown. The bout headlined a PBC main event on FS1 live from the Minneapolis Armory in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The two gladiators gave it their all for as long as it lasted. Dirrell's will and skill gave him the advantage in each round as he landed the cleaner, harder punches. 

The fight was decided by a technical split decision after it was stopped during the 10th round because of a bad gash above Dirrell’s left eye.

The cut occurred via accidental clash of heads in round seven. The fight went to the scorecards when the ring doctor ruled that Dirrell couldn’t continue. Two judges scored it for Dirrell 96-94 while the third had Yildirim winning 98-92.

The 98-92 score for Yildirim was probably too wide a score but he made Dirrell earn every point he collected. Nevertheless, "The Dog" was champion once more. 

“I wanted to keep going, as everybody probably saw,” Dirrell said in the ring. “I was upset. I wanted to keep going and finish the fight as a champion.

“It feels good. I think the first time was probably a little more joyful because of what I was fighting for but this one was … joyful. I’m excited to get another title.”

That cut, however, would prove to be Dirrell's undoing in his next bout. On Saturday, September 28, 2019, Dirrell made the first defense of his title versus former champion David Benavidez at Staples Center in Los Angeles. The bout co-featured a FOX Sports pay-per-view headlined by a welterweight unification between Errol Spence Jr. and Shawn Porter.

Both fighters had their moments early on. In round six, Benavidez landed a punch that opened up a cut over Dirrell's right eye. With the blood pouring, the cut was immediately a problem for Dirrell, who now had limited vision to stop the incoming assault.

"He hit me with a clean shot," said Dirrell. "That's my first time ever being cut by a punch. It opened up. There was nothing I could do about it. I couldn't see the whole fight after that. My corner did a good job on it, but I really couldn't see."

Despite having his cut checked by the ringside physician in rounds six, seven and eight, Dirrell was able to use his veteran savvy to stay in the fight. But Benavidez began landing more on Dirrell, whose vision was compromised. Referee Thomas Taylor officially stopped the fight 1:39 into the round, at the direction of Dirrell's corner.

"I would have kept going in there," said Dirrell. "I'm not quitting against anybody. Everyone saw I didn't go down. My legs were still strong, but I couldn't do anything about it. 

"We're going back to the drawing board. I'm still fighting. We won't end on a loss. You can put anybody in there with me."

Dirrell returned to the ring on February 27, 2021, in a FOX PBC Fight Night headliner versus Kyrone Davis. The two battled to a hard-fought 12-round split draw in a WBC Super Middleweight title elimination match.

It was a tactical match as both boxers displayed superb skills, battling from a distance and in close quarters. Dirrell landed the more accurate shots, but Davis matched his work rate on offense. As the fight wore on it became a question of whether the wily veteran, Dirrell, would be able to drag the younger man, Davis, out into deep waters and sink him. Davis didn’t let that happen, making Dirrell work for everything he got in the fight.

In the end the judges ruled that neither man was the clear-cut winner. Judge Patrick Russell scored it 115-113 for Dirrell. Judge Lou Moret scored it 115-113 for Davis and Judge Zachary Young had it 114-114 even.

AN UNFORGETTABLE KNOCKOUT

On November 6, 2021, Dirrell took on veteran Marcus Hernandez at MGM Grand in Las Vegas, on the Canelo Alvarez-Caleb Plant SHOWTIME pay-per-view card. Dirrell nearly stole the show, scoring a one-punch knockout of Hernandez in the fourth round, courtesy of an unbelievable right uppercut. 

However, Dirrell would suffer a setback on October 15, 2022, when Caleb Plant stopped him in the ninth round of their FOX Sports PBC Pay-Per-View co-main event from Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. 
“It was a spectacular knockout,” said Dirrell. “It was a punch we were working on. It wasn’t that wide. I used to use that punch way back when. I came up with the shot and he never saw it coming. My brother [Andre] was yelling at me and I said, ‘I got it.’ I saw it and I had to take advantage of it. I had to take it away from him.”
 
Dirrell successfully rebounded from the disappointing draw against Kyrone Davis and did so stylishly. The 37-year-old even capped off the KO with a celebratory backflip. 
 
“I expected to stop him, I did,” continued Dirrell. “I thought I was going to catch him with a right hand over the top, honestly. I knew he thought I was going to throw that so I just came up with the uppercut. I came out here and made a statement.”