Did very poorly as a heavyweight,But picked up a strap at cruiser.. I was too young to remember him,but i like to look into every fighter..Was he decent? Im guessing he could have been guided better.Looking at his record he definately didnt shy away from challenges
The only glimpse I really saw of him, was as a child, when he was on Sportsworld. Tim Witherspoon was battering him on the ropes, and they stopped the fight.
Decent cruiser, but came along at the wrong time when the options at cruiser were almost nil and the money was all at heavyweight. I knew a fighter who was an amateur world champ at 179 or 201, I forget which, who went pro as a 205-pound heavyweight because the money at heavy was 2-to-1 better even at the low end of the pay scale, and way more at the championship end.
Far from a mug, even when he ventured into the Heavies. I saw him live, when he was the first to show Gary Mason's limitations, in a fight he was never going to win, but still survived Mason's crude attack for half a dozen rounds, making Gary look a little silly at times. Also to beat Bodzianowski (twice) was an example of him putting his best foot forward at Cruiserweight (sorry).
He won the WBC Cruiserweight title in June, 1985 against 3-time Cruiserweight champ Carlos "Sugar" DeLeon, by 12-round decision on the Michael Spinks vs Jim McDonald undercard. Two years before that I saw him on CBS sports take on at the time future world heavyweight belt holder Pinklon "Pinky" Thomas as he, Ratliff, eventually got smoked in about 8-rounds. And of course the fight that was the pre-lude to the historical championship match between Tyson-Berbick, Ratliff was on the receiving end of a young Mike Tyson's fistic thunder before going down in just two rounds. Not an all time great but was a fairly good fighter though who had an even share of ups and downs throughout pro career!
