23 Facts About Antonio Tarver

Antonio Deon Tarver was born on November 21,1968 and is an American former professional boxer and boxing commentator.

Antonio Tarver triumphed at the 1995 Pan American Games and 1995 US National Championships, winning gold in both.

Antonio Tarver remains the only boxer in history to have won gold at the Pan Am Games, World Championships and US Nationals all in the same year.

Outside of boxing, Antonio Tarver starred as Mason "The Line" Dixon, the heavyweight champion in the 2006 film Rocky Balboa.

Antonio Tarver made his professional debut at the age of 28 on February 18,1997, with a second-round knockout of Joaquin Garcia at the legendary "Blue Horizon" in Philadelphia.

Antonio Tarver won his first 16 fights, 14 by knockout, before stepping up his level of competition.

On February 29,2000, Antonio Tarver scored a knockout against Ernest M-16 Mateen in Las Vegas.

Antonio Tarver then scored a fifth round stoppage over Harding in a rematch that was on the undercard of the rematch between Shane Mosely and Vernon Forrest.

Antonio Tarver was trailing on the scorecards until the 4th round, when he sent Harding to the canvas with a barrage of unanswered power shots; Harding was floored twice in the 5th round, leading to the stoppage.

Antonio Tarver became a mainstream celebrity after his rematch win over Jones, making appearances at late-night shows, appearing on the cover of both Ring and KO Magazine, being spotted by television cameras as a spectator at various boxing fights, and co-hosting ESPN's "Friday Night Fights" for one telecast.

Antonio Tarver, considered a favorite to win the fight, suffered an upset loss to Johnson by way of a split decision in a fight that he did not appear to be in top shape for.

Antonio Tarver avenged the loss six months later with a unanimous decision, out-boxing and out-working the aggressive Johnson at the FedEx Forum in Memphis, Tennessee to regain The Ring championship.

On June 10,2006, Antonio Tarver faced former undisputed world middleweight champion Bernard Hopkins for Antonio Tarver's The Ring title at The Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Antonio Tarver returned to the ring nearly one year after his loss to Hopkins, defeating Albanian-fighter Elvir Muriqi on June 9,2007, by way of a majority decision.

Antonio Tarver then regained the IBF title by outpointing Clinton Woods.

On October 11,2008, Antonio Tarver faced rising star Chad Dawson for Antonio Tarver's IBF title.

Antonio Tarver, who came to the fight as a 5:1 underdog, again lost by unanimous decision.

Antonio Tarver dominated the fight, knocking Green down in the second round and controlling the majority of the action from there on in.

On February 25,2021, it was announced that Antonio Tarver would be returning to the ring for the first time since 2015.

Antonio Tarver intended to represent mental health advocacy and has said he would dedicate the bout with Mir to all survivors or victims of mental health disorders.

Antonio Tarver was replaced by former IBF cruiserweight champion Steve Cunningham.

Antonio Tarver starred as heavyweight champion Mason "The Line" Dixon in the 2006 film Rocky Balboa.

Antonio Tarver is one of only three fighters to actually defeat "Rocky Balboa" in film.