On September 16, 2017, a 30-year-old Willie Monroe Jr. (21-2, 6 KOs) got a shot at the middleweight WBO title held by 28-year-old British boxer Billy Joe Saunders (24-0, 12 KOs).
Monroe Jr. came in to the fight on a 2-fight win streak with a 26% KO rate, and was fighting after a gap of 11 months and 30 days. Saunders was on a 24-fight win streak with a 50% KO rate, and fighting after a layoff of 9 months and 13 days.
Billy Joe Saunders defeated Willie Monroe Jr. via unanimous decision and successfully defended his WBO middleweight title. Saunders improves his record to 25-0, while Monroe Jr. adds a loss to his record at 21-3.
On May 16, 2015, a 28-year-old Willie Monroe Jr. (19-1, 6 KOs) got a shot at the middleweight WBA (Super) title held by 33-year-old Kazakhstani boxer Gennadiy Golovkin (32-0, 29 KOs).
Monroe Jr. came in to the fight on a 9-fight win streak with a 30% KO rate, and was fighting after a gap of 4 months. Golovkin was on a 32-fight win streak with a 90% KO rate, and fighting after a layoff of 2 months and 25 days.
Gennady Golovkin stopped Willie Monroe Jr. via TKO in the 6th round of the 12-round world-title fight, and successfully defended his WBA (Super) middleweight title. Golovkin improves his record to 33-0 (30 KOs), while Monroe Jr. adds a loss to his record at 19-2.
On March 29, 2011, a 24-year-old Willie Monroe Jr. (10-0, 4 KOs) and a 31-year-old Darnell Boone (17-17-3, 7 KOs) met in the ring.
Monroe Jr. came in to the fight on a 10-fight win streak with a 40% KO rate, and was fighting after a gap of 5 months and 14 days. Boone was on a -2-fight win streak with a 18% KO rate, and fighting after a layoff of 3 months and 26 days.
Darnell Boone defeated Willie Monroe Jr. via split decision in the 8-round fight. Boone improves his record to 18-17-3, while Monroe Jr. adds a loss to his record at 10-1.