On August 28, 1998, the 27-year-old WBA middleweight world champion, William Joppy (25-1-1, 19 KOs), faced a 47-year-old Panamanian boxer Roberto Durán (101-13, 70 KOs), in a title defense fight.
Joppy came in to the fight on a 1-fight win streak with a 70% KO rate, and was fighting after a gap of 6 months and 28 days. Durán was on a 3-fight win streak with a 61% KO rate, and fighting after a layoff of 6 months and 28 days.
William Joppy made easy work of Roberto Durán, stopping the challenger via TKO in the 3rd. Joppy improves his record to 26-1-1 (20 KOs), while Durán adds a loss to his record at 101-14.
On June 24, 1996, a 25-year-old William Joppy (21-0-1, 17 KOs) got a shot at the WBA middleweight title held by 24-year-old Japanese boxer Shinji Takehara (24-0, 18 KOs).
Joppy came in to the fight on a 2-fight win streak with a 77% KO rate, and was fighting after a gap of 4 months and 14 days. Takehara was on a 24-fight win streak with a 75% KO rate, and fighting after a layoff of 6 months and 5 days.
William Joppy stopped the champion via TKO in the 9th round of the 12-round world-title fight, winning the first world title of his career, and is crowned the new WBA middleweight champion. Joppy improves his record to 22-0-1 (18 KOs), while Takehara adds a loss to his record at 24-1.
On January 31, 1998, William Joppy and Julio César Green met again in an immediate rematch.
Joppy came in to the fight on a 1-fight losing streak with a 73% KO rate, and was fighting after a gap of 5 months and 8 days. Green was on a 3-fight win streak with a 62% KO rate, and fighting after a layoff of 5 months and 8 days.
William Joppy defeated Julio César Green via unanimous decision in the rematch and wins the WBA title. Joppy improves his record to 25-1-1, while Green adds a loss to his record at 22-3.
On December 2, 2000, the 30-year-old WBA middleweight world champion, William Joppy (31-1-1, 23 KOs), faced Jonathan Reid, in a title defense fight.
Joppy came in to the fight on a 7-fight win streak with a 69% KO rate, and was fighting after a gap of 2 months and 16 days.
William Joppy stopped Jonathan Reid via TKO in the 4th round of the 12-round world-title fight, and successfully defended his WBA middleweight title. Joppy improves his record to 32-1-1 (24 KOs)
On May 20, 2000, the 29-year-old WBA middleweight world champion, William Joppy (29-1-1, 22 KOs), faced Rito Ruvalcaba, in a title defense fight.
Joppy came in to the fight on a 5-fight win streak with a 71% KO rate, and was fighting after a gap of 2 months and 17 days.
William Joppy made quick work of Rito Ruvalcaba, stopping the challenger via TKO in the 1st. Joppy improves his record to 30-1-1 (23 KOs)
On September 24, 1999, William Joppy and Julio César Green met again in a rematch.
Joppy came in to the fight on a 3-fight win streak with a 72% KO rate, and was fighting after a gap of 2 months. Green was on a 3-fight win streak with a 60% KO rate, and fighting after a layoff of 4 months and 9 days.
In the rematch, William Joppy stopped Julio César Green via TKO in the 7th round of the 12-round world-title fight, and successfully defended his WBA middleweight title. Joppy improves his record to 28-1-1 (22 KOs), while Green adds a loss to his record at 25-4.
On October 19, 1996, the 26-year-old WBA middleweight world champion, William Joppy (22-0-1, 18 KOs), faced Ray McElroy, in a title defense fight.
Joppy came in to the fight on a 3-fight win streak with a 78% KO rate, and was fighting after a gap of 3 months and 25 days.
William Joppy stopped Ray McElroy via TKO in the 7th round of the 12-round world-title fight, and successfully defended his WBA middleweight title. Joppy improves his record to 23-0-1 (19 KOs)
On September 16, 2000, the 30-year-old WBA middleweight world champion, William Joppy (30-1-1, 23 KOs), faced a 32-year-old French boxer Hacine Cherifi (30-4-1, 19 KOs), in a title defense fight.
Joppy came in to the fight on a 6-fight win streak with a 71% KO rate, and was fighting after a gap of 3 months and 27 days. Cherifi was on a 4-fight win streak with a 54% KO rate, and fighting after a layoff of 5 months and 8 days.
William Joppy defeated Hacine Cherifi via unanimous decision and successfully defended his WBA middleweight title. Joppy improves his record to 31-1-1, while Cherifi adds a loss to his record at 30-5-1.
On October 10, 2002, the 32-year-old WBA (Regular) middleweight world champion, William Joppy (33-2-1, 24 KOs), faced Naotaka Hozumi, in a title defense fight.
Joppy came in to the fight on a 1-fight win streak with a 66% KO rate, and was fighting after a gap of 10 months and 23 days.
William Joppy stopped Naotaka Hozumi via TKO in the 10th round of the 12-round world-title fight, and successfully defended his WBA (Regular) middleweight title. Joppy improves his record to 34-2-1 (25 KOs)
On December 13, 2003, a 33-year-old William Joppy (34-2-1, 25 KOs) got a shot at the undisputed middleweight championship held by 38-year-old Bernard Hopkins (42-2-1, 31 KOs).
Joppy came in to the fight on a 2-fight win streak with a 67% KO rate, and was fighting after a gap of 1 year, 2 months, and 3 days. Hopkins was on a 16-fight win streak with a 68% KO rate, and fighting after a layoff of 8 months and 14 days.
Bernard Hopkins defeated William Joppy via unanimous decision and successfully defended his WBA (Super), WBC, IBF, and The Ring middleweight titles. Hopkins improves his record to 43-2-1, while Joppy adds a loss to his record at 34-3-1.