Fighting was nearly Phil Williams' ruin. Now, it has him on the precipice of stardom.
A product of Minneapolis' Northside, Williams — "The Drill" to his friends and fans — will face local brawler Matt Vanda in the 10-round super middleweight feature bout of a six-fight card tonight at Grand Casino in Hinckley.
A victory for the granite-fisted Williams is expected to propel him from the periphery of the national boxing scene squarely into the conversation of potential title contenders.
"This is for sure my biggest fight to date," said Williams, whose 10 knockouts are the spike in his 11-1 career record. "If I win this, it will open up a lot of doors for me."
Doors that Williams, 32, has seen from afar but, until recently, never has been able to reach.
Born in New York, Williams, who never has known a father, bounced around with his family until finally settling down in Minneapolis in his early teens.
It was there that his story became that of a garden-variety street hustler, laden with petty crime, fights and repeated trips to jail.
"Man, you name it, I did it, "Williams said. "I must have been to jail 20 times."
By his estimation, Williams also participated in 100 street fights, most of them finished at the end of his fist.
"I've got God-given power," he said. "I hit like a mule. If I get a clean shot on someone, I'm going to knock him out."
But, despite his street-life perspective, Williams always could see there was a future available to him if he wanted one. A drop-out from Patrick Henry High School, he went back and earned his diploma at age 19. He then went to school to become a barber, still his fulltime profession.
Finally, at the ancient (for boxing) age of 22, Williams decided to take his raw power and try to turn it into something useful.
"I'd always gone by Glover's Gym [in northeast Minneapolis] and I wanted to stop in, but it was never open when I was there," he said. "Finally, one day, I went in and said I wanted to become a boxer."
That was 10 years ago. Since then, Williams has advanced steadily through the boxing ranks, winning two Upper Midwest Golden Gloves titles and earning a No. 16 ranking in the United States in the super middleweight (168 pounds) division.
Yet, while he has escaped the undertow of his youth, he refuses to leave it behind.
"Everything I do, I do for the inner city and the people there," he said. "I came from nothing, so I relate to people who have nothing. Those people are the one who support me and call me champ, even though I don't have a belt yet. But I know I'm going to have one someday. It's going to come."
• Tonight's card also includes super welterweight Wilton Hilario, who puts his undefeated professional record (11-0-1) on the line against Leon Bobo, a lefty from St. Louis with an 18-3-1 record, and will mark the professional debut of promising Minneapolis welterweight Javontae Starks, who will meet local fighter Dan Copp in a four-round bout. The card will be televised live on Fox Sports North starting at 8:45 p.m.
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