Ryan Williams' toughest fights in the professional ranks has been actually finding opponents rather than facing them.
The junior bantamweight Williams returns home to fight Marcus Decamp on Saturday at the Huntington Center in Toledo, Ohio.
Williams, 2-0 (2 KOs), is looking to start his career with three straight knockouts. He is yet to see the second round.
“We are having trouble getting the type of opponents we want,” Robert Mumford, the trainer of Williams, said. “It is hard to find fighters willing to take a fight with us.”
Williams, an amateur standout, turned professional in December. In February, he fought at a 124lbs catchweight above his usual junior bantamweight class to stay active. Williams, 21, is perhaps a victim of his own success.
His accolades are intimidating, and he fights in a weight class that lacks depth regionally in the United States. Even at the top, the best fighters in his weight class are rooted in a land far, far away.
“It feels like the Japanese fighters have cornered the market when it comes to world titles,” Mumford said. “I am hoping guys like Terry Washington, Jordan Roach, or Ryan Williams can get a title soon, since I know they are willing to fight each other. Right now, they could fight, but it wouldn’t make sense. It would be a championship-level fight without a belt.”
With a limited talent pool, established fighters are looking at opportunities for higher pay in Japan, rather than facing up-and-comers in the United States. Decamp enters as a 0-6 regional talent. Decamp, a 28-year-old from Battle Creek, Michigan, was the only fighter willing to face Williams in a four-round fight.
“It shouldn’t last long,” Mumford said. “We are hoping to fight someone soon who can give us some rounds.”
