FAIRFAX, VA - MAY 10: Julian Williams punches Jarrett Hurd during the eleventh round of their IBF, WBA, and IBO world super welterweight championship bout at EagleBank Arena on May 11, 2019 in Fairfax, Virginia. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) Jarrett Hurd was supposed to defend his title against Julian Williams easily, but Williams had a different plan. Williams shocked the world in the process. Jarrett Hurd (23-1, 16 KOs) was the hottest super welterweight in the world entering his Saturday, May 11 bout with challenger Julian Williams (27-1-1,16 KOs). Unfortunately for Hurd, Williams had other plans and disrupted what was a perfect career. Hurd possessed the WBA, IBF, and IBO super welterweight titles before his fight with Williams. Both men had a penchant for producing action bouts, but Hurd’s physicality and strength made him the favorite. Williams lost to Jermall Charlo in 2016 by KO in the fifth round, so he was the underdog automatically. However, he defied the odds with heart and conditioning. When the fight started, Hurd looked like the champion. The fight was a feel out round, but Hurd’s right hand made an impact early on. Williams was passive and didn’t land anything significant. Round 2 changed the course of the fight. It didn’t take long before Willaims hurt Hurd with a right hand. They ended up in a clinch and Williams threw a left hook that strafed Hurd’s head, but he went down despite not feeling the brunt of the blow. He was disorientated and went down due to previous strikes. Hurd got to his feet but ate more punches for his trouble. The champion was in danger. Hurd recovered in the third round in the face of Williams’ aggression. It was a back and fourth round that saw Willaims ahead early, but Hurd battled back. The fourth and fifth rounds were controlled by Williams, but Hurd mounted an offensive in the sixth. He looked like the champion that was advertised before the fight, but Williams had his moments. It started as a Hurd round, but Williams changed the tenor with his activity. Hurd was the bigger man at 6-foot-1, but Williams pushed him around the ring for the remainder of the night. It was a competitive contest, but Hurd couldn’t combat Williams’ aggressiveness and accuracy. Hurd looked to be a beat behind Williams all night. It was no surprise when the scores were read. There were two cards of 115-112, with one of 116-111 all for the winner and new IBF, IBO, and WBA super welterweight champion Williams. The outcome was fair and well deserved. Don’t be surprised if we see the rematch between Williams and Hurd this year. It was reported on FOX’s live broadcast that Hurd has a mandatory rematch clause in the contract. It was a fight of the year candidate, and hopefully, we’ll be able to see it go down again. Hurd may have taken Williams lightly, or he might be having problems making weight. Fans will welcome the rematch, but Hurd might be better suited for the middleweight division. Regardless, Williams is the new super welterweight force, and Hurd is a loser for the first time.<doc-sep>Julian Williams marched into Jarrett Hurd’s backyard and took the WBA and IBF 154-pound titles tonight in a PBC on FOX main event, outfighting the favored titleholder and earning a clear decision win over 12 rounds. It was a terrific, hard-hitting fight, with Williams not only proving the superior boxer but able to take any attempts at rallying from Hurd, known as a slow starter who breaks opponents down. He wasn’t able to do that tonight, and all the credit for that goes to Julian Williams and his team. It’s the sort of win that really shakes up a division and the careers of the men who were in the ring, and it will hopefully get a lot of attention post-fight, because it was a fight and a victory that deserve the attention. Here’s what some boxing pros had to say on Twitter at the end of and then after the fight. Let’s start with a big one: 7-1 underdog thank you to every one that doubted me #ANDTHENEW — JulianJrockWilliams (@Jrockboxing) May 12, 2019 And the rest: Before the judges call it, ima call it. 119-108 Williams. Congratulations brother. Philly got another champ. — TEVIN FARMER (@TevinFarmer22) May 12, 2019 No losers tonight. Tremendous fight and even better sportsmanship. @Jrockboxing and @swift_jhurd are each a credit to the sport. Great competitors and class acts. #HurdWilliams — Stephen Espinoza (@StephenEspinoza) May 12, 2019 JRock earned that — Jesse Hart (@1hollywoodHart) May 12, 2019 It just goes to show you that one loss doesn’t define you. @Jrockboxing lost to Charlo in Dec 2016, but he came back so damn strong and never doubted himself. He made sacrifices and fought his ass off against any and all comers. J Rock is a true epitome of a champion — Ray Flores (@SBRFlores) May 12, 2019 That’s how a challenger comes in and takes it.. congrats @Jrockboxing — JERMELL CHARLO (@TwinCharlo) May 12, 2019 J rock took that ish!!! — Austin Trout (@NoDoubtTrout) May 12, 2019 Both of them are my boys but @Jrockboxing boxed beautifully tonight. @premierboxing #HurdWilliams — Jamel Herring (@JamelHerring) May 12, 2019 GREAT FIGHT! I have it 9-3 @Jrockboxing. Brilliant performance... God I hope they give it to the right man.#HurdWilliams #boxing #PBConFOX — caleb truax (@GoldenCalebT) May 12, 2019 Williams deserves to be champ tonight! Hope it goes his way — Joseph Diaz (@JosephDiazJr) May 12, 2019 This a good ass fight, Jrock looking like he finna become champ #HurdWilliams — Showstopper (@StephonYoung88) May 12, 2019 I’m happy for @Jrockboxing but my heart is broken for @Swift_JHurd ! I’m a fan of both guys! The best fighter won tonight. What a comeback champion! — ClaressaT-rexShields (@Claressashields) May 12, 2019 Hurd is my guy I told him heart to heart after the trout fight he getting hit to much try to limited that shit so you can enjoy your riches in the end that’s real love — Tony Harrison (@Iamboxing) May 12, 2019<doc-sep>So much for the hometown advantage. Julian Williams shocked the world tonight, upsetting Jarrett Hurd to win the WBA and IBF junior middleweight titles in Hurd’s backyard, taking the belts on scores of 115-112, 115-112, and 116-111. Bad Left Hook scored the fight 117-110 for Williams. Williams (27-1-1, 16 KO) proved he was not only able to outbox Hurd (23-1, 16 KO), which many expected that he could, but that he could also hang with the bigger, more physically imposing defending titleholder, who came in with the reputation of breaking opponents down even when they had more skill than he did. Williams dropped Hurd in the second round, and was able to bang it out with Hurd throughout the fight, doing more damage and never seeming in any notable trouble himself. Hurd did rally a bit in the middle rounds, but just when it looked like he had momentum, Williams shut it all down and took the fight over once again, both starting fast and closing strong. It was the fight of Julian Williams’ life, a deserved victory and confirmation that he is indeed one of the best in the world at 154 pounds. Williams was tearful in his post-fight interview, having achieved his dreams and come back from defeat when he was counted out. “They told me I was done, told me I had no chin,” Williams said, referring to his 2016 loss to Jermall Charlo. “I’m just so blessed. Jarrett’s such a great fighter and he pushed me. The boxing world, they make it seem like fighters take a loss and can’t come back. I just knew that wasn’t the case. Boxing world, stop condemning fighters when they take a loss. Keep supporting Jarrett, because Jarrett is a great fighter.” Williams was asked if he wanted to do a rematch next, or fight the winner of the June 23 WBC title rematch between Tony Harrison and Jermell Charlo, but he put that to the side for now. “That’s not my business right now. I’m gonna just enjoy my win,” he said. “If Jarrett wants a rematch, we can do it in Philadelphia. I’m sure Philadelphia will welcome him just like I was welcomed.” Hurd made zero excuses after the fight, denying that any nerves fighting at home played a part. “J-Rock was the better man tonight. He put me down for the first time in my career and he came out with the victory,” Hurd said. “No nerves or anything. I suffered two cuts, but I was able to finish the fight. J-Rock was just the better man tonight. I’ll be back, baby. You know I’ll be back.” Before the main event, PBC paid tribute to the late “Smokin’” Bert Cooper and Harold Lederman.<doc-sep>If there has been a recurring theme in unified junior middleweight champion Jarrett Hurd's meteoric rise toward consideration among the best pound-for-pound fighters in the sport, it's that nothing has come easy. Following a brief and rather nondescript amateur career, Hurd (23-0, 16 KOs) wasn't provided the luxury of the hand-picked matchmaking and hype that surrounds a typical future star. Yet for each difficult test placed in front of him -- from then-unbeaten prospect Frank Galarza in 2015 to current WBC champion Tony Harrison in his first title bout two years later -- Hurd came through with performances that just about leaped through the television screen. An impressive knockout of former champion Austin Trout followed to close 2017. Six months later, Hurd dropped long-reigning champion Erislandy Lara in Round 12 to cement a split-decision win that was voted the fight of the year. After surgery and a get-well fight to test his left shoulder out, Hurd returns on Saturday in a homecoming bout that is anything but a gimme fight. A native of nearby Accokeek, Maryland -- who, by the way, still proudly lives at home with his parents -- the 28-year-old Hurd will defend his IBF and WBA titles on Saturday against former title challenger Julian Williams (26-1-1, 16 KOs) in a Premier Boxing Champions card (8 p.m. ET, Fox, stream live on fuboTV) at EagleBank Arena in Fairfax, Virginia. Respect box? Subscribe to my podcast -- State of Combat with Brian Campbell -- where we take an in-depth look at the world of boxing each week, including a preview of Hurd vs. Williams and a recap of Canelo vs. Jacobs. The 29-year-old Williams, a gritty native of Philadelphia, brings the pedigree of a technical boxer and the backbone of a brawler, which has Hurd ready for anything that comes his way. "It's hard to tell what type of fight this is going to be," Hurd said. "I want to say that he's going to try to box, but I said that about Erislandy Lara and we saw that he stood toe-to-toe with me. Because of my size, I don't really think Julian Williams is going to try to do that. He's going to try to get his shots off and score points and make it through 12 rounds." There's a legitimate argument to make that Williams is the most underrated fighter in the division. Too many critics have focused on what happened during his lone title bout to date in 2016 when an uppercut from then-IBF champion Jermall Charlo knocked him down and led to a knockout loss shortly after in Round 5. The reality is that Williams was winning the fight (in his opinion, handily) before the time of the stoppage and happened to get caught with the wrong punch at the wrong time. "I don't know if I'm forgotten like some of these sports writers or experts might say," Williams said. "I wasn't going to let that happen. I know how boxing works. Losses happen. Knockouts happen. Just because you take a loss that doesn't mean you can't come back and be a great fighter. "You just get back up on the horse. You just can't stay down too long. So I just got back in there and got a couple of wins. I knew this time would be coming. Boxing's got a way of pushing people out that takes a loss. And it's like, 'Oh, they're done.' The loser's always done." Williams has bounced back with four straight wins since the loss to Charlo, including two by knockout, and firmly has the attention of Hurd as far as what type of challenge to expect. "The most dangerous I would say is his inside game. He has a great inside game," Hurd said. "People maybe underestimate it a little bit but he does great things inside with his hands and how he places his shots. He sneaks them in there. He does a lot of good work in the inside. He also works good on the outside but his inside work is the most dangerous." Fight card, odds Favorite Underdog Weightclass Jarrett Hurd (c) -700 Julian Williams +500 Junior middleweight titles Mario Barrios -1250 Juan Jose Velasco +600 Super lightweight Matt Korobov -303 Immanuwel Aleem +225 Middleweight The danger awaiting Williams, of course, surrounds the almost absurd combination of Hurd's size and stamina for the division. Hurd is the first one to admit that he's not the most technical junior middleweight in the world and often absorbs clean punches from opponents while losing the early rounds. But his uncanny ability to keep coming over the full 12 rounds has routinely worn down both the gas tank and will of his opponents to the tune of eight knockouts over his past nine wins. "My defense is getting better but what people have to understand is that I kept stepping up the competition I was facing," Hurd said. "So of course I got hit more, but if you look at the stats, my opponent got hit even more than me. Because of my style it looks like I take a lot of punches. I expect to get hit in this fight but, I'm ready to hit him more." While Hurd certainly has goals of unifying all four titles at 154 pounds and will be watching closely at the result of the June 23 rematch between WBC titleholder Tony Harrison and former champion Jermell Charlo, he also knows his body may not allow him to wait that long. "I definitely want to be undisputed [but] It all depends because I'm such a big junior middleweight," Hurd said. "Every fight is getting more and more difficult to make the weight. Even though I come in under weight and was 152 when I fought against [Jason] Wellborn [in December], it's just that I'm putting on more weight in between fights and even though I'm making it, to me I don't think it's healthy to be dropping that amount of weight for a fight. "Even though I'm light, I still feel strong. And I think there's more opportunity for me at 160.<doc-sep>
Julian Williams claims unified 154 titles, Jarrett Hurd to pursue rematch May 12th, 2019 📸 Stephanie Trapp Julian Williams placed himself at the top of the super-welterweight pile with a decisive victory over former unified champion Jarrett Hurd in Virginia. ‘J-Rock’ knew he was walking into the lion’s den when he traveled from Philadelphia to Virginia to face undefeated “Swift” in his backyard. But Williams (27-1-1, 16 KOs) wasn’t afraid. He came. He saw and he conquered Hurd (23-1, 16 KOs), scoring a 12-round unanimous decision, handing Hurd his first loss and taking the IBF, WBA and IBO championships before a hometown crowd at the EagleBank Arena on the campus of George Mason University. The crowd and the primetime audience, which tuned in to FOX and FOX Deportes, witnessed a valiant performance from both Williams and Hurd in what will certainly be a “Fight of the Year’’ candidate. The judges had Williams handily defeating Hurd with scores of 116-111 and 115-112 twice. Williams had come up short in his previous attempt at a world title when he was stopped on via TKO by Jermall Charlo in 2016. He was overwhelmed by emotions after his upset victory over Hurd, who was a presumptive favorite over the 29-year-old Williams. “I am just overwhelmed. This is such a great feeling. I outclassed him. I’m one of the best fighters in the world,” said Williams. “Maybe I wasn’t ready for the title the first time I got the shot. I took the loss. I took it like a man. The whole world doubted me. I went into this fight a five to one underdog.’’ “This is a dream come true. I have been waiting for this for years. I’ve never ditched the gym. I never got into girls or left the gym. I’m from the streets, but I was never in the streets. I was in the gym practicing my craft. “The only people that believed in me were my team, but all I can say is ‘and the new’!” Hurd is often a slow starter and Williams made him pay for that. He jumped on the defending champion right out of the gate, throwing crisp punches behind a pistol-like jab. Williams dropped Hurd in the second round with a shot to the temple. “It didn’t really change my strategy. It was just a flash knockdown but it caught me by surprise. I wasn’t really hurt,’’ Hurd said. Sensing he had stunned Hurd, Williams came out firing in the next round. He picked up the pace and Hurd decided to match the ferocity of the attack rather than wither under it. Midway through the third round, Hurd landed a blistering left uppercut that snapped Williams’ head upward and slowly started to regain his form. Hurd and Williams went to the trenches in the middle rounds, closing the distance and fighting in tight quarters. Conventional wisdom would seem to favor Hurd in that space, because he is physically bigger than Williams. But Williams did more than hold his own. By the seventh round, the fight had become a war of attrition and a test of wills. Hurd was cut over his left eye in the eighth round. By then, Williams was completely in control. Williams said he was well prepared for everything that Hurd threw at him, but it was by no means a cakewalk. GAME PLAN “He wasn’t easier to hit than I thought. He was crafty and he had heavy hands. I just stayed poised. I listened to my coach and I just worked,’’ Williams said. “He couldn’t hurt me. I saw everything he was throwing. I knocked him down. The game plan was to win however I could. I adapted on the fly. We knew he had certain tendencies and worked on his tendencies. ‘’ Hurd said he didn’t feel like himself in the fight against Williams. Fighting in front of a raucous hometown crowd filled with family and friends as he hails from nearby Accokeek, Md. “I wasn’t able to get off. I can’t really call it right now. But I have to go back and watch. I was loading up on my shots instead of just letting my hands go,’’ Hurd said. “J-Rock was just the better man tonight. There’s definitely a rematch clause in our contract and I’m going to go for it. I’m going to come back better than I was tonight.’’