Billy Collins Jr. facts for kids

William Ray Collins Jr. (born September 21, 1961 – died March 6, 1984) was an American professional boxer. He competed from 1981 to 1983. Billy Collins Jr. was undefeated in his boxing career. Sadly, his career ended after his last fight. He suffered serious injuries against Luis Resto. Resto used illegal, tampered gloves and hand wraps.

Billy Collins Jr.'s Early Life

Billy Collins Jr. grew up in Antioch, Tennessee. His family was of Irish background. His father, Billy Collins Sr., was also a professional boxer. He fought in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Billy Jr. followed in his father's footsteps. He started training with him when he was very young. Like his dad, Billy Jr. was a welterweight boxer. He won his first 14 professional fights. One of his wins was against Harold Brazier.

The Unfair Fight with Luis Resto

On June 16, 1983, Collins fought Luis Resto. The fight took place at Madison Square Garden in New York. Billy Collins Jr. was expected to win this fight. However, he took a very hard beating. He lost the fight by a unanimous decision.

After the fight, Billy's father noticed something strange. Resto's gloves felt thinner than they should. He asked for the gloves to be checked. An investigation found that Resto's trainer, Panama Lewis, had removed padding from each glove. This made Resto's punches much harder. The fight result was later changed. It became a no contest. This means it was as if the fight never happened.

What Happened to Resto and Lewis?

Panama Lewis's boxing license was taken away forever. This meant he could never work in American boxing again. Luis Resto was also suspended. He never fought professionally again. In 1986, Lewis and Resto were found guilty. Their actions during the fight were seen as an illegal attack. Both of them spent two and a half years in prison.

Billy's Injuries and Later Accident

From the fight with Resto, Billy Collins Jr. suffered terrible injuries. His eyes were badly swollen. He had a torn iris in his eye. This caused his vision to be blurry forever. Because of these injuries, he could never box again.

On March 6, 1984, Billy Collins Jr. died. He was in a car accident near his home. The accident happened in Antioch, Tennessee. This is a suburb of Nashville. An autopsy showed he died quickly at the scene.

Legal Actions After the Fight

After the fight, Billy Collins and his family took legal action. They sued Lewis, Resto, and others. They also sued the company that made the gloves. The lawsuit against the glove maker was dismissed. The court found the gloves were tampered with later.

Billy's father and his wife, Andrea, then sued the New York State Boxing Commission. They said the commission failed to protect Billy. The court ruled in favor of the commission. The court also noted that Billy's death ended any future claims for money. The Collins family never received any money from these lawsuits. However, the state later changed its rules. This was to help prevent similar events from happening again.

Resto's Later Confession

In 2007, Luis Resto apologized to Billy's widow, Andrea. This happened during the making of a TV documentary. Resto also admitted something new. He said his hand wraps were soaked in plaster of Paris before the fight. This made them hard like plaster casts. These hand wraps were never checked during the original investigation.

So, Resto was hitting Collins with very hard hands. It was like he was hitting him with rocks. At a press conference in 2008, Resto said he knew about the tampered gloves. He also said Lewis had done this before. The story of the 1983 fight is shown in the 2008 documentary Assault in the Ring.