Renaldo Snipes (born Reenaold Snipes on August 15, 1956) is a retired American professional boxer, best known for his world championship bout with Larry Holmes.
Amateur career
Snipes was a two-time Chicago Golden Gloves Champion (1977 and 1978). He lost on a first-round stoppage to future heavyweight contender Eddie Gregg in the 1978 Intercity match-ups between Chicago and New York Golden Glove winners.
Professional career
Nicknamed "Mister" Snipes, Snipes started off his career successfully, with a first-round knockout of Carl Halliburton. That fight was on the same card on which future heavyweight contender James Tillis made his debut. 21 more wins followed, and he challenged world heavyweight champion Larry Holmes for the title November 6, 1981 in Pittsburgh. Snipes knocked down the champion in the seventh round. However Holmes got up and Snipes was stopped in Round 11. Snipes complained that Holmes was the beneficiary of a long count.[1] Films show, however, that the claim is exaggerated; Holmes rose at the count of 4 and though badly hurt, fought off the charging Snipes for the remainder of the round. Snipes fought a string of world-class fighters after the Holmes bout, in contests that mostly descended into wildly entertaining brawls. He amassed a record of 39 wins (22 by knockout), 8 losses, and 1 draw. In his career he fought boxers Larry Holmes, Trevor Berbick, Gerrie Coetzee, Tim Witherspoon, Greg Page, Eddie Mustafa Muhammad, Alfredo Evangelista, Rickey Parkey, South African puncher Johnny DuPlooy and many more.
Tyson fight
Snipes had been in the frame for a big money fight with Mike Tyson in 1990, however he broke his right hand in a fight with rugged journeyman Jamie Howe and lost out on the opportunity, which later went to Alex Stewart. The injury and rehabilitation took him out for two years, and when he returned in June 1992 (aged 36) he fought then-dangerous Garing Lane, surviving an 8th-round knockdown to score a split decision win. He knocked out Eddie Curry (not to be confused with Eddy Curry, the NBA basketball player) the following year before being matched with heavily hyped undefeated Cuban giant Jorge Luis Gonzalez on the high-profile Bowe/Holyfield II undercard. At 37, Snipes struggled with the bigger younger man, and after a gallant effort was stopped with less than a minute remaining in the 10th and final round, after a knockdown, with the stoppage being announced to be because of cuts, much to his disgust.
In 1993 former mobster Sammy Gravano testified under oath that in the late 80s he attempted to arrange a fixed fight between Snipes and undefeated WBO champion Francesco Damiani, who Gravano alleged was associated with an organized crime family in Italy. The winner (Snipes) would fight Tyson, however Damiani lost his fight with Ray Mercer before the Snipes bout and that put him out of the picture for a major fight.
April 30, 2017 Inducted into the New York Boxing Hall of fame.[2]
Snipes currently resides in New York City. He currently is involved in numerous charity fund-raising projects and was awarded the "Ring 8 2012 Community Service Award". He was inducted into the New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame on Nov 1, 2006 and the New York State Boxing Hall of Fame on April 30, 2017.
Snipes is an avid cigar smoker and is a much sought after guest at many New York cigar lounges.[3]
