- Born
- 1961
- Died
- —
- Nationality
- USA
- Career
- 1989–2008
An Olympic heavyweight gold medallist in Seoul, Mercer turned professional in 1989 and won the WBO title by stopping Francesco Damiani in 1991. His stoppage of Tommy Morrison and competitive fights with Evander Holyfield and Lennox Lewis established his reputation for strength and durability. This archive covers his professional boxing bouts, not his separate kickboxing and mixed-martial-arts appearances.
Titles & Honours
- Olympic Gold (1988)
- WBO Heavyweight Champion (1991–1991)
Career Timeline
1989–2008- Milestone
Olympic Gold (1988)
Year from profile honours.
- Milestone
First recorded professional bout
vs Jesse McGhee · W TKO
- Title history
Title reign begins
WBO Heavyweight Champion (1991–1991). Year from profile title history; exact title-winning bout not identified.
- Signature fight
vs Francesco Damiani
W TKO9 Francesco Damiani (1991) · Etess Arena, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S.
- Signature fight
vs Tommy Morrison
W TKO5 Tommy Morrison (1991) · Convention Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S.
- Signature fight
vs Lennox Lewis
L MD10 Lennox Lewis (1996) · Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S.
- Milestone
25th recorded win
vs Leo Loiacono · KO. Newspaper decisions excluded.
- Milestone
Latest recorded bout
vs Richel Hersisia · W MD. Not necessarily the retirement date.
Derived from the current archive and profile honours. Title-reign years are not exact bout dates; title claims are not independently verified. Signature fights use existing profile selections, or clearly labelled wins over other archived fighters when no selections exist. Year-only dates retain their original precision.
Photo Archive
1 archival photographs under their original licences.
Fight-by-Fight Record
| Date | Result | Opponent | Method | Round | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989-02-24 | W | Jesse McGhee | TKO | 3 | Convention Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. |
| 1989-03-04 | W | Luis Walford | KO | 1 | Civic Center, Bismarck, North Dakota, U.S. |
| 1989-03-28 | W | Garing Lane | UD | 4 | Showboat Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. |
| 1989-05-16 | W | David Hopkins | KO | 1 | Tyndall Armory, Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S. |
| 1989-06-12 | W | Ken Crosby | KO | 1 | Caesars Palace, Paradise, Nevada, U.S. |
| 1989-07-15 | W | Al Evans | TKO | 1 | Broadway by the Bay Theater, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. |
| 1989-08-15 | W | Tracy Thomas | KO | 1 | South Mountain Arena, West Orange, New Jersey, U.S. |
| 1989-09-05 | W | Dino Homsey | TKO | 1 | Harrah's Lake Tahoe, Stateline, Nevada, U.S. |
| 1989-09-19 | W | Arthel Lawhorne | TKO | 2 | Veterans Memorial Arena, Jacksonville, Florida, U.S. |
| 1989-10-17 | W | Eddie Richardson | TKO | 1 | State Fairgrounds, Phoenix, Arizona, U.S. |
| 1989-11-14 | W | Jerry Jones | UD | 8 | South Mountain Arena, West Orange, New Jersey, U.S. |
| 1989-12-07 | W | Ossie Ocasio | SD | 8 | The Mirage, Paradise, Nevada, U.S. |
| 1990-01-15 | W | Wesley Watson | TKO | 5 | Convention Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. |
| 1990-03-02 | W | Kimmuel Odum | UD | 12 | Hacienda, Paradise, Nevada, U.S. |
| 1990-05-31 | W | Lionel Washington | TKO | 4 | Community War Memorial, Rochester, New York, U.S. |
| 1990-08-05 | W | Bert Cooper | UD | 12 | Convention Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. |
| 1991-01-11 | W | Francesco Damiani | KO | 9 | Etess Arena, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. |
| 1991-10-18 | W | Tommy Morrison | TKO | 5 | Convention Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. |
| 1992-02-07 | L | Larry Holmes | UD | 12 | Convention Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. |
| 1992-10-07 | W | Mike Dixon | RTD | 7 | County Center, Augusta, Georgia, U.S. |
| 1992-12-10 | W | Jerry Halstead | RTD | 2 | Etess Arena, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. |
| 1993-02-06 | L | Jesse Ferguson | UD | 10 | Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S. |
| 1993-08-12 | W | Tony Willis | TKO | 1 | Casino Magic, Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, U.S. |
| 1993-10-06 | W | Mark Wills | UD | 10 | Broadway by the Bay Theater, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. |
| 1993-11-19 | W | Jesse Ferguson | SD | 10 | Convention Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. |
| 1994-07-28 | D | Marion Wilson | SD | 10 | Convention Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. |
| 1995-05-20 | L | Evander Holyfield | UD | 10 | Convention Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. |
| 1996-05-10 | L | Lennox Lewis | MD | 10 | Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S. |
| 1996-12-14 | W | Tim Witherspoon | UD | 10 | Convention Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. |
| 1998-02-21 | W | Leo Loiacono | KO | 2 | Miccosukee Resort & Gaming, Miami, Florida, U.S. |
| 1999-12-18 | W | Jimmy Haynes | KO | 1 | Grand Casino, Tunica, Mississippi, U.S. |
| 2001-02-11 | W | Jeff Pegues | TKO | 2 | Grand Victoria Casino, Elgin, Illinois, U.S. |
| 2001-03-17 | W | Don Steele | KO | 5 | Silver Star Hotel & Casino, Choctaw, Mississippi, U.S. |
| 2001-10-13 | W | Brian Scott | KO | 2 | Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark |
| 2002-02-23 | W | Troy Weida | TKO | 1 | Bally's Park Place, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. |
| 2002-06-29 | L | Wladimir Klitschko | TKO | 6 | Etess Arena, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. |
| 2003-08-23 | W | Mario Cawley | KO | 3 | Seminole Casino, Coconut Creek, Florida, U.S. |
| 2003-11-11 | W | Shawn Robinson | TKO | 3 | Caesars, Elizabeth, Indiana, U.S. |
| 2004-02-28 | W | Steve Pannell | TKO | 3 | Seminole Casino, Coconut Creek, Florida, U.S. |
| 2005-06-24 | W | Darroll Wilson | UD | 10 | Nikki Beach Concert Arena, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. |
| 2005-08-26 | L | Shannon Briggs | KO | 7 | Hard Rock Live, Hollywood, Florida, U.S. |
| 2007-09-15 | W | Mikael Lindblad | KO | 1 | Löfbergs Arena, Karlstad, Sweden |
| 2008-01-26 | L | Derric Rossy | UD | 12 | Venetian Arena, Macau, SAR |
| 2008-09-05 | W | Richel Hersisia | MD | 6 | Nöjesfabriken, Karlstad, Sweden |
Showing 44 of 44 recorded fights · last updated 2026-10-23. Imported record tables are not independently verified and may be incomplete. Early-era logs include newspaper decisions (NWS), which are not counted in the official totals above.
Record notes
Fight record last retrieved: 2026-10-23. Title histories remain subject to archival review.
Historical-era totals differ between record-keeping conventions (newspaper decisions, exhibitions).
Compare with another fighter