# Rocky Lockridge

Rick "Rocky" Lockridge (January 10, 1959 – February 7, 2019) was an American professional boxer. He is perhaps best known for having handed Roger Mayweather his first defeat—a first-round knockout in just 98 seconds—earning him the WBA and lineal super featherweight titles. He later won the IBF super featherweight title. He is also known from his 2010 appearance on the A&E television series Intervention. He is also known for his crying meme.

## Early life and career

Rocky Lockridge was born on January 10, 1959, in Tacoma, Washington. After relocating to Paterson, New Jersey, at 19 years old in 1978, he made his debut fight in the professional ring on August 9, defeating Tony Reed by TKO. On September 18, 1979, he defeated Gerald Hayes via unanimous decision to win the New Jersey State Featherweight Championship, and on February 19, 1980, he won by TKO against Fel Clemente to win the USA Featherweight Champion title.
On October 4, 1980, he fought for the WBA World Featherweight title against Eusebio Pedroza, losing by a majority decision; this defeat was Lockridge's first in the professional ring. On April 6, 1981, he retained the New Jersey featherweight title by defeating Ernesto Gonzalez by unanimous decision. On August 22, 1981, in a fight for the US featherweight title, he was knocked out by Juan Laporte. On April 24, 1983, he met Pedroza again in the fight for the WBA featherweight title, losing by unanimous decision.
On February 26, 1984, he knocked out the undefeated Roger Mayweather in round one and won the WBA junior-lightweight world championship. After defeating Mayweather, Lockridge and his wife Carolyn moved to Mount Laurel, New Jersey, where they gave birth to twin sons Ricky and Lamar on August 23, 1984. Lockridge made two successful title defenses: on June 12, 1984, he won by TKO in round eleven against Tae Jin Moon, and on January 27, 1985, he won by TKO in round six against Kamel Bou-Ali, a future WBO world junior-lightweight champion himself. However, on May 15 of the same year, he lost the title by majority decision to Wilfredo Gómez.
On August 3, 1986, he lost by majority decision in the fight for the WBC world junior-lightweight title to the undefeated Julio César Chávez. On August 9, 1987, Lockridge defeated Barry Michael after Michael refused to continue the fight after the 8th round and won the IBF world junior-lightweight championship. On October 25, 1987, he defeated Johnny de la Rosa and defended the title, and on April 2, 1988, by unanimous decision, he defeated Harold Knight and again defended his title. On July 23, 1988, he lost by unanimous decision to Tony Lopez and lost his title to the Mexican-American. On March 5, 1989, a rematch took place between Lopez and Lockridge, which ended in the same way as the first fight. After the second defeat to Lopez, Lockridge retired following a victory against Mike Zena in 1989.

## Later years and death

Lockridge returned with his family to Tacoma in 1991 – 18 months following his retirement from boxing – and he and Carolyn separated shortly thereafter due to financial stress and Rocky's drug addiction. 30 months after his original retirement, Lockridge attempted a comeback under new management in Washington, but both his fights in this period ended in losses. In 1993, Lockridge moved to Camden, New Jersey, alone, and he began working as a cleaner and painter for a drum and barrel company in January 1994. Shortly after, he was arrested for burglary and sentenced to five years probation. Three years later, he was arrested on a similar charge and served 27 months in prison before being released in July 1999. Lockridge spent the following years in homelessness, living on a monthly $140 and food stamps provided by the government, as well as pocket change from panhandling. He suffered a stroke in 2006, requiring him to use a cane.
Lockridge was eventually brought by his family onto the A&E television series Intervention in 2010. A scene from the episode, in which an emotional Lockridge loudly wails, became an internet meme titled "best cry ever". Following this appearance, Lockridge spent 90 days in a facility, and had remained sober since. Lockridge died on February 7, 2019, at the age of 60, after being placed on home hospice care following multiple strokes. He was removed from life support about one week prior to his death. In the weeks preceding his death, he was hooked to a feeding tube due to an inability to swallow, and suffered from aspiration pneumonia. His caretaker had set up a GoFundMe to help cover his medical expenses.
Lockridge is buried at Sunset Memorial Park in Pennsauken, New Jersey.

## Professional boxing record

| 53 fights | 44 wins | 9 losses |
| By knockout | 36 | 1 |
| By decision | 8 | 8 |
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round | Date | Location | Notes |
| 53 | Loss | 44–9 | Sharmba Mitchell | UD | 10 | Apr 22, 1992 | Meadowlands Arena, East Rutherford, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 52 | Loss | 44–8 | Rafael Ruelas | UD | 10 | Jan 30, 1992 | Country Club, Reseda, California, U.S. | |
| 51 | Win | 44–7 | Mike Zena | KO | 8 (10) | Jun 18, 1989 | Caesars Tahoe, Outdoor Arena, Stateline, Nevada, U.S. | |
| 50 | Loss | 43–7 | Tony Lopez | UD | 12 | Mar 5, 1989 | Arco Arena, Sacramento, California, U.S. | For IBF super-featherweight title |
| 49 | Loss | 43–6 | Tony Lopez | UD | 12 | Jul 23, 1988 | Arco Arena, Sacramento, California, U.S. | Lost IBF super-featherweight title |
| 48 | Win | 43–5 | Harold Knight | UD | 15 | Apr 2, 1988 | Sands Casino Hotel, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. | Retained IBF super-featherweight title |
| 47 | Win | 42–5 | Johnny De La Rosa | TKO | 10 (15) | Oct 25, 1987 | Community Center, Tucson, Arizona, U.S. | Retained IBF super-featherweight title |
| 46 | Win | 41–5 | Barry Michael | RTD | 8 (15) | Aug 9, 1987 | Blazers Night Club, Windsor, Berkshire, England, U.K. | Won IBF super-featherweight title |
| 45 | Win | 40–5 | Dennis Cruz | KO | 7 (10) | May 24, 1987 | Memorial Coliseum, Corpus Christi, Texas, U.S. | |
| 44 | Win | 39–5 | Felipe Orozco | UD | 10 | Oct 22, 1986 | Harrah's Marina Hotel Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 43 | Loss | 38–5 | Julio César Chávez | MD | 12 | Aug 3, 1986 | Stade Louis II, Fontvieille, Monaco | For WBC super-featherweight title |
| 42 | Win | 38–4 | Efrain Nieves | TKO | 3 (10) | Mar 12, 1986 | Harrah's Marina Hotel Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 41 | Win | 37–4 | Fernando Segura | TKO | 4 (10) | Dec 18, 1985 | Harrah's Marina Hotel Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 40 | Loss | 36–4 | Wilfredo Gómez | MD | 15 | May 19, 1985 | Coliseo Roberto Clemente, San Juan, Puerto Rico | Lost WBA and The Ring super-featherweight titles |
| 39 | Win | 36–3 | Kamel Bou Ali | TKO | 6 (15) | Jan 27, 1985 | Palazzo del Congress, Riva del Garda, Trentino-Alto Adige, Italy | Retained WBA and The Ring super-featherweight titles |
| 38 | Win | 35–3 | Julio Llerena | KO | 6 (10) | Jul 29, 1984 | Castello Sforzesco, Milan, Lombardia, Italy | |
| 37 | Win | 34–3 | Tae Jin Moon | TKO | 11 (15) | Jun 12, 1984 | Sullivan Arena, Anchorage, Alaska, U.S. | Retained WBA and The Ring super-featherweight titles |
| 36 | Win | 33–3 | Roger Mayweather | KO | 1 (15) | Feb 26, 1984 | Civic Center, Beaumont, Texas, U.S. | Won WBA and The Ring super-featherweight titles |
| 35 | Win | 32–3 | Jeff Goodwin | TKO | 3 (10) | Nov 23, 1983 | Sands Casino Hotel, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 34 | Win | 31–3 | Cornelius Boza-Edwards | UD | 10 | Sep 9, 1983 | Caesars Palace, Outdoor Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. | |
| 33 | Win | 30–3 | Danny Cruz | TKO | 1 (10) | Jul 14, 1983 | Ice World, Totowa, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 32 | Loss | 29–3 | Eusebio Pedroza | UD | 15 | Apr 24, 1983 | San Remo, Liguria, Italy | For WBA and The Ring featherweight title |
| 31 | Win | 29–2 | Alberto Collazo | TKO | 9 (10) | Nov 24, 1982 | Resorts International, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 30 | Win | 28–2 | Angel Lira | TKO | 6 (10) | Sep 25, 1982 | Great Gorge Resort, McAfee, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 29 | Win | 27–2 | Miguel Angel Hernandez | TKO | 3 (10) | Aug 22, 1982 | Great Gorge Resort, McAfee, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 28 | Win | 26–2 | Daniel Felizardo | KO | 2 (10) | Jun 24, 1982 | Resorts International, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 27 | Win | 25–2 | Jose Nieto | TKO | 8 (10) | May 23, 1982 | Tropicana Hotel & Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 26 | Win | 24–2 | Robert Mullins | TKO | 5 (10) | Apr 10, 1982 | Sands Casino Hotel, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 25 | Win | 23–2 | Jose Resendez | TKO | 5 (10) | Mar 14, 1982 | Tropicana Hotel & Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 24 | Win | 22–2 | Tony Tris | UD | 10 | Dec 10, 1981 | Ice World, Totowa, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 23 | Win | 21–2 | Refugio Rojas | MD | 10 | Nov 12, 1981 | Meadowlands Arena, East Rutherford, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 22 | Loss | 20–2 | Juan Laporte | KO | 2 (12) | Aug 22, 1981 | Showboat Hotel & Casino, Sports Pavilion, Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. | Lost USA New Jersey State featherweight title |
| 21 | Win | 20–1 | Sergio Reyes | TKO | 3 (10) | May 21, 1981 | Ice World, Totowa, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 20 | Win | 19–1 | Ernesto Gonzalez | UD | 12 | Apr 6, 1981 | Caesars Boardwalk Regency, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S. | Retained USA New Jersey State featherweight title |
| 19 | Win | 18–1 | Ernesto Gonzalez | KO | 1 (10) | Jan 22, 1981 | Ice World, Totowa, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 18 | Win | 17–1 | Benny Marquez | TKO | 3 (10) | Dec 18, 1980 | Ice World, Totowa, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 17 | Loss | 16–1 | Eusebio Pedroza | SD | 15 | Oct 4, 1980 | Great Gorge Playboy Club, McAfee, New Jersey, U.S. | For WBA featherweight title |
| 16 | Win | 16–0 | Livio Nolasco | TKO | 4 (10) | Aug 21, 1980 | Ice World, Totowa, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 15 | Win | 15–0 | Alfonso Evans | TKO | 5 (10) | Jul 13, 1980 | Great Gorge Playboy Club, McAfee, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 14 | Win | 14–0 | Marcial Santiago | TKO | 3 (8) | Jun 19, 1980 | Ice World, Totowa, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 13 | Win | 13–0 | Joey Mayes | TKO | 2 (10) | Apr 1, 1980 | Ice World, Totowa, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 12 | Win | 12–0 | Richard Rozelle | KO | 2 (10) | Mar 8, 1980 | Great Gorge Playboy Club, McAfee, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 11 | Win | 11–0 | Fel Clemente | TKO | 7 (12) | Feb 19, 1980 | Ice World, Totowa, New Jersey, U.S. | Won vacant USBA featherweight title |
| 10 | Win | 10–0 | Sammy Goss | TKO | 5 (12) | Jan 8, 1980 | Ice World, Totowa, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 9 | Win | 9–0 | José Ortiz | KO | 2 (10) | Oct 30, 1979 | Ice World, Totowa, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 8 | Win | 8–0 | Gerald Hayes | UD | 12 | Sep 18, 1979 | Giant's Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey, U.S. | Won USA New Jersey State featherweight title |
| 7 | Win | 7–0 | Ronnie Green | KO | 1 (6) | May 31, 1979 | Convention Hall, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. | |
| 6 | Win | 6–0 | Francisco Maldonado | KO | 2 (6) | Apr 27, 1979 | Robert Treat Hotel, Newark, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 5 | Win | 5–0 | Melvin Boynton | KO | 2 (6) | Apr 17, 1979 | Ice World, Totowa, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 4 | Win | 4–0 | Melvin Bethea | KO | 1 (6) | Mar 13, 1979 | Ice World, Totowa, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 3 | Win | 3–0 | Tony Hernandez | TKO | 1 (6) | Nov 14, 1978 | Ice World, Totowa, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | Jose Luis Lara | UD | 6 | Oct 5, 1978 | Seattle Center Arena, Seattle, Washington, U.S. | |
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Tony Reed | TKO | 2 (4) | Aug 9, 1978 | Seattle Center Arena, Seattle, Washington, U.S. | |