Beethaeven Scottland
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| Personal information | |
|---|---|
Nickname | Honey Bee |
| Born | January 11, 1975 |
| Died | July 1, 2001 (aged 26) |
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (175 cm) |
| Weight | Super Middleweight |
| Boxing career | |
| Reach | 72 in (183 cm) |
| Stance | Southpaw |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 29 |
| Wins | 20 |
| Win by KO | 9 |
| Losses | 7 |
| Draws | 2 |
| No contests | 0 |
Beethaeven "Bee" Scottland (January 11, 1975 – July 1, 2001) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1995 until 2001. Scottland's career record was 20-7-2, with nine of his victories coming by knockout. He was knocked out twice in his professional career. He died of injuries suffered in his final match.
Beethaeven Scottland was named after composer, Ludwig van Beethoven.[1] His mother was a corrections officer and his father was a classical pianist.[2] He was one of eight children and grew up in Brentwood, Maryland, in the Washington, DC suburbs.[2]
Boxing career
Scottland began boxing at age 12 in the basement of his first trainer Derek Matthews.[3] He would go on to fight 77 bouts as an amateur.[4] As he began winning Golden Gloves bouts, Scottland began training with Adrian Davis at Round One Boxing in Capitol Heights, Maryland.[5]
Scottland made his professional debut in 1995.[3] The next year, he married Denise Lewis, a childhood friend.[4] Scottland shared that boxing had helped him turn his life around after making poor choices in childhood. He credited the sport and training regime to helping him be a better father and husband,[6] explaining,
" I don’t party. I get up at 5 in the morning to run. I train. I’m in the gym every day. I come home and be a father to my kids, and a husband to my wife. That’s it.”
Scottland competed as a super middleweight[7] in bouts around the Baltimore and Washington, DC suburbs.[8][9] Alongside boxing, Scottland worked as a pest exterminator in Hyattsville, Maryland to support his family.[10]
Professional results
Final fight
On June 26, 2001, Scottland stepped in the ring to face George Khalid Jones as part of an ESPN2 telecast from aboard the USS Intrepid museum ship in New York City. The fight was promoted by Dino Duva, Jones' manager. Scottland was a late replacement for David Telesco, who at the time was a championship contender who only a year earlier had fought and lost to Roy Jones Jr. for the undisputed championship at light heavyweight.
"Whoever I fight...I just hope I don't kill him."
At the time, Scottland was preparing to fight Dana Rucker in the super middleweight division for the Maryland State belt. Rucker pulled out of the fight with an injury, opening the opportunity for Scottland to fight Jones.[4]
Prior to the fight, Scottland considered giving up boxing prior to the fight, but was struggling financially,[12] and encouraged by the $8,000 purse and opportunity to appear on primetime television.[13] It was the largest purse of his career.[2]
Jones had a height and weight advantage on Scottland, who was three inches shorter and ten pounds lighter.[13] Scottland usually fought as a super middleweight, but moved up a division to fight Jones as a light heavyweight.[5]
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The overmatched Scottland lasted into the tenth round of the fight, but had been hit with many flush shots from Jones throughout the fight. By the end of the fourth round, Jones landed 64 more punches than Scottland.[10] Commentator Max Kellerman, who was calling the fight for ESPN2 that evening, said numerous times on the broadcast that the fight should have been halted, as early as the fourth round.[14] When trapped in a corner in the fifth round, Scottland took twenty-five consecutive punches to the head, without the referee intervening. In the tenth round, Jones knocked Scottland to the canvas and was counted out having not risen to his feet.[15] Scottland had to be helped from the ring, and shortly afterwards fell into a coma.[16]