Meet Billy 'the kid' Dib.
Two-time featherweight and Super featherweight champion of the world
and an international boxing sensation
yet despite all the glitz and glamour that comes along with being a former two-time
world champion there's an untold story that Billy hides behind his
all-too-familiar smile. We sat down with him to uncover the painful hidden truths
of what it means to be a former champion of the world.
To many becoming world champion is an accomplishment like no other and to Billy,
this was no different. Tell me about the moment you became world champion for the
first time. I could not believe it it's like that moment had finally come like I
was now champion of the world that was like for me it was like oh such a proud
moment because my brother's gonna go to school now and tell his friends that his
brother's a champion of the world. I remember this one moment where I got up
on the corner post and I told him to give me the belt and the crowd was all
sitting around and I put the belt up like that and the whole crowd just erupted like
and I was like champion of the world you know I mean Two-time champion of the
world in the history books. To be crowned world champion twice
is a feat not many can attest to, but for Billy it was a dream turned reality.
So can I hold that now? yeah for sure no doubt. This is it yeah you got the leopard
skin and all happening! Let's put it on.
So that's it, that's the bad boy
that's right there right there but yeah this was everything I worked so hard for
You see ever since Billy was a young boy he dreamed of being champion of the world
not for the fame and the riches but more
so for the love of the sport. When I started boxing at a young age it was all
about the trophies and the belt. It was never about money
But after winning the championship for himself his gaze swiftly shifted to the
luxurious and lavish lifestyles of those who had preceded him.
I grew up watching people
like Oscar De La Hoya, Shane Mosley, Prince Naseem, Mike Tyson, guys that had gone
on to become multi multi millionaires of this sport like multi right and I was
hanging out with these people I was in their cars the Ferraris the Lamborghinis
the the Maybachs their Rolls Royces and I'm thinking to myself that's gonna
be me one day.
An expectation that was in fact about to go into overdrive after he
crossed paths with one of the biggest names in the boxing world
I saw Floyd Mayweather when I was in America on a holiday and I seen him I said hey
Floyd hey champ what's up I said I'm champion of the world now and he said
we'll be in touch that's what he said we'll be in touch
This short encounter soon led him to being invited to join forces with one of
the biggest boxing teams in America TMT promotions otherwise known as:
The Money Team
50 cent and Floyd Mayweather formed this company called TMT promotions
and they want to sign you up
I was like man my life is about to
change now so I get there, we're hanging out with 50 cent now. Rolls Royces
Lamborghinis, five-star restaurants, the best hotels, like I'm telling you I'm I'm
walking through I'm walking through the lobby areas with 50 cent like next
to me, people say there goes 50 cent and Drake and he's like nah that's not Drake
that's Billy the Kid, that's the IBF champion of the world.
The thought of rolling with some of the biggest names in the boxing and entertainment world
was a fantasy he had only ever dreamt of
when I was signed to 50 cent, the only thing that I had in my head was
I'm gonna buy a Ferrari I'm gonna buy a Lamborghini I'm gonna do this and I'm
gonna do that I spent the money before I even got it in my mind. You were shopping already.
I was looking at cars like I was gonna buy them tomorrow
As pretty as it all seemed from the outside Billy soon found himself
fighting his own internal moral dilemma being around his people was like a curse
you know I mean like being around 50 cent and and who I thought man this is
gonna be amazing I'm hanging around 50 cent you know I mean biggest rap star in
the game at the moment all that what I became like all the things that he
wanted me to be involved in what I which I never took part in you know he'd come
to his parties and I never took any part of that and I think becuause I never took
part in any of that he didn't I didn't he didn't he didn't gravitate or I
didn't gravitate towards him because of that situation you know.
Already struggling to fit in Billy's term with TMT was soon to fall off course
following an internal conflict causing TMT promotions to eventually split.
To make matters worse this was all happening right before a major world
title fight Billy was preparing for. 50 cent he says to me Oh look up I'm not
gonna be able to pay the money that I promised you and what I'm like he's
doing this to me the day before the fight playing with my head you know I
mean like I kind of felt like he was against me you know I mean like he was
working against me. Well the next day the fight is on
i ring up my mom on the way to the venue and I said hey mom she said yeah I said
don't watch the fight tonight.
And just like that his short-lived dream soon
came to an end. But as difficult as this was for him to stomach nothing could
prepare him for the major fight he was about to face back home after receiving
a call from his wife I'll never ever forget it I'm sitting in the lounge
room and my mom is standing directly in front of me and I get this phone call
from Sarah she goes hey what are you doing I said nothing she says where are you?
I said I'm at home she was all he's sitting down said yeah she goes okay
cool I just want to let you know I got cancer. I said what? she goes I've got cancer and I was
like you're joking and she just burst into tears started crying and I was like
to my mum, she's got cancer and moms like oh my god.
Two months and ten days later
his wife sadly passed away leaving Billy grief-stricken and at the lowest point
in his life
the saddest part I remember of this whole experience was I remember I
remember her father is like he said to the doctor he goes ooh he's exactly why
I've done it was like what do you mean what do what do you mean what do you
what is it? money? you guys need money? because I have money I could do whatever
you want you know and they were like sir it's got nothing to do with money or
anything we've done everything we can for Sarah and you know we don't think
she'll be with us much longer and the only thing going through my mind was
what good is money now?
He never expected the love of his life to be taken away so
soon yet just as Allah gives, Allah takes away and it was a lesson that Billy
learned the hard way the the trauma that came after that is
something that I wish I could turn the clock back on you know me because there
was so much trauma that came after that that point of her death you know like
things like that I experienced you know for the first time I actually went into
a grave and buried sorrow and I was just thinking man how did this happen six
weeks straight after her death I was a regular visitor of the cemetery possibly
two to three times a day a day and I wouldn't tell anyone I was going
I'll just go there and sit there by myself
dealing with this loss was no doubt the biggest fight Billie had seen in his
career thus far yet by turning to his religion and reviving his connection
with Allah he was able to make it through the only calmness that I would
find in my life is through solid metal that's the truth I'm not just saying
this because it's the right thing to say but I'm telling you the truth
anytime that I was feeling pain or hurt or upset about something I thought I
felt like you know I'm just kind of solid in this I'm gonna ask Allah help
me take this sorrow away from me hold me take a look you know and after Sarah's
death well of the sorrow lost it for a long time how has being a Muslim helped
you throughout your life ayuh I believe strongly because my
father didn't Silverson nothing in your life happens without the will of Allah
so Allah and everything that you face is a test in any calamity that you face is
just test and just and it's just about doing your best to come out better on
the other side it's a test everything's a test and Sarah's death was a major
test for me losing fights was a big test for me and I just felt like I got
through him because you know because I I remained steadfast and I'd stayed on my
belief that colors this is what Allah had willed for me you see all along
Billy thought being world champion would promise him a life of riches and
happiness yet through his rollercoaster of a journey he has slowly come to
realize the bitter reality and you know I used to say just this preparation for
a lifetime of happiness because I believe that this bowl was gonna bring
me a lifetime of happiness and then I lost showed you
the happiness doesn't come through a throttle yeah comes from Allah that's
right okay as a boy Billy used to spend his days praying to be champion of the
world yet today he prays for something completely different
what do you pray for now I'll tell you what I paid for I pray that Allah smile
it takes me all these please with me because I know that this life is not
promised and we could be days months or years away from death and I just pray
that I lost my daughter keeps me steadfast and takes me only when he's
pleased with me because this dunya means nothing
it really doesn't you know what you just do the best you can inspire as much as
you can feel a lot as much as you can and and and hope for for a lot to take
you in a time when you already I ask Allah
that he gives you what you asked him for a mean and now they would thank you for
this opportunity we all have stories to tell and I pray that this was a story
that will remind you and I of our true purpose in life
you