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The Maniac
06-12-2005, 18:25
22:35
Boxen im Ersten
Sportschau live:
Weltmeisterschaft im Mittelgewicht

Vacant IBF Middleweight Title Fight
Kingsley Ikeke vs Arthur Abraham

IBF Inter-Continental Heavyweight Title
Henry Akinwande v Ed Mahone

Kai Kurzawa v Jose Spearman

IBF Youth Light Middleweight Title
Zaurbek Baysangurov v Juan Manuel Alaggio

Timo Hoffmann v Tim Williamson

The Maniac
09-12-2005, 16:42
Ikeke Hits the Road for Vacant Title; He's Got No Choice
By Steve Kim (December 8, 2005)
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This Saturday in Leipzig, Germany, Kingsley Ikeke takes on Arthur Abraham for the vacant IBF middleweight title. In the 25 year old Abraham, he's facing an 18-0 fighter who's never fought outside the borders of Germany since turning pro in 2003.

Ikeke, a Nigerian now based in Los Angeles, basically had no other choice than to make the overseas trek to fight for his first major world title.


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"Simply put, there was no television date in the United States that we could get the Ikeke-Abraham fight on," explained his co-manager Gary Gittelsohn. "All of the HBO and Showtime dates were filled up for the remainder of the year and for the most part the first quarter of next year. And since they had German television money, it really would have made any purse bid non-competitive."

Which is par for the course when it comes to Ikeke. Unlike Abraham, he doesn't come with a big promotional push or with a network willing to fork out the dough to make sure he gets to fight on his soil. Ikeke is the antithesis of Jermain Taylor, who is a promoter's and network's dream. Unlike Taylor, Ikeke's rise up the rankings has been anonymous and slow and without the support of a major network.

He's the type of guy, because of his style, that other managers shun. And traditionally fighters of African descent don't draw well in the States, making them persona non grata with promoters.

"It's been very hard," admits Gittelsohn, of his efforts to move Ikeke into the consciousness of the game's decision makers. "I really don't fully understand the reasons. Kingsley, in my view, may very well be the best middleweight in the world. Many people in the boxing business know that and have shied away from Kingsley because he's not a name and therefore the risk doesn't justify the reward.

"I feel very strongly that Kingsley could solve the mystery of Winky Wright that nobody has been able to figure out. I think somebody like Kingsley, with his physicality, could beat Winky Wright. I also think someone like Kingsley has the best chance at beating Jermain Taylor and really any of the 'name' middleweights out there."

OK, Gittelsohn is admittedly biased in his view of his fighter - all managers are; if they weren't, they wouldn't be managers - but Ikeke is a tough out. His lone loss in 24 bouts is a disputed verdict to Anthony Hanshaw in 2001, which coincidentally came on Hanshaw's home turf in Ohio.

So does the tall, lanky Ikeke have any concerns about going onto foreign turf, once again?

"There's no concerns about going there," he said last week. "If you want me to go, I'll go and bring it back."

He feels that he can get a fair shake in Germany.

"Yes. Because it all depends on if you fight your fight."

In Abraham, he admits he's facing a bit of the unknown.

"Actually," he admits, "I really don't know anything about him. I watched a couple fights, he likes to put his guard on his face. But I know it's not going to be a problem."

Abraham comes in with a reputation of being a very solid prospect. Ring Magazine ranks him fourth in the middleweight division (with Ikeke at six). While American audiences have not gotten a chance to see him perform, he has impressed those who have. Larry Merchant of HBO Sports recalls seeing him a couple of years ago on a Klitschko undercard in Germany.

"I just saw this really strong looking kid who looked like he knew how to fight and I just said, 'Who is that guy?' He was one of those undercard fighters that makes you sit up and take notice and makes an impression and you say, 'Well, I'm gonna watch that guy's progress.'" said the veteran observer.

The winner of this bout takes a step towards becoming a prominent player in the middleweight division - a boxer that could eventually take on Taylor in a lucrative showdown.

"I think they do but I don't think they're going to be there in '06," surmised Merchant. "I think that realistically they're going to have to make a decision about whether they want to go after a title that may be vacated because of what Taylor and his handlers decide he should do and who he should fight, or whether they're going to stand in line and wait their turn.

"For example, (Sam) Soliman could've done that and elected to fight Winky Wright instead, this weekend."

But even if he should lose, Abraham will most likely still have a fan base and available television dates in Europe; Ikeke is walking the tight rope without that type of safety net.

And this is exactly why the IBF belt is so important for him. Say what you want about the sanctioning bodies and the proliferation of titles the past few decades, but the bottom line is, having a championship belt ensures that guys like Ikeke will be able to get fights and stay in the mix. Defend one long enough with distinction, and you'll eventually force your way into some marquee fights, ala Bernard Hopkins.

"I think it's another step in that direction," Gittelsohn says of winning the IBF belt. "We've had to take what we could get to the first major step, beating Antwun Echols on ESPN. That kind of brought Kingsley into some recognition and got the attention of some people in the business, certainly some of the guys at HBO. Winning a world title is another step and it's another step that doesn't fully solve the problem but it's another step in the right direction that will get Kingsley more visibility and I think some more premium cable dates next year."

But promoting Ikeke will always be tough, regardless.

"I think that's true; it's also because of his size and style, which is not exactly crowd pleasing, and the way he has to make an impression is just to keep winning, and if he wants to fight for a vacant title, that may make sense for him and we hope that he can get some fights and be standing by 2007, having won some other impressive fights and to try to force some kind of unification fight or just a fight that the media and fans start to clamor for if he's been really successful," said Merchant.

But Ikeke is focused in on Saturday night.

"It's what I've been waiting for for a long time. God brings it to me at the right time, I thank God. So I'm very excited to go to Germany to bring back the IBF title."