“I am going to become a Legend!“
Alexander Venn
06.08 - This was Naseem Hamed’s bold statement after giving Cardiffs’ Steve “The Cinderella Man” Robinson a boxing lesson and winning the WBO World Featherweight title in 1995.
I believed him, but now I have grave reservations if he will ever achieve this, as at 28 years of age (he aims to retire at 30) the Prince still has all the work to do…
Firstly, if you wish to be regarded as a “ Legend “ you have to dominate and/or have a couple of epic contests at different weight divisions eg. Thomas “ The Hit-man “ Hearns, or Roberto Duran or “ Marvelous “ Marvin Hagler.
True, Hamed has had a defining fight – the only problem was that he lost ! If it had been a close fight with plenty of drama, fortunes swinging this way and that, then the Prince would have been halfway there, but this was not the case. Barrera’s one sided beating of Hamed left a lot of important questions.
Hamed’s speed had always been his greatest asset, yet at 28 have his reflexes begun to slow up ? Barrera clearly had quicker hands that night and Naseem’s normally lightning fast reactions failed to keep himself out of trouble.
Has he bitten off more than he can chew ? He looked completely disinterested and thought he only had to turn up and land “ that punch “.
Will his increased arrogance and pedantic nature become his downfall? For example – Hamed was adamant a week before the fight that he wanted green boxing gloves made of goatskin (green being the traditional Muslim color, and goats being the favored animal for sacrifice). His brother/Promotor Riath begrudgingly moved heaven and earth to accommodate Naseem’s eccentric demands, yet come fight night he opted for regular gloves.
As former World Lightweight champion and Sky Sports Commentator Jim Watt would say … ” Never mind aboot complainin’, just get on wi’ the job ! ”
But the fundamental lesson to be learnt from the Barrera fight is that if plan A isn’t working (the KO punch) resort to plan B – win the rounds by combination punching – something the Prince can be brutally efficient at, judging by the way he finished off Augie Sanchez.
It appears Hamed still hasn’t learnt this looking at his comeback fight (which came about 6 months too late) against European Champ Manuel Calvo, in which he won an unentertaining points decision over a lesser class of opponent. Again, he mainly threw single punches waiting to load up with the big shot.
It is absolutely vital that the Sheffield based fighter of Arabian Heritage changes his ways, as he seems to have lost a small portion of his incredible hand speed – which is where half of his devastating punch power comes from. If he thinks a KO punch is all you need at this level, best have a chat with Felix Trinidad or Mike Tyson.
Prince Naseem Hamed’s critics will always trot out the standard “who has he fought“ or "he fights over the hill guys or hand picked opponents“ statements.
Let’s set the record straight.
Since beating brave Steve Robinson to a pulp that night in Cardiff, back in 1995, when 90% of the crowd were against him, he has also beat IBF Champ Tom “ Boom Boom “ Johnson (a little past his best, but still a recognized Champion with a belt), WBA Champ Wilfredo Vasquez (the WBA did not sanction the fight), and WBC Champ Cesar Soto (the WBC refused to crown Hamed after his victory), not to mention a classic encounter with former Champ Kevin Kelley.
That’s all 4 of the major Title holders - can Roy Jones Jnr. Claim this feat ?
No.
I will concede, however, that Hamed delayed the match with “ The Baby Faced Assassin “ until he was beaten twice (1 KO, 1 points defeat) by Junior Jones – maybe by that point he regarded Barrera as past his best.
But to become a Legend extraordinary feats of courage and old-fashioned grit are required. If he believes a victory over Barrera in rematch will achieve this, he is mistaken and confused.
The fact is, he should have beaten the tough Mexican the first time – No disrespect to Barrera, who pulled out one of the best performances of his career and thoroughly deserves the title of pound for pound king at this time.
But has the Prince left it too late ?
He has looked increasingly gaunt and drawn during recent weigh-ins – if making the weight is a problem, why not move up to Super feather, which is only 4 bags of sugar heavier, and have a crack at WBA/WBO Champ Acelino Freitas ?
However, staying at Feather weight would obviously be more attractive with fights against Barrera, Eric Morales, Jonny Tapia or Paulie Ayala just waiting to be made.
Even Belfast’s Wayne McCulloch is making a well deserved comeback.
To sum up, if Hamed truly wants to cement his status as a “Legend” he will have to hold victories over at least 3 of the 4 fighters mentioned above, failing that, they would have to be epic battles if he was the loser – the same way Holyfield lost in his 1st fight with Riddick Bowe, or Thomas Hearns in his memorable 3 rounder with Hagler.
It must be noted, though, that Hamed has provided boxing fans with countless thrills and entertainment over the past 7 years and this should not be forgotten. But he wants to be a Legend, and that is what I am judging him on. I am not sure if still has it in him, but certainly hope he does.
