By Bill Patrice Jones – Jim Lampley put it simplest and best when he called Zab Judah the former Welterweight star an ‘enigma’. Certainly he is one of the most argued over fighters of his generation, not necessarily because of the fights he has been involved in but because of the dispute over just how good he is, was or could have been.
The ardent supporters of super Judah will tell you that at his destructive best Judah is quite simply one of the finest boxers on the planet. With an incredibly effective and stylish mode of fighting, the young Judah was once hailed as being in possession of arguably a near perfect style. He fought out of an unorthodox southpaw stance befuddling many opponents, and he possessed impressive hand speed and concussive power. He fought with brash arrogance and always entertained.. Judah’s supporters lay blame for Judah’s faltering career on his unhelpful temperament, the people he surrounds himself with and a lifestyle which has incurred lengthy suspensions, lack of proper training and crucially the absence of discipline. Trained well and at his best Judah could beat almost anyone, instead he was condemned to a career which kicked off in fits and starts, failed to move along a gradual path toward glory and ultimately saw him dethroned rather early from his position as one of the world’s top welterweights.
The detractors tell a different story. Judah a perpetually over hyped and overrated fighter never fulfilled the false promise which he was instilled with from the beginning. His character is deeply flawed and he can not overcome his own arrogance. Though his early results were impressive he was destroyed in two rounds by Kosta Tsyzu and showed an appalling lack of self control or respect in the aftermath. Since the Tsyzu fight he has lived off the hype generated in his early career. Although he has scored some good wins, we have also seen him defeated by an increasing number of top welterweights. It does not truly matter just how good Judah might be at his very best if he can never get it together long enough to show us over the course of a 12 round fight that ‘very best’. In conclusion Judah is one of the more detestable characters in modern boxing history whose immature and petulant nature should not be forgiven. Yes he is a very talented fighter technically but boxing is as much about self control as it is about skill.
After a string of impressive early wins Zab Judah fought Jan Piet Bergman for the vacant IBF welterweight title knocking him out in the fourth round. He went on to defend the title five times against such names as Reggie Green and Junior Witter. Typically his defences were destructive and dominating and the hype continued to grow. There was much anticipation surrounding Judah’s unification clash with the hard hitting Kosta Tsyzu on the 11th of March 2001 and the fight would end up being famous for all the wrong reasons. After dominating the opening round with an obvious speed advantage it appeared as though Judah would fulfil the promise much of the boxing community had instilled in him before the fight. He caught Kosta often, out speeded him and generally appeared a little too much to handle. That all changed in the second round as Tsyzu adjusted and began finding success as he pursued Judah all around the ring. As the round drew to a close clearly in favour of Tsyzu, Judah was caught by a straight right hand which stunned him, Kosta followed it up with another and Zab went down. He quickly rose to his feet and pointed at Jay Nady as if to tell him something but in seconds found out he was not quite up to standing on two feet. The infamous ‘chicken dance’ followed as Zab struggled desperately with comic effect to stay on his feet, as he rushed back to the canvas Nady justifiably waved it off. Judah could most probably had recovered had he stayed down for the eight count but he paid the price for a hasty rise. The ensuing melee and attack on Nady was horrible to see and Judah got a deserved suspension.
Judah would never return to the pedestal he was placed upon before the Tsyzu fight. His first meaningful return bout saw him outpoint DeMarcus Corley a tricky southpaw over 12. Though Judah looked quick and decisive early on, his inability to fight a good fight for 12 rounds was becoming apparent as Corley almost charged back late on to take it. The new WBO welterweight champion would lose in an upset to Cory Spinks in a close tactical battle for the unified Welterweight championship of the world. The doubts continued to grow as Judah struggled to dominate opponents down the stretch, he found himself on the back foot early on against the considerably slower 38 year old Rafael Pineda before coming back to take the win.
One of Judah’s best wins came in the rematch against Cory Spinks, fighting against a hostile crowd in Spink’s backyard Judah managed to wear down and knockout Cory in the ninth after 8 evenly poised rounds.
The more disappointing side of Judah would again resurface, in a tune up for his much anticipated Floyd Mayweather showdown, Judah was upset by the much slower but determined Carlos Manuel Baldomir in what was a career best win for Tata.
Though the Mayweather fight was in jeopardy it was still managed to be signed since Judah only defended the WBC belt against Baldomir.
The Judah Mayweather fight more resembled a WWE PPV at times than a welterweight title fight. It could arguably be upheld as a microcosm of Judah’s entire boxing career. It epitomized both the greatness and the weakness of Zab Judah. In the early rounds Judah did to Floyd Mayweather jr what no fighter before or since has been able to do, he out boxed him. We have seen the much bigger Oscar De La Hoya bully Floyd, we have seen the pugnacious Ricky Hatton harass and rush him but we had never before seen someone consistently beat Mayweather to the punch, outsmart and outthink Floyd. Judah should have been credited with a knockdown when Mayweather’s glove touched the canvas. It would appear the promise was about to be realised with the greatest achievement of them all… However Judah’s success was not to last. The skill, patience and finesse of Mayweather was soon on display alongside the impatience, frustration and lack of discipline from Judah. Floyd Mayweather jr always finds a way to win, he was and is a superior athlete to Zab and proved it. However though Mayweather certainly came back and won the fight, Judah at the same time failed to maintain the high standard set in the early rounds. The more frustrated he became, the more defenceless he fought. As the rounds passed he walked in wide open getting tagged repeatedly. The fight was still entertaining and certainly heated, but Judah’s severe character flaws would disgrace him once more. In the tenth round he hit Floyd with a despicable low blow which could have earned him a DQ. As his nephew winced from the pain an irate Roger Mayweather stormed the ring confronting Judah and all hell broke loose. Entourages, fighters and relatives stormed the ring as the event threatened to implode. As they returned to finish the action the classy Mayweather outwitted his by now mentally and physically exhausted opponent to win a well deserved decision.
Since the Mayweather fight we have seen Judah fight Miguel Cotto in New York. Once again he started fast but this time was quickly neutralized. Cotto stopped Judah from dominating after a few rounds, and after being penalized for a low blow decided to step up the attack. Cotto continued his vicious assault on the increasingly hapless Judah up until the highly impressive 11th round knockout. He has won three unimpressive decisions over B/C level fighters and lost a technical decision to Joshua Clottley in a fight Judah could not dominate. He is scheduled to meet Matthew Hatton on the under card of Mayweather Marquez a fight which even in his deteriorated state he should win handsomely.
It is unlikely Judah will ever regain the stature he once held in the boxing world and very likely that the debate over just how good he is/was will continue. Though his fall was rather rapid in the end, no one can deny that the flashes of greatness he has shown us are at least deserving of our fascination. Judah at his absolutely best was the only fighter out there to outbox Mayweather, but this will be viewed by some as insignificant in light of his inability to maintain that standard.
This author sees Judah as one of the most naturally gifted fighters of his generation, but ultimately one whose deeply flawed character cost him dearly. He entertained and repulsed by turns and will no doubt be a source of debate for years to come.