by James Slater – Former heavyweight champ Hasim “The Rock” Rahman, now aged 37 and coming off a lively, 4th-round TKO win over club fighter Shannon Miller, will continue his quest to earn one last shot at a title, when he faces 38-year-old Damon Reed on August 14th.
Currently 47-7-2(38) and 2-0(2) in the comeback he began in March of this year following his 2008, 7th-round TKO loss at the hands of Wladimir Klitschko, Rahman should have no trouble with cruiserweight Reed, 45-13(32)..
Reed has boxed as a heavyweight a number of times in his now 15-year-pro career, but many of his fights have taken place at around the 200-pound mark. Not a big guy at 6’0,” the man nicknamed “Dangerous” has lost every time he has stepped up to face a notable heavyweight. Reed, hailing from Kansas, dropped back down to cruiser after his Feb. 2008 2nd-round stoppage loss to Monte Barrett, and he has won two in a row since – including a win over the 179-19-2 Buck Smith, Smith being a former welterweight!
But “Rock” is looking to keep himself busy, and with his still somewhat marketable name value, as long as he keeps on winning, a big fight may come along sooner rather than later. Weighing in at a heavy 260-pounds last time out against Miller, Rahman was caught, even wobbled, by a few punches, and he must get his weight down and keep his guard up if he’s not to be derailed in this, his last chance at gathering any momentum.
It’s unlikely Rahman will have a tough time with Reed, even though the slightly older man can punch some (see his 38 KOs). But Rahman – even a somewhat out of shape Rahman – can still bang himself, and a quick win for him looks a good bet. Reed has been halted seven times in his 13 losses, and this number looks almost certain to grow to eight in Norfolk, Virginia next month.
The only real questions are: will Rahman have dropped any weight, and how long will it take him to get the KO victory? The bout is scheduled for ten rounds, but unless Rahman wants to get himself some rounds in, a 1st-round win for the former world ruler looks a real possibility. Such a win will prove little but, again, at least Rahman is staying active. At the rate he’s going, the man from Baltimore could pick up a further two or three paydays this year.