by Jeff Meyers – On March 19, 2001, New Zealand native David Tua (52-3-2, 43 KOs) dominated Demetrice “Only by K.O.” King (15-20-0, 13 KOs) in a heavyweight matchup at TelstraClear Pacific Centre in South Auckland, New Zealand.
While Tua did not achieve a spectacular knockout victory, the Kiwi pitched a shutout ten round unanimous decision against a fighter whose sub-par record veils his status as a more-than-capable journeyman. King has fought the likes of Shannon Briggs, Kevin Johnson, Michael Grant and Fres Oquendo and been knocked out only twice, by Briggs and Oquendo (King failed to answer the bell for the tenth round against Oquendo).. King has also scored upset victories against touted heavyweight prospects such as Bermane (“B. WARE”) Stiverne (20-1-1, 19 KOs) and former Aussie native Bowie Tupou (19-1-0, 15 KOs). King’s second round knockout victory over the Tonga-born Tupou was especially impressive, given Tupou’s previous press hype (Ring Magazine once dubbed Tupou as a potential future heavyweight champion) and dominating KO victories that caused many to predict Tupou as the second coming of another Polynesian heavy-handed slugger by the name of David Tua.
Tua first exploded on the heavyweight map in 1996 by savagely knocking out fellow prospect John “The Quiet Man” Ruiz (44-9-1, 30 KOs) a mere nineteen seconds into the match. Ruiz got caught with a monster left hook seconds after the bell rang, and then got beat like a gong by Tua courtesy of a series of lightning quick combinations that left Ruiz knocked out cold on the canvas and in need of immediate medical attention. While Ruiz went on to beat Evander Holyfield to become WBA champion and notched impressive wins against such names as Fres Oquendo, Andrew Golota, Hasim Rahman, Tua is often credited—if that word can be used as such—as the driving force behind Ruiz’s subsequent punch-and-hug style of fighting that, while successful, did not endear him to the boxing public. Tua, first known as “The Terminator,” later changed his moniker to the “Tuaman.” Now he goes by a combination of both, i.e., “The Tuaminator.”
Nicknames aside, Tua’s present legacy can be fairly described as a colossal waste of potential and opportunity. The Samoa-born Tua, while standing only 5’10” in height, fought best at about 225 pounds with shoulders resembling brass coconuts and Kauri tree trunks for legs. Tua’s strength and instant knockout potential will never be questioned: following his destruction of Ruiz, Tua went on to knock out talented heavies Russian Oleg “The Big O” Maskaev (36-7-0, 27 KOs), Hasim “The Rock” Rahman (49-7-2, 40 KOs) and Michael “Double M” Moorer (52-4-1, 40 KOs)—all of whom held the heavyweight title at some point in their careers.
Many expected the granite-chinned Tua (Tua was knocked down for the first time in his career a mere eight months ago in a draw against Monte Barrett) to become heavyweight champ after his knockout victory against Maskaev and his impressive showing in a decision loss against Ike “The President” Ibeabuchi (20-0-0, 15 KOs), a bout in which Tua and Ibeabuchi traded bombs for twelve rounds straight and displaying remarkable stamina and skill in the process. The bout boasts the second highest amount of punches thrown in a heavyweight fight under CompuBox standards.
Ibeabuchi had the talent to become heavyweight champ himself—knocking out Chris Byrd for the first time ever and never lost a match—but eventually proved to be less mentally stable than a combination of Lindsay Lohan and Charlie Sheen on their worst days. Ibeabuchi pleaded guilty to battery and intent to commit assault in 2001 after an incident involving a lap dancer who refused to take a check for “services” in Ibeabuchi’s room at the Treasure Island Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. The President, who was diagnosed with bipolar and schizo-effective disorders, won’t be eligible for parole until May 2012 at the age of thirty-nine.
Despite his initial promise, Tua failed to live up to his potential. He turned a dismal performance against Lennox Lewis that left fans wondering why the dynamo that obliterated John Ruiz in only nineteen seconds seemed to give up after Lewis consistently frustrated Tua’s attempts to land punches. Another similarly disappointing loss against Chris Byrd followed, and then, a series of disputes between Tua and his management caused the disillusioned Tua to take two separate two-year sabbaticals from the sport in 2003 and 2007. This inactivity and attendant lack of mental fire, occurring in Tua’s early thirties, essentially destroyed Tua’s career.
But Tua continues to seek redemption. Tua has recently been quoted as seeking a rematch with Monte Barrett, with Tua’s promoter seeking to match The Tuaminator against Evander Holyfield in the fall should Tua defeat Barrett. The problem for Tua is that fights against a gatekeeper (Barrett) and a former champion way past his prime (the 48 year-old Holyfield) won’t do squat to bolster Tua’s heavyweight legacy. Redemption can only be achieved through a heavyweight title bout.
History portends hope for David Tua. The last skill to fade from a heavyweight fighter’s arsenal is power. Since one punch can change everything in the heavyweight division, and since Tua still wields a wicked left hook, Tua could become champion should he finagle a shot at the title. George Foreman is proof positive of the possibility of Tua’s redemption. In 1994, Foreman took on champion Michael Moorer and knocked him out to become the oldest fighter ever to win the heavyweight crown at the age of forty-four. Foreman was losing every round, but caught Moorer with a deadly right hand that split Moorer’s lip and sent him crashing to the canvas in the tenth round.
Boxing politics, however, may prevent potential redemption for Tua. Even if Tua were to keep winning enough to warrant a title shot pursuant to the rules of any of the sanctioning bodies (the WBC, WBA, WBO and IBF), any promoter of a current heavyweight champion would likely avoid facing Tua. Why? Because there’s no upshot to such a bout. Tua’s star has permanently faded, which makes the bout a loser from an economic standpoint. And absent a financial incentive to stage such a bout, Tua’s ability to serve up a knockout punch at an advanced age will cause promoters to avoid taking any unnecessary chances with their meal tickets.
Stranger things have happened in this sport, however. For fans of David Tua, hopes spring eternal that the stars will align to give the fighter one final shot at redemption.
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