The Prince of Knockouts: Naseem Hamed

For Naseem Hamed, the Sheffield-born son of Yemeni immigrants, the ring monkier "The Prince" came naturally. He was a born showman, who became renowned around the world for his flashy, showboating ways; his gargantuan ego; and his flashy ring entrances. However, he was best known for the explosive power he weilded in both hands. He was, for a time, the Prince of British boxing and kingpin of world featherweights, leaving a travel of prostrate challengers in his wake.

"Naz" Hamed was born in 1974, and at the age of 7 his Father sent him to Brendan Ingle's boxing gym to learn how to defend himself, because he was so small. This was a trait that he never managed to grow out of: as an adult Hamed stood a mere 5'4", short even for the 126lbs featherweight division he would eventually come to rule. However, what the Prince did have were catlike reflexes, blinding speed, and thighs as thick as a bodybuilder's. Under the tutalage of Ingle and the influence of middleweight contender Herol Graham, Hamed fought from the southpaw stance and developed an elusive, hands down style. It made him appear to be a deceptively easy target to hit, which was exactly what Hamed wanted: if you were trying to hit him, it meant you were standing in front of him and a target for his awesome punches. When it came to punching, Hamed hit like a mule kick. In fact, he threw so much momentum behind his straight left it frequently overbalanced him. By his early teens, he was already a prominent European amateur boxer.

"The Prince" turned pro in 1992 as a super bantamweight (122lbs), aged 18. On only his 12th professional fight (undefeated with 10 knockouts), he challenged veteran European 122lbs champ Vincezo Belcastro for the European title, and pounded out a unanimous decision. By September 1996, he was ready for a stab at a world title, namely the WBO featherweight title held by Wales' Steve Robinson. Venturing into Robinson's own territory, he dominated the champion before a hometown crowd, knocking him down in the 5th and again in the 8th en route to a stoppage.

The British Reign of Prince

Although largely unknown in the US, Hamed already had a following in Europe, and especially Britain. Also, his popularity in the Arab world was surging, and he would soon be a major sports hero there. He was the kind of fighter that you either loved (for his unorthodox, explosive style) or hated (for his arrogance and showboating). The result was the same: whether you hated or loved Hamed, you tuned in to watch him fight. Boxing is always about putting butts in the seats and gluing eyeballs to the TV, and Hamed was an easy fighter to promote. His ring entrances frequently featured him dancing to the ring to house music, and then doing a flip over the ropes. Sometimes the entrances were more elaborate: once Hamed rode a flying carpet into the ring.

Hamed knocked out two lesser opponents in 1996 before meeting his first real challenge since Robinson, the awkward Mexican Manuel Medina. Medina (who is still active today) is a five time world champion, with four of those title reigns coming after his fight with Hamed. He was certainly no cream puff, and when the two met in Ireland, Medina gave him a very tough fight. Although Hamed floored Medina in the 2nd, and twice in the 9th, Medina in turn put more leather on Hamed than any previous opponent had. The doctor stopped the fight before the 11th, before the beaten-but-courageous Medina took any more damage.

The next year, Hamed met Medina's old rival and IBF champion Tom "Boom Boom" Johnson. Since winning the title from Medina, Johnson had defended it 11 times, but many of Hamed's detractors looked to Johnson to be the man who would shut The Prince up. Instead, the 23 year old Hamed beat down the 33 year old veteran IBF champ, leading the referee to stop the fight in the 8th.

Hamed defended the red IBF belt twice before decided it was more trouble than it was worth: he vacated that title, favoring his original WBO championship. The critics continued to carp, saying that Robinson and Medina were overrated and Johnson was old, and that for all Hamed's boasting, he had not really fought anyone. However, his star power was undeniable, and the Johnston fight was televised on Showtime in the US. HBO came knocking at his door, and Hamed went to America to try and silence the critics.

The Prince Takes America

In December 1997, Hamed fought veteran former champ Kevin Kelly in Madison Square Garden. The fight was televised on HBO, and when Kelly found Hamed easy to hit, he unloaded and floored the Prince. HBO announce Jim Lampley crowed that Hamed was being exposed, but while Hamed was down he was not out. Hamed vs. Kelly became a see-saw slugfest, with plenty of big bombs flying. Hamed was down in the 1st, 2nd, and 4th. Kelly in turn was down twice in the 2nd and twice again in the 4th, with the second time being a solid, hard knockout. Kelly was counted out, as the HBO team changed their tune and announced the fight was the "Featherweight Hagler-Hearns" (Foreman vs. Lyle would have been a better comparison). When he got to his feet, Kelly was met by Hamed who proudly announced "you are the best fighter I've ever met, and I'm the best fighter you've ever met." The exciting bout was declared The Ring's Fight of the Year. Hamed had worked his magic across the pond in America.

Despite Lampley's performance, Hamed was now one of HBO's darlings. He followed the victory over Hamed by fighting a string of legitimate contenders on their network. In April 1998 came ageless wonder and WBA champion Wilfredo Vasquez (Vasquez had been forced to vacate his title to fight Hamed) in Manchester, knocking him down four times en route to a stoppage. Then followed Irish contender Wayne "The Pocket Rocket" McCullough, who was beaten down in a unanimous decision win. Undefeated British featherweight contender Paul Ingle gave Hamed a tough fight and a smashed nose, but was ultimately knocked out.

Then came the October 1999 bout against WBC king Cesar Soto, in Detroit's Joe Louis Arena. Soto fought very little, but grabbed a lot; Hamed retaliated by picking Soto up and throwing him to the canvas, and kneeing him in the clinches. The fight was ugly, with Soto just trying to survive, and Hamed easily won a decision. By now, Hamed had defended his maroon WBO belt 13 times, had beaten the IBF and WBC champs, and would have claimed the WBA strap had it not been for boxing politics. He had a good claim to be the undisputed world featherweight champion, although his many enemies in the boxing press would never acknowledge him as such. However, none could deny that he was the top dog in his division, as well as the top draw.

Trainer Brendan Ingle and Hamed parted company in 1999. Undeterred, the Prince opened Y2K by fighting Vuyani Bungu of South Africa. Although it was overlooked at the time (and has been ever since), Bungu had truly earned his knickname of "The Beast." Six years before, he won the IBF 122lbs title from Kennedy McKinney in the Upset of the Year. Since then, he had defended his title 11 times, including wins over puncher Danny Romero and a rematch against McKinney. Bungu was for real, but Hamed crushed him in 4 rounds. Hamed then fought Augie Sanchez in an exciting war in Las Vegas, with both fighters hitting the canvas before Sanchez succumbed to Hamed's power in another 4th Round knockout.

The Prince Dethroned

In April 2001, the still undefeated Hamed met 52-3 Marco Antonio Barrera of Mexico. Barrera was a fan favorite, popular hero in Mexico, and exactly what Hamed's numerous detractors said he had been dodging for years: a top challenger in his prime (how Medina and Bungu did not fit this bill was never mentioned). Barrera had studied Hamed closely, and he combined first-rate boxing talent with the one thing no opponent of Hamed had ever exercised over the long haul: discipline. He stuck to his game plan, boxed Hamed cautiously, and when he fired a 3 punch combination, he moved right away, never giving Hamed a change to return fire with one of his mule kick bombs. Hamed was handily outboxed and lost a lopsided decision. Hamed offered no excuses.

The critics crowed that they had been right all along and Hamed was exposed. But had he been? Defenders of Hamed often point to the break with Ingle as the start of a rapid decline, but there is a simpler explanation even closer to Hamed's home. The Prince had only one comeback fight, which he won, but showed none of his old flare. Hamed's second trainer, the famous hired gun Emmanuel Steward, publically criticized Hamed's training ethic. At only 28 years old, Hamed announced his retirement. It was all perhaps the best statement a man could make that he had lost his fire and was no longer interested in his profession.

Early Retirement

Hamed was awarded the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE) in 1999, but it was revoked after a high speed three car collision in which Hamed was convicted of reckless driving and jailed for 15 months.

His critics continue to savage Hamed, arguing that he was not a great fighter and should never be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Their case rests on Hamed's failure to seek revenge for his sole defeat: Hamed had a rematch clause in his contract with Barrera, and failed to exercise it. However, he retired with a 36-1, 31 KOs record, having won all four of the major world featherweight titles at some point, beating many of the best opponents on the planet to do so. The most appropriate rejoinder for Hamed's legion of detractors, still yapping several years after Hamed's retirement is this old rap lyric: "the more you dis me, the more you are spreading my name."

Sources: HBO; Dark Trade; personal experience; boxrec.com; BBC