Name, Nickname: Zab "Super" Judah
Weight Class: Junior Welterweight
Age: 24
Hometown: Brooklyn, New York
Record: 28-1-21, 1 NC
sfc's Jr. Welter Rating 2nd (Behind only Kostya Tszyu
sfc's Pound for Pound Ranking: 9th
Official Website: www.zabjudah.com
Available Bio: Unfortunately, I couldn't find much about his non-boxing history.
Personality, etc.: As you will see below, Zab has a bit of a temper. Besides that he comes off as a pretty cool guy who is very confident. Zab is a big fan of hip hop and considers Jay-Z, Lil' Kim and Sean "Puffy" Colmes his friends. He's appeared in some of their videos and, of course, enters the ring to their music.
Important Fights:
Amateurs: Zab's amateur record was 110-5 before turning pro. He won a National Golden Gloves Championship and was an alternate on the US Boxing team in the 1996 Olympics.
Early Career: "Super" Judah began his professional career in 1996 and by 1998 had a record of 15-0 with 11 KOs. He was a well managed prospect, so most of these fights were against unknown opponents.
vs. Micky Ward: Zab took his first big "step up" in 1998 versus "Irish" Micky Ward. Ward, who was having troubles with his hands, was thoroughly beaten up through 12 rounds. Zab also picked up a minor title. This win may have not been impressive at the time, but since then Micky Ward has become a top-ten contender.
Zab continued his campain up the Jr. Welterweight ranks and in 2000 beat Jan Piet Bergman for the IBF Light Welterweight title. He followed this up with defenses against tough foes like Terron Millet, Hector Quiroz and Reggie Green. In 2001 he fought Allan Vester for the right to face off against Kostya Tszyu for the Undisputed Jr. Welterweight Championship of the World. Vester was KO'd in only 3 rounds.
vs. Kostya Tzyu: This was the biggest fight of Judah's career. Tszyu entered the ring with the WBC and WBA belts and Judah stil had his IBF belt. This fight was intended to springboard Judah into mainstream sports fame and future big bouts at Welterweight. Judah controlled the first round and most of the second. With little time left in the 2nd round Kostya Tszyu caught Judah off guard with an overhand right. Judah hit the mat and made the inexperienced mistake of immediately jumping to his feet. This led to him stumbling and falling to the mat again. This was enough for referee Jay Nady to call a sudden end to the fight.
This lowpoint in Judah's career suddenly got much lower as he raged out of control in the ring. He flung a stool into the crown and shoved his gloved fist into Nady's neck. Luckily, no one was injured but the fiasco caused Judah to be banned for six months.
vs. Omar Weis: For his "comeback" fight, Judah and his manager picked the very tough and awkward Omar Weis. Many were worried that this would be too much too fast for Judah's first post-Tzyu fight. Although the fight was very awkward, Judah won a clear 10 round decision.
Pros
Judah has the standard combination of speed, power and boxing skill found in many young prospects. Zab is a southpaw, which may help him to some degree.
Cons
Well, he doesn't have a rock solid chin. Before being KO'd by Tszyu he'd been knocked down twice. Losing control of himself after a fight was a bad sign as well. If he does this during a tough fight he'll probably perform badly.
Future
Zab Judah will be an interesting fighter to follow for the next 5+ years. He's in the "deepest" division in Boxing so he has plenty of compelling opponents: a Ward rematch, Arturo Gatti, Diosbelys Hurtado, Ben Tackie, etc. If he can beat one or two of these guys he'll certainly get his rematch against Tszyu.
Last Updated: July 14, 2002
Sources:
Showtime's Championship Boxing
Main Events, http://www.mainevents.com/bio/bio-judah.htm
www.boxrec.com