Boxing Preview: Herman Ngoudjo vs. Juan Urango

On January 30, 2009, there will be a championship fight taking place in Montreal between two hungry boxers who are getting a second chance at a title.

Herman Ngoudjo will face Juan Urango of Colombia for the vacant IBF Light Welterweight title. The previous beltholder, Paul Malignaggi, beat Ngoudjo in a title match last January. On that same night, Urango was defeated in a title fight against Ricky Hatton.

A year later, Ngoudjo defeated Souleymane Mbaye of France in an elimination bout in June, while Urango knocked out Carlos Wilfredo Vilches in the fourth round of an eliminator bout on April 23 in Florida.

This is a redemption fight for both boxers. Who will take home the IBF title and who will be left in the cold?

Letʼs take a look at these two fighters: Herman Ngoudjo is a 29 year old boxer originally from Cameroun, who fights out of Montreal. At 29 years of age, “The Black Panther”, as Ngoudjo is known, holds a record of 17 victories and two losses.

In his last few fights, Ngoudjo has not been consistent and has not performed to his potential. He looked strong but lost a bout with veteran Jose Luis Castillo in Las Vegas last year, he also lost a close decision to Malignaggi in a title fight on January 5 in Atlantic City. Ngoudjo did not fight well but still won fights in Montreal against Mbaye and Randall Bailey.

When the Black Panther is at his best, he controls fights and has a hard right punch which he uses in between a series of effective jabs to the body. His speed and agility makes Ngoudjo a technical fighter with a devastating right hand who can go head to head with the best fighters in his division. In order to win the IBF title however, Ngoudjo will have to be in peak form, something that has not happened in his last four fights.

Juan Urango is a 28 year old fighter from Colombia. His record stands at 20 wins, 1 loss and 1 tie with 16 knockouts. Urango has won three straight bouts since his January 2007 defeat to Ricky Hatton, in which he gave a good performance.

Some analysts in the boxing world believe that the rock fisted Urango is one of the hardest hitters in the sport. Urango is a proven contender who has speed and precision with his jabs, though this hard hitting boxer utilizes power over style in his fights. Urango has always been an aggressive fighter who shows a great deal of determination. In order to win the IBF title however, Urango will have to keep coming and hurt Ngoudjo, who is faster and a more technical fighter.

In the end, this contest should prove to be a very interesting display between a technical fighter in Ngoudjo and a hard hitting fighter in Urango. No matter what the outcome, it will be as a redemption fight for the winner, while the loser will need to climb the ladder once more and reflect on another missed opportunity.