Naz deserves HOF election. Fact. (great tribute)

[Fenster]

Don't worry, i'm not gonna upset anyone by exposing the truth about why the great Juan Manuel Marquez ducked Naz. And why getting knocked unconcious inside three rounds wouldn't have hurt his greatness. Some people can handle the truth some people can't. We'll leave it there....


Great tribute by Fat Dan Rafael. Although he should have ended with a - Whoomp there it is!!!

I've lost track of the number of years in a row that I have voted for former featherweight champion "Prince" Naseem Hamed on my International Boxing Hall of Fame ballot. But, once again, I have put pen to paper to cast my vote for Hamed, whose exclusion thus far is a disgrace.

England's Hamed boxed professionally for almost exactly 10 years (April 1992 to May 2002) and spent about seven years at the very top of the sport, where he not only knocked out most opponents but did so in devastating fashion and became one of the biggest stars in the sport. The guy sold out arenas before his opponent was even named.

But Naz was about more than commercial success, with his flashy ring walks -- the best in the business! -- flip over the top rope and big mouth. Yes, his outlandish trash talk and arrogant attitude rubbed a lot of people the wrong way but it's what happened between the ropes that counts most.

I'll get to that in a minute but outside the ring he totally changed the economic landscape of boxing in terms of the smaller weight classes. Hamed, who left the comforts of home to fight five times in America, ushered in a golden age of featherweights and made it normal for the best in and around that division to reap seven-figure paydays. Fighters such as Marco Antonio Barrera, Erik Morales, Juan Manuel Marquez and Manny Pacquiao, among others, should give thanks to Hamed for making their giant purses possible because of the way he broke through.

In the ring, not only did Hamed have tremendous punching power -- in 2003, Ring magazine listed him 46th on its top 100 hardest punchers in boxing history -- he also compiled a terrific record (36-1, 31 KOs), was regarded as the world's No. 1 featherweight for several years, was high on most pound-for-pound lists and went 10-1 with eight knockouts against titleholders and Hall of Famers.

Yet way too many people who are clueless about the rest of his career hold his one defeat, a decision to three-division world champion Barrera, himself a sure-fire Hall of Famer when he is eligible, against him. That is unfair. It's not like he lost to a bum or even got knocked out. He lost a decision to an all-time great in 2001 and then fought just once more.

His career is about a helluva lot more than one bad night in Las Vegas. It's way more about all the thrilling nights and big wins and knockouts before that.

On the way up he won the European bantamweight title in his 12th fight, made one defense and then moved up to junior featherweight. In 1995, in his first fight at featherweight, he stopped Steve Robinson, a very credible fighter, in the eighth round to win his first world title.

That was the beginning of a run in which he should have been the first fighter in the era of four alphabet titles to hold them all simultaneously. However, boxing politics often actively work against that, so he had to settle for twice unifying titles. But he defeated each of the titleholders: Robinson, Tom Johnson (TKO8 to unify two belts before being stripped of one) and Cesar Soto (W12 in another unification fight). He also beat Vazquez Sr. (TKO7) in what should have been a unification bout but Vazquez had been stripped of his version of the title for agreeing to fight Hamed.

Other quality fighters, all former or future titleholders, Hamed beat convincingly were Kevin Kelley -- their electrifying 1997 fight at Madison Square Garden in Hamed's unforgettable American debut was one of the most exciting fights of the decade -- Wayne McCullough, Paul Ingle, Vuyani Bungu and Manuel Medina.

Overall, Hamed defended his WBO version of the title 15 times and held the lineal 126-pound world championship for three years while bringing extraordinary excitement and showmanship to a small weight class that had never seen the infusion of money it enjoyed during Hamed's heyday. In all, Hamed was 16-1 with 14 KOs in alphabet or lineal world title fights, which stacks up with or exceeds the resumes of many Hall of Famers.

It is time for the "Prince" to take his rightful place in the Canastota, New York, shrine.

Prince Naseem Hamed deserves HOF election - ESPN

[erics44]

there will never be another

[Primo Carnera]

I'm not bothered about his credentials as a HoFer, if it happens it happens if it don't it don't.
As far as Naz goes, He had a great career, made a shit load of money , but the fact of the matter is that when he fought a top drawer fighter , he was exposed, schooled and could not get over it. Once the aura was gone , it was gone, not dissimilar to Tyson really. Tyson carried on after his aura was smashed and his legacy (and his personal life in general) suffered for it.
Sometimes , Greatness is about how you come back from defeats or setbacks (Ali for example) and showing the "Cojones" to do so. He couldn't do that and couldn't find the motivation to do it.

[Mark TKO]

I agree re Naz shortcomings but you can't deny what he did for boxing - especially for a lower weight category.


When you look at some of the people who have got in there's no way he shouldn't get in

[IamInuit]

He should get in on the first call. Even if you cant stand him. He brought 126 into the limelight and was also one hell of a fighter.

[Beanflicker]

One of a kind fighter, had a great run on top for several years and his only loss came against an ATG HOFer in Barrera. He had an amazing kick of the can, HOF for sure IMO.

[jon09]

He is a lot better then most of the guys in there already. He was entertaining and tough as nails. He had a bad night at the office and people never seem to let him live that down.