I went with him. Ten minutes later, accompanied by several family members and friends, he arrived at the MGM Grand Garden Arena and walked up through the seats to a point in the upper reaches of the arena where his ring entrance that night would begin.
There, standing on a platform, he examined six signs that would be spotlighted for his entrance. Three of the signs bore the name of the prophet Muhammad. There will be smoke. Fountains will rise behind you and confetti will rain down. Option number one is a fly-rig. Hamed crossed the platform to examine the fly-rig. Somewhat skeptically, he pulled at the two supporting cables. A member of the technical crew sat down on the fly-rig, and a harness was strapped around his waist.
The fly-rig lifted up off the platform, and Naseem watched intently as it descended one hundred feet to the floor below. Then he turned to the director. The remark was a statement; not a question. Hours before the biggest fight of his life, Hamed was deliberating whether or not to take the risk of flying on a thin steel contraption to a boxing ring.
One had to wonder why he would put that extra pressure, perhaps even fear, on himself moments before the fight. The answer was twofold.
First, he was aware of his obligations as a showman. The Prince was expected to be bigger than life. And second, in the past, Naseem had fed off the frenzy of the crowd. Effect number one will be an airburst with the platform empty. As you come into view on the elevator lift, ten flame-throwers will shoot up. Number three will be a six-second fountain. The dead battery was not lost on Hamed. He was being asked to trust these people and their technology on a one-hundred-foot drop to the ring. A new battery was inserted.
The six-second fountain blazed. That was followed by effect number four — twenty sparklers flaming downward, creating the illusion of a waterfall. Sal Hamed expressed concern over the safety of the fly-rig. Naseem had total respect for his father. But Mr Hamed left the decision to his son. Allah is bestowing His blessing upon us. Barrera entered the ring with 52 wins, 3 losses, and 38 knockouts. The match-up was seen as the equivalent of a test for a gifted student who had studied hard and was expected to pass.
Barrera fought a brilliant tactical fight, counterpunching and getting off first when he wanted to. Hamed spent most of the night looking for one big punch and never found it.
He might have been a great puncher, but Barrera exposed him as a less-than-great boxer. The conventional wisdom is probably right. Naseem fought once more, winning a lacklustre decision over Manuel Calvo of Spain a year later. Then, at age 28, he walked away from boxing. On the negative side of the ledger, in May he was convicted on criminal charges after a car he was driving at 90 miles per hour collided with another vehicle, causing life-altering injuries to the other driver.
Making matters worse, Naseem fled the scene as the injured driver and his wife lay trapped in the wreckage. He was sentenced to fifteen months in prison and released after sixteen weeks to serve the rest of his sentence under home detention curfew. Previously, Hamed had been banned from driving for one year after speeding at more than miles per hour. John Sheppard was born in London and moved with his family to Doncaster when he was two years old. In the mids, he was a computer systems analyst for the National Coal Board.
Moreover, he was also the lineal champion from to , the International Boxing Organization champion from to , and held the European bantamweight title from to Hamed had a highly decorated Boxing career and a highly active persona.
To start, here are some quick facts. He was born to Yemeni parents. The boxer learned boxing at Wincobank gym of famous Irish boxing trainer and former boxer Brendan Ingle where flashy southpaw style and potential set him apart since a young age. Naseem Hamed stands 5 feet 4. Despite his short stature, he was highly athletic throughout his career. Additionally, he was also great at using his fast-paced, hard-hitting punches, quick dodges, and quick feet to his advantage.
Also, his low weight and slender frame only added to his already highly developed skills. When Hamed started professional boxing in , it was under the flyweight category. A comprehensive win over Vincenzo Belcastro over twelve rounds made Naseem the holder of the European bantamweight title at He defended the title once and then, in , went on to win the WBC International super bantamweight title in Sheffield against Freddy Cruz in six rounds.
This was when Hamed started getting quite popular and respected for his unorthodox style, though his boxing antics earned him many critics. Despite not fighting a single weight in the weight division, Naseem was named the WBO number one featherweight contender in , a highly controversial announcement. Hamed won when the referee stopped the fight after Robinson was caught with a left hook in the 8 th round that knocked him down.
Naseem injured his hand badly in this fight, an issue that stayed with him throughout his career. Hamed then defended the title against its former holder Manuel Medina. He won versions of the featherweight world title 3 more times and even defeated Remigio Molina from Argentina, holding a record in just 2 rounds. He defended his WBO title against Jose Badillo, whose corner had to enter the ring and stop the fight during round 7. His arrival at the British Airways Concorde was swarmed with various media outlets.
The fight was highly entertaining, and for the first time in his career, Naseem had to abandon his hands-down style to protect himself against highly talented Kelley.
Naseem suffered three knockdowns himself but won the fight in the fourth round when he knocked down Kelley for the third and final time. This was the first of his many future fights on HBO.
He broke his hand badly in the fight and, after the surgery, stayed out of the gym for half a year, earning 35 pounds. Hamed could not hit Barrera with his trademark lefts as Barrera circled to his left and worked both head and body.
Although Hamed was a 3 to 1 betting favorite in Las Vegas before the fight, he was handed his first and only lineal featherweight championship loss by a round decision. Calvo was the European champion and had a record of 33 wins, 4 losses, and a draw. Hamed won unconvincingly on points, looking sluggish and uninterested, and was booed by the fans.
In a post-fight interview, Naseem assured a quick return that never happened. He did not confirm his retirement for years, sparking rumors about several potential fights. Naseem has said the retirement was largely due to chronic problems with his hands that included multiple fractures and injuries.
Naseem has had several business ventures after his boxing career, and now he lives happily with his wife and children in England. He reportedly oversees a management company with offices in LA and London these days.
Upon his retirement, he retired with a record of 36 wins, and a loss, with 31 of those 36 wins being wins by knockout. As seen on BoxRec in October , Hamed has ranked the 19 th greatest European pound-for-pound boxer of all time. The website also ranks him the 7 th greatest British fighter of all time. Hamed was ranked 22 on the list of top 25 pound-for-pound fighters of the last 25 years by ESPN in Similarly, the boxer was a global superstar and a prominent figure in the s British pop culture.
He was famous for his spectacular ring entrances and unconventional boxing antics. Hamed was a southpaw and had a hard-hitting and highly athletic boxing style. Naseem in his element. Davies of The Telegraph ranked him 10 th. The Ring magazine ranked him 46 th on a list of the greatest punchers of all time. Not to mention, American boxing promoter compared his impact on the boxing world to that of the Greatest Muhammad Ali.
In , while his popularity grew and he was still performing spectacularly in the boxing ring, Naseem Hamed married his girlfriend Eleasha Elphinstone, at an undisclosed location in Sheffield. Eleasha was 24 at that time. Naseem at the time was 23 and about to turn 24 the next week. Naseem Hamed with his wife, Eleasha Elphinstone. Naseem has two sons, Sami Hamed and Aadam Hamed. Both Sami and Aadam are now learning boxing skills at the famous Ingle Gym, where Naseem himself once used to practice and learn.
Adam has shown some good skills and is trying to follow in the footsteps of his father someday. Currently, he lives in an equally beautiful house in Surrey with his wife and kids. In , Hamed was the cause of a very serious accident that left two people grievously injured. The boxer was trying to show off with his Mercedes McLaren while trying to impress businessman Asif Ayub who was in the car with him.
While showing off his car, Naz overtook two cars very recklessly. In his attempt to overtake the third car, he met an accident with a Volkswagen Golf in the opposite lane.
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