If Ike Ibeabuchi Had Continued His Career.....

I’d love to see a trilogy between Ike and Vitali. Awesome fights- If he had beaten Lewis that would’ve made for an infesting dynamic if say he only won once against Vitali and beat Lewis.

 

Realistically his mental health problems and quite possibly the damage suffered from his fights would have meant him likely becoming increasingly unstable and going further off the rails. If he had not gone to jail he would have likely been further imploding with all that means for his career as well as everyone around him. Given that I think it's impossible to say how he might have done against anyone at that point, he was essentially a ticking bomb.

 

I'm not even sure he would have been favourite in a rematch vs Tua. I recall people being fairly evenly split as to who won that fight. 42% of fans on this site scored it for Ike - https://eyeonthering.com/boxing/david-tua-vs-ike-ibeabuchi

He wasn't as proven as Tua, but my guess is they were broadly about the same level.

 

Ike's feet weren't as slow as Tua's, so I agree he would (and did) do better against smaller, mover types.

He didn't quite possess Tua's 1 punch power though, so wouldn't be quite as deadly to swarmers.

I'd take Lewis and Vitali to box Ike's head off and would make Tua 50/50 in a rematch, to begin with.

 

I think that he would have been a very good candidate to blow it somehow.

He does not strike me as being a fighter with the attributes for sustained consistency.

Let's face it, if Tua had gone to prison after he had fought Ike, we might be talking about how he was destined to reign supreme.

 

Well we're guessing really, as Ike only fought two boxers that were remotely world class, though I acknowledge speculating is the fun part & the purpose of your thread.

His result vs Byrd suggests he'd be at the Apex of the division, whilst his result vs Tua suggests he was on Tua's level, which was some way short of the very best. Two fights at this level isn't much to go on, but my guesses as to how he would have done in the 2nd half of 1999 against the best HWs aside from Lewis, Vitali & Tua:

Holyfield - I think the Holyfield that gave Lennox a tough fight would outbox to Ike to a decision, so long as he fought with his head & not his heart. Just 1-year later I'd take a prime Ike
Tyson - My guess is Ike wins by come from behind KO in the 2nd half of the fight
Grant - Ike probably by KO, though I honestly wouldn't rule out a Grant decision, I'll be in a minority considering that as a plausible outcome though
Wlad - Either Wlad by early KO (much more likely than I suspect most will think, imo) or Ike mid to late stoppage. Gun to my head & I'd go with Ike, at this stage of Wlad's evolution
Golata - Golata outboxes Ike & stands up to his physicality early, but probably either finds a way to lose/quit or legitimately gets worn down
Kirk Johnson - Could outbox Ike, but most likely outcome is a repeat of the Byrd fight
Maskaev - I think he was the slightly better boxer, whilst Ike was probably more durable. I'd guess Ike via come from behind KO
Rahman - I wouldn't be surprised if Hasim's jab caused facial damage to Ike that became material to the outcome of the fight, but again the smart money is probably a late come from behind KO for Ibeabuchi

I'm giving Ike a lot of credit for an iron chin & being durable on the basis of the Tua fight. The thing is though, it's plausible a fighter can read Tua's wide but very heavy shots in close, whilst being vulnerable to the longer, straighter shots of, say, Wlad or Rahman.

Now, do I think Ike would have had the mental stability to go on a run like that over 3-5-years? Absolutely not.

 

Putting Ike in jail was one of the main reasons he lost the chance to make it. It was the general opinion Ike was Bi Polar & needed treatment, because at times he was a likeable friendly big teddy bear, but then he also had a quick temper. Curtis wanted Ike to get tested & to get him help but the others saw the $$$$$$$$ they could make & would maybe lose if they found him unfit to fight for any reason ,all they seemed to see was the $$$$$$$$. He was kept in jail for months heavily sedated because of what they were scared he might do . In my opinion that they did not have proof of anything only he said, she said. He never once admitted anything always claimed innocent but the rest is history the judge gave him the max sentence 5-30 yrs. he was snookered.
I felt sorry for him & for Curtis because I truly think he could have been the natural successor to Lennox & Curtis would have fulfilled his dream of training the World Heavyweight Champion

 

I'm going to put something out there, though. Everyone keep in mind that I am not arguing it, only asking opinions.

Wiki says that he turned down Grant. I don't remember that, and don't remember why. But given that his best victories are against a 5'10" heavy, and 6'0" heavy who really should have been a super-middle, and given that he was turning down the 6'10" fighters, is it possible, just possible, that he was a bit of a size/weight bully who excelled against guys with physical disadvantages?

Again, not really arguing it. My opinion is that we will never really know, because he was a guy who seemed to have all the skills, but who never fought the kind of big, strapping fighter we think of as a heavy.

Thoughts?

 

Grant was listed as 6ft 7ins, but I take your point.

I'm unsure if he or his management team were deliberately avoiding tall fighters, but I agree with your point we don't know how he would do vs a world class tall HW, as he never fought one.

 

I don't remember him turning down Grant. I find it hard to believe he would unless there was a bigger offer on the table (to fight Lewis presumably) or he was going through a breakdown.

I also think he would of viciously KOd Grant.

 

I think he would reach a level where he wouldn't be able to keep up with Lewis and Holyfield's pace, he reached the level of Mercer, Morrison and Bruno...