Wow, Ike is so freaking overrated on this board. Only in forums would he be considered the favorite. He had two great wins, but both were fairly competitive, and both against smaller hws. Ike is a smaller hw who never showed he could beat a good SHW. AJ would just have to be disciplined and keep him at range. For the most part, I agree with Bombers assessment of the fight.
I like this post. Very honest and something i wondered was how he would fair against bigger hws. He showed what he could do against a brawler and a boxer but could he figure out someone like Lewis, Bowe or the Klit Bros? We`ll never know but imho he wouldve done very well against any of those guys.
Raped an "innocent escort" in a hotel room...is the face value statement, equivalent to shooting an "innocent soldier" in a battle..The damage been done & its over...Ike retires as an Undefeated Mythical Monster, just like he viewed himself (In my book no one can beat Ike Ibeabucci based on his ego, chin, strength, work rate & irrational pride) The escort scene in Las Vegas is so small, especially the exotic origin section those are few, if you know boxing & the game, you easily know what actually happened... To be fair to those who worked on keeping Ike Away...Ike does have a horrible ungrateful attitude. Bob Arum was aware of whats going on, he sincerely stepped in to help him, but Ike failed to take advantage of that generous offer & instead lumped Bob Arum with the rest of the "bad people", he thought he can get a fair trial & that the low IQ emotional judge will understand why he was in that situation, Bob would have got him released right away, without even going to trial. They would have made a great team, as Bob vs King rivalry was at its peak then...
Not a single loss or weakness, his behavior outside the ring, shows obvious exceptional self-belief that would destroyed any Heavyweight of any era... Undefeated Legend, with an Iron Chin & Power in both hands...That is what Ike Ibeabucci is, you can't take away that from him...He was put in Prison as a last resort, if he was beatable, the promoters would have punished him in the ring...
Lol you're definitely overrating him. He was 188cm tall that's 6'2". You're already overrating his height lol. Ike passed the eye test against smaller heavies he could physically match or over power. Anyone can look good and unbeatable if they are facing opponents that plays to their strengths. Tua went right at him, Byrd for all his elusiveness loved to stand in front on opponents and slip and counter in the pocket hence why he was KO'ed on the ropes as he spent long periods of the fight on the ropes and traded with Ike. How does Ike past the eye test against a tall rangy super heavy with 15-20lbs weight advantage on him. How does he cope when his jab falls short time and again and he has Lewis' heavy jab time and again snap his head back. How does Ike do when he struggles to find range and when he does get close, Wlad smothers all his inside work, no uppercuts, no body shots, no combinations, forced to try and land single shots as he is prevented from letting his hands go. How does Ike past the eye test when he's being constantly forced to rest vs the lateral movement of Vitali. Or how does he look being outworked for the first time by a 6'7" 250lbs Vitali who takes his best uppercut without flinching. Styles makes fight, it's an old adage but a true one. We never saw Ike vs the styles these guys and others could show him, we have no idea how he would deal with them. Hence why many think he's a mythical heavyweight monster who was unproven. The wins over Byrd and Tua was impressive but lets remember Wlad toyed with Byrd and Lewis barely lost a round vs Tua and many think Tua beat Ike.
Yep. But to grass is always greener fans, Ike is Shangri La. A blank slate to pin all their hopes. And they can never be proven wrong, since he never had a full career.
Neither one of us knows the answer so stop acting like you do. The fact is he was a very skilled,talented and physically gifted fighter who was only 24 years old and still growing as a fighter. We never saw anything near what he couldve been.
Well that's my whole point, we don't know how good he really was against super heavies so why are people assuming he handles them like he did Byrd or Tua? I'm not saying he would of gotten beaten by super heavies I'm just saying we can't assume he would of beaten them without any proof, hence my stance on him being overrated by some who have raised him to be some invincible beast who could beat bigger men because he beat smaller men.
Textbook example of just HOW overrated Ibeabuchi is by some. He had exactly TWO fights against decent opponents, one of which he arguably LOST! And yet, somehow based on a "eye test" he's gonna beat all these guys who actually DID beat MANY rated opponents. That folks, is GROSSLY overrated someone!
I saw him from the day he arrived at Curtis gym in Dallas. Watched Curtis turn a crude slugger into a great boxer puncher. I firmly believe had he held himself together, not all his fault, he would have been the natural successor to Lennox
