Super Judah will be looking to put the boxing world on notice when he steps into the ring with British sensation Amir Khan:
Amir Khan was scheduled to be on a collision course with 140 pound great Timothy Bradley in July, but when Bradley decided to stick his head between his legs to prove that he wants no parts of Amir Khan at this present time, Khan had to look elsewhere, and after some good old fashioned trash talk via Twitter, he found him, Zab “Super” Judah.
On July 23, the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada will be the site where Amir Khan and Zab Judah will face off in a unification fight for both the IBF and WBA 140 lb straps. Both fighters have skills, but the question in this fight will be can Judah knockout Khan in one of the early rounds before his lack of focus and stamina becomes a factor in the fight.
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Tale of the Tape
Amir “King Khan” Khan is 24 years old, with an outstanding boxing record, consisting of 25 wins and only 1 loss. He stands at 5 feet 10 inches tall, with a 71 inch reach, fighting out of the orthodox stance.
Zab “Super” Judah is 33 years old, with a great boxing record of 41 wins and 6 losses. He stands at 5 feet 7 and one half inches tall, with a 72 inch reach, fighting out of the southpaw stance.
Khan vs. Judah Preview
Khan made his professional boxing debut at lightweight in 2005 and he won his first 18 fights against some pretty decent competition until he was shocked in his 19th fight against Columbian lightweight contender Breidis Prescott back in December 2008. In that fight, Khan was knocked down twice in the first round by an overhand shot and hard combinations by Prescott as Khan was disposed of by Prescott in just 54 seconds.
After the Prescott fight, Khan parted ways with trainer Jorge Rubio and hired the great Freddie Roach to start training him. Since switching trainers and moving up to 140 lbs, Khan has celebrated great success with Freddie, beating top notch fighters such as Andreas Kotelnik, which was Khan’s first fight at junior welterweight, Paulie Malignaggi, and the ever dangerous Marcos Maidana.
In his last fight, Khan dominated the undefeated Irishman Paul McCloskey in Manchester, England by overwhelming McCloskey with his speed and combinations as Khan pressed the fight. The fight was stopped in round six due to an accidental head butt as the two fighters collided heads. The fight ended up going to the score cards and Khan was awarded the sixth round technical decision victory.
The great Zab “Super” Judah will be looking to showcase his elusive skills and take the young Khan to boxing class on July 23 as he will try to silence the boxing critics who are still judging him on past bad habits that he has shown time and again.
Like Amir Khan, Zab Judah started his professional boxing career in the lightweight division at the age of 18. Zab has fought his boxing career between the lightweight and welterweight divisions, and although Zab has had great success in his career, he has also had plenty of turmoil and tragedy as well.
Zab has respected victories over great fighters such as Micky Ward, Junior Witter, DeMarcus “Chop Chop” Corley and Cory Spinks in a rematch in which he became the undisputed welterweight champion of the world. Zab also has notable losses to great fighters such as Kostya Tszyu, which would be the first loss of Judah’s career, Cory Spinks in their first meeting for welterweight supremacy against each other, Puerto Rican superstar Miguel Cotto, Joshua Clottey and the great Floyd Mayweather, Jr.
After the Joshua Clottey loss in 2008, Zab fought once more before taking a year off from boxing. Since his return to the ring, back at junior welterweight where he belongs, Zab has not lost a fight and has been winning his fights very impressively, though with the exception of the tough Argentine contender Lucas Matthysse, Zab’s opponents have been mediocre at best.
In Judah’s last fight, he faced off against South African junior welterweight contender Kaizer Mabuza for the vacant IBF junior welterweight crown. With the help of the legendary defensive master Pernell “Sweet Pea” Whitaker in his corner, Judah was able to dominant Mabuza and was awarded the seventh round technical knockout victory.
Prediction
Amir Khan may be the favorite on fight night, but he better be careful. He will be facing an experienced veteran with quick and elusive skills, and a southpaw that can give Amir some problems.
I expect both fighters to come out and try to gain control of the ring with their quickness, but I am still not sure about Judah’s stamina if the fight hits the championship rounds. I feel that Zab’s only chance in this fight is to be the aggressor and try and knock out Khan between rounds one through six. If Zab does not accomplish this, then I do not believe that Zab can win a decision over Khan, given Judah’s stamina and lack of production issues in the last six rounds of fights.
Of course, Khan has a great size advantage, and although Judah is faster than he is, he has the superior technical boxing ability. Look for Khan to keep Judah at bay and at the end of his long jab right from the start.
The question will be whether or not Khan can take advantage of Zab if he wears down in the late rounds, given that he too, has stamina issues late in fights. Once Judah gets broken down from those jabs though, Khan will begin throwing more combinations and opening up the arsenal.
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This is going to be a great fight! I would love for Zab to keep his focus if the fight goes into the later rounds or even better, see Zab score the shocking knockout that will turn boxing critics’ heads all around the world. My heart will always be with Zab, but I just have a feeling that the fight will be close, and Amir will come on stronger than Zab late in the fight and win the fight.
Prediction: Khan by twelve round unanimous decision.
