by Andres Antonio Carriedo
11/5 - Imagine being a 58 fight veteran with no title, no major top pound for pound endorsements, no career defining victories, no HBO contract and worst of all no chance to avoid the fact that after 16 years of professional prize fighting the chances for superstardom in this sport have, for the most part, already passed you by. Welcome to the world of Sharmba Mitchell.

Welcome to the world of a veteran prize fighter. Only a few boxers ever reach the plateau. Only a few men ever become superstars. Only a few men have the ability to shine under the bright lights and own the spotlight every time they step into the ring. Then there are men like Sharmba Mitchell. Men who have spent years fighting at a world class level. Men who honed their craft in amateur tournaments, worked their way through the professional ranks, suffered through tough losses before finally prevailing and claiming a world title. These are the men who have earned their keep in the ring. Sharmba Mitchell is one of these men.

Tomorrow night, staring across the ring from him will be the legendary Kostya Tszyu. Unlike Mitchell, Tszyu has accomplished all of his goals in the sport of boxing. He has won many world title fights and unified all of the titles in Jr. Welterweight division in the professional ranks. Throughout the course of his career, Tszyu has fought and defeated one dozen world titlists. Tszyu has been given the opportunities to prove himself and he has risen to the challenge on virtually ever occasion. The contrast in career paths could scarcely be starker.

For Mitchell, the opportunities have been hard to come by. Early career losses to Stevie Johnston and Levander Johnson kept him from realizing his world title potential until October 10, 1998 when he defeated Khalid Rahilou for the WBA Jr. Welterweight title. After four title defenses against relatively non-descript opposition Mitchell finally got his chance to show the world just what they had been missing. That was the first time he fought Tszyu.

The knee injury that cut that fight short has been well documented. Everyone knows Mitchell had a serious shot at winning the fight had he been able to hold up for 12 rounds, but in boxing those things happen. What no one was absolutely sure about was whether or not Mitchell would ever get another chance against Tszyu. He made some disparaging remarks about Tszyu, but Mitchell’s seven consecutive victories since the first fight against Tszyu have served as much more effective speech than any trash talk could ever have hoped to have been.

So, after all of the trash talk, all of the postponements and all of the doubt Tszyu-Mitchell 2 is finally set to take place. In the great play of life Sharmba Mitchell is finally ready to take center stage. Say hello world, if only for a single night, Sharmba will be front and center.

Juan Diaz Retains WBA Lightweight with Win over Lorcy

WBA Lightweight Champion Juan Diaz defeated former two-time champion Julian Lorcy in convincing fashion by taking a decisive unanimous decision victory in his first title defense last night. With the win Diaz retained his claim as the youngest active titlist in the entire sport of boxing. Diaz also moved himself closer to a possible unification match with one of the other titlist in the 135 lb. division.

IBF Lightweight Champion Julio Diaz (no relation), who issued a public challenge to Juan this past summer, was interviewed during the ESPN2 telecast and seemed open to the possibility of fighting the 21 year old Texan in the near future. Julio Diaz, who is promoted by Ringside Promotions, does not currently have a fight scheduled. Diego Corrales (WBO) and Jose Luis Castillo hold the other two major titles in the light weight division.


Contact Andres at aac7@georgetown.edu

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