After winning 110 of 115 amateur fights Zab Judah turned pro in 1996 at only 18 years of age. He went on to win the vacant USBA jr welterweight title by beating Micky Ward who was in his prime, then in 2000 he beat Jean Piet Bergman to win the vacant IBF jr welterweight title. In all, Zab Judah has won 5 world titles and is currently the IBF jr welterweight champion for the second time in almost 10 years. The boxer/puncher with speed and power is only 33 yrs old. But since turning pro and earning titles at such a young age, he’s developed a very diverse fan base that spans almost 15 years. Early on it seemed as if Judah was able to rely on his athletic gifts more than anything else. Being raised in the tough streets of Brooklyn, then earning money and success at an early age, his life outside the ring provided just as much excitement as it did inside of it.
Truth be told, Judah has never been one to duck a fight. His record reflects bouts with the toughest fighters who were at their peak when they met up. He fought guys like Kosta Tszyu, Spinks, Corley, and Junior Witter early on to name a few. Then went on to face Clotty, Cotto, and Mayweather to give us some of the most memorable fights in history.
Just last week at “The Hit Factory” boxing gym, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Zab Judah and was utterly amazed at how humble and genuine the so-called controversial fighter truly was. As a fan of boxing, I’ve also been a fan of Judah’s because of the fact he comes to fight. Like many, I read countless articles and heard numerous stories of his exploits outside the ring as well as some troubles inside. There was the 6-month suspension after the Tszyu fight and the 1 yr suspension after Mayweather. Then there were the YouTube videos of street fights and plenty written about his “Outlaw” persona. But when I had the privilege of sitting down with Judah, I was amazed at what I found. Sure, I heard recently that we are witnessing a “new” & “mature” Zab Judah who is a “man of faith” more than anything else. And I had seen him return to his perfect weight of 140 and win 5 straight fights against boxers like Lucas Matthysse who is the biggest puncher in the division and then beat Kaizer Mabuza in March to win the IBF crown. But in watching those fights I also saw the same ferociousness I’ve come to admire from the “outlaw”.
Rest assured, none of us are the same person we were 10 years or so ago. We all have the opportunity to learn from our experiences and grow as a human being. But for most, who we really are deep down eventually comes out even after we’ve changed some. What I saw with Zab is that we are seeing such a different man than we have become accustomed to because of the strong foundation built at a very young age. His father was a champion in his own right and a very successful kick-boxer who is a 7th degree black belt. The elder Judah used boxing to put his children in an environment unlike what they’d experience throughout their daily life in the tough Brownsville section of Brooklyn. As mentioned, Zab excelled and had a lot of success in boxing at a very young age. Remember, other than family, his role-models were a young Mike Tyson, Notorious BIG, ect. So with fame, money, and prestige thrust upon him at such a young age, temptations ran rampant. Judah is the first to admit that even with all that success inside the ring, he was neglecting his craft because he was able to depend on his God-given ability. Outside the ring, he went on to live the kind of life that he thought a celebrity is expected to.
When asked if he blames anyone for some of the events that happened throughout his career, Judah simply replied “No, I blame myself”. And it appears he doesn't regret a thing. In fact, that lifestyle afforded him some amazing memories and more importantly prepared him for the successes that were still to come. Currently, Zab Judah is a proud father who boasted about his children and spends most of his time at the gym. He’s lived in Las Vegas for 5 years and seems to have no desire to do anything but be an asset to the community and continue having success as a fighter. He co-promotes his fights with Main Events under “Super Judah Promotions” and is also very involved in another passion of his, music. Inside of The Hit Factory gym is an impressive studio which produces music for his label, Hit Music Group. So it was obvious that is wasn’t a lack of resources that has kept Zab away from his past lifestyle. Instead, it appears to be his faith. Judah jokingly claimed to be on “Jesus Juice” and wants to use his knowledge and experience to help mentor young athletes who are on the verge of success. After talking with him for a while, it became obvious that few understood the potential pitfalls that most will face better than Zab.
Since he’s still a relatively young fighter in an age where we just saw Bernard Hopkins win a title and will soon watch Juan Marquez meet Manny Pacquiao, I was interested to find out what’s ahead for Judah inside the ring. Zab was adamant about becoming the first boxer to be crowned the undisputed champion in both, the 147 lbs and his current 140 lb weight-class. It appeared that goal, more than any other is what Judah is focused on at the moment in boxing. He was hoping to fight on the same card as Bradley vs. Khan in July, then get the chance to meet the winner in a unification bout. Timothy Bradley stopped that from happening when he refused to sign what most agree was a very fair offer. Recent developments support that Khan is now pricing himself out of a match with Judah. This isn’t surprising when you take into account that Freddie Roach tried brushing off Judah as a possible opponent for Pacquiao. Roach dismissed it claiming there isn’t any real interest in that fight, as if Zab hasn’t earned the right and that fans wouldn’t want to see it. I believe that nothing could be further from the truth, In fact, a bout with Judah against either Khan or Pacquiao would peak the fans interest against almost any of the other names being mentioned. Nothing supports this more than the countless forums I’ve visited where I saw fans discussing those scenarios. A fight with Pacquiao would be much more difficult to try and make because of the weight disparity. According to Zab, obviously he would welcome such a mega-fight against the biggest draw in boxing at the moment. But a chance to unify the jr welterweight titles seems to be the focus and he is willing to do his part to make that happen.
Let’s tell it like it is…the Zab Judah name carries a lot more weight than most, if not all of the 140 lb division. So the reluctance to face Judah and try to crown an undisputed champ at 140 lbs can’t be due to lack of name recognition. Instead, maybe meeting a lightening fast southpaw who can really box isn’t the ideal match-up for the other title-holders. Or maybe seeing such a refocused and dedicated Zab Judah isn’t the best way to prolong holding a belt. Regardless the reason, it’s obvious that Judah once again is willing to fight anyone they put in front of him. Finally I’d like to add that sure, I was a fan of Zab Judah’s “skills” prior to meeting with him simply because he’s given us so many great fights over the years and has been one of the most exciting and entertaining fighters of our generation. But after having the pleasure of meeting and talking with him, I’ve now become of fan of the “person”.
I hope that more boxing fans come to see that everything they are hearing about the “new” Zab Judah is not just hype. His transformation and new goals are as genuine as you will find. Before I wrap this up, I want to leave you with a quote that I feel shows better than any just how far he’s come as a human being…Judah stated that the biggest difference in his fighting isn’t his tenacity or ferociousness because that‘s just who he is, instead it’s his different mindset. He said, “ I used to pray for myself when I walked into the ring, now I pray that both fighters come away healthy”. He believes there’s no reason you can’t win with compassion and a smile.
Now let’s see if the others will step up so we can finally see who is the best at the moment at 140 lbs.