By Michael Amakor
On April 15th, number 17th ranked Middleweight Contender Kingsley “Sharp Knuckles” Ikeke the current NABF,NABA and WBO NABO Middleweight Champion takes on former NABF and NABA Super Middleweight Champion “Kid Dynamite” Antwun Echols at the Northern Quest Casino in Spokane Washington.
Kingsley has been a rising star in the division for the last two years albeit with victories over nondescript opposition and now he appears ready for big time competition. His choice of Kid Dynamite is a very risky gambit because not only is Echols a gifted high pressure veteran, he has only fallen short twice against Bernard Hopkins for the IBF belt and a decision loss to Anthony Mundine for the WBA Super Middleweight Belt in competitive fights
Is Sharp Knuckles ready to take on tough but perhaps battle weary Kid Dynamite, this remains to be seen and the fight is ever more important because a win for Ikeke positions him for a title shot against unified Middleweight Champion Bernard Hopkins down the road, He is already talking tough about what this fight means to him, but the kid could let loose dynamite knowing that a loss could turn him into a journey man or retire him permanently with the cows in sunny side Iowa. Besides that he does not have that much to look forward too and a third rubber match against old foe Hopkins leaves a bad taste in everyone’s mouth.
But you never know, Hopkins may get dethroned by Jermaine Taylor and the new King may decide to set an example against the number two contender to his supremacy. We shall see
This fight will be televised on ESPN2 at 8pm est/6pm pt
As in September, I once again ran out of gas in the 10th & 11th championship rounds of October & November with this column, but I recovered to complete them and will unleash a few more flurries to close out the 12th and final round.
In the first week of October, Hassan N’Dam won a UD over Curtis Stevens in an eliminator for the right to challenge Jermaine Taylor who defeated aging Sam Soliman to regain the IBF Middleweight title. How Taylor even earned this title shot is another story altogether, but it is all irrelevant as he is now the champion. However he will not have too much time to savor his victory as he has assault and battery charges pending against him and an upcoming court fight that may turn out to be the toughest fight of his life, just when things started to look up for him in boxing, we wish him luck.
