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By Thomas Gerbasi - Ishe Smith has been called many things over the course of his life in the boxing spotlight; some good, some bad, but never neutral. Having that type of effect on the public would almost guarantee a successful and lucrative career, but in 2009, he was called something that sent a life spiraling out of control even further.
Unapprovable.
That was the word from ESPN when promoter Lou DiBella tried to get his fighter on the network, and you couldn’t have hit Smith with a punch in the ring that would have hurt as much.
“I was devastated,” recalled Smith. “I’m looking at guys on the network, and I’m like, really? I’m thinking to myself, I’ve beaten some solid guys in my career and I’ve looked good beating David Estrada and Randall Bailey, and I’m unapprovable?”
DiBella, as is his custom when his fighters are wronged, went on the offensive against the network, something Smith says he’ll never forget, but to no avail. And just like that, a career that seemed destined for stardom and, at the very least, a world championship, had ground to a halt. One of the stars of the first season of NBC’s “The Contender,” Smith was introduced to the nation through the reality series, and this was AFTER he beat fighters like Sam Garr, Alfonso Gomez, Estrada, and Bailey, all within 14 pro bouts. He wouldn’t win the show, but that wasn’t expected to slow him down.
Those predictions didn’t pan out though. A disappointing 2007 loss to Sechew Powell and a close 2008 defeat against Joel Julio kept Smith in neutral, and though a 2008 win over then-unbeaten Pawel Wolak got him back on track momentarily, the “unapprovable” tag, coupled with a divorce, a stalled career, and the idea that he was losing everything hit him all at once.
“My life was already going out of control,” said Smith. “I had lost my car, was losing my house, I was catching the bus to the gym, and I was thinking I shouldn’t even box anymore. I remember being in the house by myself and looking at my gun, thinking about killing myself, like life isn’t worth living. I was sitting there talking to myself in my house, I’m getting ready to lose my house anyway, and saying if I can’t box, what the hell am I gonna do? This is all I know how to do. I don’t know how to do nothing else. The recession had started, people were losing jobs left and right in Las Vegas, and I’m like what the hell am I gonna go do?” [Click Here To Read More]
Unapprovable.
That was the word from ESPN when promoter Lou DiBella tried to get his fighter on the network, and you couldn’t have hit Smith with a punch in the ring that would have hurt as much.
“I was devastated,” recalled Smith. “I’m looking at guys on the network, and I’m like, really? I’m thinking to myself, I’ve beaten some solid guys in my career and I’ve looked good beating David Estrada and Randall Bailey, and I’m unapprovable?”
DiBella, as is his custom when his fighters are wronged, went on the offensive against the network, something Smith says he’ll never forget, but to no avail. And just like that, a career that seemed destined for stardom and, at the very least, a world championship, had ground to a halt. One of the stars of the first season of NBC’s “The Contender,” Smith was introduced to the nation through the reality series, and this was AFTER he beat fighters like Sam Garr, Alfonso Gomez, Estrada, and Bailey, all within 14 pro bouts. He wouldn’t win the show, but that wasn’t expected to slow him down.
Those predictions didn’t pan out though. A disappointing 2007 loss to Sechew Powell and a close 2008 defeat against Joel Julio kept Smith in neutral, and though a 2008 win over then-unbeaten Pawel Wolak got him back on track momentarily, the “unapprovable” tag, coupled with a divorce, a stalled career, and the idea that he was losing everything hit him all at once.
“My life was already going out of control,” said Smith. “I had lost my car, was losing my house, I was catching the bus to the gym, and I was thinking I shouldn’t even box anymore. I remember being in the house by myself and looking at my gun, thinking about killing myself, like life isn’t worth living. I was sitting there talking to myself in my house, I’m getting ready to lose my house anyway, and saying if I can’t box, what the hell am I gonna do? This is all I know how to do. I don’t know how to do nothing else. The recession had started, people were losing jobs left and right in Las Vegas, and I’m like what the hell am I gonna go do?” [Click Here To Read More]
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