By Sammy Rozenberg
Next Saturday night, unified welterweight champion Zab Judah (34-2, 25KO) is set to take on number one contender Carlos Baldomir (41-9-6, 12KO) of Argentina. Should Judah win the bout, and most think he will, a fight with pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather is set to land in April of next year.
Baldomir has a word called upset, firmly set on his mind. The fact that Baldomir only has 12 knockouts in over 50 bouts has not stopped his intentions of going for a knockout by testing the chin of the champion.
"I don't think his chin is very good. If I land on him, I will put him down." said Baldomir
Unlike prior fights against less than stellar opponents, Judah knows how important the Baldomir bout is to his career. Judah is not looking past Baldomir in any way, shape or form.
"I give him a lot of respect. He worked his way to the top and now he's at where he's at right now and we can't overlook him. I'm prepared physically and mentally to go in there and do what I do best and that's destroy." said Judah
The opportunity to perform in the Theater at Madison Square Garden, before a hometown crowd filled with friends and family is a dream come true for Judah.
"It's beautiful. Like I said it's a dream come true. I can't wait to come home to my people of New York City to show them that I'm still here and I didn't go no where."
Prior disappointments against Kostya Tszyu and Cory Spinks could be fully redeemed if Judah defeats the flamboyant Mayeather. Judah has been criticized by experts in the past for not taking his fights seriously. Unspectacular performances against Rafael Pineda and DeMarcus Corley resulted in split decision victories and black eyes on Judah's aspirations of becoming a superstar in the sport.
Childish antics which occurred inside and outside of the ring, almost knocked Judah out of the top level loop. In order to resurrect his ailing career, Judah set his sights on a rematch with Cory Spinks. Judah had to sink down to the level of a mere contender to lure Spinks back in the ring. There was no money to be made against Spinks in the rematch, all Judah would earn is the titles, respect and redemption. Cory Spinks earned almost ten times the amount of money in their rematch and Judah agreed to have the bout staged in Spink's backyard.
Unlike their first meeting, Judah was determined, committed and a man on a mission, He started exactly where he left off in the last round of their initial clash, and stopped Cory Spinks within nine rounds. The same type of determination glares from Judah's eyes when the name Floyd Mayweather is mentioned.
"After Carlos Baldomir, 'Pretty Girl' - she's next. Get ready punk, get your mind right."
As Mayweather moved up in weight, he's been more susceptible to bigger punchers. Judah feels that Mayweather's chin is suspect, and if he lands one of his big punches, the fight will be over. Mayweather dominated former champion Sharmba Mitchell in his last bout, but Mitchell was able to land some punches on Mayweather and landed them flush.
"Sharmba Mitchell has more fights than me and Floyd put together. He's a bum. Floyd did what he was supposed to do. If I hit Floyd like Chop Chop (Corley) or (Sharmba) Mitchell, fight is over baby. It's a done deal. Done deal records, it's a wrap."
Their is certainly no love between Mayweather and Judah, two former friends that are eager to pound on one another. But, Judah has to care of the current business at hand on January 7 against Baldomir. The event which also features a cruiserweight unification bout between O'Neil Bell and Jean-Marc Mormeck, will be televised live by Showtime.