The wasted potential of : Zab Judah

Sitting here I've been thinking back on great fighters who, for some reason or another seem to have wasted their potential or somehow squandered it over the years. This thread will be a first in a series of discussion/debate about fighters whom are generally looked upon in the sport as highly talented fighters who've let their potential go to waste in one form or another..... ZAB JUDAH Judah had a lot of hype behind him coming out of the amateurs and this ultimately helped his professional career blossom. Judah made his professional debut at the age of 18, in September of 1996 against Michael Johnson in Miami. He TKO'd Johnson in the second round. Judah then went on to compile a winning streak of 21 professional bouts against lacking opposition. Those 21 fights lead to the IBF placing Judah as the #1 contender for their Light Welterweight title in 2000. In February of '00 Judah got his shot against the then Champion Jan Piet Bergman (who had a record of 38-2-0) and knocked Bergman out in the 4th round. Judah then went on to defend his title against highly touted competition Junior Witter, and Terron Millet. Millet had been stripped by the IBF of his title after Millet had been injured and had been inactive for a very long time. Still, the general conception was that Millet was the rightful Champion and that Judah was merely holding his belt for him while he recovered. In the opening round of their fight Millet dropped Judah and it seemed as if everything the public had predicted about the fight would come true. Judah showed his heart by picking himself off the convas and continuing the fight, he then went on to obliterate Millet in the 4th round much like he did Bergman to capture the title. Judah then went on to defend his crown against guys like Reggie Green (33-4-0) and Allan Vester (18-0-1) before setting up a showdown with the WBC and WBA Light Wleterweight Champion Kostya Tszyu (27-1-0) in November of 2001. It was a classic match up of speed and skill vs power and determination and many were interested in seeing if Judah's speed could offset Tszyu's strength. Judah won the first round convincingly, but something seemed to be off. Perhaps he was showing too much respect for Tszyu's power but he seemed, almost skiddish. Reluctant to engage his enemy. The second round was a typical "feeling out" round and with only seconds remianing on the clock Tszyu landed a devestating right hand on Judah's open chin. Judah began to retreat and Tszyu went in for the kill. Another straight right from Tszyu put Judah out flat on his back as Judah's head bounced off the canvas. Judah immediately jumped up without regard to the standard 8 count, or the damage his head had just taken and ultimately did what we now call the "chicken dance" before collapsing again. It was a valiant attempt at recovery but ultimately the fight was over before it began. Kostya Tszyu now had another title, and Judah was left to pick up the pieces and deal with his first devestating loss. Immediately following referee Jay Nady's decision to stop the fight, Judah began to protest the stoppage. As emotions ran high Judah decided to choke referee Jay Nady in the ring, before stopping to throw his stool at Nady. Judah was ultimately fined and suspended from the sport of boxing. In July of 2003 Zab Judah made his rturn to the ring against rugged journeyman/WBO Champion Demarcus "Chop Chop" Corley (28-1-1-). Judah easily outclassed Corley and took his title via an easy unanimous decision. Judah then went on to defend his title against Jaime Rangel (30-4-1) in December of 2003, before setting up a clash with undisputed Welterweight Champion Cory Spinks in April of 2004. Judah lost a narrow decision to Spinks. He then went on to beat Rafael Pineda (38-5-0) and Wayne Martell (24-2-0) before setting up a rematch against Spinks, in Spink's hometown of St.Louis Missouri in February of 2005. In the rematch, Judah looked as great as he ever has. With all of his skills being showcased, it was an easy night for Judah. Which ultimately lead to him becoming the undisputed Welterweight Champion of the World, when he TKO'd Spinks with a series of left hooks in the 9th round. In the post fight interview, Judah was a gracious and humble Champion. Showing no signs of ill will towards Cory Spinks, even saying that he "didn't want to hurt him" when he saw that Spinks was defenseless. Judahs first Welterweight title defense came in May of 2005, just 3 months after the Spinks rematch, against Cosme Rivera (28-7-2). A fight which Judah easily won via an impressive 3rd round TKO. Judah seemed to be ontop of the world once again, enjoying the luxury of being Champion and the respect of fans worldwide. But little did he know that all of that would soon be coming to a crushing end........ Judah signed to put his Welterweight Championship on the line against former friend, and undefeated Floyd Mayweather Jr in April of 2006. A Championship clash that would take place after Judah was picked to easily defeat challenger Carlos Baldomir in January...... In one of the most stunning upsets in recent memory, the underdog Baldomir (41-9-6) took Judah's title via a 12 round unanimous decision, dropping the Champion in the 7th round. However the IBF refused to acknowledge Baldomir as the official Champion, because he refused to pay them a sanctioning fee. Judah and Mayweather's promoters opted to continue with the scheduled April clash anyway, and the fight went off as scheduled....with hype for the "friendship gone bad" fight, ticket sales went much better than projected.... Most analysts predicted a Mayweather decision, and an easy one at that. What they saw was a much more competitive fight than they had anticipated... In the early rounds Judah was the clear victor, beating Mayweather to the punch with his speed and countering Mayweather effectively. For the first 4 rounds, it was a Judah showcase. Then in the 5th Mayweather began to figure out Zab's rhythm and the fight slowly began to turn in Mayweather's favor. Judah still had moments in the fight, but it was clear that he was becoming more reluctant to engage his former friend. Mayweather picked on Judah with both body and head shots, breaking Judah's nose, and splitting his lip in the process. The fight was becoming a typical Mayweather affair.... In the 10th round Mayweather began peppering Judah with hard straight right hands, Judah retaliated with a vicious low blow....A punch that's true intention is still questioned to this day. Judah followed up a blatant shot to the back of Mayweather's head while Mayweather was crippled over in pain. And that is where it all began....... Mayweather's uncle and trainer Roger immediately took action, jumping into the ring and going after Zab. Zab's father and trainer Yoel, then jumped in the ring to go after Roger, to protect his son. Then both training camps of both fighters charged the ring and a riot ensued. Floyd Mayweather Jr kept his composure and stayed in a neutral corner while the riot took place. However Zab Judah engaged in the riot on his own accord... Police and security officials eventually regained control of the riot and the fight resumed with 5 seconds remaining in the 10th round. Spectators wondered whether the rest would help Mayweather, or the riot would help fuel Judah's fire and if he'd begin to fight again. The fight resumed at the pace it had been at before it was halted, Mayweather easily picked off Judah and went on to win an unanimous decision. Judah was left once again defeated, and with many questioning where he stood in the sport. In May of 2006, both Judah and his father/trainer Yoel Judah were fined and suspended form the sport of boxing for 1 year. In his absence, many questioned if we had seen the last of Zab Judah....