They called him “The President.” Many believed he would become the next dominant force in the heavyweight division. Then, the sudden decline of his mental faculties and the tragic criminal actions he committed made him disappear from the boxing scene, robbing him of his freedom. Now, Nigerian Ike Ibeabuchi will return to the ring at the impressive age of 51, more than 25 years after his last official fight.
When his career abruptly halted, Ibeabuchi had achieved a professional record of 20 wins in as many fights, with 15 victories by KO. Among his most notable victims were the rugged Samoan puncher David Tua, defeated on points after a memorable war, and the elusive American boxer Chris Byrd, brutally knocked out in five rounds.
Starting with the breathtaking fight against Tua, Ibeabuchi began to act erratically and violently, eventually kidnapping his ex-girlfriend’s 15-year-old son and crashing his car at full speed in a suicide attempt. The boy was left permanently disabled.
His mental condition continued to deteriorate, and Ibeabuchi was arrested again after assaulting an escort in a Las Vegas hotel. It was determined that he suffered from bipolar disorder, and he was confined to a criminal psychiatric facility, where he remained until his release in 2014, after 15 years in confinement.
The Nigerian had already announced his readiness to return to the ring in 2016, but the Nevada Athletic Commission denied him a license, postponing his plans—or rather, delaying them by eight years. Ibeabuchi will return to the ring on December 7 at the Diete Spiff Civic Center in Port Harcourt, Nigeria, where he will face the mediocre 47-year-old Egyptian Ayman Farouk Abbas.