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Hasim Rahman’s return at the age of 53 is less shocking than it should be

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Former heavyweight champion Hasim Rahman speaks during a boxing media event ahead of his planned comeback attempt at 53 years old

Former heavyweight champion Hasim Rahman will attempt a comeback this summer at the age of 53, in another sign that aging fighters competing in their 50s may soon become completely normal.

Rahman is scheduled to announce his return on July 14 in Rochester, Fresh York, as part of what promoters describe as his bid to become the oldest heavyweight champion in boxing history.

For many fans, the immediate reaction is obvious: what the hell?

However, World Boxing News asked this exact question fifteen years ago, when fighters competing in their 40s still felt unusual rather than expected.

Back in 2011, WBN examined whether boxing was heading towards an era in which fighters routinely competed well into their 40s and 50s, while legends such as Bernard Hopkins, Evander Holyfield, Roy Jones Jr. and James Toney continued to extend their careers.

It still seemed unusual to me at the time.

Now he barely raises his eyebrows.

Hasim Rahman at the age of 53

The signs were already there when George Foreman shocked boxing in 1994 by regaining the heavyweight title at the age of 45.

Since then, sports science, nutrition, recovery methods and state-of-the-art celebrity culture have completely changed the perception of aging.

Warriors don’t even look senior anymore in their 50s, while many of them barely look senior in their 60s.

Mike Tyson became the latest example when the former undisputed heavyweight champion returned against Jake Paul in 2024 and continued to show flashes of the timing, movement and presence that once made him the most feared fighter in the world.

Rahman now becomes the latest former heavyweight champion to try to turn back the clock.

But unlike many aging fighters, Rahman is not some forgotten name from boxing history.

He remains the man who caused one of the greatest upsets in history by knocking out Lennox Lewis in South Africa to win the world heavyweight title in 2001.

This moment alone guarantees curiosity about any comeback attempts, no matter how senior he is.

Amanda Westcott

The return of the heavyweight division

The bigger question is whether boxing is quietly entering a whole recent age when it comes to age.

Fifteen years ago, athletes competing in their 50s were still shocking.

It almost seems normal to me now.

And with each aging former champion proving that they can still go a few rounds despite their older bodies, boxing is getting closer and closer to a reality where turning 50 doesn’t seem like it’s nearly over anymore.

This should probably worry people more than they already do.


About the author

Phil Jay is the editor-in-chief of World Boxing News (WBN) and a boxing veteran with over 15 years of experience. Read the full biography.

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Boxing

Simon Jordan questions Dana White’s ‘gum flapping’ as Tyson Fury-Zuffa talks threaten Joshua fight

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Image: Simon Jordan questions Dana White's 'flapping gums' as Tyson Fury-Zuffa talks threaten Joshua fight

Discussing the situation, Simon Jordan questioned whether White’s involvement would actually facilitate get the team over the line.

“Do we think Dana flapping his gums will facilitate in the fight that still seems to be a bit up in the air?” Jordan said on talkSPORT Boxing, debating Fury’s future and the growing influence of Zuffa Boxing.

The broadcaster suggested that the situation is becoming more complicated due to the various parties already involved in the fight, including Riyadh Season, Queensberry and TKO.

Jordan believes the biggest concern is not whether Fury and Joshua want the fight, but whether the business interests surrounding it could delay or derail progress.

“I worry that politics will get in the way of this fight,” Simon said.

Despite concerns that Fury could walk away from longtime promoter Frank Warren, Jordan argued that existing contractual and commercial arrangements could make a neat break impossible.

He suggested that Queensberry could still remain involved behind the scenes, especially if Fury takes a booster fight ahead of his fight with Joshua.

Other panelists asked questions about how the move to Zuffa might impact existing contracts and where the fight will ultimately take place. There has already been speculation that the Fury-Joshua fight could be staged outside the UK, despite previous suggestions that Wembley Stadium would be the preferred destination.

Although Jordan was aware of the growing uncertainty, he did not predict that the fight would end in a fiasco.

“There is too much money in this fight for this not to happen,” Jordan said.

Fury is expected to return for a warm-up at the end of the summer before taking on the fight against Joshua that remains one of the biggest attractions in world boxing.

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Terence Crawford sums up Jaron Ennis’ chances of becoming undisputed in the super welterweight division

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Terence Crawford sums up Jaron Ennis’ chance of becoming undisputed at super-welterweight

Jaron Ennis is scheduled to challenge for the unified super welterweight world title this month in hopes of starting an undisputed title run, and Terence Crawford shared whether he believes “Boots” can win all four belts at 154 pounds.

Ennis won both the IBF and WBA welterweight world titles previously held by Crawford, and in October he moved to the super welterweight scene, where He stopped Uisma Lima in the first round announce himself as a threat to the throne.

Now, in his second fight at the weight, Ennis is set to collide with unified WBA and WBO world champion Xander Zayas, and Crawford told Jai McAllister he expects his US compatriot to emerge victorious.

“Man, it’s a tough fight, especially for Xander at this point in his career, but it shows his heart and self-belief. He’s ready to make history for his country and he’ll do really well in this fight.”

“I just think it’s a little too early for him at the moment.”

If Ennis is able to hand Zayas his first career defeat and claim the unified titles, fellow champions Josh Kelly (IBF) and Sebastian Fundora (WBC) will be his next obstacles.

Crawford believes the road to undisputed “Boots” status will likely end with Fundora.

Zayas-Ennis will take place on Saturday, June 27 at the Barclays Center in Modern York. Fundora is coming off a stoppage win over Keith Thurman and is set to make another defense later this year, though no opponent has been named as of this writing.

Kelly is expected to make his first defense of the IBF belt against Belfast’s Caoimhin Agyarko following the Anthony Joshua vs Kristian Prenga card on July 25.

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Errol Spence admits the Crawford camp is “garbage” but insists Bud deserved to win

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Image: Errol Spence admits Crawford camp was "trash" but insists Bud earned the win

“I mean, he didn’t limit himself to that. I mean, in training camp, training camp was ultimately garbage,” Spence said on Andre Ward’s channel.

He then revealed that he hadn’t sparred for a long time before the fight.

“Ask anyone who was in Vegas at this gym. They didn’t see me sparring. Nobody saw me sparring. Honey, two weeks off, two, three weeks off, I haven’t trained for six weeks off, brother,” Errol said.

Spence also revealed that he was struggling with an injury during camp.

“I had to get a cortisone shot in my ribs because my ribs were hurting,” Spence said.

The comments sparked a backlash on social media, with some accusing Spence of making excuses for the July 2023 loss. The 35-year-old later directly addressed the criticism.

Spence continued by explaining that there were tactical areas that had not been addressed in the build-up to the bout with Crawford, who switched seamlessly between an orthodox and southpaw stance throughout the fight.

“We’re not going to do that in training camp,” Spence said, discussing Crawford’s stance as a southpaw. “There were a lot of things that could have gone differently or could have been prevented. Even if I hadn’t sparred that way, we could have prevented a lot of things that shouldn’t have happened.”

Although Spence acknowledged shortcomings in preparation, he stopped low of suggesting that Crawford’s victory was undeserved. Instead, his follow-up message emphasized that Crawford deserved the victory thanks to his discipline and execution on fight night.

Crawford dropped Spence three times before forcing a stoppage in the ninth round of their undisputed welterweight championship clash on July 29, 2023, at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The victory made Crawford the first male fighter of the four-belt era to become undisputed champion in two weight classes.

Spence is scheduled to return to the ring on July 25 when he faces Tim Tszyu in a 158-pound catchweight in Australia. The competition will be his first appearance since the loss to Crawford and will be an opportunity to showcase the changes he believes he has made in his preparation.

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