Naseem Hamed vs. Manuel Calvo

Naseem Hamed vs. Manuel Calvo was a professional boxing match contested between Naseem Hamed and Manuel Calvo for the vacant IBO featherweight title. The bout was held on 18 May 2002 at the London Arena, England. It was Hamed's last fight, and was watched by eleven million viewers in the United Kingdom.[1]

Naseem Hamed vs. Manuel Calvo
Date18 May 2002
VenueLondon Arena, London, England
Title(s) on the lineVacant IBO featherweight title
Tale of the tape
Boxer Naseem Hamed Manuel Calvo
Nickname "Prince"
Hometown Sheffield, England Madrid, Spain
Pre-fight record 35–1 33–4–1
Height 5 ft 4 in (163 cm) 5 ft 4 1⁄2 in (164 cm)
Weight 126 lb (57 kg) 125 lb (57 kg)
Style Southpaw Orthodox

Background

Naseem Hamed had lost his previous fight to Marco Antonio Barrera, giving him first defeat in his professional career and ending his over five year reign as featherweight champion.[2] As per the contract that was signed, Hamed had the option of facing Barrera in an immediate rematch and though he had expressed interest in his post-fight interview, he ultimately decided against it.[3] Hamed eventually announced his intentions to face European featherweight champion Manuel Calvo, who was coming off arguably his biggest victory over former WBO featherweight champion Steve Robinson. However as Calvo was an unknown fighter in the United States, HBO, with whom Hamed had an exclusive contract allowing them to air his fights in the US, objected to Hamed's choice of opponent. Rather than relent as he had the previous year when HBO objected to a proposed Hamed–István Kovács bout,[4] Hamed opted to sever ties with HBO.[5] The fight was also met with several delays. Prior to their separation, HBO offered Hamed a fight to take place on September 8, 2001, but Hamed declined, opting to face Calvo on November 10, 2001 instead. However Hamed postponed the fight as a result of the September 11 attacks.[6] The fight was next rescheduled for March 23, 2002, but a back injury suffered by Hamed during training caused the fight to be postponed again.[7] The fight was then finally set for May 18, 2002.[8]

The fight

Coming off a 13-month hiatus, Hamed looked sluggish and disinterested throughout the fight, abandoning his usual aggressiveness for a slow, tactical approach. Though Hamed clearly outboxed Calvo, many of the 10,000 fans who attended the fight booed throughout.[9] The fight went the full 12 rounds, with Hamed winning by lopsided scores on all three of the judges' scorecards. Two judges had Hamed winning 119–109, each giving Calvo only a single round, while the third had Hamed winning with a score of 120–110. Hamed blamed his lackluster performance on a hand injury he sustained in the second round.[10]

Fight card
Weight Class Weight vs. Method Round Time Notes
Featherweight 126 lb Naseem Hamed def. Manuel Calvo UD 12/12 Note 1
Featherweight 126 lb Michael Brodie def. Pastor Humberto Maurin UD 12/12 Note 2
Lightweight 135 lb Colin Dunne (c) def. Wayne Rigby RTD 10/12 Note 3
Super Bantamweight 122 lb Michael Hunter def. Mark Payne PTS 8/8
Super Lightweight 140 lb Colin Lynes def. Kevin Bennett TKO 4/8

^Note 1 For IBO Featherweight title.
^Note 2 For WBF Featherweight title.
^Note 3 For WBU Lightweight title.

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References
  1. Kriegel, Mark (7 April 2020). "You like Tyson Fury? Naseem Hamed is how we got here". ESPN.com. ESPN. Retrieved 1 June 2020.
  2. Lidz, Franz. "Glam Rocked Prince Naseem Hamed's glitz was no match for the grit of Marco Antonio Barrera in their featherweight showdown". Vault. Retrieved 2020-02-01.
  3. Lewis, Mike (2001-06-16). "Boxing: Hamed fighting shy of Barrera rematch". ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2020-02-01.
  4. Mee, Bob (2000-10-09). "Boxing: Hamed loses last world belt". ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2020-02-01.
  5. Mee, Bob (2001-10-02). "Boxing: Hamed severs American tie-up". ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2020-02-01.
  6. Mee, Bob (2001-09-18). "Boxing: Hamed puts his return to the ring on hold". ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2020-02-01.
  7. "Hamed-Calvo Fight Postponed". Midland Daily News. 2002-03-12. Retrieved 2020-02-01.
  8. "Boxing: May date set for Hamed's return". The Independent. 2002-03-21. Retrieved 2020-02-01.
  9. "Boos greet Hamed's comeback win". 2002-05-18. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2020-02-01.
  10. Staff, Guardian (2002-05-20). "Hamed struggles to produce a convincing excuse". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2020-02-01.
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