Unbeaten 20-0 heavyweight Ike Ibeabuchi is set to return to the ring after a staggering 25-year hiatus.
The hard-hitting Nigerian will make a comeback on December 7 in his home country against Egyptian Ayman Farouk Abbas at the ripe old age of 51.
Ibeabuchi was a rising contender in the 1990s and was on the verge of a world title shot at the back end of the decade after securing big wins over David Tua and Chris Byrd.
However, his career was cut short before he could realise his dream.
In 1999, four months removed from his vicious seventh-round stoppage win over the previously unbeaten Byrd, Ibeabuchi was arrested after taking a Las Vegas call girl hostage.
Ibeabuchi trapped the woman in a closet in his hotel room, barricaded himself in the bathroom and only surrendered to police when pepper spray was discharged under the door.
The 21-year-old woman said she was there to strip and claimed she was attacked by Ibeabuchi after demanding to be paid upfront.
His legal defence was made more difficult by the reopening of a similar sexual assault allegation against him eight months prior.
Ibeabuchi was released on bail and placed under house arrest but was remanded after two more similar allegations surfaced.
He was sentenced to 2-10 years for battery with intent to commit a crime, and 3-20 years for attempted sexual assault after being deemed incompetent to stand trial due to his bipolar disorder.
In November 2015, he was released from prison and started to make inroads towards a boxing comeback.
However, just five months later, he was arrested once again after violating the conditions of his probation and was forced to serve an additional four years in prison until his eventual release in September 2020.
Ibeabuchi has been a free man for just over four years now and is set to box Farouk at the Diete Spiff Civic Center, Port Harcourt in Nigeria next month.
Farouk is 47 years old and holds an unremarkable 4-10-1 record in the paid ranks.
If there is even a glimmer of Ibeabuchi’s former self left then Farouk will be in for a hard night.
The 1990s American press dubbed him ‘The Nigerian Mike Tyson‘ for his explosive all-action style, and like his hero, he possessed ungodly power.
Ibeabuchi was inspired to take up boxing after watching Tyson’s stunning upset loss at the hands of James ‘Buster’ Douglas in 1990 and arrived in the United States three years later to pursue his dream.
In 1994, he turned over as a professional and after racking up an impressive 16-0 record he was matched up with fellow undefeated prospect Tua in a fight that put him on the map.
The contest was an absolute barn burner from bell to bell and broke the record for the most punches in a heavyweight clash.
According to CompuBox, they threw 1,730 blows between them, with a remarkable 975 of them coming from Ibeabuchi, who was declared the victor via unanimous decision.
Further wins over Tim Ray, Everton Davis and eventual two-time world heavyweight title holder Byrd established Ibeabuchi as a champion in waiting but his troubles outside of the ring put a stop to that.
