Zab Judah

Zab (Super) Judah is a professional boxer in the Junior Welterweight 140 lb (63.5 kg) division and undisputed champion in the Welterweight 147 lb (66.7 kg) division.

Zab Judah of Brooklyn, New York celebrates after defending his undisputed welterweight championship against Cosme Rivera of Los Angeles, California, with a third round technical knockout at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada May 14, 2005.

Claims to fame

Judah held his championship at 140 lb and was considered by many to be an authentic claimant to boxing's pound-for-pound title at that time. In November 2001 he met fellow titleholder Kostya Tszyu in a title unification fight and was knocked out in the second round. Judah got up from the knock-down only to fall again. This is humorously refered to as the "Chicken Dance". In February 2005 he became undisputed Welterweight Champion by knocking out Cory Spinks.

Judah vs. Tszyu

Tszyu's knockout, and the subsequent melee in the ring, are well-known among boxing fans. Judah was considered to have won the first round of the fight convincingly but appeared hesitant to engage his opponent in the second round. With only seconds remaining in the second round, Tszyu connected a right-handed blow to Judah's chin, which forced him to retreat. Tszyu then struck again, knocking Judah down flat on his back with his head slamming hardly against the Canvas. Attempting to beat the referee's count, Judah rose from the knockdown almost immediately, and unfortunately for him, a bit prematurely: almost as soon as he rose to his feet, his legs appeared to melt beneath him, and he stumbled awkwardly across the ring, falling once more.

Controversy and suspension

Following Judah's difficulties referee Jay Nady immediately halted the bout, as Judah rose again on unsteady legs, protesting the stoppage. As both camps flooded the ring, Judah continued to protest Nady's decision, with his outrage increasing to catastrophic proportions as the cameras rolled on. At one point, Judah pushed his gloved-fist into the throat of the much bigger Nady, and then returned to his corner, picked up the ring stool and threw it across the ring at Nady. Curiously enough, none of Judah's post-bout fury appeared to be directed at his opponent.

As a consequence of his outburst at Nady, Judah was suspended from boxing. His stumbling attempt to beat Nady's count was converted into a six second long compressed digital clip, which predictably spread like wildfire across the Internet on various boxing fan message boards. Dubbed "the Zab Dance", it has tarnished Judah's reputation ever since.

note: The fight had to be stopped because there was no standing eight count, which is why Nady stopped the count the second Judah rose, and once he stopped the count he couldnt start again.

Judah's return to boxing

Since then, Zab Judah has returned to the ring and quietly worked his way back into the good graces of boxing's alliance of promoters, television networks and others. In 2004 he challenged reigning undisputed Welterweight Champion Cory Spinks but lost a narrow decision on the scorecards. The fight had none of the attendant controversy of Judah's previous title fight against Tszyu.

Then, in the rematch, in Spinks's hometown of St. Louis, Judah connected with several of his big left hooks, TKOing Spinks in the ninth round to become undisputed Welterweight Champion. He showed grace in victory, saying he did not want to hurt Spinks and that Spinks was a great fighter. Judah, now as Welterweight Champion, has a possibility of a rubber match with Spinks, a rematch with Tszyu, or a fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr..

Judah's first title defense was a third round blowout of Cosme Rivera, Judah knocking Rivera down several times before the fight was stopped.