In Las Vegas on Saturday August 2 , the boxing world crowned a new WBC-IBF World Welterweight Champion and he is a Ghanaian! He is none other than Joshua Clottey a.k.a the Hitter from Bukom , Accra who beat Zab Judah of Brooklyn into a bloody mess.
The referee was forced by the ringside doctor to stop the fight in the ninth round to save Zab from further damage.
What better way to express appreciation for lifting high the Ghana flag than to throw a party for the CHAMP. Ghanaians in the New York area came together on Monday August 11 to do just that.
When word got around that Clottey would be at the Sankofa Restaurant in the Bronx , NY, in a blink, the place was filled.
World Champion Clottey described what motivated him:
“I started boxing when I was six years old and became professional when I was twenty. Boxing has been good to me. The more Zab Judah showed me little respect and insulted me with bad American expressions, the angrier I got. But I chose to focus on beating him to bring respect to Ghana and to myself. I give thanks to God that I won and Zab is still alive. This win opens up a lot of possibilities for me in the future. There are bigger fights to come and I ask all my countrymen and women to continue to pray for me and support me” The Hitter noted.
Emmanuel Clottey, Joshua’s brother and a reputable former boxer himself, is very happy with his brother’s performance and wants him to continue to punch Ghana and the family name all the way to the top.
Papa Lincoln, Joshua Clottey’s spokesman in the USA told this reporter that Joshua has made history as the first Ghanaian to win the WBC-IBF WELTERWEIGHT title.
‘I respect Azumah Nelson, Ike Quartey and Alfred Kotey but Joshua is special’. He added.
Papa regarded Joshua’s future as very bright as he looks forward to fighting Margarito, the WBA Welterweight Champion in a great rematch in November 1, 2008 .
Mr. Charles Nimo Mensah, (Mr. CNN of Ghanaweb fame) who is a friend of Clottey described him as a role model for the youth in Ghana . According to Mr. CNN, Joshua is respectful and is considered one of the world’s best athletes.
‘Joshua will continue to win fights because the future is bright for him. This is because he has what we call ring or stage character’.
Hon. Kwabena Manu a.k.a. Hon Pancho, a special advisor to the Champion advised him not be complacent, but be God fearing and show respect, because:
“The people you will meet as you go up are the same people who will be looking at you as you come down. Ghana has had world Champions before but apart from Azuma Nelson, sadly not all of them lasted too long as champions.
Perhaps one reason is that they forgot their roots and lost the human touch of humility and hard work through constant training. Mr. Clottey should learn from their mistakes
