When Ouma battled Golovkin for world title

KAMPALA. “The future of Ugandan boxing lies in the past,” said one fan referring to how our boxers thrived on the world stage then and how they are steadily flopping.
Between the ‘70s and 2004, Uganda boasted three world professional champions, besides the accomplishments in the amateur ranks across the globe.
Even before Kassim ‘The Dream’ Ouma beat Verno Phillips to the IBF World Super Welterweight Title in 2004, Ugandan boxing was already on a gradual fall and the present does not suggest any reliable antidote.
Now, as we prepare for the ‘Supremacy’ between Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez and Gennady ‘GGG’ Golovkin, tomorrow, let’s remind the world of that fight, six years ago when Kazakhstan’s Golovkin defended his world middleweight title - against Uganda’s Ouma.
The fight in the Roberto Duran Arena, in Panama City, Panama June 17, 2011 was Ouma’s first title shot since he lost the WBC/WBA unification to American Jermain Taylor in 2006. The Taylor encounter itself came five years since Ouma lost his IBF World Middleweight belt to Russian Roman Karmazin just a year after winning it against Verno Phillips.
Between the Taylor bout in 2006 and the 2011 brawl against Golovkin, Ouma had only fought six times, yet Golovkin had beaten 16 opponents, stopping 11, and this was his second title defence of the WBA World Middleweight Title since winning it interim on August 14, 2010.

Bring in Canelo
We know little about Ouma’s preparations for the coveted bout but Golovkin invited the brightest middleweight talent of the time - Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez for sparring.
Canelo, then 20 years old, was himself preparing for the WBC World Super Welterweight Title defence against Ryan Rhodes in his native Guadalajara, Mexico, a day after the Ouma-Golovkin bout.Inside the Summit Gym, Big Bear Lake, California, Golovkin’s second home, Canelo and Golovkin boxed for intense six four-minute rounds. Lamar Russ, Golovkin’s usual sparring partner, and many others gave victory to Golovkin but the training duel was good for the duo. They both retained their titles.

Ouma vs Golovkin
Ouma, 32 then, (27 wins, 7 losses, 1 draw) could have had the benefit of experience exuded by boxers this age but Golovkin 28, (20 wins in 20) was in far better shape both mentally and physically. It showed in the ring. And right from the first bell, he boxed with intent.
In the second round, Ouma woke up, landing a couple of body shots but Golovkin countered with tough combinations to the face. Ouma too hit Golovkin face with a powerful left. Ouma got tougher in the third, but every offensive move exposed him to Golovkin’s shots. But even when the latter’s left uppercut seemed to uproot Ouma, the challenger had the guts to shoot back.
Golovkin, as is his wont, got carried away, never evading Ouma’s offense, and conceded seriously. It got more brutal and at the end of the fifth, Golovkin’s lower lips were bleeding.
The sixth and seventh were the more balanced but as I watched the eighth and ninth, I felt deeply sorry for Ouma. His engine had worn out, Golovkin turning him into a punching bag, landing all manner of punches all over Ouma’s unrestricted area. Rights, lefts and uppercuts - Ouma’s eyes got buried in swelling, his lips and nose torn. Cornered and pummelled with no answer, Ouma was saved by referee, who stopped the bout in the 10th round.