Tucked up several flights of stairs in downtown New York City, you’ll find Church Street Boxing Gym, and with its true old-school feel, Church Street is unlike the traditional gyms found in New York City. From the moment you enter Church Street, you feel the dedication and love of boxing with its thousands of photos and boxing posters taped to the walls, many of them yellowed with age. From the hit of the heavy bags, the rapid applause of the speed bags, and the grunts of boxers training in the ring, you know you’ve arrived in boxing heaven. Every day, sweating in the 100+ degree heat in the basement of Church Street, you will find the one who may be the only person who at the age of 40 still believes he has a championship race left. Jaffa Ballogou, who has been out of boxing for more than two years, last fought on June 16, 2006, defeating Lawrence Chapman by unanimous decision. In that fight Ballogou knocked down Chapman 5 times. Ballogou has achieved a record of 45 – 6 winning 39 by knockout in his 20-year professional career.
As you enter the gym, you will notice that Ballogou is one of the hardest working boxers concentrating on preparing for his comeback, which is planned for September 23rd. He will face Manu Ntoh in a scheduled 8-round fight at the Hammerstein Ballroom on 34th Street in New York. The fight will be part of Knock out Poverty, which is a historic event to help fight poverty in Africa that is planned for that night. With fierce determination and focus, the slim, six-foot Ballogou blocks his past struggles and applies all his energy to his training with coach Rafael Correa by his side. Correa, a former boxer, says that Ballogou is in very good shape and is training very hard.
In 1997, Ballogou fought Frankie Liles for the WBA super middleweight title, Ballogou, who lost that fight by unanimous decision to this day, still believes he won. Ballogou describes the fight with Liles as the toughest of his career. Fast forward eleven years and you’ll still find Ballogou training like his next fight is for the championship. He is feared by many in the light heavyweight division for his knockout skills and southpaw style. This, coupled with promotional issues, has caused Ballogou to have a hard time finding fights that will keep him out of the ring for two years. Ballogou draws inspiration from the success of old light heavyweights Antonio Tarver, Glen Johnson and Roy Jones Jr., all 39, to help fuel his comeback. Ballogou predicts a third round knockout of Ntoh on September 23. With Ballogou’s 75 percent knockout rate, one cannot argue the point.
Actually, The African Assassin is not afraid of anyone in the ring and says to face anyone anywhere. Ballogou has had his chance to fight in the Mecca of boxing at Madison Square Garden and under the great lights of Las Vegas. He has faced tough opponents like Ike Quartey early in his career and Syd Vanderpool, a former Canadian champion. That’s past history for Ballogou, who is now just concentrating on preparing for September 23rd. Ballogou says he doesn’t know much about his opponent Manu Ntoh (17-14.10KOs), who is also 40 years old and a multiple Muay Thai World Champion. Jaffa Ballogou “The African Assassin” is ready to step into the ring and begin his new path to the big stage.
BY: Robert Epstein
Diamond boxing