Herbie Hide
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Herbie Hide | |
| Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Real name | Herbert Okechukwu Maduagwu |
| Nickname | The Dancing Destroyer |
| Weight | Cruiserweight |
| Nationality |  English |
| Birth date | October 26, 1971 |
| Birth place | Owerri, Nigeria |
| Style | Orthodox |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 41 |
| Wins | 37 |
| Wins by KO | 36 |
| Losses | 4 |
| Draws | 0 |
| No contests | 0 |
Herbie Hide, born Herbert Okechukwu Maduagwu, is a British boxer fighting out of Norwich. He has fought for most of his career at heavyweight but has recently decided to take a step down to cruiserweight. He is known as The Dancing Destroyer.
To date he has had a very successful career rising to domestic success at a very young age for a heavyweight. He is a former two time WBO world heavyweight champion.
Hide's career began in 1989 with a 2nd round win and he racked up a total of 26 successive wins, all but 1 inside the distance, before coming up against Riddick Bowe in 1995. The fight was an utter mis-match, Bowe's heavier physique and punching power made it look like man against boy. Yet Hide impressed with his courage, repeatedly picking himself off the canvas for more punishment, before the 6th round knockout.
At 6'2" (188cm) and around 205-210 pounds (96-98kg) Hide has always been considered rather small for a heavyweight, often having to "bulk up" for fights and yet still often giving away 40 pounds (18kg) or more to opponents. Despite this his speed and punching power have twice taken him to world titles. To date 36 of his 37 wins have come by way of stoppage, including 12 first round knock outs. More a natural cruiserweight than heavyweight his recent decision to step down in weight is eagerly anticipated by many boxing fans.
Often a victim of his own talents, many opponents have tended to shy away from fighting him and chose to fight less dangerous opponents instead.
He was born in Lagos, Nigeria on the 27 August 1971 and moved to England as boy. He is currently trained by Floyd Mayweather Sr., father of the highly successful boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr.
| Preceded by Michael Bentt |
WBO World Heavyweight Championship 19 Mar 1994–11 Mar 1995 |
Succeeded by Riddick Bowe |
| Preceded by Henry Akinwande Vacated |
WBO World Heavyweight Championship 28 Jun 1997–26 Jun 1999 |
Succeeded by Vitali Klitschko |
[edit] Outside of the Ring
In 1999, Hide was declared bankrupt by a British court after failing to pay various bills. However, eyebrows were raised when, around that same time, Hide informed a reporter that he had left £8000 next to a lamp in his training camp and that, when he returned, the money was on fire. British court officers were understandably puzzled and demanded to know where the money had come from. (It is not known what Hide's response was.)
Hide has also been arrested on multiple occasions. In December 2003, after being attacked by six men and hit over the head with a bar stool in a Norwich night club, Hide was approached by police officers in a nearby parking lot. Upon being approached, he suddenly set off running, discarding a knife with ten-inch blade as he did so. This resulted in his subsequent arrest and conviction for "possession of a bladed article." He was fined nearly £1000 for this offense.
In September 2004, Hide was again arrested for repeated failures to attend court hearings concerning assorted driving-related offenses. He had been charged with driving a Fiat Punto with no insurance on May 15, 2003 and driving a Bentley with no insurance and no MoT on June 18 of the same year. Hide had denied all of those charges. He was scheduled to attend the ensuing court hearing in January 2004, but failed to do so. The hearing was then rescheduled at least three times in the following two months, but Hide failed to surface on those dates as well. In March 2004, he was convicted of all the charges. Hide's solicitor Ian Fisher told the court that he had no idea why his client had not appeared.
He has run into troubles more recently in his homeland Nigeria [1].
