Ishe Smith facts for kids

Ishé Oluwa Kamau Ali Smith (born July 22, 1978) is an American former professional boxer. He competed from 2000 to 2019. In 2013, he won the IBF junior middleweight title. This made him the first boxer from Las Vegas to become a professional world champion. Early in his career, Ishe was part of the first season of the reality TV show The Contender in 2005.

Ishe Smith's Early Life and Amateur Fights

Ishe Smith grew up in Nevada with his mother and siblings. He started boxing as an amateur. He competed in big national events for many years. In 1996, he reached the finals of the US National Championships. He lost a close match to Héctor Camacho Jr. on points. He also made it to the semifinals of the U.S. Olympic trials. There, he lost to Zab Judah. In 1999, he lost another close fight in the quarterfinals of the US National Championships. He was defeated by Larry Mosley, who later won the tournament.

Starting a Professional Boxing Career

Ishe Smith began his professional career very strongly. He won his first fourteen fights. He often faced tough opponents. In 2001, he fought Alfonso Gomez in his fourth pro fight. Smith won by a unanimous decision. Later that year, he beat Norberto Bravo. In 2003, he had a great win against David "King" Estrada. Estrada was also a promising boxer at the time. Smith won that fight easily.

In 2004, Smith won his first championship belts. These included the WBC Continental Welterweight title. He also won the WBO NABO Welterweight title and the USBA Welterweight title. He earned these by beating former world champion Randall Bailey. It was a very close fight. Smith knocked Bailey down in the second round. He also showed good defense. The judges scored the fight in Smith's favor.

Being on The Contender TV Show

Ishe decided to join The Contender reality show. He was put on the West Coast team. He also shared a room with Alfonso Gomez, a boxer he had fought before. In the third episode, Ishe fought his rival Ahmed Kaddour. Smith won this tough fight by a unanimous decision.

Later, another boxer, Juan de la Rosa, had to leave the show for health reasons. Some boxers chose to bring Kaddour back into the competition. This was done to annoy Smith. After some disagreements, Ishe was chosen to fight Sergio Mora. Mora won the fight against Smith. Mora later became the overall winner of the tournament.

Smith then faced Anthony Bonsante in a special "Fan Favorite Fight." Even though Bonsante tried some unfair moves, Smith won the fight easily. Some of Smith's past opponents, like Alfonso Gomez and Norberto Bravo, also appeared on The Contender.

After The Contender

After the show, Ishe Smith had some disagreements with the show's management. He felt they were trying to make him fight Jesse Brinkley at a much heavier weight. This was for a small amount of money. Smith is naturally a welterweight. He believed he should have been allowed to go back to a lower weight class. He wanted to fight more rounds to prepare for a chance at a title.

Smith won his legal case against the management. He then left The Contender promotions. He signed a new contract with Oscar De La Hoya's Golden Boy Promotions. Since then, Smith has been guided by famous boxer Bernard Hopkins.

On June 7, 2006, Smith fought Patrick Thompson. He won by a unanimous decision. He fought at 154 pounds, in the junior middleweight division. This weight class offered many chances for new boxers.

On February 17, 2007, Smith fought Sechew Powell. Smith lost this fight. Even though he knocked Powell down, the judges gave the win to Powell. Many fans were surprised by this decision.

Smith lost another very close fight to Joel Julio on April 30, 2008. Julio was more active early in the fight. But Smith came back strong in the second half.

Smith returned to the ring on August 1, 2008. He won against Pawel Wolak, who had not lost a fight before. Smith showed one of his best performances. He then won another fight against Chris Gray.

On August 22, 2009, Smith lost to Danny Jacobs. Smith had moved up to the Middleweight division for this fight. He later said he wanted to go back to junior middleweight to try for a title. But his next fight was again at middleweight. He fought Fernando Guerrero on July 16, 2010. Guerrero won the fight.

After the Guerrero fight, Smith took a break from boxing. He spent time commenting on boxing for websites. He also helped other boxers train. After more than a year and a half, Smith returned to fighting in May 2012. He won easily. In September 2012, he won another fight. These wins earned him a chance to fight for a world title. He was set to challenge Cornelius Bundrage for the IBF 154-pound belt.

Becoming a World Champion

On February 23, 2013, Ishe Smith achieved a big dream. He won a majority decision victory over Cornelius Bundrage. This made him the new IBF junior middleweight champion. It was a huge moment for him.

However, on September 14, 2013, Smith lost his title. He was defeated by Carlos Molina in a split decision. Many people thought the fight was not very exciting. Two judges scored the fight for Molina, while one judge scored it for Smith.

Smith was supposed to fight Erislandy Lara next. But Lara decided to challenge another boxer instead. So, Smith fought Ryan Davis on May 2, 2014. Smith won that fight by knocking Davis out in the second round.

Professional Boxing Record