Hasim

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. -- Hasim Rahman's 27th birthday officially began at midnight. And less than an hour later, his opponent, Oleg Maskaev got in his 27 licks and then some, including a right hand that knocked the Baltimore fighter through the ropes, out of the ring and out of the fight 40 seconds into the eighth round.The bout was the main event of a five-fight card at the Adrian Phillips Ballroom in the Boardwalk Convention Hall at Bally's Park PlaceWith the victory propelled Maskaev to 18-2 with 13 knockouts, while Rahman fell to 31-2 with 26 KOs.Rahman, of Baltimore, is ranked No. 5 by the International Boxing Federation and No. 7 by the World Boxing Council.

While awaiting the outcome of his appeal to International Boxing Federation president Bob Lee after his controversial knockout by David Tua in Miami on Dec. 19, heavyweight contender Hasim Rahman of Baltimore will swing back into action March 12, when he battles unranked Michael Rush of Tampa, Fla., at New York's famed Roseland Ballroom.The ESPN2 show promoted by Cedric Kushner will serve as an appetizer to the Evander Holyfield-Lennox Lewis heavyweight unifying title bout at Madison Square Garden the next night.

World Boxing Association middleweight champion William Joppy of Washington, who suffered a neck injury in an auto accident in Capitol Heights on Monday afternoon, was told by doctors at Prince George's General Hospital yesterday that he will likely be able to resume his boxing career in "two to three months," according to the fighter's adviser, Ollie Dunlap.A magnetic resonance imaging test revealed that Joppy, 28, sustained a hairline fracture to his seventh vertebra (at the base of his neck)

Heavyweight contender Hasim Rahman of Baltimore, who withdrew from two scheduled fights on HBO within the past year, will get yet another chance to appear on the cable network when he faces Croatia's Zeljko Mavrovic on Nov. 6. The fight will be either at the storied Apollo Theater in New York, which is owned by HBO, or the following week in Las Vegas as a warm-up act for the Evander Holyfield-Lennox Lewis heavyweight championship bout."

After a tumultuous month marked by a canceled major fight and dancing back and forth between boxing promoters, everything seems to be back on track for unbeaten Baltimore heavyweight contender Hasim Rahman.Rahman has reunited with Cedric Kushner after a brief fling with Don King and is back in good graces with Lou DiBella, HBO's vice president of programming.In fact, HBO has booked Rahman (29-0) to fight David Tua (31-1) in a heavyweight elimination bout Dec. 19 to help decide the No. 1 contender for International Boxing Federation champion Evander Holyfield's crown.

Unbeaten Baltimore heavyweight contender Hasim Rahman will take the biggest gamble of his professional ring career Sept. 26, when he is scheduled to fight David Tua on the undercard of the Lennox Lewis-Zelko Mavrovic World Boxing Council championship bout.HBO will televise the heavyweight show from the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, Conn.Rahman (28-0, 23 KOs) is ranked No. 3 in the world by the International Boxing Federation. He's behind Frans Botha of South Africa and Vaughn Bean of Chicago.

MIAMI -- Baltimore heavyweight Hasim Rahman was knocked from the unbeaten ranks by David Tua on Saturday night and lost his bid to become the No. 1 contender for Evander Holyfield's International Boxing Federation title. But, in a strange way, he may have enhanced his boxing career."I don't think Rahman's stock went down in losing this fight," said Lou DiBella, programming executive for HBO, which televised the 12-round elimination bout at the Miccosukee Casino that ended in a hail of protests after referee Telis Assimenios stopped it 35 seconds into the 10th round.

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J.-- Baltimore heavyweight Hasim Rahman kept his unbeaten record intact righting on HBO's "Boxing After Dark Series" last night, but he did not appear ready for prime time in outpointing trial horse Jesse Ferguson in a slow-paced, 12-round fight at the Taj Mahal.Rahman (25-0), ranked No. 3 by the International Boxing Federation, gave Ferguson, a one-time title contender, a great deal of respect through most of the match.He waited until Ferguson, 41 showed signs of fatigue in the late rounds before becoming more aggressive.

MIAMI -- Leading comfortably on all three judges' scorecards, Hasim Rahman needed only to survive the final three rounds of his heavyweight elimination bout with David Tua last night to become the No. 1 contender for Evander Holyfield's International Boxing Federation crown.But the fight at the Miccosukee Casino ended with the Baltimorean slumped over the ropes and referee Telis Assimenios signaling an end to the match after 35 seconds of the 10th round, setting off an angry protest by Rahman's co-managers, who demanded a rematch.

Hasim Rahman is learning the virtue of patience.The management team of Bob Mittleman and Steve Nelson is plotting a conservative course to prepare the unbeaten nTC 25-year-old Baltimore heavyweight for a possible championship fight late this year or by early 1999.Ranked No. 3 by the International Boxing Federation, Rahman (24-0) will test his aggressiveness and improving boxing skills against one-time title contender Jesse Ferguson at the Taj Mahal in Atlantic City, N.J., tonight on HBO's "Boxing After Dark" series.

Hasim Rahman left Pechanga Casino in Temecula, Calif., on Wednesday night believing he suffered a "ridiculous" loss to fellow heavyweight James Toney. "It's bogus," Rahman, a Baltimore native, said. Rahman, 35, said before the fight that if he lost, he would retire. But after the bout, the two-time world heavyweight champion said he would fight again. Toney was declared the winner before the start of the fourth round. After the third round ended, Dr. Paul Wallace examined a cut above Rahman's left eye and said the fight should be stopped, according to Marshall Kauffman, Rahman's trainer.

Former heavyweight champion Hasim Rahman sat on a makeshift stage made to look like a red-and-gold boxing ring at a Baltimore County mall yesterday and took on all comers. Rahman's first visit to the area since losing his title two weeks ago brought a stream of autograph-seekers and well-wishers hoping to get a piece of "The Rock" at Security Square Mall. Kids wanted to meet a celebrity. Adults wanted autographed memorabilia to pad sports collections. As for Rahman, he wanted to deliver a message to students just as city and county schools are set to open this week.

Baltimore native Hasim Rahman will not retire after losing his World Boxing Council heavyweight title to Oleg Maskaev on Saturday and instead will "take the rest of the year off" before taking a fight as early as "late February or the beginning of March," promoter Bob Arum said. Neither Rahman, who will turn 34 in November, nor his brother and co-manager, Yah Yah Cason, could be reached to comment. But Arum said he and Cason came up with a plan during an hour-long meeting on Monday. Co-manager Steve Nelson confirmed the meeting.

Should Hasim Rahman retire from boxing after his loss to Oleg Maskaev? Rahman's better days are past him. He has looked shaky the last few years. Please stay in Las Vegas and become a boxing analyst for ESPN. Harry Repas Baltimore At 33, if Hasim can brush his teeth without wobbling and is able to see punches coming at him (he'll still have the best seat in the house for that), he'll be viewed as a steppingstone veteran by managers moving young heavyweights. If he still wants to fight, God bless and good luck.

LAS VEGAS -- Baltimore native Hasim Rahman held an ice pack against the two, large lumps running just above his eyes and along his forehead while sitting in his dressing room late Saturday night. "I can't believe the title is leaving Las Vegas. I can't believe I let that guy walk out of here with my title," Rahman had said in the ring moments earlier after having been dethroned as World Boxing Council heavyweight champion by Kazakhstan-born Oleg Maskaev on a 12th-round knockout at the Thomas & Mack Center.

LAS VEGAS -- For five years we've been waiting for the real Hasim Rahman to stand up. Instead, last night, we saw him fall down. There's been a duality to Rahman's career as a prize fighter. Was he really the fighter who crashed through the ropes and landed on Jim Lampley's lap seven years ago? Or was he the one who threw the amazing punch that knocked out Lennox Lewis? Last night, we learned in spectacular fashion. To many, Rahman was just three minutes away from a future without limits.

LAS VEGAS -- Baltimore native Hasim Rahman didn't land in the lap of HBO's Jim Lampley as a result of Oleg Maskaev's right hand this time, but he nearly fell into a row of ringside cameramen. Rahman rose to his feet after Maskaev dropped him midway through the 12th round with a left hook, followed by a right, but he couldn't recover from a barrage of punches in his own corner as referee Jay Nady waved an end to the fight - and Rahman's reign as World Boxing Council champion - as the Kazakhstan-born Staten Island resident stopped him at 2:17 of the final round.

LAS VEGAS -- The handlers of Oleg Maskaev clearly took offense at the silly promotional line that appears on fight posters, Web sites and television commercials - "America's Last Line of Defense." The idea behind the slogan is simple: Hasim Rahman is the only thing standing in the way of foreigners owning all four major heavyweight belts, an idea that would've seemed blasphemous not long ago. Maskaev's people walked around the Wynn Hotel and Casino wearing T-shirts that show their Kazakhstan-born fighter standing in front of an American flag.

Will you be watching Hasim Rahman defend his heavyweight title? I'll be watching and rooting for Rahman because: he's a Baltimore guy, he hasn't been involved in doping and he's not afraid to talk to people about his loss to Maskaev. Baltimore sports fans need Rahman, and he needs us. David Boyd White Hall NEXT QUESTION Would Maurice Clarett have stayed out of trouble if he had finished out his career at Ohio State? Selected responses to today's question will be printed tomorrow on The Kickoff page.

Should Floyd Landis just be quiet and accept his punishment? From Mennonite to Men in Shame. From all-American to Chemicals on Wheels. Thanks, Mr. Landis, for giving the French something to gloat about for years to come. Patrick R. Lynch Baltimore Even WADA says there's something wrong with a one day spike in testosterone, so no, he should fight. Don Forgione Ellicott City NEXT QUESTION Will you be watching Hasim Rahman defend his heavyweight title? Selected responses to today's question will be printed tomorrow on The Kickoff page.