15.09.07 – By James Slater: Being the son of a boxing legend can be tough at times. Sure, the publicity and attention afforded such a person when trying to make it as a fighter in his own right is a good thing, but the pressure to be as good as his dad is not so good. Ronald Hearns, son of the legendary Tommy Hearns, is going through this right now. His name is more well known than most other young pros with only fifteen fights to their name, due to his surname, yet at the same time Ronald is not being left alone to develop as most other fighters at his level are.
he twenty-eight year old is still a work in progress, yet already people are urging him to step up the quality of his opposition. I must admit, I too would like to see how good Ronald really can be. He has looked the real deal so far, but against a pretty modest bunch of fighters, it must be said. Indeed, Ronald and his team find themselves in an awkward situation. Step it up too quick and Hearns Jnr runs the risk of losing, remain fighting C level fighters too long and he runs the risk of turning off the fans.
As good as he appears to be – Ronald has certainly inherited his father’s height and reach, his long-limbed physique and his fast hands – the next generation of the fighting Hearns family is certainly not stepping up the level in his next bout. Scheduled to box one Robert Kamya on the under-card of the hotly anticipated Taylor-Pavlik fight, Ronald is once again fighting a guy with plenty of losses on his record. Kamya, 16-7(4) is a thirty-four year old from Uganda and as his KO ratio indicates he is no big puncher – another fault that can be aimed at Ronald’s opposition. Also, Kamya has been stopped five times, twice in his last three fights. He has met some good fighters in his career – men like Kofi Jantuah and Joel Julio – but each time he’s boxed a top quality foe, he has been stopped. It’s as dead a cert as is possible that Ronald Hearns will do the same thing to him on September 29th in Atlantic City.
The young Hearns has been matched very carefully since his pro debut back in April of 2004. In compiling his 15-0(12) record the middleweight prospect has yet to face a guy with anything like a world ranking. Sure, there’s no rush, and after only fifteen fights no-one should expect there to be. But it is starting to get a little tiresome watching the twenty-eight year old beat up on no-hopers, especially when one considers the fact that his famous father had already been in with the likes of Pipino Cuevas, Ray Leonard, Wlifredo Benitez AND Marvin Hagler by the time he’d reached the age his son is at right now. Okay, Tommy had had a lot more fights by the time he was twenty-eight and he’d been moved a lot quicker by trainer Emanuel Steward. But still, it surely must be time for Ronald to up the level a bit about now.
Ronald has, as I’ve said, inherited many of his dad’s physical attributes. The possibility exists, however, that he has also picked up Tommy’s somewhat shaky chin. The senior Hearns had phenomenal heart and courage, not to mention awesome punching power, to more than make up for his chin’s shortcomings. But has Ronald? These questions may well be on his and his promoter’s mind – hence the careful matchmaking. There is no doubt, though, that the six foot, three inch tall Ronald is a genuinely promising talent. At times he has looked sheer class in the ring. The question is, can he do so at world title level?
Enough of the teasers, it’s time for an acid test for the man who just might become a future middleweight champ. 2008 will hopefully see the new “Motor City Cobra” in a ring with a top-ten calibre fighter. I have a feeling Ronald will pass such a test with flying colours – no doubt making his all-time great father very proud in the process.