Odiase chases his first major title in Mannheim

Germany’s biggest boxing event is coming up: Emanuel Odiase boxes for his first major title – With a trick from the great Muhammad Ali to the European Championship crown.

At 2.03 meters, he is already a giant – now the biggest fight of his career awaits! Emanuel Odiase (27) from Heidelberg will fight for the IBF European Heavyweight Championship in the SAP Arena Mannheim on Friday (from 6 pm/live on stream in the ARD media library). The unbeaten professional (10 wins, 8 knockouts) will face England’s Nick Webb (39/19 wins, 3 losses, 15 knockouts) in the “Night of the Heavyweights” of the Ringside Zone promotion. Ten rounds separate him from the title.

It’s almost a home game for Odiase. “Even as a teenager, I used to say when we drove past the arena: I want to box here one day.” This dream is now coming true. Now the European Championship belt is to follow. When Emanuel steps into the ring in front of 13,000 fans, some things remind him of his great idol Muhammad Ali (†74): “He’s my great role model, and of course you can learn a lot from the greatest boxer of all time.” Even his outfit: “Ali always wore white.” For the European Championship fight, Odiase announces: “The outfit will be special. It will be cool. But people won’t see it until Friday.” But of course it’s Ali white.

Emanuel only started boxing at the age of 16. Before that, he played soccer enthusiastically before his older brother Dominique took him to training with him. His talent was quickly noticed. Odiase remembers: “There were kids at my first fight who said afterwards: ‘You totally remind us of Muhammad Ali. That was really cool for me.” Just like Ali, his footwork is still one of his greatest strengths, even though he weighed 120 kilos in his last fight. “It’s just in my blood, it’s my talent, I would say. It probably also comes from my childhood playing soccer.”

“Sometimes you have to do things that are unpleasant”

The Heidelberg native is now being trained in England. He trains there with coach Joby Clayton, who already made Anthony Joshua (36/England) a world champion. The early runs in preparation are particularly tough for Odiase, who actually loves to sleep in. His coach also copied this from Ali, who used to get up at 5.30 a.m. and then run nine kilometers in army boots. Odiase: “There’s always a mountain run on Fridays in particular. We get up at 4.45 a.m., set off at 5.15 a.m. and are on the mountain in half an hour.” Despite the tough sessions, he likes the Ali trick: “Sometimes you have to do things that are unpleasant. That’s what makes you stronger.”

Despite all his admiration for Ali, Odiase remains modest. “You can’t compare yourself to Ali. For me, he is the greatest of all time.” Nevertheless, he brings self-confidence for the big evening: “For me, boxing is an art and that’s exactly how it should look. If you’ve mastered the technique, it looks good and you also have a knockout punch, then you’re the complete package. And I’ve mastered these things.” This is exactly what Emanuel Odiase wants to prove on Friday in Mannheim.

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