- He is a retired professional boxer from Ghana
- He fought won 38times with 5 losses in his career
- He held the Commonwealth Bantamweight title for two consecutive years
Who is Joseph Agbeko?
Agbeko is a former Ghanaian professional boxer whose boxing record stood at 38-5[28 KO wins]. He has been in the career for close to 22 years and has fought 43 times with 38 wins and 5 losses.
He last had a professional fight in December 2020 and since then, he has not been active though he has not announced anything about his retirement.
Joseph Agbeko Biography
| Full name | Joseph Agbeko |
| Age | 43 years |
| Height | 1.66m |
| Place of birth | Accra, Ghana |
| Date of birth | March 22 1980 |
| Nationality | Ghanaian |
| Occupation | Professional boxer |
| Source of wealth | Boxing earnings |
| Marital status | Married |
Personal Information
Agbeko is a Ghanaian national who was born at Shukura in Accra on March 22 1980.
So many things influence people in life to do or be like someone whose life has a physical or social impact on the lives of others. In Agbeko’s case, he was inspired by King Kong to the fistic sport.
For him, the quest to prove his might in boxing pushed him into the ring as he saw the sport as the only means of utilizing his mind and physical fitness.
His friends were always afraid to associate with him and he felt superior for that matter, getting more convinced to enter into boxing just to prove his strength.
Agbeko needed the courage to kickstart his boxing career and the only option he had was to approach a boxer with the Ghana Fire Service which became the beginning of a lifetime boxing career.
Joseph Agbeko. Photo/The Ghanaian Standard
He trained under several coaches as a juvenile and amateur boxer before moving to Ghana Fire Service where he trained under legendary Godwin Alloway Kotey which was not an easy task.
However, the young boxer found solace at the Fit Square Gym in Accra under coach Lartekwei Lartey. Now the problem was choosing the career over education and the pressure of balancing the two almost made him quit the sport.
Agbeko entered the amateur ranks at 18 years and made a tremendous impact during regional and national competitions that attracted the attention of many boxing lovers. He moved to the national amateur boxing team featuring in international competitions.
Joseph is a married man and blessed with beautiful daughters.
Agbeko Professional Career
In 2017, he dethroned Luis Alberto Perez and became the new IBF bantamweight titleholder. Before defending his title, he was inactive for about 14 months. He did this in a fight that had been previously postponed defeating William Gonzalez by a majority decision.
Two years later, he again defended his title by scoring a unanimous decision win over former two-division champion Vic Darchinyan. Three months later, he lost his title by a 12-round unanimous decision to a Colombian Challenger Yonnhy Peréz.
In 2010, he had a chance to regain his lost title in a fight with Perez in the semi-finals held in Washington. This time he took his boxing skills and stiff jab to cruise to a unanimous decision victory with the judges scoring it.
Abner Mares who defeated Vic Darchinyan via a controversial split decision to advance to the finals was also on the card with Agbeko.
Agbeko was scheduled to take a fight on Abner Mares in the bantamweight tournament final where the winner was to take it all on Saturday on Showtime. However, the boxer pulled out of the fight a few days before the main day citing an injury.
The fight was rescheduled for a later date to be held in Las Vegas. Finally, the day came and the focal point of the fight became referee Russel Mora. The referee repeatedly warned Mares for low blows without taking a point.
Joseph Agbeko.Photo/YEN News
To Agbeko’s advantage, despite 23 blows to the belt and below, he did not retaliate in kind.
Jim Gray a post-fight continued showtime’s lambasting of referee Mora in an interview where he showed the crucial call that turned the fight. A low blow in the 11th led to a knockdown.
In total, there were two knockdowns. The first knockdown coming early would have been translated to a slip, however, a punch was landed.
In the second instance, it was a result of what was a low blow. That means it is possible that Mares would not have won the fight.
Agbeko’s boxing career has made him transverse to many parts of the world.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login