Sharmba Mitchell once was considered to be one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world. Talented, quick, powerful, compact and muscular were just a few of the terms used to describe him.
The son of a blue-collar worker, Mitchell first stepped into a gym at age eight in 1978.
"My father just took me past a gym," Mitchell said. "In the beginning, boxing was just another sport to me, and something else to keep me out of trouble."
By the following year, Mitchell was a regular. Still, growing up in a family that emphasized education over everything else, he attended Howard and Maryland universities before finally turning his sights permanently to the sweet science.
After compiling an outstanding 153-7 amateur record, including a victory over Paulie Ayala, and winning eight local Golden Gloves championships and a Junior Olympics in 1985 at 106 pounds, the southpaw turned pro at age 18 on Sept. 23, 1988, in Atlantic City. In his debut, he stopped Ed Colon in the third round.
Posted By: Reginald Culpepper
Saturday, November 19th 2005 at 10:15PM
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