Rau’shee Warren Turned Olympic Persistence
Rau’shee Warren won the WBA Super bantamweight championship on June 18, 2016, defeating Juan Carlos Payano by majority decision in Chicago. The victory followed three Olympic appearances and a world amateur championship for the Cincinnati boxer.
Career highlights
Warren represented the United States at Athens 2004, Beijing 2008 and London 2012, becoming the first American male boxer to compete at three Olympic Games. His Olympic opponents included Zou Shiming, Lee Ok-sung and Nordine Oubaali.
His strongest global amateur result came at the 2007 world championships in Chicago, where he defeated Thailand’s Somjit Jongjohor in the flyweight final. He turned professional after the London Olympics.
Winning the Payano rematch
Payano won their first professional title meeting in August 2015. Warren reversed that result in the rematch, taking the majority decision on scores of 114–114 and 115–113 twice. His reign ended on February 10, 2017, when Zhanat Zhakiyanov recovered from two early knockdowns to defeat him by split decision in Toledo, Ohio.
His world amateur gold was accompanied by bronze medals at the 2005 and 2011 world championships. The later bronze included victories over Rey Saludar and Khalid Yafai before a semifinal loss to Misha Aloyan. Warren also won the 2010 National Golden Gloves, extending his domestic success between Olympic appearances.
Sources
- BoxRec: Warren’s amateur results and three Olympic appearances
- World Boxing Association: Warren wins the Payano rematch
- World Boxing Association: Payano–Warren bout date and score analysis
- Premier Boxing Champions: Warren–Zhakiyanov result
