Ike Quartey net worth, children, bio
Since the inception of boxing as a sport, there has been a lot of growth in the game. Boxers such as Ike Quartey, in his prime, invented new winning mechanisms apart from the common knock-out. Ike then used this new mechanism in his bouts, which helped him face off opponents as the underdog and come out with a win.
Source: Instagram
Ike Quartey is one of the African boxers who have been treating fans to unforgettable bouts. Known for their heavy punches and speed, Africa has supplied the world of boxing fans with some memorable punchers, from South Africa to Uganda and Gambia.
Ike Quartey profile summary
- Full name: Isufu "Ike" Quartey
- Place of birth: Bukom, Ghana
- Date of birth: 27th November 1969
- Age: 50 years
- Birth sign: Sagittarius
- Nationality: Ghanaian
- Occupation: Boxer
- Height: 1.71 m (5ft 7in)
Ike Quartey biography
Brought up in the rough neighborhood of Bukom, a fishing village in the outskirts of Accra, Ike learned to survive. The town is known to produce fighters, and Ike was caught up in most of these fights. When he was auditioning, he did not have a boxing background, but since he was accustomed to street fighting, he gave it his all and was selected to go into a boxing academy. From there, he never looked back.
Ike Quartey family
Boxer Ike Quartey was the last born in a large African family. His father, Robert ‘Mustafa’ Quartey, allegedly had five wives, who sired him a total of 27 children. He is not the only boxer in his family, as his older brother Isaac Quartey also participated in the 1960 Olympics and won Silver.
The boxer was married to his wife Barbara, who sadly passed on in 2009. Ike Quartey children left behind by his deceased wife are two, and they were aged 13 and 21 years at the time of her demise.
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Ike Quartey’s career
Source: Instagram
Ike Quartey, also known to his fans and foes by his nickname Bazooka is one of the greatest Ghanaians to grace the ring. Though now retired, his career figures ensure his name is on everyone’s lips.
Before going entirely professional, Ike started as an amateur, representing Ghana in the Junior Welterweight in the Seoul Olympics games of 1988. Ike World of Light success can be attributed to the thick skin he got growing up in his native Ghana.
After the Olympics games, Ike went fully professional at the tender age of 19. His coach and instructor was Yoofi Bohan, who is Ghana’s greatest ever trainer and manager. Yoofi is the person responsible for Ike’s nickname ‘Bazooka’, and his rise to the top. In his first bout, he knocked out Mama Mohamed in the second round.
On the international platform, Quartey got thrown into the battle for the WBA welterweight championship title in his 26th professional bout. It was a memorable fight, as he knocked out the then holder Chrisanto Espana of Venezuela. After the win, he was able to defend his title successfully in seven subsequent fights.
Some of the seasoned boxers he defended the title against were Alberto Cortes, Oba Carr, and Vince Phillips.
Quartey had his first break from active boxing in October 1997. The break lasted for 14 months. This break was attributed to health and social issues.
This break was a blow to his career, as the WBA stripped him of the championship due to inactivity.
On 13th Feb 1999, Quartey attempted his return to the ring when he challenged Oscar De La Hoya, who was the then WBC welterweight champion. The fight was marred by controversy, as De La Hoya made away with a slight win. Oscar later revealed in an interview that he was unable to walk for a couple of days after the tough bout, which saw him downed twice.
After the defeat, Quartey took another break, which lasted for 14 months, and made his comeback in 2000. He fought Fernado Vargas for the IBF light-middleweight championship title. The match ended in a fair and square loss for Ike Quartey. This forced him to a third break, which lasted for five years.
On his return, he won his first three bouts, flooring Clint McNeil, Verno Phillips, and Carlos Bojorquez. That seemed to be his way back to the top.
Ike Quartey stats
Source: Twitter
Controversial decisions affected him once again, on August 5th, in his bout against the former champion Vernon Forrest in New York. The statistics after the match by the CompuBox showed Quartey with a superior percentage (42%), as compared to Forest’s percentage (22%). The result was booed down by the ringside fans, which also attracted comments from HBO’s commentators, who publicly cried foul.
On his final try back to top-level, Quartey challenged former undisputed champion Ronald “Winky” Wright, in Florida, a duel which he lost unanimously.
Throughout his career, and specifically in the bout against Oscar, journalists and interviewers complained about the difficulty of getting an Ike Quartey English interview. This can be understood since the Ghanaian has little comprehension of English, and when he moved from Ghana, his first destination was France. This has given him less exposure to English.
Ike Quartey net worth
Source: Instagram
There have been many questions of how much is Ike Quartey worth? Most of Ike Quartey’s wealth comes from boxing, where most of his top-flight bouts made him insane amounts of money. An example of these is the $ 4.5 million dollars he made fighting Oscar De La Hoya.
Quartey has many more sources of income, which include his businesses. This makes it hard to put an exact figure on Ike Quartey net worth, but it can be estimated to be somewhere between $1 million and 5 Million. No doubts, Ike’s net worth is visibly healthy due to his current lifestyle, with high-end cars and the clothes he wears.
Boxer Ike Quartey has made a name for himself in the world of boxing. This has also mapped his native Ghana as a force to reckon with, in regards to producing good boxers. Through his fighting career, he has come to be known as a ferocious fighter who never got intimidated. He was so fearless that he went ahead to fight Jose Luis Lopez, despite having a bad case of flu.
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Source: YEN.com.gh
