Ringside Zone: Ring announcer at Germany’s biggest boxing event

Wow, what an amazing atmosphere there was last night! The SNP Arena in Heidelberg was on fire. Passion, energy, and crackling excitement made for an event at the Ringside Zone that will linger in the memories of visitors for a long time to come. And I was right in the middle of it. 

Many celebrities

Stars such as German comedian Mario Barth and former swim star Franziska von Almsick graced Germany’s biggest boxing event with their presence. They were among the 5,000 spectators who created an incomparable atmosphere in the sold-out arena and drove the fighters to peak performance. The evening was hosted by the RTL reporter Kai Ebel, while I, as the ring announcer, had the task of providing the appropriate voice for the moments in the ring. 

Fascinating fights

Yesterday evening, there were six captivating fights on the program. Among others, Britain’s Omarah Taylor won her fifth professional fight against Argentina’s Erica Alvarez after an intense battle by judges’ decision. Germany’s Devrim Goekduman also scored a narrow points victory over Romania’s James Chereji. This secured him the IBF European lightweight championship belt. 

Close decision on the way to the world championship

The toughest fight of the evening was a WBO super middleweight ranking fight between crowd favorite Simon Zachenhuber and Namibian Paulinus Ndjolonimu. Both went into this fight undefeated. Cheered on by his compatriots, Zachenhuber narrowly prevailed after twelve rounds and took an important step towards a world championship fight.

Grand finale by local hero

The last fight of the evening belonged to Heidelberg’s very own Emanuel Odiase. He sent his Bosnian counterpart Srdan Goredavica to the canvas in spectacular fashion in the first round. With his victory by technical knockout, he secured the title of International German Heavyweight Champion, which he celebrated exuberantly with the audience.

A fanastic experience thanks to sponsors

Companies such as Rauch and Aston Martin sponsored the Ringside Zone. Thanks to their commitment, this first-time event set new standards and placed itself at the top of German boxing events. My personal highlight was my driver Ramazan, who chauffeured me around in an Aston Martin DBX for four days. That was really fun! Aston Martin and the German “Autobahn”: an unbeatable combination.

The premiere event was rounded off by a strong supporting program. The weigh-in was already on the agenda on Friday morning, and there were networking side events and a really great after-show party.

To be continued…

In any case, I’m looking forward to a second edition of the Ringside Zone and am excited to see how the event will establish itself on the international boxing scene in the coming years. What makes a world-class boxing event for you? Feel free to write me in the comments.