Osumana Akaba (born August 7, 1980) is a Ghanaian professional boxer who has challenged for the Commonwealth title at two different weights.

Early professional career

Akaba made his professional debut in January 2001 with a win over Sarouna Mamoudou in

Kaneshie Kaneshie is a suburb in the Accra Metropolitan district, a district of the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. The name was derived from a word in the Ga-Adangbe , that is "Kane Shie Shie", meaning "under the lamp" referring to its beginnings as a nig ...

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

. His first defeat came two fights after when he lost to Abdul Malik Jabir for the Ghanaian super bantamweight title once again in Kaneshie. Akaba avenged his first defeat five fights and five wins later when he beat Jabir for the vacant WBC International Featherweight title this time in Ghana's capital city

Accra Accra (; tw, Nkran; dag, Ankara; gaa, Ga or ''Gaga'') is the capital and largest city of Ghana, located on the southern coast at the Gulf of Guinea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2021 census, the Accra Metropolitan District, , ...

. Akaba would lose the belt in his first defence over 12 rounds to Jeffrey Mathebula in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

. It was the first time Akaba had fought outside his native country.

Commonwealth Challenges

With a record of 10 wins and 3 defeats Akaba travelled to the UK in May 2008 and took on

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

Paul Truscott Paul Truscott (born 1 May 1986) is a British professional boxer and former Commonwealth featherweight champion. Professional career Early career Truscott made his professional debut in June 2006 at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool, with a w ...

for the Commonwealth featherweight title in

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area. Until the early 1800s, the a ...

. Akaba was considered a step up in class for Truscott at the time and ended with a good win for the Englishman over 12 rounds. Akaba bounced back from the defeat when he beat the South African fighter

Tshifhiwa Munyai Tshifhiwa Munyai (born 8 May 1985) is a South African professional boxer who challenged for the WBA super-bantamweight title in 2014. He also held the Commonwealth bantamweight title from 2006 to 2007, and the IBO super-bantamweight title in 2 ...

in July 2008 over 8 rounds in

Dagenham Dagenham () is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. Dagenham is centred east of Charing Cross. It was historically a rural parish in the Becontree Hundred of Essex, stretching from Hainault Forest ...

. Munyai was a highly touted fighter in the UK and had scored some good wins over Martin Power (twice) and

Lee Haskins Lee Haskins (born 29 January 1983) is a British former professional boxer who competed between 2003 and February 2020. He held the IBF bantamweight title from 2015 to 2017, and the IBF interim title in 2015. At regional level, he held the Commo ...

. In September 2008 Kevin Mitchell gave up his Commonwealth super featherweight title and Akaba was drafted in by Frank Warren's Sports Network to contest the vacant title against house fighter

Ricky Burns Ricky may refer to: Places *Říčky (Brno-Country District), a village and municipality in the Czech Republic *Říčky v Orlických horách, a village in the north of the Czech Republic *Rickmansworth, a town in England sometimes called "Ricky" ...

at London's York Hall. The fight ended with a win for Burns over 12 rounds.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Akaba, Osumana 1980 births Super-featherweight boxers Living people Ghanaian male boxers Boxers from Accra