Naazim Richardson (died 24 July 2020) was an American

boxing Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined ...

trainer from

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

. Richardson is most notable for training Bernard Hopkins and "Sugar" Shane Mosley, in addition to Steve Cunningham and Karl Dargan. He is also known for catching Antonio Margarito with plaster knuckle pads in his hand wraps prior to Margarito's fight with Mosley. This led to Margarito's one-year suspension from boxing.

Early life

Richardson was raised in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, and left home when he was 14. He was jailed as a teenager. According to ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', "Boxing took Richardson from the streets that almost swallowed him in north Philadelphia, gave him energy and purpose." He was a head trainer in the Concrete Gym in Philadelphia, and was also a trainer in several gyms across Philadelphia. Richardson worked under

Bouie Fisher English Wilson "Bouie" Fisher (June 1, 1928 – June 30, 2011) was a boxing coach, who trained Bernard Hopkins for the majority of his career. Career Fisher was an amateur and professional boxer who coached Bernard Hopkins from 1989 until their sp ...

for a while. His son Rock Allen was a boxer prior to a car accident.

Career

A devout Muslim, Richardson was often acknowledged as "Brother" Naazim. In 2007, Richardson suffered a stroke that temporarily left him unable to walk or speak. Soon after returning to boxing, Richardson became "Sugar" Shane Mosley's trainer for three of the biggest fights of the boxer's career: his win over Antonio Margarito and his losses to

Floyd Mayweather Jr. Floyd Joy Mayweather Jr. (''né'' Sinclair; February 24, 1977) is an American boxing promoter and former professional boxer. He currently owns a team in the NASCAR Cup Series named The Money Team Racing. As a professional boxer he competed b ...

and Manny Pacquiao.

Notable fighters trained or advised by Richardson

* Bernard Hopkins *

Shane Mosley Shane Mosley (born September 7, 1971), often known by his nickname "Sugar" Shane Mosley, is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1993 to 2016. He held multiple triple champion, world championships in three weight classes, incl ...

* Karl Dargan (nephew of Naazim Richardson) * Badr Hari *

Yusaf Mack Yusaf Mack (born January 20, 1980) is an American former professional boxer. Professional boxing career On November 17, 2000, in his professional boxing debut, Mack defeated Willie Lee via TKO in the second round. He has held regional titles fr ...

(worked the corner) * Sergio Martinez (corner adviser for fight vs. Julio César Chávez Jr.) * Steve Cunningham

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Richardson, Naazim Year of birth missing 2020 deaths Boxers from Philadelphia African-American Muslims American Muslims American boxing trainers American male boxers