Sena Agbeko was disgusted.
A mandated medical exam a few weeks before the biggest fight of his career detected a saccular brain aneurysm. Suddenly, Agbeko was removed from a fight against heavily hyped Cuban southpaw David Morrell Jr. on the Showtime Pay-Per-View portion of the Gervonta Davis-Ryan Garcia undercard April 22 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Without the accompanying six-figure payday, the Ghanaian-born Agbeko and his wife couldn’t move from Nashville to Las Vegas, as they had planned. The veteran super middleweight couldn’t fight, either, because the Nevada State Athletic Commission denied his application for a license.
“I was genuinely concerned about my health first,” Agbeko told Boxing Scene. “And I was bummed at the fact that I was missing out on this great opportunity.”
Fearful that his career could end at just 31 years old, Agbeko sought a second opinion in Las Vegas and then a third opinion in Nashville. Both doctors cleared Agbeko to box because they didn’t detect the saccular brain aneurysm that the initial doctor in Las Vegas thought could rupture from trauma.
Once the Nashville-based neurologist sent her findings to the NSAC, Agbeko (28-2, 22 KOs) was granted a license early in May, just a couple weeks after Morrell demolished Agbeko’s late replacement, Brazil’s Yamaguchi Falcao, in the first round.
Seven months later, Agbeko’s shot at Morrell’s WBA secondary super middleweight title has been rescheduled for Saturday night at The Armory in Minneapolis. Their 12-round, 168-pound bout is the main event of a “Showtime Championship Boxing” tripleheader (9 p.m. ET), which will mark the end of the premium cable network’s 37-year run in the sport.
For Agbeko, though, this understandably feels like a new beginning.
“It definitely felt like a vindication, especially after being hit with the brain aneurysm claim,” Agbeko said. “For anybody, that would pretty much mean their career was over. And for me, personally, for my health it was very concerning because that’s a very serious issue. So, to have been cleared of that and to find myself back in this position, it just feels great.
“Initially, I was angry and bitter just because I’ve been through so many emotions. At the time, my wife and I were in the process of moving to Las Vegas, too. So, it just messed up a lot of things for us. Thankfully, everything is back on track and this fight is just coming at the perfect time.”
Even after obtaining his license, Agbeko became disillusioned with boxing. He felt wronged by the abovementioned ordeal and wondered whether he would ever receive an opportunity comparable to challenging a rising star like Morrell (9-0, 8 KOs).
It wasn’t until he traveled to Canada in August to spar against several prospects that Agbeko began regaining his love for boxing. A few weeks later, Agbeko accepted a fight with Argentinean journeyman Bruno Romay (22-12, 19 KOs), whom he stopped in the second round October 14 in Sioux City, Iowa.
“It took me a while to get back to training because it was a very depressing period for me,” Agbeko said. “Like I said, we were in the middle of a move. My wife had to stay in Las Vegas while I came back to Nashville to take care of things. And there were a lot of things I had to take care of. The whole fight thing put us in a financial situation where I had to deal with a lot of other things to make up for money that I had spent getting ready for the fight. So, it really put me in a bad place mentally. And for months, I struggled with a lot.”
Oddsmakers have determined that Agbeko will also struggle with the powerful, skillful Morrell, who has been installed as a 14-1 favorite by DraftKings sportsbook. Agbeko, who upset previously unbeaten prospect Isaiah Steen (16-2, 12 KOs) in October 2022, nevertheless believes he’ll be too much for his 25-year-old opponent.
“I have a lot of respect for him,” Agbeko said. “I have friends who have been to camp with him and have sparred with him. I actually had a Cuban coach back when I was in Ghana in the amateurs. The head coach for the national team was Cuban, so I have a lot of respect just for Cuban boxing and what he represents. He has accomplished a lot very early on and I know that he’s a very sound fighter, technical.
“I do think, though, that they’ve given him a lot too early. And I feel like that’s where my opportunity comes in, where I can capitalize. So, I think he’s a complete fighter. I have a lot of respect for him and I’m preparing for him accordingly. I just think that I’m better than him. I think that he’ll create problems for a lot of fighters, but I just think that, you know, he doesn’t have the tools yet to beat fighters at a certain level.”
By Keith Idec