Prince Naseem Hamed discusses the reason for his defeat against Barrera: “It was impossible”

Prince Naseem Hamed cited one of the main factors that contributed to his defeat to Marco Antonio Barrera.

The two faced each other in 2001, years after Hamed split from Brendan Ingle, his longtime coach, and teamed up with Emanuel Steward.

With Ingle in his corner, “Naz” won the WBO featherweight world title by dethroning Steve Robinson with a scintillating eighth-round stoppage victory in 1995.

After that, the charismatic showman will make 11 defenses of his belt, including an iconic finish in the fourth round against Kevin Kelleybefore ending his successful relationship with Ingle.

Then, while playing under the tutelage of legendary coach Steward, Hamed made four more successful title defenses before his clash with Barrera.

Due to his breakout success at 126lbs, the Sheffield man emerged as a strong favorite against Barrera who, at the time, had yet to end his rivalries with Manny Pacquiao and Erik Morales.

But despite his underdog status, the Mexican ultimately gave Hamed by far the toughest job of his night, ultimately earning a deserved victory via unanimous decision.

Since then, ‘Naz’, who previously relinquished his WBO title, has insisted his preparation was far from ideal for such an important showdown in Las Vegas.

Talk with Froch on fighting as part of the promotional campaign for the biopic Giant, The British boxing legend revealed his battle with the scales posed the most grueling challenge before fight night.

“It was impossible to prepare [for Barrera]because eight weeks to lose 2.5 stone [35lbs] was practically impossible.

“The first day [of camp]Oscar Suarez, who was my coach [alongside Steward] then he said, “Okay, let’s weigh you.” I had 11 stone [154lbs]and he said to me, ‘Well, we have this nutritionist and you’re going to live on 500 calories a day.’

“From the beginning of training camp until the last day of training camp – going to Vegas – I still didn’t make the weight.

“I was so exhausted and it was dangerous, but I always thought in my heart that there was no way [Barrera] was going to knock me out or arrest me.

“And I always thought, ‘He can’t go 12 rounds without me catching him.’

After his only defeat against Barrara, Hamed would have one more outing, a points victory over Manuel Calvo, before hanging up his gloves in 2002 as a legend of British boxing.