Sharif Rahman Takes His 9-0 Record to Bare Knuckle Boxing

Sharif Rahman is 9-0 as a professional boxer, and he's decided the best way to test that unbeaten record is to take his gloves off. The heavyweight has signed with BKB Bare Knuckle Boxing, trading the padded canvas for the trigon and the sport his family made famous for something a lot more raw.

The name carries weight. His father, Hasim Rahman, authored one of the biggest upsets in heavyweight history when he flattened Lennox Lewis in five rounds in 2001 to claim the WBC and IBF belts. Rahman Sr. closed his career at 50-12, and he holds the rare distinction of being one of the few men to ever beat Lewis — a champion who otherwise avenged every loss he suffered.

Following the Bloodline

Sharif isn't the first Rahman to chase the spotlight. His brother, Hasim Rahman Jr., has logged 17 professional fights and was once lined up to face Jake Paul before that bout fell apart. Paul, for what it's worth, currently sits at 12-2 (7 KO) and is coming off a sixth-round knockout loss to Anthony Joshua — a reminder of how quickly the crossover heavyweight lane can humble a name.

Sharif is betting his skills translate. He said he's carried the family name his entire career without a single defeat, and that bare knuckle strips away the excuses — no gloves, just skill and heart. It's a confident pitch, though nine gloved wins tell you nothing about how a chin holds up when there's four ounces of leather less between it and a fist.

A Growing Roster

He joins a BKB stable that's been stacking recognizable boxing names lately, with Victor Ortiz, JoJo Diaz and Lee Selby all recently signing on. That's a former welterweight world champion in Ortiz, a former featherweight titlist in Diaz, and a former IBF featherweight champ in Selby — proof the promotion is happy to pay for pedigree.

Whether the Rahman surname means as much without gloves is the real question here. The father built a legacy on one perfect right hand. Now the son wants to build his own version of it bare-fisted, and a 9-0 ledger is a decent place to start the argument.