“The story of Ike Ibeabuchi is one of the strangest in modern boxing history and Luke G. Williams has told it with great clarity, sensitivity, and skill. President of Pandemonium is crammed with raw and revealing details as Williams draws us into the unsettling world of a man as vulnerable as he was destructive. It is a gripping read.”—Donald McRae, The Guardian Ike “The President” Ibeabuchi had the boxing world at his feet in 1997 after vanquishing David Tua in a battle for the ages in Sacramento. The Nigerian heavyweight’s subsequent descent into a vortex of mental illness and crime and punishment was as shocking as it was tragic. Was Ibeabuchi a vulnerable man exploited by a ruthless sport and a dysfunctional criminal justice system, or was he guilty-as-charged for his deeds and rightly punished? Somewhere amid a colorful cast of characters including Republican politicians, crooked promoters, and demons hiding in air-conditioning units, lies the uncomfortable truth. In President of Pandemonium, Luke G. Williams vividly recreates Ibeabuchi’s life in and out of the ring. Combining exclusive interviews with those who guided his career and observed him closely, as well as firsthand testimony from “The President” himself, this is a story of brilliance destroyed by dark forces, both real and imagined.

Today Bill Richmond is largely unknown to the wider public, but he was one of the most significant sportsmen in history and one of the most prominent celebrities of Georgian times. Born into slavery in Staten Island, Richmond won his freedom as a young boy and carved a new life for himself in England as a cabinet maker and then a renowned prizefighter and trainer. His amazing life encompassed encounters and relationships with some of the most prominent men of the age, including Earl Percy, William Hazlitt, Lord Byron, the Prince Regent and Lord Camelford. His fame was such that he fulfilled an official role at the coronation celebrations of King George IV in 1821. The story of Bill Richmond is an incredible tale of personal advancement, as well as the story of a life informed and influenced by a series of turbulent historical events, including the American War of Independence, the fight for black emancipation and Britain's long-running conflict with Napoleon Bonaparte.