Ijeoma "The Praise" Egbunine is a multiple championship holder, and a fighter of unparalleled aggression, strength, and technique.  Team Egbunine describes her as aa"a superior athlete with a lion's heart whose shining record is testament to both her profound faith and her terrifying ferocity inside the ring."

Already the holder of 10 medals for field events in her native Nigeria, Ijeoma came to the United States and received a prophecy: her path to glory lay in boxing. Ijeoma accepted this unusual revelation by taking her pastor as her manager, and dedicated herself both physically and spiritually to success in her new calling. She stormed the fight scene in 2004 with righteous fury, rampaging through the amateurs in a crusade of brutal victories, beginning with winning the Southern Regional Championship and continuing through taking First Place in both the 2004 Georgia Games and the Ringside World Tournament in Kansas City, the latter with a spectacular second-round knockout.

After defeating Katie Thorton, the #1 US Amateur, "The Praise" went pro. She made her professional debut on Dec 3rd 2004, still within a year of having entered the sport, and began by routing the until-then undefeated women's #4 ranked Janaya Davis. On Feb 18th, 2005, they rematched at Atlanta's Earthlink Live, and "The Praise" knocked Davis out in the second round.

It was after this that Ijeoma suffered her only "defeat," a dubious hometown decision in West Virginia that taught her an ugly but important lesson: Never leave it up to the judges. Ijeoma has won every fight since, earning a professional record that stands at twelve victories, nine of them by knockout, including a 2 minute 34 second demolition of Valerie "The Wolfe" Mahfood to win the WIBF Light-Heavy World Championship.

Who can take on Ijeoma? Who will be brave enough to step into the ring with this fearsome phenomenon of strength, technique and savage attack known as "The Praise?" Is every belt holder in light-heavy or super-middleweight afraid? Who will be the next to fall at Ijeoma's hands? Ann Wolfe? Laila Ali? Natasha Ragosina? Gwendolyn O'Neil? Leatitia Robinson?  "The Praise" stands eager to remove every doubt: She is indeed the world's champion, a warrior of faith.

Ijeoma "The Praise" Egbunine, born 1980, 5'11", 169 lbs, is ranked #1 by WBAN and #1 Contender by Boxrec.com in Light-Heavy. She holds the WBE Light Heavyweight World Championship and the WBE Super Middleweight World Championship  She trains at Team Praise Boxing Gym, is managed by the Rev. Henry Okafor, and is trained by Coach Portilla Jesus and Melvin Wynn.