“Our Reigning Prince of Pugilistics,” Nnamdi “Hollywood” Moweta, says Ugandan boxer Kassim “The Dream” Ouma “is in the driver’s seat” when it comes to getting another world title shot after his recent victory over American Joey Gilbert in Reno, Nevada.

The 31-year-old Ouma (27-7, 17 KOs), a former child soldier in Uganda, stopped Gilbert in the sixth round in Reno, Nevada, to win the NABA middleweight title.  That’s not one of the big championship belts in prizefighting, but it should boost Ouma’s confidence after some recent losses.  Nnamdi says several of these defeats were close and controversial, especially a 10-round loss by decision to unbeaten American Vanes Martirosyan in Las Vegas in January.

“Kassim the Dream” achieved his dream of being a world champion fighter in 2004, when he beat American Vernon Phillips to capture the IBF junior middleweight title.  He then made a successful first title defense against Ghana’s Kofi Jantuah in 2005, but later that year lost the belt to the Russian Roman Karmazin.

In 2008, an award-winning documentary titled “Kassim the Dream” was released about Ouma’s life.

National Basketball Association clubs are opening their pre-season training camps this week, and the team getting the most attention is the Miami Heat. During the offseason, the Heat acquired all-stars Chris Bosh and LeBron James, who joined Miami’s all-star guard Dwyane Wade on a team that’s attracting interest not just in Florida and the USA, but all over the world.

James Aniebiet, writing from Nigeria on the Sonny Side of Sports Facebook page, says, “I’m eager to see how the trio will set the season on fire.  Could the Heat win something this coming season?”

Well James, I have doubts that the Heat can dethrone Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers.  Bosh and LeBron have never won a NBA title, while Wade won his only championship in 2006.  I have doubts about Bosh, LeBron and Wade sharing the basketball, although D. Wade says, “if ego was going to be a problem, I don’t think all of us would be … playing for the same team.”

This is a team that basketball fans will be watching closely during the upcoming NBA season.  In the words of Miami head coach Erik Spoelstra, “this team was not built to go under the radar.”

The Sonny Side of Sports is backing the USA in its bid to win the hosting rights to either the 2018 or 2022 World Cup.  The USA’s successful hosting of the 1994 World Cup has to work in its favor ahead of the big vote on 2 December by the executive committee of FIFA, world football’s governing body.

More than 3.5 million fans, a record, attended the World Cup here in the USA 16 years ago.  U.S. Soccer Federation president Sunil Gulati, the head of the U.S. World Cup bid committee, has told FIFA that another World Cup in the United States would likely set new records for ticket sales, international visitors and media rights revenues.

Gulati adds that the USA has multiple stadiums that meet FIFA’s requirements for a World Cup final or an opening match, and very few of the candidates can promise that. 

Football experts, though, say a European candidate is likely to win the 2018 World Cup.  England, Russia, and joint bids from Spain and Portugal, and Belgium and the Netherlands, are competing against the USA.  The Americans are expected to have a better chance of winning the 2022 World Cup, when they go up against Australia, Japan, Qatar and South Korea.

To boost their chances, the U.S. World Cup bid committee released the following video this week.  It includes appearances by U.S. women’s soccer star Mia Hamm and former U.S. President Bill Clinton.

Here’s a Sonny Side of Sports salute for Kinshasa-born Blaise Nkufo, the new striker for the Seattle Sounders club in Major League Soccer.  The 35-year-old Nkufo has played professional soccer all over the world, but he surely will have great memories of at least one match here in the United States.  You might say Blaise got off to a blazing start with the Sounders, as he scored his first three MLS goals in a 4-0 victory over the Columbus Crew.

Before coming here to the USA, Nkufo played seven years for the Dutch club Twente, where he was the team’s leading scorer, with 114 goals in 223 appearances.  Blaise has also played for clubs in Qatar, Germany and Switzerland.  Nkufo emigrated to Switzerland with his family when he was a young boy and became a Swiss citizen at age 20.  The tall striker played in all three of Switzerland’s first round matches at this year’s World Cup in South Africa.

In the following YouTube video, Blaise talks about joining the Seattle Sounders.

The Sonny Side of Sports welcomes your feedback. Send me an email at sonny@voanews.com

World Cup football champion Spain is ranked #1 in the FIFA rankings for September. It’s just the latest accomplishment in a golden year of international sporting success for the Spaniards. Earlier this week, in New York, Spanish tennis star Rafael Nadal won his first U.S. Open title to complete a career Grand Slam, i.e., winning all four of the major tournaments.

Also in 2010, Spanish cyclist Alberto Contador won his third Tour de France title, another coup for the country in a yearlong sporting fiesta on the international stage.

One of Spain’s only major sporting disappointments this year was its national team failing to defend its title at the recent world basketball championship tournament in Turkey. The Spaniards lost to Serbia in the quarterfinals.

And, there could be more sporting celebrations to come in Spain. Spanish race car driver Fernando Alonso won the Italian Grand Prix on Sunday, and is in contention for a third Formula One title.

That’s why when it comes to Spain and sporting success in 2010, you simply have to say, “fantastico!”

Who’s the best young basketball player in the world today? I think Kevin Durant has to be mentioned in any debate by hoop fans, especially based on his recent performance at the FIBA World Basketball Championship in Turkey.

Durant, who celebrates his 22nd birthday on 29 September, was sensational during the competition. He scored a USA-record 205 points during the tournament, including a game-high 28 points in the final against host Turkey 12 September. The Americans defeated the Turks, 81-64, for their fourth world title in men’s basketball and first since 1994.

Durant showed his shooting range in the final, making seven 3-pt. field goals. “He’s definitely the whole package,” said Jerry Colangelo, the chairman of Team USA Basketball. “When you mention the name Kevin Durant, you are mentioning one of the top five players in basketball.”

Durant was named the Most Valuable Player at the world championships, and he says it feels really good to bring the gold medal back to the USA.  Last season, the Oklahoma City Thunder star became the youngest player in National Basketball Association history to lead the league in scoring, averaging more than 30 pts. a game.  If Durant can stay healthy, look for him to score a lot more points in the years to come.

You can check out what Kevin Durant had to say after the USA won the gold medal in Istanbul in this video:

The Sonny Side of Sports welcomes your comments and feedback. You can send me email at sonny@voanews.com

Of the six African football teams that qualified for this year’s World Cup in South Africa, five got off to good starts in qualifying matches for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations tournament, which will be co-hosted by Gabon and Equatorial Guinea.  Nigeria, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, World Cup host South Africa and World Cup quarterfinalist Ghana all scored victories.

In the video that follows, you’ll also be able to take a look at FIFA’s new Football for Hope Center in Nairobi, Kenya.  The facility promotes education, exercise and social responsibility through football.  FIFA is planning 20 similar social centers in Africa, as part of the legacy of the first football World Cup held on the continent.

The Sonny Side of Sports welcomes your feedback. You can send me an email at sonny@voanews.com. And you can leave voicemail for me at 1.202.205.9942. When you hear the VOA identification, press 60. A VOA listener in Japan asked me if I use the voicemails during broadcasts of the Sonny Side of Sports. You betcha, sports fans!

Angelo Dundee

I once asked Angelo Dundee, “Hey Angelo, why are you still training fighters? You could have retired years ago.” The Hall of Fame trainer, who celebrated his 89th birthday last week, quickly replied, “Because I’m still gettin’ kicks!”

Dundee has gotten his kicks in boxing for more than 60 years. And, for more than 10 years, Angelo has been entertaining listeners on the Voice of America with his colorful brand of boxing analysis.  Angelo loves the fight game and he loves being in the corner of a boxing ring, and you can hear it in his voice, whenever he tells one of his classic and often funny stories.

Rod Thomas

My friend and colleague Rod Thomas once told me, “You know, Angelo is the kind of guy I’d like sitting next to me at a bar. I could listen to his stories for hours.”

I hope we get to hear a few more stories from Angelo in the years to come. He’s probably my all-time favorite interview here at VOA. Plus, he always returns my phone calls :-).

You can leave voicemail for me at 1.202.205.9942.  When you hear the VOA identification, press 60.  And send me your email feedback at sonny@voanews.com