The heavyweight division seems to be brightening up, after years of dereliction owing to lack of quality competition.
In just two weeks time, American Knock out artist, Deontey Wilder(-32-0 (32 KO’s) will challenge Bernade Stivens(-24-1-1 (21KO’s) for the WBC Crown. The unbeaten 6ft 7inch knockout artist has a perfect KO record that makes him an intriguing player in the sports premiere division. Yet, the largely fodder opposition he has faced raises some genuine questions about the quality of the well cut Alabama boxer. Wilder has been brought along very carefully, stepping up truly in class when he faced and demolished then unbeaten Malik Scott in under one round. Up until then, his best opponent was the much derided 2000 Olympic champion, Audley Harrison, who unsurprisingly folded in 70 seconds.
Nevertheless, the manner in which he has demolished all of his opponents makes him a relatively attractive proposition for speculations that he might be the next best thing since Lewis hung his gloves a decade ago. Stivens, the sitting WBC champion who hails from Canada may indeed crash that party when the pair clash in Las Vegas this month. Stopped only once by Dimetric King, the recently crowned champion who has a large KO ratio himself against better opposition than Wilder is promising to expose Wilder’s flaws and maintain the new popularity he enjoys as champion. He has no doubt been basking in the glory that accompanies being called heavyweight champion of the world and will not want to loose that buzz yet. Boxing fans are yet to discover how Wilder will deal with adversity in the ring when it comes his way.
A victory for Wilder will ignite a renewed surge of interest in the division, though he will have to win a few more notable fights before he can be said to have truly arrived. Already Klitschko is itching for an opportunity to unify the division again. So even if Wilder prevails on the 17th, a subsequent defeat anytime soon will surely crash the party completely. In the meantime, the confident talking Wilder is certainly one to look out for.
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In Britain, Anthony Joshua certainly appears to be the most formidable contender we have. Stopping each of his 10 opponents inside 3 rounds, his popularity has soared in Britain, more especially because of his very modest persona which has an appeal of its own. His opponents were of moderate ability, not just fodder. That said, the comparisons made to the fall of muscular 6’8 David Price who was similarly highly touted in Britain until twice exposed by veteran Tony Thompson, are legitimate. Price was also a humble gentleman, but his huge reputation lay in tatters when after a two round knock out that he called a fluke, he was convincingly stopped again for the second time in five rounds. Those consecutive losses decisively put Price out of the picture of credible contenders for the dominant position Lennox Lewis once held, and he will probably remain out of the picture in the eyes of knowledgeable boxing fans until he fights and beats the likes of Tyson Fury or Anthony Joshua, if the latter is triumphant in his assignment this month against Kevin Johnson. We all remember when Tyson Fury vacated the British title rather than fight David Price, but this does not change the fact that he needs to beat a named opponent before he can come close to regaining anything close to the high hopes British fans once had in him. Alternatively, if he can get a fight against the durable Chisora and blow him out quickly, fans might just start to believe a bit again. There is also the possibility of Price’s team seeking to secure a fight against the colorful David Haye who has announced plans to return to the ring, but such a step may spell more disaster for Price than it would progression. Haye’s speed and striking power makes him a huge risk for any rebuilding fighter, despite the diminishing appeal that has accompanied his inactivity in the ring for the past two years. Haye would most likely send Price to the back of the queue to contemplate how the misguided judgement to face the former WBA champion came about. Haye himself may add to the spice of the potential 2015 rejuvenation of the sport, but after a spell of injury that saw three consecutive fights fall through, we have to wait to see what happens before we count Haye in addition the the trio of Wilder, Joshua, and Fury, who may just change the scene this year.
Of the aforementioned three prospects, Joshua looks the most likely to cause a stir this year if he delivers in style in his first real test. Both Wilder and Fury will likely still have legitimate detractors even if each of them delivers in their next fight, but honest fans and observers will generally be united in singing Joshua’s praises once we see Johnson’s back on the floor. In the meantime, we can’t get too carried away with Joshua’s explosive victories in his opening ten fights, even though we may just be forgiven for doing exactly that if he blows out Johnson quickly, where Fury, Vitali Klitschko, and Chisora failed to do so. Such an outcome will likely lead to a clamor to see Joshua square up against Price or Fury if he brushes Johnson aside convincingly. Price might be nearer the call than Fury. Tyson Fury himself reasonably has his sights on reigning champion, Wladimir Klitschko, after masterfully outclassing Derek Chisora in November and may consider Joshua not to be in his radar until he has had a shot at the longest reigning heavyweight king in recent times. It must be said that Fury’s repeated claims that Klitschko is avoiding him and will not fight him are completely baseless. Until now, Fury has not earned a right to fight Klitschko, so his constant rants in this respect are without any logical foundation. After he beats Christian Hammer on February 28th, we will find out whether he is truly ready for Klitschko or not. Even with Klitschko aging at 39, I suspect Fury needs a bit more quality exposure against the likes of Tony Thompson, Marusz Wach, or Vyachesav Glazkov before he can have a real chance of dethroning the very experienced and efficient Kitschko. Those are fights he would probably win, but only after a real fight that would boost his experience and prepare him better for Klitschko. The trouble is the risk such fights pose in scuppering a bumper pay day against Klitschko, but the Likes of Lennox Lewis, Evander Holyfield and others, took bigger risks than these in priming themselves for the word title. Given the level of brovado often shown by Fury, there is no reason he ought to shy away from those fights.
If he feels ready for Klitschko, he can risk having his reputation torn to shreds for a good pay day, or prepare better against a few taller guys who are world class before going for the main man. He will take the risk and go for a big bite of the cherry. If it pays off, his brash personality alongside his huge size will pump more interest in the division again. Deontey Wilder, Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury, may just solve the puzzle that has eluded the division for a while.
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Image sourced from Ringtv.craveonline.com
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