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The State of The Heavyweight Division

boxingringheaderBy Ian “The Boxing Historian” Murphy

Last weekend’s WBC title fight between Deontay Wilder and Chris Arreola got me thinking about the state of the Heavyweight division and how it all might unfold over the next six months. While not the greatest representation of pugilism ever displayed on television, Wilder/Arreola was a HW title fight on network T.V. This is huge. With the Ultimate Fighting Championship being sold recently, and the popularity of Mixed Martial Arts seemingly on the wane, the time is ripe for boxing to reassert itself as the premier combat sport on television. Despite this upswing in momentum, there are a few things that need to be made clear:

Who Is Legit, Who is Unproven (still?) and Who May be a Hype Job…

Tyson Fury (like it or not) is the Heavyweight Champion. He beat the man who was widely considered the champ in Wladimir Klitschko. Deontay Wilder’s WBC belt doesn’t give him claim to being champion. He is a “titlist” or “belt holder”, and the same goes for Anthony Joshua and his IBF title he won from Charles Martin. WBO, ABC, TGIF, and IHOP belts don’t count, I’m sorry. The man that eventually beats Fury will be the next champion, and that is it. In regards to the quality of the division, it’s not great, but better than it’s been in a little while. Joshua is likely the future of the division, as he has the best physical tools, which is all you need these days as the skill level overall among Heavyweights is pretty low. Luis Ortiz has the best skills, but is in his late 30s. I also don’t see any of the belt holders giving him a shot anytime soon because, you know, “gotta protect that zero”.

I think this might be the only time in history that all the “champions” are undefeated. Wilder is 37-0, 36 KO’s and on paper he seems like a monster. Reality? He’s a long, rangy guy with a heavy right hand and the only opponent he’s faced so far that had any credibility is Bermane Stiverne, who was clearly not well in that fight. In fact, he seemed drugged. It’s actually hilarious that one of our champs has nearly forty fights, and STILL has not been in there with a high quality opponent. Anthony Joshua is 17-0, 17 KO’s, but hasn’t fought anyone, either. He still moves like the Tin Man before Dorothy found his oil can, but he has tight punches and legit power. Fury, 25-0, 18 KO’s is the least impressive physically, but the man knows how to box and is the only belt holder to fight anyone (Klitschko) with any credentials. He is better at underutilized things like proper judge of distance, moving his head, and throwing off timing. None of the other heavies have that, or if they do, it’s not to the degree that Fury does. Luis Ortiz has that great Cuban pedigree, but his age will cost him and if he gets fights with other top guys, it won’t be until he’s too old to beat them. Again, that “zero”. Others in title contention are proven solid contender Alexander Povetkin, New Zealand’s Joseph Parker (another undefeated guy who has 20+fights and hasn’t fought anyone…), and Kubrat Pulev of Bulgaria is still in the mix, having won his last three after being mangled by former champion Klitschko in 2014.

The Near Future…

So what does the future hold? In my opinion, the future lies with Fury and Joshua. Fury is at his peak now, and he likely beats Wladimir Klitschko in their upcoming rematch. I just cannot see Wladimir changing his approach drastically enough to make a difference. Joshua is still green, but is improving fight to fight, even though he’s nowhere near as good as a lot of British fight fans make him out to be. He’s more Frank Bruno than Lennox Lewis… Wilder is out for the rest of the year due to injury and even though he has defended his trampionship four times, still hasn’t fought anyone. Joshua is likely to fight Stiverne next, who is better than anyone else he’s fought to date and that should be a solid test because it anything, Stiverne is a tough guy with a thick beard who won’t wilt under Joshua’s power immediately. Joseph Parker might be in the mix to fight Joshua if the Stiverne fight doesn’t happen. Ortiz? He’s still getting the run around and that’s a shame, because he’s a good fighter who deserves more exposure. The rest? Still pretenders and wannabes in this guys eyes!

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