12 Big Fights That Need to be Made in 2018 or Early 2019 Part I
[AdSense-A]
By Joshua “City” Brewer
Boxing is on the high note here in 2018. We’ve gone through one of the better years, in years! The buck doesn’t stop here and as we are essentially halfway through 2018, there are a number of great fights lined up for the remainder of the calendar year. Us boxing fans simply can’t get enough. With that, I was looking at chatter and thinking, contemplating, and put together a list of 12 fights that need to happen as soon as possible. As a matter of fact, these 12 fights can and hopefully will happen before the end of 2018, or at the very least (very) early 2019.
You won’t find what I consider to be the three biggest fights in boxing, Deontay Wilder Vs Anthony Joshua, Gennady Golovkin Vs Canelo Alvarez, Errol Spence, JR. Vs Terence Crawford, for obvious reasons. As we all know, things don’t always go as planned in the sport of boxing, literally and figuratively. Of the 12, I’m sure we’d (I’d) be happy if half (6) materialized. Given such, this is being broken into two parts. Fights 1-6 are the ‘half’ that I think are the best available, and realistically possible, of the 12. The stakes will be high and with that, let’s jump into with fights 7-12 in ascending order.
12. Joe “Juggernaut” Joyce, 5-0, 5 KO’s Vs Daniel “Dynamite” Dubois, 8-0, 8 KO’s
This is here more for my own preference just because I think it would be interesting How about we go ahead and see who’s more promising at the current moment? They have around the same level of pro experience. Daniel Dubois is taking on veterans Kevin Johnson in his next outing (yea, he’s still around). The heavyweight division has been the glamour division in boxing and, the U.K., has the best heavyweight in the world at the current moment in Anthony Joshua. Dubois has looked promising but would it be like feeding him to a wolf in Joyce? I’m not sure. He’s got to get there at some point. Let’s go ahead and kill two birds with one stone in a sense and see if Dubois is realistically that next guy.
11. Cecelia “First Lady” Breakhus, 34-0, 9 KO’s Vs Katie Taylor 10-0, 5 KO’s
I threw this fight on the list but I know it’s a reach, maybe a big one at that. Braekhus isn’t getting any younger (nor is Taylor). Taylor may not get any better than what she is now, which is better than many. I also know that people will mention that Taylor needs to clean out her division, lightweight, were Delfine Persoon is the Queen-pin. Taylor has gotten a lot of exposure and airtime since she turned pro and the Bray, Ireland, native seems to be interested in pushing towards the top. That said, the only marquee fight from a name recognition perspective would be her taking on Breakhus. Now, Braekhus is two divisions above so that could be a challenge in itself for Taylor as far as moving up to take on the best female fighter in the world. 2019 is an opportunity for her to defy odds and pull off something that would be major for females in boxing. This seems like one with enough name recognition to make for a big fight. Would be cool if it were on the Shields Vs Hammer card though that may be simply well wishing. I favor Braekhus to win, but Taylor would turn a lot of heads were she to take on that challenge soon. This is why we love the sport.
10. Tevin “American Idol” Farmer, 26-4-1, 5 KO’s Vs Gervonta “Tank” Davis, 20-0, 19 KO’s
There’s history here and life has essentially forced their paths to cross. Both want this and Tank confirmed with affliction via social media. Good test for both and a closer fight than some may think. If you look at social media for instance, some give Farmer no shot at defeating Davis. I can certainly understand why as he’s the younger, bigger, and fresher fighter from an overall perspective. If the fight were to take place at 135, it would be tough waters for Farmer. At 130, Farmer has the tools and experience to make it a tough night. Farmer picked up the IBF world super featherweight title in his last fight (he really should have been defending it because I along with many had him winning the Ogawa fight) and has racked up 19 wins since 2012. Farmer doesn’t have much pop, but he can definitely box with Davis. When it’s all said and done, I think Davis may prevail as he has higher upside, but seeing Davis blow up between fights doesn’t look good for his career considering he’s lost a title on the scales once before. Hopefully this contest takes place while the fire is hot, in 2018!
9. Amir “King” Khan, 32-4, 20 KO’s Vs Kell “Special K” Brook, 37-2, 26 KO’s
Khan has and will continue to have his eyes set on the biggest fight possible and has a tune-up coming up in September. Contrary to his thought, a fight with Brook is likely the biggest fight possible and would be a sure success for the two Brits, domestically (well, I guess a fight with Pacquiao could be bigger). Brook now has a title at 154 and regardless of Khan’s thought, I don’t see him getting past the top guys at 147-154. This fight makes the most sense. Khan once traveled up in weight to face Canelo Alvarez, a result that didn’t end well. A fight with Brook would be well received by boxing fans because there seems to be bad blood between the two rivals. At this stage of their careers it seems as though this matchup would be fairly even. This is just essentially a grudge match that while it’s probably four to five years past its due date, still may be a competitive and electric fight given both fighters styles and intangibles. I’ll take Brook for the decision should his face hold up.
8. David Lemieux 39-4, 33 KO’s Vs Jermell “Future of Boxing” Charlo, 27-0, 21 KO’s
I know, David Lemieux recently announced that he’s moving up to 168 pounds. Everyone else in the top 10 at 160 pounds is pretty much tied up. Neither have a fight lined up at the moment from what I could gather. This could be a very interesting fight at 160. Lemieux certainly has pop in his punches and based off of Charlo’s last fight, and general track record, he can bang 160 as well. That said, what better gauge than for these two animals to clash? While Lemieux has the better overall resume as far as fighters faced, it could be argued that Charlo has the better wins, though the majority of his wins were at 154. This has the makings of an exciting fight should both fighters choose to exchange leather in the middle of the ring as their style typically indicates. No better learning experience than facing “GGG” and Billy Joe Saunders if you’re Lemieux, though each of those fights were lopsided loses. Charlo has a no fear, no BS attitude, so he’s going to come in with just as much confidence. I’ll take Charlo via decision.
7. Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez, 38-0, 25 KO’s Vs “Saint” George Groves, 28-3, 20 KO’s| Callum Smith, 24-0, 17 KO’s
The winner of the September 28, 2018, World Boxing Super Series, super middleweight final will be at worst the second best super middleweight In the world (#1 for my money) depending on where you rate Ramirez. In reality, Groves has the best resume of the bunch and it’s not close. Ramirez is the odd man out as far as him being a part of the tournament, but he has been active and is considered to be the top guy at super middleweight by many. This will without a question be Smith’s biggest fight when he faces Groves and a win would automatically catapult him into a higher level of recognition. It will be tough, but not out of the question as he’s the fresher of the two. As far as the ultimate clash that will decide who is number one, that fight may not be one of the more crowd pleasing on the list, but it has major implications for the future of 168 pounds. There are a number of top notch fighters in the lower top 10 who are knocking at the door. I’ll take Groves over Smith, then Ramirez over Groves via decision. My main reasoning behind such is that Groves is battle worn and by the time a fight with Ramirez takes place, who knows what his physical state will be. That said, I’m not writing him off. I think he’s the best at 168, currently. My thought is that this fight will take place in early 2019.
Stay tuned for Part 2 as I go through the 6-1 of the 12 top notch boxing fights that could realistically be made soon.
[si-contact-form form=’1′]