Ringside Report Takes a Closer Look at Adam Kownacki

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By Joshua “City” Brewer

Polish heavyweight Adam Kownacki, 18-0, 14 KO’s, is one of the more promising fighters coming up in the heavyweight division. At 29 years of age he’s seen a drastic rise in popularity over the past couple of years. Fighting out of Brooklyn, NY, there is no shortage of fight fans looking to see a fun heavyweight scrap that is likely to end in knockout, which is typically the case when Kownacki fight. While he didn’t pick up the KO, his most recent fight against former IBF heavyweight champion, Charles Martin, saw each fighter gut it out to a standing ovation worthy 12th round where each had their moments where it looked as though they were going to get a knockdown and ultimately a knockout.

While the 12th round was great, there was no doubt as to whether Kownacki would be the winner. The script being written prior to, during, and after the broadcast was a Kownacki win over Martin would elevate him to top 10 heavyweight status. The thought was that Kownacki would finish Martin, likely early, but that script was re-written. It turns out that the Martin fight was Kownacki’s toughest. For me, now is where a number of questions pop up.

Is Kownacki a top 10 heavyweight? Let’s look at the guys would potential rank ahead of Kownacki, depending on who you ask in no particular order.

Anthony Joshua
Deontay Wilder
Joseph Parker
Dillian Whyte
Tyson Fury
Bryant Jennings
Luis Ortiz
Dominic Breazeale
Jarrell Miller
Alexander Povetkin
Kubrat Pulev

That’s 11. Now, some may rank him over the likes of Jennings, Breazeale, Miller, and even Pulev. It would be interesting to understand why, but I digress.

Another thing, his size and weight. By traditional heavyweight standards at 6’3, Kownacki is a big guy. In this age where massive heavyweights top 6’6, not so much. Now, sometimes it’s not about the size of the dog in the fight, but the size of the fight in the dog. Kownacki has a massive fighting instinct for sure. But, he came into the martin fight at 263 ¼ pounds. His second highest of his professional career in the biggest fight thus far in his professional career. One of the knocks on Jarrell Miller has been his fight weight and it’s something he still needs to address if he expects to really shine at the elite level. Can the same be said of Kownacki? Does weight and the semblance of being out of shape matter for you at heavyweight if you somehow fight you way to the top? Now, I know that physique doesn’t win fights but at 263+ can’t one assume that it isn’t in Kownacki’s best interest?

You know what, maybe I’m looking too deep into this. Maybe his weight doesn’t matter. Maybe he has what it takes to knock out the top guys at heavyweight because it really only takes one punch. Maybe he wants to cash out in the biggest fight possible and call it career from there. I don’t know. As Kownacki’s thoughts/comments were mentioned during the broadcast, it’s not a bodybuilding contest, it’s a fight. That’s ultimately why we watch. With that, may his career be very fruitful.

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