Clev's WBO potential opponents

New WBO Light Heavyweight Champion Nathan Cleverly said after his triumph on Saturday, “I’ll fight whoever, whatever is out there for me,”.

This is the Top 15 in the WBO. (Excluding Braehmer, who I'm sure will be added this month)

1 Dmitry Sukhotsky (Int-Cont) RUS
2 Braimah Kamoho (WBO Africa) GHA
3 Soulan Pownceby (Asia-Pacific) USA
4 Eduard Gutknecht GER
5 Marcus Vinicius de Oliveira (Latino) BRA
6 Tomas Kovacs (WBO Europe) SOL
7 Zsolt Erdei HUN
8 Kariz Kariuki (Oriental) KEN
9 Chad Dawson NZ
10 Karo Murat GER
11 Aleksy Kuziemski POL
12 Isaac Chilemba MAL
13 Denis Simcic SLO
14 Tony Bellew GB
15 Viacheslav Uzelkov UKR

Chad Dawson is a Kiwi according to the WBO.

I am a fan of Nathan and think he has great potential but Frank Warren will be rubbing his hands with glee at this list of contenders.
I defy anyone on here to know who all these guys are, without help from Boxrec.

Looks like Nathan could have a Calzaghe style reign, if he choses to just stick to the WBO.

To be hoenst would expect Bellew, is gobby enough to sell the fight if he gets it and is also vulnerable and limited enough to not pose too much threat.

Tony Bellew will be next or very soon. Even though he hasnt really done much to deserve a shot at the title. He is a Warren fighter i guess and should be rematching Ovil McKenzie.

These days, talk a bit of trash and get your world title shot.

Yes, not exactly a potential list of Hall of Famers, is it? Presumably, he'll have to defend against Sukhotsky at some point soon, and Braehmer will inevitably have to be silenced as well, assuming he still has his liberty. On this list, Erdei at least has some sort of a name, however marginal, and could be a third credible defence.

That schedule would take about a year to fulfil, and would also give Nathan the extra experience at this level that I think would do him no harm whatever. This time next year or so, he could then go looking for bigger game. Cloud, Dawson, conceivably a Froch who will be rising in weight, or a Hopkins who will be older by another year. With any luck, he will know enough to stand a sporting chance against any of those that I've mentioned by the middle of 2012.

WelshDevilRob wrote:Chad Dawson is a Kiwi according to the WBO.

That's nothing, they have Nathan down as female lightheavy champion...

http://www.wbo-int.com/revised/CHAMPS-WBO.asp

It has to Bellew, especially after the shenanigans at their press conference. Easy sell for Warren, even easier defence for Cleverly. I would expect Cleverly to walk straight through Bellew.

Bellew for what it's worth has done everything according to plan. Get em hooked with a violent outburst at the conference then don't make the weight. If he beats McKenzie which he probably should, a Cleverly fight (along with a nice wee paycheck) in Autumn will be there for him

Clev gets beaten badly by Dawson but I would fancy him against the rst of that list. He needs a couple of easy defences before looking to unify. He is far to raw and would lost a lop-sided decision to Hoppy right now. Pascal would KO him as would Cloud. Clev really needs to tighten up his defence.

Union Cane wrote:

WelshDevilRob wrote:Chad Dawson is a Kiwi according to the WBO.

That's nothing, they have Nathan down as female lightheavy champion...

http://www.wbo-int.com/revised/CHAMPS-WBO.asp

Haha, it should be expected. They did once rank a fighter who was actually deceased.

WelshDevilRob wrote:

Union Cane wrote:

WelshDevilRob wrote:Chad Dawson is a Kiwi according to the WBO.

That's nothing, they have Nathan down as female lightheavy champion...

http://www.wbo-int.com/revised/CHAMPS-WBO.asp

Haha, it should be expected. They did once rank a fighter who was actually deceased.

Not only that, I think they moved him up the rankings.

A mandatory against Sukhotsky and then a voluntary money spinner against Bellew will see Cleverly nicely in to 2012, I reckon. Realising that Cleverly was on a fast track to the WBO title at the back end of last year I did have a look at a few of his likely opponents as champion, and Sukhotsky is nothing special. Likewise, Bellew has a good dig, a huge mouth, but little else.

With regards to Braehmer, who knows? All very up in the air right now. Either way, it's looking like Cleverly is going to have a nice twelve month period where he can grow in to his champion status without really having to extend himself. Erdei is a solid enough performer, Dawson as we know looks tidy but has no cutting edge (but at least gives Cleverly an American platform) but, that aside, there doesn't seem to be anyone of the WBO's ledger to strike fear in to Warren's man. Instead, we have a series of mandatories against (relative) nonames against whom Cleverly can take something like seventy percent of each purse.

Lovely.

Scottrf wrote:

WelshDevilRob wrote:

Union Cane wrote:

WelshDevilRob wrote:Chad Dawson is a Kiwi according to the WBO.

That's nothing, they have Nathan down as female lightheavy champion...

http://www.wbo-int.com/revised/CHAMPS-WBO.asp

Haha, it should be expected. They did once rank a fighter who was actually deceased.

Not only that, I think they moved him up the rankings.

D4 regularly does the same with Manny's potential opponents.

Lumbering_Jack wrote:Clev gets beaten badly by Dawson but I would fancy him against the rst of that list. He needs a couple of easy defences before looking to unify. He is far to raw and would lost a lop-sided decision to Hoppy right now. Pascal would KO him as would Cloud. Clev really needs to tighten up his defence.

Your right, he does. That is why I expect Warren, who for all his faults, is not stupid, will match him carefully for the next few fights. Bellew has been knocking people over at domestic level but is so vulnerable himself, Warren must be looking at him as a routine defence that still holds some interest for the public. At least Bellew will get some bums on seats with his aggressive attitude.

The problem is I see Cleverly as still needing to develop. Other than possibly Erdei, nobody really jumps out from that list as being a kind of gatekeeper fight.

Somebody like Glen Johnson was almost the perfect gatekeeper at lightheavy as he was durable, posed problems and had a bit of name recognition. Hes at SMW now though. Im surprised Diaconu is not in there but he would be another kind of test/development fight.

I know Warren has said they want Hopkins but cant see it happening yet. However the guy has to get old sometime and the danger is if they wait too long then somebody will beat them to it and right now Hopkins is easily the biggest name in the division and the man to beat.

In his last interview, Cleverly was more forthcoming and said he expected a couple of defences of his belt before targetting one of the big names.

Cleverly said he wants the biggest fights so I doubt he'll fight many of them. Although with Frank Warren you really don't know.

Out of the list Chad Dawson and Tony Bellew would be the only fights that boxing fans would wanna see.

The one potential factor we may have overlooked in this is the lack of guys in Warren's stable capable of carrying a PPV on there own. He only has two world champions and Burns is hardly likely to carry a PPV soon. His recent PPV's have either been stacked cards such as the Magnificent Seven or have had the grudge angle like Saturday, also have to think Degale has taken a step back from being able to carry a PPV on the back of Saturday's result.

Given all this it may be a case Warren shows a willingness to rush Cleverly more than he would normally entertain because he will want to create a fighter capable of doing PPV numbers without a massively stacked card and Clev is only likely to do this with someone credible across the ring from him

Perhaps he will go straight in with the WBA champ, Shumenov?

He was due to fight the winner of Shumenov - Braehmer, which was meant to happen in January before Braehmer pulled out.

Liam_Main wrote:Cleverly said he wants the biggest fights so I doubt he'll fight many of them. Although with Frank Warren you really don't know.

Out of the list Chad Dawson and Tony Bellew would be the only fights that boxing fans would wanna see.

To be fair though Liam, Cleverly is bound to say he wants the big fights isn't he? One thing he is isn't lacking is confidence, one thing he is lacking is a defence that is up to world class yet. He really needs to develop more before he is unleashed amongst the upper echelons of the LHW division.

Quotes from Cleverely -

"I'm a big target out there now. I've got the world title and once you've got the world title people are going to start calling you out and want to fight you.

"I'm prepared to take on all comers and I'm ready for the big names. I really want the big names in the division.

"Tavoris Cloud is an appealing name, he's an American name. He's an undefeated fighter and he's got the IBF version of the world title. He'd be a great fight.

"I think I'll end up having one or two defences of the belt and then we can look at one of those big names then."

To me, the last quote shows me his true colours. He makes Fish Eyes look ambitious! He will take the easy fights, hoping that we all keep buying the PPV. His next fight will be against a nobody.

Mind the windows Tino. wrote:

Liam_Main wrote:Cleverly said he wants the biggest fights so I doubt he'll fight many of them. Although with Frank Warren you really don't know.

Out of the list Chad Dawson and Tony Bellew would be the only fights that boxing fans would wanna see.

To be fair though Liam, Cleverly is bound to say he wants the big fights isn't he? One thing he is isn't lacking is confidence, one thing he is lacking is a defence that is up to world class yet. He really needs to develop more before he is unleashed amongst the upper echelons of the LHW division.

Would totally agree with that. Problem is though he doesn't seem to be developing in his last few fights he's made no progress and just trys to take caution to the wind and at times be a bit too cocky in the ring. If he goes against the likes of Hopkins he'll get knocked out.

rowley wrote:The one potential factor we may have overlooked in this is the lack of guys in Warren's stable capable of carrying a PPV on there own. He only has two world champions and Burns is hardly likely to carry a PPV soon. His recent PPV's have either been stacked cards such as the Magnificent Seven or have had the grudge angle like Saturday, also have to think Degale has taken a step back from being able to carry a PPV on the back of Saturday's result.

Given all this it may be a case Warren shows a willingness to rush Cleverly more than he would normally entertain because he will want to create a fighter capable of doing PPV numbers without a massively stacked card and Clev is only likely to do this with someone credible across the ring from him

Really interesting take on it Rowley, but I still feel Warren will be carefull with Cleverly. I think Cleverly has great potential but really fear for him if pitched in too early with the top names. It would be pretty counter-productive for Warren if Cleverly loses having been fast-tracked for PPV purposes.

Liam_Main wrote:

Mind the windows Tino. wrote:

Liam_Main wrote:Cleverly said he wants the biggest fights so I doubt he'll fight many of them. Although with Frank Warren you really don't know.

Out of the list Chad Dawson and Tony Bellew would be the only fights that boxing fans would wanna see.

To be fair though Liam, Cleverly is bound to say he wants the big fights isn't he? One thing he is isn't lacking is confidence, one thing he is lacking is a defence that is up to world class yet. He really needs to develop more before he is unleashed amongst the upper echelons of the LHW division.

Would totally agree with that. Problem is though he doesn't seem to be developing in his last few fights he's made no progress and just trys to take caution to the wind and at times be a bit too cocky in the ring. If he goes against the likes of Hopkins he'll get knocked out.

I agree with that, I was mightily impressed with Hopkins at the weekend and he would, in my opinion, heavily outpoint Cleverly if not stop him. I don't think Warren will looking at that route just yet though.

Cleverly's in one of those awkward divisions where it's tough to look good. There's no names to move down to, no Barrera style names to beat up on and everyone ahead of him is bloody good.

The light-heavy division is so top heavy with talent that if he chooses to face a top-ranked fighter (according to The Ring) he could run into; BHop, Pascal, Cloud, Dawson or Johnson. If he moves down he faces Campilo, Chilemba or Shumenov. I know Shumenov is champ, but hardly a name and potentially risky for a first-defence. Cleverly sounds like he wants to take the world onur , but I'm sure Mr. Warren has other ideas.

Your move, fish eyes.

T'is a tricky one though Tino, obviously throwing him in with Hopkins tomorrow would be stupid by any standards but have to think we will not see five years of Tocker Pudwill's because Sky and Warren will still want him to deliver PPV worthy cards and on the back of Khan's defection and the grumblings from fans for shelling out on domestic fights and farces like Haye Harrison they will both have to come up with something and for Warren the stable is looking a bit bare.

bhb001 wrote:Quotes from Cleverely -

"I'm a big target out there now. I've got the world title and once you've got the world title people are going to start calling you out and want to fight you.

"I'm prepared to take on all comers and I'm ready for the big names. I really want the big names in the division.

"Tavoris Cloud is an appealing name, he's an American name. He's an undefeated fighter and he's got the IBF version of the world title. He'd be a great fight.

"I think I'll end up having one or two defences of the belt and then we can look at one of those big names then."

To me, the last quote shows me his true colours. He makes Fish Eyes look ambitious! He will take the easy fights, hoping that we all keep buying the PPV. His next fight will be against a nobody.

He needs to establish himself as a champion though and be realistic. Right now if he were to face Hopkins the liklihood is he would have to travel to America for something like 20% of the purse to even interest Hopkins in the fight.

Not to mention he probably isnt ready, or at least as well prepared as he could be.

I think hes just being realistic when he says he might need to wait.

I get the impression Cleverly is sincere with wanting to take on the best and will probably have to anyway in order to make the big money. Whether Warren will want to risk him early is another matter. But I cant really blame Warren for wanting to wait either. Just cant see Cleverly having the neccessary experience yet to jump in the deep end. Hopkins would massacre him based on the last couple of outings for both fighters.

Mind the windows Tino. wrote:

Liam_Main wrote:

Mind the windows Tino. wrote:

Liam_Main wrote:Cleverly said he wants the biggest fights so I doubt he'll fight many of them. Although with Frank Warren you really don't know.

Out of the list Chad Dawson and Tony Bellew would be the only fights that boxing fans would wanna see.

To be fair though Liam, Cleverly is bound to say he wants the big fights isn't he? One thing he is isn't lacking is confidence, one thing he is lacking is a defence that is up to world class yet. He really needs to develop more before he is unleashed amongst the upper echelons of the LHW division.

Would totally agree with that. Problem is though he doesn't seem to be developing in his last few fights he's made no progress and just trys to take caution to the wind and at times be a bit too cocky in the ring. If he goes against the likes of Hopkins he'll get knocked out.

I agree with that, I was mightily impressed with Hopkins at the weekend and he would, in my opinion, heavily outpoint Cleverly if not stop him. I don't think Warren will looking at that route just yet though.

Cleverly could do with one or two defences too make a name for himself and work on a few of his flaws. If Cleverly went into a big fight I can see it turning out in a big disaster for him.

[quote="manos de piedra
I think hes just being realistic when he says he might need to wait.
[/quote]

Agree with this to a point, but I find it frustrating that he says "bring on all comers, I'll fight anyone" and then in the next sentence "some time in the future". We should know and accept that his next fight will be against a nobody, low risk etc

rowley wrote:T'is a tricky one though Tino, obviously throwing him in with Hopkins tomorrow would be stupid by any standards but have to think we will not see five years of Tocker Pudwill's because Sky and Warren will still want him to deliver PPV worthy cards and on the back of Khan's defection and the grumblings from fans for shelling out on domestic fights and farces like Haye Harrison they will both have to come up with something and for Warren the stable is looking a bit bare.

Your right, I think Adam Smith and the Sky paymasters are going to looking for value on Warren's cards. Haye v Harrison, the Amir Khan debacle and a 3rd choice oppo for Cleverly have all left a bad taste in the mouth for punters and it is widely known that the promoters are under pressure to deliver quality. I can see Cleverly v Bellew in the autumn with maybe the return of James Degale on the undercard. If he gets Gavin and Saunders on the card as well, I think people will be sufficiently interested to buy Warren some time. Not saying this would be PPV but at least a decent card that should keep Sky happy.

bhb001 wrote:[quote="manos de piedra
I think hes just being realistic when he says he might need to wait.

Agree with this to a point, but I find it frustrating that he says "bring on all comers, I'll fight anyone" and then in the next sentence "some time in the future". We should know and accept that his next fight will be against a nobody, low risk etc[/quote]

I think what he means is that hes willing to face anyone now, but the reality is it probably wont be for a couple of fights at least.

Hopefully it's Clev v Bellew, Cleverly will stop him within 8 rounds imo but Bellew's a great guy and decent fighter so it would sell well. Clev has beat some decent fighters at early stages so the Calzaghe comments are a bit harsh. He has nothing to fear in the likes of Dawson who Pascal absolutely battered

Steven_89 wrote:Hopefully it's Clev v Bellew, Cleverly will stop him within 8 rounds imo but Bellew's a great guy and decent fighter so it would sell well. Clev has beat some decent fighters at early stages so the Calzaghe comments are a bit harsh. He has nothing to fear in the likes of Dawson who Pascal absolutely battered

I would be very surprised if Bellew reached the second half of the fight. Just simply does not have the chin to last with Cleverly who is pretty accurate. Cleverly is not a one punch KO artist but his power is certainly improving as he develops and I would expect him to dispatch Bellew with little fuss.

I would be very surprised if Bellew reached the second half of the fight. Just simply does not have the chin to last with Cleverly who is pretty accurate. Cleverly is not a one punch KO artist but his power is certainly improving as he develops and I would expect him to dispatch Bellew with little fuss..
...............
It's a decent fight on paper because Cleverly has the power to stop him especially when you look at the way McKenzie floored Bellew twice, but Clev gets tagged so if Bellew caught him it could also be curtains, but i'd back Cleverly in 8.

Steven_89 wrote:Hopefully it's Clev v Bellew, Cleverly will stop him within 8 rounds imo but Bellew's a great guy and decent fighter so it would sell well. Clev has beat some decent fighters at early stages so the Calzaghe comments are a bit harsh. He has nothing to fear in the likes of Dawson who Pascal absolutely battered

If Bellew is a decent fighter then Dawson is an all time great by comparison. Think Dawson would represent a massive step up for Cleverly right now. He might have lost to Pascal, but his wins indicate hes operated on a far higher level to Cleverly, who has yet to even face a genuine world level fighter.

Would think Cleverly would also take a Calzaghe career if he had the chance!

If Bellew is a decent fighter then Dawson is an all time great by comparison. Think Dawson would represent a massive step up for Cleverly right now. He might have lost to Pascal, but his wins indicate hes operated on a far higher level to Cleverly, who has yet to even face a genuine world level fighter.

Agreed with this manos. I think the the key thing is, Bellew is a decent "domestic" fighter and even then, he has looked vulnerable and clueless at times.

I am not sure why Dawson would represent a good fight for Cleverly just yet. Chad knows his way around the ring and has mixed in far better company.

It looks like Dawson is set to face Hopkins next anyhow. ESPN reported that Dawson has a contractual right to face the winner of Hopkins v Pascal.

manos de piedra wrote:

Steven_89 wrote:Hopefully it's Clev v Bellew, Cleverly will stop him within 8 rounds imo but Bellew's a great guy and decent fighter so it would sell well. Clev has beat some decent fighters at early stages so the Calzaghe comments are a bit harsh. He has nothing to fear in the likes of Dawson who Pascal absolutely battered

If Bellew is a decent fighter then Dawson is an all time great by comparison. Think Dawson would represent a massive step up for Cleverly right now. He might have lost to Pascal, but his wins indicate hes operated on a far higher level to Cleverly, who has yet to even face a genuine world level fighter.

Would think Cleverly would also take a Calzaghe career if he had the chance!

Bellew a great guy gotta be kidding me!


Dawsons set to fight Hopkins so a fight with him's out the question. I think Bellew will be next for Cleverly. Also think that Cleverly needs another fight or two before facing the top dogs in the division.

Bellew a great guy gotta be kidding me!
.................
Erm nah i didn't see a laughing smiley, i've met Cleverly when he was an amateur, quality lad. Clev's a favourite but i like Bellew, Cleverly caused that rudey poo at the press conference as well by trying to be a big man saying i'll take you outside, fair play to Bellew for saying no do it now, (Clev) although i like him he sometimes tries to be an idiot like Calzaghe.

met Bellew was meant to say*

Steven_89 wrote:Bellew a great guy gotta be kidding me!
.................
Erm nah i didn't see a laughing smiley, i've met Cleverly when he was an amateur, quality lad. Clev's a favourite but i like Bellew, Cleverly caused that rudey poo at the press conference as well by trying to be a big man saying i'll take you outside, fair play to Bellew for saying no do it now, the prick (Clev) although i like him he sometimes tries to be a tool like Calzaghe.

Cleverly was just trying to get into Bellews head he knows what he's like and how worked up and angry he gets over nothing.

Fellas, can you please save me the trouble of repeatedly editing your posts by cutting out the offensive language ?

Thanks.

HumanWindmill wrote:Fellas, can you please save me the trouble of repeatedly editing your posts by cutting out the offensive language ?

Thanks.

Apologies Windy.

Liam_Main wrote:

HumanWindmill wrote:Fellas, can you please save me the trouble of repeatedly editing your posts by cutting out the offensive language ?

Thanks.

Apologies Windy.

No probs, Liam. Thanks.

good job all your hair fell out years ago Windy

Imperial Ghosty wrote:good job all your hair fell out years ago Windy

Cheeky sod, Ghosty. It's all there, though it's increasingly difficult to find one that isn't silver. Your point is still apt, though, since I definitely blame you lot, as does Mrs Windy.

Might post a Jones vs Tunney thread am sure Coxy will see off your locks in short order Windy

rowley wrote:Might post a Jones vs Tunney thread am sure Coxy will see off your locks in short order Windy

BACK IN YOUR CAGE, GEOFREY ROLEY. WHO LET YOU ON THIS THREAD ?

Don't upset me Windy can easily visit ESB and extend an invite to CEEJ.

rowley wrote:Don't upset me Windy can easily visit ESB and extend an invite to CEEJ.

We'll set STC on him. He'll last about as long as a James Toney diet.

Clev vs Hopkins / Joe vs Roy?

Those guys are only household names in their own homes.