Boxing in 2023

First topic message reminder :

I know boxing has served up very little in the way of quality matchups at the highest level lately, but along with Davis-Garcia in the Spring we do appear to be on the verge of another exciting announcement as Stephen Fulton will reportedly be travelling to Japan to defend his Super-Bantamweight titles against Noaya Inoue.

I mentioned last year that this was one fight I'd love to see Inoue taking. If you believe the figures being bandied about, Fulton will earn around $3 million for this defence, which might explain why he's travelling despite being the defending champion - but good on him! Fair play to Inoue as well for going straight for the (probable on balance) top man at 122 as he looks to conquer yet another weight class having sewn up all the belts at Bantam.

As a career 122-pounder Fulton is probably the biggest guy Inoue will have fought, but he also brings a superb engine to the table along with a good array of shots and the ability to string them together proficiently. He's good on the inside, can work the high-low and shorten the punches and, although he's not a big hitter, he doesn't waste much as he's aggressive with what he does throw.

That said, he gets hit a hell of a lot and isn't that effective at range, which is going to be a huge problem for him here assuming Inoue's power and timing isn't suddenly blunted at Super-Bantam. Fulton was buzzed once or twice against Figueroa and showed he's tough and can take / regroup from a big shot, but taking shots from Figueroa and taking them from Inoue are two very different things.

Still, if they can get this over the line it will be a proper fight between two high-performing and peak world champions to look forward to.

Taylor by KO for my money.

Not a bad fight so far. I've got it two apiece after four rounds, but Lopez's hand speed advantage showed for the first time in that fourth.

Good seventh for Lopez, and Taylor looks a little ragged and tired for me. Lopez seems to have a beat on that right hand. 4-3 Taylor but the momentum possibly with Lopez.

Big ninth for Lopez. I think Taylor was hurt once or twice by the right hands there, and Lopez really does seem to have him figured out now.

Strangely subdued tenth by Lopez. This is still in the balance.

Lopez dominates the eleventh, and suspect Taylor is going to need a stoppage or at least a knockdown or two to win this on the cards. Lopez boxing very well in that round, and is the only guy who looks to have power left in his shots. He might just fancy a go at the stoppage himself in this final round....

Lopez closes it out excellently. Dominant twelfth in which he hurt Taylor a couple of times. I've got this 116-113 to Lopez and could possibly see it a shade wider. He took over in the second half of the fight, and lasted the pace much, much better than Taylor did.

Lopez deservedly gets it by unanimous decision. 117-111 and 115-113 twice.

Excellent performance from Lopez. The Lomachenko win probably went to his head and he's been underwhelming since, but this was a reminder that he is a genuine talent and could go on to very big things.

A rough night for Taylor, who did well to stay upright in the closing stages and was getting flogged a little at times when Lopez opened up. He really struggled in the second half of the fight and unsurprisingly said in his interview just then that he almost certainly won't be fighting at 140 again.

I think even in his best wins on his way to becoming undisputed you saw shortcomings and areas where opponents could consistently have success against him (could argue it actually made his run to undisputed even more impressive as he had to absolutely work his arse off in every fight), and Lopez's extra touch of class here was enough to get him over the line and the difference between him and someone like Postol, Baranchyk or Ramirez. So to that end, no real reason for any major inquest into this loss for Taylor. He's not suddenly been exposed or humiliated as some will claim.

He should really have shipped two losses on the trot now, but hey, when you take chances in your career and look to fight consistently big fights against evenly-matched and dangerous opponents, then guess what? You're going to pick up the odd defeat!

I do wonder about his motivation, though. He's been very inactive in recent years, has had injuries to contend with and by his own admission has enjoyed the trappings of success maybe a little too much as well between fights. He's got good skills, but at 140 he's also relied on being the stronger, more robust man on the inside and being able to manoeuvre his opponent where he wants them, as well as maintaining his conditioning and power better down the stretch. At 147 he might well lose those advantages and in turn lose much of what made him a standout performer at Light-Welter.

I wouldn't be surprised if he inwardly has one eye on retirement, albeit I doubt he'll consider it just yet. He's still a legitimate opponent for the top Welters, just needs to avoid another long layoff now and get himself back in the mix so we can assess how he looks at the new weight.

88Chris05 wrote:... A rough night for Taylor, who did well to stay upright in the closing stages and was getting flogged a little at times when Lopez opened up. He really struggled in the second half of the fight and unsurprisingly said in his interview just then that he almost certainly won't be fighting at 140 again. ...

And it was Lopez who had difficulty making weight at the weigh in suggesting maybe he will be moving up as well.

Why would anyone not want to see Lopez Progress or Lopez Davis (Tank Davis) ?

The real irony is that last night's fight against Lopez was closer than the Catterall fight, goes to show that not being a big name gets you screwed.

Wow I just saw the fight, gotta be honest I thought Lopez was washed after he lost to Kamboses Jr. It was a really good performance by Lopez - and he was rightly given the decision.

Josh Taylor for me personally has regressed or has got reckless. You can't keep blocking punches with your face. And if we are being honest Taylor lost two in a row now.

I personally don't see any need to run it back.

Surprised Taylor was so easy to hit with combinations think he is tight at the weight.....Think he flattered Lopez to be honest who I don't particularly rate.....Who I certainly can't see beating Haney...Davis or Crawford and Spence at 147....

Think it showed personally how much Taylor has rowed back.....Similar to Curry v Honey.

Certainly pick Lomo...Haney and Prograis to beat Lopez.

Think Taylor should retire.....Catterall v Taylor not the same now.

Come on Truss you don’t do that to Taylor unless you’re a very good fighter. You don’t rate his speed for example? You can’t see Lopez knocking Haney tfo?

Herman Jaeger wrote:Come on Truss you don’t do that to Taylor unless you’re a very good fighter. You don’t rate his speed for example? You can’t see Lopez knocking Haney tfo?

I thought Lomo had a bad night against him......He lost to Kambosis who I don't see beating Roger Mayweather let alone Floyd and should have lost to Sandor.....

Taylor either hasn't got it or hasn't got it at 140.......Like I said Curry v Honey.....

Good performance nothing more..

Wasn’t he injured in the Kambosos fight?

He lost to Kambosos because he wasn't good enough on the night, that's it. Anything beyond that is an excuse.

You see you can take a few losses and still be a great fighter

We need to move away from the mindset that you can’t be a great fighter if you take a couple of losses

I don’t think Taylor should retire at all Truss. I think he’s still got plenty to offer the sport and plenty of money to earn

You fight top fighters consistently, one after the other, you’re going to take the odd loss

Seems to be some speculation that Saul Alvarez will face WBC cruiserweight champion Badou Jack…possibly in the Middle East.

Jeff Navarro wrote:Seems to be some speculation that Saul Alvarez will face WBC cruiserweight champion Badou Jack…possibly in the Middle East.

The last I saw he was meant to be fighting the lesser Charlo brother. I can't blame him for going for Badou Jack, cynical perhaps but you can't turn down the chance of an easy world title in another weight class.

Just a complete scam boxing these days. The sooner Canelo retires the better

Soul Requiem wrote:

Jeff Navarro wrote:Seems to be some speculation that Saul Alvarez will face WBC cruiserweight champion Badou Jack…possibly in the Middle East.

The last I saw he was meant to be fighting the lesser Charlo brother. I can't blame him for going for Badou Jack, cynical perhaps but you can't turn down the chance of an easy world title in another weight class.

I didn't even know Jack was still fighting, let alone him holding a legitimate title.
I guess any fight with Charlo would be on PBC but a fight Jack would be on DAZN.

Herman Jaeger wrote:Just a complete scam boxing these days. The sooner Canelo retires the better

I mean Jack isn't a bum by any stretch of the imagination.
And Benavidez already signed to fight Morrell Jr.

No one can ever accuse David of hanging around for a payday, that’s a great fight with Morrell

Jack’s a good fighter but shopworn, so Jack is a bigger challenge than Benavidez is that what you’re really saying?

So Jack is the fight we all want to see?

Herman Jaeger wrote:No one can ever accuse David of hanging around for a payday, that’s a great fight with Morrell

Jack’s a good fighter but shopworn, so Jack is a bigger challenge than Benavidez is that what you’re really saying?

So Jack is the fight we all want to see?

No most definitely not, but we have to assume Benavidez will honour the fight with Morrell Jr. If he does, then he can't fight Alvarez.

Too easy to avoid fighters in the four belt era, killing the excitement for the fans. Sport needs an overhaul. Absolute disgrace he’s not fighting Benavidez

Did any of you guys catch Derevyanchenko against Munguia at the weekend?

Has a decent shout to be the Fight of the Year for 2023 up to this point - a very exciting scrap with some great action, loads of ebb and flow and moments of high quality as well.

Once again, though, Derevyanchenko just can't catch a break. I had him nicking this, and while it was too close to call it a robbery of any kind (let's not forget, he was down and in trouble in the twelfth) I can't shake the feeling that he was a shade unfortunate not to at least get a share of the spoils. In general he was landing the more hurtful and effective blows, won more rounds 'big' than Munguia did and could have had a 10-8 himself in the fifth (I didn't give him a two point margin for that, but I wouldn't argue too strenuously with anyone who did).

He's been just a very small handful of key rounds (or the odd knockdown) away from potentially getting results against any of Jacobs, Golovkin and Munguia (I didn't think the Charlo fight was all that close, albeit he still competed very well in it). Instead his record on paper makes him look like nothing more than a Euro-level divisional gatekeeper or high class journeyman.

It's a shame, because despite his limitations he does do some great and very classy stuff in there and doesn't produce too many stinkers. Definitely one of the best fighters of recent times not to have held a world title of any sort.

Herman Jaeger wrote:Too easy to avoid fighters in the four belt era, killing the excitement for the fans. Sport needs an overhaul. Absolute disgrace he’s not fighting Benavidez

It was possible in the undisputed era..Look at Duff......

Honeyghan fought Bumphus, Blocker, Hatcher and Vaca, Chung as champion........Gave up a belt to avoid Breland and Starling and Brown the two other top welters never got a look in......

Mugabi got a gift shot at Hagler despite never fighting at 160.....Shuler was number 1 in WBC and WBA and Hearns was number 2 after a superfight..

Hagler himself had to wait a few years..

Politics..

A thing called KSI wants to fight Mayweather.......Fury wants to fight two guys in the same night I have never heard of..

When will this sport destroying garbage that started with the odious Mcgregor fighting Floyd end ??

Silly old Hagler instead of fighting Hearns he should have fought Jean Claude Van damme over 15 at Caesars....They could have thrown over a table at the press conference..

Saul Alvarez announced his next fight is on PBC PPV. Opponent not named yet, but it seems like WBC middleweight title holder Jermall Charlo will get the fight.
Charlo hasn’t fought in two years and gets a shot at the undisputed super middleweight championship…

TRUSSMAN66 wrote:A thing called KSI wants to fight Mayweather.......Fury wants to fight two guys in the same night I have never heard of..

When will this sport destroying garbage that started with the odious Mcgregor fighting Floyd end ??

Silly old Hagler instead of fighting Hearns he should have fought Jean Claude Van damme over 15 at Caesars....They could have thrown over a table at the press conference..

When they stop making money off it.

I hate it as much as you, but it's less risk for more money for them.

Derbymanc wrote:

TRUSSMAN66 wrote:A thing called KSI wants to fight Mayweather.......Fury wants to fight two guys in the same night I have never heard of..

When will this sport destroying garbage that started with the odious Mcgregor fighting Floyd end ??

Silly old Hagler instead of fighting Hearns he should have fought Jean Claude Van damme over 15 at Caesars....They could have thrown over a table at the press conference..

When they stop making money off it.

Will they though ??......That ugly looking couple keep getting to Xmas number 1 with appalling records because their followers buy them.......and I bet they haven't got the following some of these Cretins have !!

TRUSSMAN66 wrote:

Derbymanc wrote:

TRUSSMAN66 wrote:A thing called KSI wants to fight Mayweather.......Fury wants to fight two guys in the same night I have never heard of..

When will this sport destroying garbage that started with the odious Mcgregor fighting Floyd end ??

Silly old Hagler instead of fighting Hearns he should have fought Jean Claude Van damme over 15 at Caesars....They could have thrown over a table at the press conference..

When they stop making money off it.

Will they though ??......That ugly looking couple keep getting to Xmas number 1 with appalling records because their followers buy them.......and I bet they haven't got the following some of these Cretins have !!

that's the problem bud and can you fault their opponents, get a few hundred quid against a proper boxer or a few grand for fighting a 'celebrity' and not taking as much damage.

Alas we're stuck with it now along with these exhibitions

Somewhat slipped the under the radar but Naoya Inoue destroyed Stephen Fulton to win the WBC/WBO junior featherweight titles.
The Monster is now a 4 division champion.

Some people were claiming Stephen Fulton was weight drained but these were Fulton's belts in the weight category that Fulton was fighting in.  It was Inoue that was moving up in weight class.

Inoue has to be considered #1 P4P now

Two crackers tonight Thompson v Opetaia and Clarke v Ducár, much better than Canelo and Charlo two guys who avoided Benavidez. Should be Benavidez up there

Of course it was the other Charlo who avoided Benavidez, don’t know what I was thinking. Chev Clarke against Chris Billam-Smith yes great fight, love to see that fight

Alvarez made easy work of Charlo, a lot will be made of the weight but in reality they're the same size. Canelo just too powerful and his chin too strong, meant Charlo was on the backfoot throughout.

Both Charlos are crap. Typical PBC padded record clowns.

Alvarez proclaiming this version of him is unbeatable. Laughable.

Is 88Chris05 healthy and well? He last posted back in July.

This forum is dead

And what about boxing?

It’s evolved into the four belt era where the ticket seller can avoid his mandatories, and the hype job, even after he’s been exposed (Ryan Garcia for example) can still get loads of airtime

Huge loss, Chris

Herman Jaeger wrote:Huge loss, Chris

Yeah, it’s not the same without the resident encyclopaedia.

Oh no someone called KSI and John Fury have been shouting and chucking bottles at eachother.....

Better buy the PPV now.....

After all a substandard pretty boy who couldn't win a British title taking on some guy with a big social media following is guaranteed entertainment of the finest order..

Blessed to be a Boxing fan..

Talksport previewing KSI vs Journeyman Fury.........Honestly really ??

Can we have Katie price calling out Ronnie O'Sullivan next please and put that fight on PPV...

No name Bertie wrote:Is 88Chris05 healthy and well?   He last posted back in July.

Alright, Bertie? I'm still alive and kicking, just about!

88Chris05 wrote:

No name Bertie wrote:Is 88Chris05 healthy and well?   He last posted back in July.

Alright, Bertie? I'm still alive and kicking, just about!

Covvy Pozzy ?There’s a lot of it about so hope everyone is being careful out there. I work at home but only really mix at the gym.There was some coughing and spluttering going on today. Regardless good to have you back Chris !

88Chris05 wrote:

No name Bertie wrote:Is 88Chris05 healthy and well?   He last posted back in July.

Alright, Bertie? I'm still alive and kicking, just about!

Good to hear.  I am an irregular poster but note you and Trussman have been the mainstay of the boxing section in recent times (apologies if I have missed anyone else out) and I always find your posts interesting.   I do know that boxing in general seems to be on the wane following the lockdowns and with the four belt era allowing boxers to avoid each other.

Saw an uploaded Youtube video of Tyrell Biggs in a shop with a crappy t shirt and trackies walking with a stick....Obviously in a bad place...

Really should be some kind of pension scheme for fighters.....He was an Olympic champion and must have made some decent money for Tyson alone.....When you think of garbage like Charles Martin being an alphabet.....Biggs is in the Herol Graham club.

Saddened me to watch it.....Deserves better from life..