Boxing 2022

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2022 starts off with a decent heavyweight showdown. Luis Ortiz vs ‘Prince’ Charles Martin. Winner may get back into the bigger picture, loser is surely finished.

It looks like with Tyson Fury seeing his professional boxing career winding down (or building up to a crescendo and then an exit) he wants to take the opportunity to have the fight with AJ - and it seems AJ has agreed in principle saying he would be ready for December.  This seems to be Tyson Fury reflecting on his warm up fight and thinking he may as well fight AJ rather than someone he won't get any credit for for beating (and a lot of criticism if he were to be defeated - note Otto Wallin).  Of course I don't know how all this is going to be organised with AJ signed up with a big dazn deal.  It also seems to jeopardize the unification fight with Usyk but Fury definitely needs to be keeping active and needs to fight someone before fighting Usyk - who delayed the unification fight to next year saying he needs to recover from certain injuries and also needs time out with his family.

Well I hope they do get the fight on and as "styles makes fights" this is definitely an intriguing match up.  I would hope Tyson Fury remains with Sugar-Hill.  I wonder if Tyson Fury's team would include a rematch clause if for any reason TF ends up losing to AJ. If the TF - AJ is good or controversial then I am sure there would be an appetite for TF - AJ II and possibly TF - AJ III. I am not sure where that would leave AJ's planned world tour with the DaZn. I am sure Fury is envisaging a win over AJ followed by the unification fight with Usyk.

If we ever get Fury-Joshua I can't help but think it'll be another Brook-Khan or Tyson-Lewis. Happening when there is literally nowhere else to go for either guy, or conversely when one guy has been rendered more or less irrelevant and has to go begging to the other to make it happen, accepting whatever deal they can get and being grateful for it.

Warren was on TalkSport today saying they want a November date now, rather than December. There's no real reason why Joshua couldn't fight three months after Usyk, but as we know these days most big names seem to think that's ridiculous, and we're forced to be grateful if they fight at six-month intervals. Ergo Hearn will say November isn't feasible and likely say that Fury / Warren's offer is a bluff which was made safe in the knowledge that it'd be rejected.

There's also the issue of venue (Millennium Stadium has a busy November schedule and that's the only huge stadium in the UK with the roof to make a November show possible, I believe), and that's assuming it's going to be in the UK at all. Then the usual purse split shenanigans. Would Hearn and DAZN countenance Joshua taking the smaller end of the purse? Would Fury / Warren offer something like 60:40 or really up the ante and start throwing wider disparities around?

Basically, it's not happening. At least not in late 2022. If this fight is made I won't just be surprised, I'd be absolutely astonished.

Good old WBC happy to jump on the gravy train.
There was some murmurings that Wilder vs Helenius would be for the interim WBC title - winner then has to face Ruiz Jr.
But now WBC clarifies that Ruiz vs Ortiz and Wilder vs Helenius are merely 'semifinals'.
Ruiz vs Wilder/Helenius will get a shot at the end of 2023
Never change WBC

The Mike Tyson/Lennox Lewis comparison has been made already and I think it will continue to be said. I am about 50% less interested in it after the Wilder and Usyk turn of events.Pity, really

Well if the fight does happen late this year then they will more or less be in their prime.  Chris was suggesting it is very unlikely to happen this year and won't happen for some time.  I do think Tyson Fury would like to get out of boxing but he loves the hullabaloo and there is still the fight with AJ and the unification fight too that would grab a lot of global attention.  

I don't think AJ has declined - some say he doesn't throw out his punches like before, that he is too hesistant since the Ruiz I fight - but I see it as him more or less reaching his skill level - Usyk is very good and Ruiz was dangerous. The only thing that has really changed with AJ in my opinion is his "mystique" and the zero. It is difficult to know what Tyson Fury's prime is - he went AWOL after beating Klitschko - took time to get back into shape - probably looking his best recently from the second Wilder fight onward.

Mighty gracious of Fury to offer the money fighter a 40% split. This is a non-starter. No one can seriously believe AJ takes 40% from a guy who's had one profitable fight since his comeback, while Sky believe in the AJ brand so much they needed a million buys just to break even for an Usyk fight not even held in Europe?

60-40 is very generous for Joshua, considering he's the challenger coming off two straight defeats and Fury's the unbeaten champion.

Apparently a contract offer has been sent over to get the fight sorted for November in the UK. Like Chris, I'd be astonished if this happens.

It’s worth remembering, they’re talking about fighting in the UK, but the Saudis have been pushing for this fight. If they stump up $150-200m than 40% isn’t equally a bad payday. Especially as Duty says Joshua is coming off consecutive losses.

Fury says two dates have been offered to Joshua:
November 26 - Wembley stadium
December 3 - no fixed venue yet.

If it's December it could end up being in the Principality stadium under the roof.

It seems to me Tyson Fury envisages this as a Best of Britain fight in Britain and in front of a very large British crowd. I don't think he would be nearly as motivated if it were to be held in Saudi Arabia for bigger money.

Fury and Joshua has to be in the UK unless the Saudis are crazy and offer like double the money.

Eddie Hearn claims Joshua has accepted Fury’s offer of 40-60 split.
Hearn suggests December 17 at Cardiff

Cardiff Principality with the roof closed can't be bettered: I do hope it's there.

December 17th might be overshadowed a little in the sports headlines with the World Cup final happening the day after.

Fury said it's the original dates take it or leave it. I can see the excuses starting already

Derbymanc wrote:Fury said it's the original dates take it or leave it. I can see the excuses starting already

I think Fury said on Talk Sport yesterday he has the Principality booked for the 3rd of December.

Rumours abound that Gervonta Davis against Ryan Garcia has been made for December. We might finally get to see a direct confrontation between members of that next generation crop in and around Lightweight.

Personally I'm not all that sold on Garcia so far, but he could well master Davis for long stretches. The question will be what happens if Davis hurts him at any stage. Despite his limitations Davis is a legitimate banger and Garcia has shown a touch of vulnerability on a couple of occasions. Very open down his right side.

Let's hope it gets made, way overdue that these guys start facing off.

Some rumblings that it could still be Fury vs Chisora 3 on December 3.

AJ was never in a month of Sundays going to take a fight where he was offered 40% against Fury. Pretending you've not been able to come to terms in a supposed $200m fight over a two week difference in supposed dates probably works well for both camps

Rumours gathering pace that Benn-Eubank is off, due to Eubank Sr's concerns over the catchweight.

Of course, it would be oh-so fitting for that absolute fraud and waste of space Eubank Jr to renege on this fight....But we'll wait and see.

Joshua has accepted 40% of the pot against Fury, date is still the haggling point

Jeff Navarro wrote:Joshua has accepted 40% of the pot against Fury, date is still the haggling point

December 3 date now agreed.
Fury is entitled to a rematch if Joshua wins - second fight would be 50/50 split
BT Sport PPV/DAZN PPV both will show

88Chris05 wrote:Rumours gathering pace that Benn-Eubank is off, due to Eubank Sr's concerns over the catchweight.

Of course, it would be oh-so fitting for that absolute fraud and waste of space Eubank Jr to renege on this fight....But we'll wait and see.

Very strong words there,I'm surprised!
Been a critic of the guy myself here, but I do think that he wants the fight and it's his dad who is the sticking point.

Amazed it's been agreed and appears to be done in such short time. Interesting date that will coincide with a possible England or Wales knockout game in the World Cup.

Derek Smalls wrote:

88Chris05 wrote:Rumours gathering pace that Benn-Eubank is off, due to Eubank Sr's concerns over the catchweight.

Of course, it would be oh-so fitting for that absolute fraud and waste of space Eubank Jr to renege on this fight....But we'll wait and see.

Very strong words there,I'm surprised!
Been a critic of the guy myself here, but I do think that he wants the fight and it's his dad who is the sticking point.

Jr wanting the fight in the first place is the problem, instead of going for one of the top guys in his own division he's gone for a name (well Nigels) instead.

I was surprised the fight was made in the first place as I assumed Sr would have an issue with the catchweight; a contributing factor to Watson's injury was cutting too much weight in too short a time.

Soul Requiem wrote:

Derek Smalls wrote:

88Chris05 wrote:Rumours gathering pace that Benn-Eubank is off, due to Eubank Sr's concerns over the catchweight.

Of course, it would be oh-so fitting for that absolute fraud and waste of space Eubank Jr to renege on this fight....But we'll wait and see.

Very strong words there,I'm surprised!
Been a critic of the guy myself here, but I do think that he wants the fight and it's his dad who is the sticking point.

Jr wanting the fight in the first place is the problem, instead of going for one of the top guys in his own division he's gone for a name (well Nigels) instead.

I was surprised the fight was made in the first place as I assumed Sr would have an issue with the catchweight; a contributing factor to Watson's injury was cutting too much weight in too short a time.

Watson was a highly skilled operator and Eubank sr was top class also....More dangerous.

I think Eubank sr is concerned but the overriding feeling is Benn is still a novice.....Who has he beat ??....Some blown up Super lightweight that was always ordinary and beat the worst champ in history ??

But if Benn can hang in there the weight drop could hurt later.....Think Eubank does a Starling v Honey though.

Shakur Stevenson missed weight ahead of his fight with Robson Conceicao. Stevenson came in 1.6lbs over the super featherweight limit.
As such he lost his WBO/WBC/Ring titles

Stevenson duly battered Conceicao for an easy points win. Scorecards 117-109 118-108 117-109

Stevenson moves up to lightweight and potential showdown potential Haney.

Shakur Stevenson looks highly skilled and classy but some say he lacks pop in his punches and that may cause him problems when he goes up in weight class. Could have stopped Conceicao if he had stepped up the gas, but maybe slightly drained in trying and failing to make weight.

Hall of Famer Eder Jofre, legendary bantamweight and featherweight champion, dies at 86

https://www.yahoo.com/sports/hall-of-famer-eder-jofre-legendary-bantamweight-and-featherweight-champ-dies-at-86-184738462.html

Eder Jofre, arguably the greatest Brazilian boxer whose skills and punching power helped land him in the International Boxing Hall of Fame, died Sunday in Brazil after a lengthy illness. He was 86.

Jofre, who competed in the 1956 Olympic Games in Helsinki, Finland, is regarded as among the greatest bantamweight champions ever and in 2003 was ranked by The Ring as 85th among the 100 greatest punchers of all time.

He was 72-2-4 with 50 KOs. In one of his draws, on Nov. 5, 1965, against Manny Elias, he won on all three scorecards but since a rule in Brazil mandated that a fighter needed to be leading by at least four points on at least two cards, the bout was ruled a draw.

His only losses were to Fighting Harada in bouts for the WBA and WBC bantamweight titles. Harada won a split decision on May 18, 1965, in Nagoya, Japan. Harada won a unanimous decision by scores of 69-68, 71-68 and 71-69, in the rematch in Tokyo, on May 31, 1966.

The WBC held an amateur tournament Saturday in Brazil named in Jofre's honor. The event featured fighters from Brazil, Uruguay, Ecuador and Mexico. He died several hours following its completion.

"He was a warrior," WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman told Yahoo Sports. "He was a great fighter who competed at a time when the bantamweight division was very important and had so many great fighters. Fighting Harada, Jose Medel. He had so many great fights and he is considered the greatest bantamweight of all time. That era, boxing was so different. They fought 15 rounds and the fighters were so much more active. He was really a great and amazing fighter.

"He was a classic boxer but he had power. His technique was very good and he was aggressive, so he was always fun to watch. He could take a punch, too, and was just tremendous. He was a great boxer and a great guy. This is a big loss."

Jofre retired at 30 years old after the second loss to Harada. He was 47-2-4 at the time. After three years retired, he came back as a featherweight. He reeled off 14 consecutive wins to earn a shot at the WBC featherweight title against Jose Legra in Brasilia, Brazil, on May 5, 1973. Jofre won by majority decision to become the lineal as well as the WBC featherweight champion.

He wasn't himself as a featherweight and was stripped of the title a year later. He never lost another bout before retiring for good in 1976.

He was an alderman for 16 years in Brazil after he retired and made many public appearances. The WBC honored him at its convention in Cancun, Mexico, in 2019.

"He had been battling [illness] hard for many years, but he was always strong and positive and smiling," said Sulaiman,

Jofre was "extremely close" with Sulaiman's father, Jose Sulaiman. Jose Sulaiman was president of the WBC for many years before his son, Mauricio, succeeded him following his death.

"When he was out in the public, he would start sparring people in a funny kind of way and was always happy and loved to be around boxing people and boxing fans," Mauricio Sulaiman said.

Claressa Shields beats Savannah Marshall by unanimous decision to become undisputed middleweight champion. Scorecards 96-94 97-93 97-93. Shields’ superior boxing ability the difference.

Rematch is justified though.

What about a Shields fight against Mayweather. That would get people talking.

Shields deserved to win but she's so boring to watch, she can't punch properly, has zero power and relies on flashy combinations. The talent pool in the upper women's divisions are is sparse.

Deontay Wilder destroyed Robert Helenius in one round to keep his career alive. Wilder improves to 43-2-1 42 KOs. Could be Ruiz next.

Caleb Plant brutally KOd Anthony Dirrell in the 9th round, which should send the latter into retirement. Mediocre fight until Plant separated Dirrell from his senses.

Devin Haney make light work of George Kambosos Jr again. Total mismatch. Hopefully he fights Shakur Stevenson next.

WBC to mandate final eliminator between Deontay Wilder and Andy Ruiz Jr. Winner will get a shot at Fury.

Terence Crawford will defend his WBO welterweight title against Russian slugger David Avanesyan. The bout will take place in Nebraska on December 10.

Think Crawford vs Spence never happens…

Saul Alvarez has undergone wrist surgery and will not fight again until September 2023 - will probably lost two belts at 168lbs as a result.

Also it’s Bivol vs Ramirez this weekend, I can post updates if anyone interested.

Terrible obsession Canelo got with Benavidez

Finally get to see Ramirez in a decent fight. Been waiting forever to see him step up. Very interested by this fight, Bivol a warm favourite but it could be close. Both skillful, could Bivol struggle with Zurdo’s reach? Can’t predict it. Canelo not to keen on fighting Zurdo either so is that an indication that he’s good? They used to spar

Zurdo is absolutely massive, he’d make Alvarez look absolutely tiny if they faced each other. In fact Zurdo makes Bivol look small.
I fancy Bivol to outbox Ramirez.

Jeff Navarro wrote:Saul Alvarez has undergone wrist surgery and will not fight again until September 2023 - will probably lost two belts at 168lbs as a result.

Also it’s Bivol vs Ramirez this weekend, I can post updates if anyone interested.

always post updates if you can Jeff, i miss the days of coming on here and seeing all the results u0p and peoples opinions of the fights.

Ruining the sport Haymon it’s just a sad fact, the fights that aren’t getting made because of this guy, 2m10s: ‘Look I mean Terence Crawford said it all and he’s speaking the truth, there’s nothing to it. I mean the fight wasn’t made for certain reasons and certain people. That’s the bottom line. And you know, as long as those people are around you know, the fans are going to suffer and the the sport is going to suffer’

https://youtu.be/1sGTccDWlbI

David Benavidez vs Caleb Plant is supposedly terms agreed. Date still be finalised. The winner would be mandatory to Canelo Alvarez. Bout is for Benavidez’s interim WBC belt - but if Alvarez opts to fight at 175 then it will be for the full title as Alvarez will be stripped.

Shavkat Rakhimov stopped Zelfa Barrett in the 9th round to win the vacant IBF super featherweight title. Barrett brutally dropped Rakhimov replied with two off his own, the latter closing that show.
Was a great slugfest.
Rakhimov will face former title holder Cordina next.

Chantelle Cameron beats Jessica McCaskill by unanimous decision to become undisputed champion at light welterweight. Cameron made McCaskill look silly at times.
Scorecards: 97-93 96-94 96-94 the last two cards too close.

Ramirez absolutely massive compared to Bivol.

Bivol 1-0. Hand speed for the Russian is superior.

Bivol 2-0. Better footwork and better combinations. Ramirez seemingly unable to impose his size so far.

Ramirez takes the third. Finally landing some decent combinations
2-1 Bivol