Boxing Thread

[Bris Vegas]

6 minutes ago, sage said:

Re Fury, Wilder was a better fighter then. He's never been a great boxer but had the biggest punch in boxing.

Doesn’t Ngannu hold the tag now as the biggest puncher? It’s hard to know how good Wilder really was when all he was doing was knocking out guys who barely scrape the top 20.

I mean, looking at Wilder’s resume, who is on there that you wouldn’t expect somebody like Dubois, Zhang, Ruiz, Whyte or Parker to beat let alone a genuine top fighter. 

Wilder won his WBC title against Stiverne. I’d expect Hughie Fury to beat Stiverne. 

[Alph]

Credit to Parker too. Game plan was spot on. Took Wilders right hand away from him, tucked the chin, fought small, came up and under using Wilders height against him

Wilder always makes the most basic mistake of going back in straight lines. He only gets away with it because of his size. 

Joshua demolition job. Bullied Wallin. Easy peasy. 

Lol @ Miller. Lollolololol

[Alph]

1 hour ago, Ted McMinn Football Genius said:

Wilder needs to take this as his last big payday, I fear that he is gonna get hurt if he carry’s on.

38 years of age and 2 years out of the ring is a recipe for disaster 

Yeah he sounded like he has one foot in retirement. Not really the sport for out staying your welcome. 

Took defeat too well. Been relaxed in the build up. Not the Wilder we know at all

[JuanFloEvraTheCocu'sNesta]

Add a resurgent AJ to the list of boxers Fury is going to try and duck over the next couple of years.

[BaaLocks]

8 hours ago, Alpha said:

Credit to Parker too. Game plan was spot on. Took Wilders right hand away from him, tucked the chin, fought small, came up and under using Wilders height against him

Wilder always makes the most basic mistake of going back in straight lines. He only gets away with it because of his size. 

Joshua demolition job. Bullied Wallin. Easy peasy. 

Lol @ Miller. Lollolololol

He did, but it was based on knowing that Wilder simply doesn't have the footwork to deal with it. Any competent boxer would work out he was head down and either step to the right and side swipe him or uppercut him coming in. Amazing to see the impact the corners had last night, Andy Lee talked a masterclass between the rounds while Wilder was left deluded that he was somehow in control.

As for AJs next dance partner, Zhang is well placed to be interesting enough but gassy enough to suggest he won't be a twelve round threat. After last night Kabayel might be an option but isn't really a threat. Then he has to hope Usyk beats Fury and Tyson realises the only payday still in town is the AJ fight. If Usyk does as he promises and retire to play football after the Fury fight then that could end up being for the vacant titles. Coz boxing never lets us down does it?

As for Miller - I thought it was beyond comical that they apologized for his language. Anyone tuning in to watch a 300lb guy whack lumps out of his opponent is hardly going to be offended by the occasional f-bomb.

Edited December 24, 2023 by BaaLocks

[Alph]

Yeah they should do Joshua v Zhang. Better than Joshua v Hrgovic which is what it will be. 

Now the Saudis are in it all seems possible but the atmosphere was dead. Was like one of Frank's leisure center shows. 

The constant rimming of a Prince every time anyone spoke was a bit sickly too. A big cheer for Bin Salman was as loud as it got until Joshua came out. 

[Archied]

40 minutes ago, Alpha said:

Yeah they should do Joshua v Zhang. Better than Joshua v Hrgovic which is what it will be. 

Now the Saudis are in it all seems possible but the atmosphere was dead. Was like one of Frank's leisure center shows. 

The constant rimming of a Prince every time anyone spoke was a bit sickly too. A big cheer for Bin Salman was as loud as it got until Joshua came out. 

The problem with the Saudi money takeover to me is absolute top money for far from top match ups , perhaps that sees under motivated fighters turn up , though I agree wilder may be well overrated on a padded out record I think he believed Parker would be a walk in the park and he only needed to turn up to knock him out ,

Edited December 24, 2023 by Archied

[Anag Ram]

£150 million for Timmy Mallett v Christopher Biggins apparently. Two true comedy heavyweights.

Would be no less embarrassing than heavyweight boxing ATM.

 

[BaaLocks]

On 24/12/2023 at 13:30, Alpha said:

The constant rimming of a Prince every time anyone spoke was a bit sickly too. 

Err, I missed that bit of the coverage - thank God....

[Comrade 86]

A rather anticlimactic event I thought. Not without good bits, but ultimately falling short of the hype. Wilder a busted flush who has not improved his skills one iota in all the years he's been fighting. Never seen a supposedly elite fighter telegraph his punches as badly as he does. I don't think his team even bother trying to tell him what to do anymore. He's clearly not listening if they do. As he found out, Parker may not have his power, but he's twice the skills and this was an embarrassing night for the American. Honestly have no idea how you could fancy Wilder to beat AJ, though many won't anymore I guess.

Conversely, AJ seems to have taken a massive step forward and was unrecognisable; great feet, working behind a nasty jab, throwing combos, not just single shots, wasting absolutely nothing. Where the hell did that come from? He barely broke a sweat. The downside is of course, that no one will want to fight him now. This is the fighter we all thought he'd  become and by far his most complete performance to date IMO. Perhaps like Wilder, AJ was too power focussed, and maybe being schooled twice by Usyk convinced him to spend more time on his art and less time throwing iron. The fight I'd now love to see would be the final part of their trilogy. Call me crazy, but I'd punt AJ all day on that form.

AJ aside, few other highlights; Miller getting his yap smashed in was amusing, especially after trying to taunt Dubois when the first bomb landed, inviting him on like a clown. Dubois' reaction? Don't mind if I do pal. Did make me laugh. AJ feckin hates Miller and I'd hoped that fight might get made at some point, but sadly we may not get to see him piece up the chubster now. Shame. 

As for Arthur, well he didn't come to fight. Bivol is a spiteful puncher, not a killer, but Arthur took no risks at all and seemed happy to take a points defeat. As luck would have it, there's another Artur out there, one who is carved from the same Russian granite as Bivol and that is potentially THE fight of the 2024 for me. Artur Beterbiev is to my mind, the scariest mofo in the game, but at 38 years young, can he get shot of Bivol the way he has everyone else he's fought as a pro? He also has to get past Callum Smith first. Please, please, please, get the fight made. Given they're both Russian I can see it happening as both fighters want it. It would be the biggest domestic fight in Russian boxing history and a classic contrast of styles, pure power vs pure technique. Bivol for the win, I reckon. 

Quick nod to Jai Opetaia. His previous fight against Breidis, who had only been beaten before by none other than Oleksander Usyk, marked him out as one to follow. That said, I'd rate Zorro an easier task, so I'm not sure what we learned. Billam-Smith next up apparently. Given how easily Masternak was able to tag the Brit in his last fight, that might not be the best plan for a fighter who remains pretty raw to my eye.

 

 

 

[Anag Ram]

On 24/12/2023 at 13:30, Alpha said:

Yeah they should do Joshua v Zhang. Better than Joshua v Hrgovic which is what it will be. 

Now the Saudis are in it all seems possible but the atmosphere was dead. Was like one of Frank's leisure center shows. 

The constant rimming of a Prince every time anyone spoke was a bit sickly too. A big cheer for Bin Salman was as loud as it got until Joshua came out. 

 

[BaaLocks]

18 hours ago, Comrade 86 said:

Quick nod to Jai Opetaia. Billam-Smith next up apparently.

If that fight gets made it wouldn't go two rounds. Tad unfair on Arthur, I agree he was largely in survival mode but only because he worked out early there was nothing he could do. Bivol was just a class above.

[BaaLocks]

Inoue looked very impressive, at that weight to knock out a pretty tough opponent through their gloves shws the power he carries. Tapales was no slouch but Inoue really is a bit special.

[Alph]

27 minutes ago, BaaLocks said:

Inoue looked very impressive, at that weight to knock out a pretty tough opponent through their gloves shws the power he carries. Tapales was no slouch but Inoue really is a bit special.

Two weight undisputed champion. That's madness. Only size will beat him like Lomachenko. Eventually he'll get paired off with someone too big for a fortune and lose.

[Bris Vegas]

6 hours ago, Alpha said:

Two weight undisputed champion. That's madness. Only size will beat him like Lomachenko. Eventually he'll get paired off with someone too big for a fortune and lose.

Mikey Garcia was similar. Brilliant at his weight, had no competition so just went for the payday vs Spence at 147 when Spence could easily fight at 154. The size and power difference was huge considering Garcia had already moved up from 135 to 140lbs.

[Comrade 86]

Anyone else think AJ vs Ngannou isn't the smartest deal Hearn has ever struck? I can't see the sense of pairing AJ with a guy who punches even harder than Wilder and I'm not sure that boxing has yet worked out that Cameroon clubber really feckin bangs. If AJ moves as sweetly as last time out, then he'll win handsomely, but IMO, if he gets tagged, even once, he goes. 13/2 is stupid value I reckon, so I'm on with the Plastics. No way Ngannou tees off at that price anyway.

 

[Bris Vegas]

2 hours ago, Comrade 86 said:

Anyone else think AJ vs Ngannou isn't the smartest deal Hearn has ever struck? I can't see the sense of pairing AJ with a guy who punches even harder than Wilder and I'm not sure that boxing has yet worked out that Cameroon clubber really feckin bangs. If AJ moves as sweetly as last time out, then he'll win handsomely, but IMO, if he gets tagged, even once, he goes. 13/2 is stupid value I reckon, so I'm on with the Plastics. No way Ngannou tees off at that price anyway.

 

If AJ impressively beats Ngannou then it’s going to reflect pretty badly on Fury, especially if he loses to Usyk or ends up pulling out which many predict he will do. 

[Comrade 86]

2 minutes ago, Bris Vegas said:

If AJ impressively beats Ngannou then it’s going to reflect pretty badly on Fury, especially if he loses to Usyk or ends up pulling out which many predict he will do. 

Agreed, but it's a fight that really worries me from AJ's standpoint. AJ looked born again in his last fight from a technical standpoint, but he'll still have the same chin. Neither Usyk or Fury bang, Ngannou definitely does and he's entitled to improve too, given he's only had the one fight. AJ will hopefully come out and make a mockery of my fears, but to my mind, this has the same vibe as Canelo-Bivol fight to me. Once again, I don't think folk are seeing what they are looking at. Canelo and his camp didn't see that Bivol is a quiet assassin who would beat their guy up badly. I fear that AJ and Hearn just figure Ngannou to be like the ex-MMA fighters who fought Logan Paul, but Ngannou isn't a beat-up MMA vet, punchy and looking for a last payout. He's a feckin apex predator at the top of his game and his game is brutal. 

So for me, AJ most likely winner, yes, I'll concede that, but I'm on Ngannou at a working man's price.

[Day]

So AJ says he’s not interested in a gimmick fight, Ngannou rocks Fury and now he’s a legitimate opponent whilst the pair continue to avoid the fight everyone wants to see…..each other.

I’m sure it will happen eventually out in Saudi when they are 45+ coming out of retirement in an exhibition, when all genuine interest is lost.

[Comrade 86]

Ngannou as low as 3/1 from 13/2! Joshua a best priced 1/4 shot.

The amount of cash piling on the draw option is interesting too 🤔

One thing I did note from the Fury-Ngannou was that Fury got pretty desperate. This shot was absolutely shocking, though Ngannou acted like he'd just been tickled.