Maloney explains his rationale for matching David Price against 40-year-olds

By Boxing News - 02/11/2013 - Comments

price34By Scott Gilfoid: Frank Maloney, the promoter for unbeaten British and Commonwealth heavyweight champion David Price (15-0, 13 KO’s), came up with a weird rationale for explaining why he keeps matching the soon to be 30-year-old Price against 40-year-old fighters despite the fact that Price is an ex 2008 Olympian and that he should be fighting much, much better opposition at his age.

Maloney said to Steve Bunce at espn.co.uk “They say he’s [Price] facing a 40-year-old. [Tony Thompson]. I’d ask anyone to go in the ratings and find an American heavyweight in the top 10 that’s not 40-years-old. Other than David Price and Tyson Fury, there are no American heavyweight under 40 in the top 10. I’ve been looking through them [the rankings] on a regular basis. Every fight is a gradual step. I’m putting together a jigsaw puzzle for David Price by the end of 2013.“

Maloney says Price needs five more pieces in the jigsaw puzzle before he’s ready for whatever it is Maloney has planned for him. I hope for Price’s sake Maloney isn’t talking in terms of five more fights because he’s really wasting Price’s time having him fight grandpas over and over and over again. It just looks to me like Maloney is having Price wait out the Klitschkos until they retire or get too old to still beat Price. If he puts Price in with the Klitschkos now, he’ll likely get knocked out with the first solid right hand to his fragile chin. But by waiting them out, Maloney increased Price’s chance of becoming a heavyweight champion.

It’s time for the youth movement for Price because when he gets put in with someone that doesn’t need a walker to get around the ring, Price is going to be like a deer in the headlights, like he was when he got whipped by Roberto Cammarelle in the Olynpics, which is the last time Price fought someone that was good. That’s pretty sad that Price has been shielded that long from quality competition.

If Maloney was targeting American heavyweight contenders for Price’s fights, then why didn’t Maloney ask #9 WBA Deontay Wilder (27-0, 27 KO’s) to take the fight with Price? The last time I checked, Wilder is only 27-years-old. Maloney was saying all the American heavyweights are 40-years-old in the top 10.

Well, Wilder is only 27, so why didn’t Maloney ask him? Unbeaten American heavyweight Bryant Jennings (16-0, 8 KO’s) is ranked #3 IBF, and he’s only 28-years-old.

Johnahon Banks (29-1-1, 19 KO’s) is ranked #3 WBC, and he’s only 30. Chris Arreola (35-2, 30 KO’s) is ranked #1 WBC, and he’s only 30. Tony Grano (20-2-1, 16 KO’s) is ranked #6 WBC and he’s only 32.

You see what I mean? Maloney says there is NO American heavyweights ranked in the top 10 under 40-years of age, and I’ve just found five. Why didn’t Maloney look to match Price against any of them when they’re clearly what he’s looking for and they’re not 40?

Maloney has no excuse for putting Price in with 40-year-olds over and over again other than he’s looking to keep Price from getting knocked out again like he was against Cammarelle.

Here are the American heavyweights ranked in the top 10 that are much younger than 40:

Deontay Wilder
Chris Arreola
Johnathon Banks
Bryant Jennings
Tony Grano

Price will be fighting 41-year-old Tony Thompson on February 23rd this money in Liverpool, England. Maloney said he sees Thompson as a 4 on a 5 scale in terms of being a threat to beating Price. Can you believe that? Thompson looked positively feeble in losing to IBF/IBO/WBA/WBO heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko last year in July in a 6th round TKO defeat.

In Price’s last two fights, he’s beaten 45-year-old Matt Skelton and 40-year-old Audley Harrison.

I can only guess which old fighter Maloney drags out for Price after he beats Thompson. Maybe 50-year-old Evander Holyfield?



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