By Scott Gilfoid: British heavyweight David Price (19-3, 16 KOs) feels his previous top 10 ranking with the International Boxing Federation should be reinstated after his last opponent Erkan Teper tested positive for a banned substance. Price, 33, was knocked out in two rounds by the hard-hitting Teper last July in a failed bid to win the EBU heavyweight title, and Price hasn’t fought since then.
At the time, Price was ranked #5 by the IBF. Price wants his old ranking back so that he can be in the running for a title shot against IBF heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua in late 2016. It’s hard to imagine Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn opting to match him against Price given the way he was blasted out by Teper.
Price will be fighting on the undercard of light heavyweight Tony Bellew’s match against Illunga Makabu on May 29 at the Goodison Park Stadium in Liverpool, UK, However, unless Price beats someone really good in that fight, it’s doubtful he’ll be considered for a fight against Joshua in November. Joshua can make much better money fighting someone like Tyson Fury or one of the other top names in the division than someone like Price.
“As soon as I have a win, I should get placed back in the top 15 of the IBF rankings so that if any opportunities come about in the future, I can be considered. I’ve only lost to a drugs cheat and shouldn’t have the loss on my record,” said Price to skysports.com.
I would be very, very surprised if the IBF puts Price back in the top 10 rankings off a win over scrub opponent on May 29. I think the IBF would give Price a nice ranking if he beats a top talent in the division, but there’s no way on earth that Price is going to take on a live body on May 29, given the fact that he hasn’t fought since last July in his 2nd round knockout loss to Teper.
You can’t ignore how easily Teper destroyed Price in that fight. There was no improvement in Price’s chin or his game from his two earlier knockout losses to Tony Thompson in 2013. Price looked like the same vulnerable fighter that Thompson blasted out with ease in those fights.
I think Price needs to look at a two-year plan if he wants a payday fight against Joshua. Price needs to fight steadily better opposition so that he can get ranked in the top 5, and so that the British boxing public can forget about his three knockout losses. If Price can take some scalps from notable top 15 contenders like Joseph Parker, Carlos Takam and Alexander Povetkin, then I think he would deserve a crack at a world title.
Nevertheless, if all Price is going to do is fight 3rd tier scrubs while asking for a world title shot, then I don’t see it as being worth it for Joshua and Hearn to give him that fight. They would likely be losing a great deal of money by choosing Price to fight over an arguably more popular contender.
If Price can turn things around though by beating Takam, Parker and Povetkin in consecutive fights, then he’d be worth fighting for Joshua. Do I think Price can beat Parker, Povetkin and Takam? Nope! I don’t see that happening, ever. But that’s how things are in life. If you want the big paydays, you’ve got to be able to earn them by setting yourself apart from the rest.
I don’t see Price setting himself apart from the rest if all he’s going to do is beat 3rd tier opposition while calling out Joshua. The guys that Price was fighting before he was blasted out by Erkan Teper last year was underwhelming to say the least. You judge for yourself. What do you think of Price’s four previous opponents before his fight against Teper? Here are they are – Irineu Costa Junior, Yaroslav Zavorotnyi, Ondrej Pala, and Istvan Ruzsinkzky.
“Anthony Joshua is IBF champion of the world looking for a top 15 opponent to fight. I should have been a possibility and that’s a massive opportunity I’ve missed out on at the hands of a drugs cheat. It made me a bit angry,” said Price.
I think Price is going to have to work himself back to the position he was at before getting blasted out by Teper. I don’t think Price deserved to be ranked #5 off of the four wins he had put together against the 3rd tier bunch he had fought. Price needs to see this from Joshua’s standpoint.
If Joshua chooses to throw Price a bone by giving him a world title shot off the back of a Price win over another weak opponent, then what are the chances of a Joshua-Price fight doing good PPV numbers on Sky Box Office? I think the boxing public would see it as a mismatch. Some fans might see the Joshua vs. Price fight as an Audley Harrison type of mismatch, and the fans would probably not be too excited at paying to see it.
Joshua will be defending his IBF title on June 25 against Dominic Breazeale at the O2 Arena in London, UK.