By Eric Baldwin: The World Boxing Association has reportedly ordered a fight between #3 WBA Lucas “Big Daddy” Browne (24-0, 21 KOs) and #5 WBA Shannon “The Cannon” Briggs (60-6-1, 53 KOs) to fight for their ‘regular’ with a deadline at the end of this year on December 31.
The two aging heavyweights must face each other by that time frame if they want to fight for the WBA belt. The 37-year-old Browne was going to be fighting Fres Oquendo, but he still reportedly isn’t ready to fight due to a shoulder problem. Oquendo will get a title shot against the winner of the Briggs vs. Browne fight.
The WBA has another heavyweight title that they’re saving for the fight between IBF heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua and Wladimir Klitschko next year in March.
It would be interesting if Briggs is able to beat Browne, because you’ve got to figure that the 44-year-old Briggs will be the underdog in that fight. Browne only has one win on his resume over a notable opponent and that was against Ruslan Chagaev in a come from behind win. Browne did not look good in that fight.
Briggs, 44, is probably the least likely guy you would imagine would be fighting for a heavyweight title right now, because he’s done precious little to deserve a shot due to the poor opposition he’s been facing in his nine-fight comeback that he started in 2014. Briggs was out of boxing for close to four years from 2010 to 2014. Since making his comeback, Briggs has only fought weak opposition in his nine fights. It’s the same formula that Briggs used to get a title shot against firmer World Boxing Council heavyweight champion Vitali Klitschko in 2010. Briggs fought four fights against 2nd tier opposition to get the fight against Vitali. Before that, Briggs did the same thing to get a title shot against Siarhei LLiakhovich in 2007 in beating four straight easy opponents to get the fight.
Browne hasn’t fought since beating Ruslan Chagaev by a 10th round knockout earlier this year in March. At least with Browne, he rates a fight for the WBA title, but against someone better than Briggs. The guy that Browne should be fighting is former interim WBA heavyweight title Luis “King Kong” Ortiz. That would be a good fight between two big punchers in the division. Ortiz was stripped of his interim WBA title for failing to face Alexander Ustinov like the WBA ordered. Ortiz is now fighting Malik Scott this month. That obviously isn’t the fight that he should have taken if he wanted to keep his interim belt.