By Eric Thomas: According to the latest bit of gossip that’s being thrown around the boxing world, rumor has it that Colombian knockout artist Edison Miranda (32-3, 28 KOs) will be mixing it up with 2004 light heavyweight Olympic Gold Medalist for the United States Andre Ward (18-0, 12 KOs). Although this is all just a rumor at this time and nothing has been confirmed as of yet, but this would be huge news for the boxing world if it turns out to be true. Ward, 25, a resident of Oakland, California is highly ranked in the light heavyweight division and is likely to be getting a title shot if not this year then sometime in early 2010.
One of the criticisms that Ward has taken since turning pro is that he’s fought mostly soft opposition and has been slow to step it up against quality opponents. In facing Miranda, one of the hardest punchers in the super middleweight division, Ward would be taking a big risk because Miranda has the kind of one-punch power and can end a fight any moment and time.
Ward is coming off a 12-round decision over Henry Buchanan in February. Beyond that, Ward defeated Esteban Camau, Jerson Ravelo and Ruben Williams in 2008, good wins but not the kind of opponents that Ward needs to be fighting if he wants to improve.
Miranda, now fighting as a light heavyweight, recently defeated Joey Vegas in a 5th round stoppage on March 20th. Miranda reportedly had to lose a significant amount of weight to make the light heavyweight weight limit. The effects of taking off so much weight seemed to decrease Miranda’s punch output significantly, causing him to fight in brief bursts. However, it was still more than enough to take out the limited Vegas. In the 5th round, Miranda caught up to Vegas and blasted him out on the ropes.
In 2007, Miranda suffered a big career setback when he was first stopped by middleweight Kelly Pavlik in a 7th round blowout. Next, when it seemed that Miranda was putting his career back together after two consecutive knockout victories, Miranda was once again knocked out, this time by IBF middleweight champion Arthur Abraham in the 4th round in June 2008.
Since then, Miranda has moved up from the middleweight division, a weight class that Miranda was having an increasingly difficult time to make the 160 pound weight limit and has moved up to the light heavyweight. Miranda has defeated his last two opponents at that weight.
However, if his difficulty in making the 175 pound limit for the Vegas fight is going to be a signal for things to come, it’s unclear what Miranda can do next. At 5’10”, he’d be far too small to mix it up with the better fighters at that weight class, and even though he’s carried a lot of his power up from 160, it would be asking a lot of Miranda’s body to fight between 190-200. Miranda could do it, but his punches wouldn’t be nearly as powerful at that weight compared to what they were at 160.
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