By Scott Gilfoid: WBA super middleweight champion Andre Ward could be finding himself facing IBF super middleweight champion Lucian Bute in a huge unification bout in the near future after Ward wins the Super Six tournament. Ken Hershman, the Executive Vice President and General Manager of Showtime Sports, just signed Bute to a multi-fight contract with the network and one of the first things that Hershman wants to do is match Bute up with the Super Six tourney winner.
And as most people already know by now, it’s looking like it’s going to be Ward that wins the Super Six tourney and finds himself across from Bute in a huge money fight next year.
Hershman says “And now we have the opportunity with Lucian to take him and put him in with the winner of the Super Six for what would be the greatest fight in super middleweight history.”
I agree with Hershman up to a point. I think this will be the biggest fight in the history of the super middleweight division, but it’s really not that big of a deal. Bute is limited and has faced mostly mediocre opposition during his career. He should have been ruled knocked out in the 12th round two years ago in his fight with Librado Andrade, but escaped when the referee working the fight gave him extra time to get up after being knocked out and badly hurt by Andrade in the 12th.
Bute has continued to win, but he looks more stationary than he used to be, and with his weak chin and questionable stamina, I can’t see him as even a competitive fight with Ward. I actually see Carl Froch and Arthur Abraham as being more interesting match-ups for Ward than Bute.
At least Froch and Abraham can punch. Bute can throw a good uppercut, but that’s the extent of it. He has no overhand right and his left hook is nothing. Ward is going to beat him like no tomorrow and make him look foolish in the process. I think Hershman is late on signing Bute, because I see the Romanian as starting to lose a step, and he’s pretty much overrated as a champion.
I don’t think Bute will be a popular fighter, and can’t see him building a fan base inside the U.S. I know he’s popular in his adopted country of Canada, but he won’t be a star here. His hit and run style is frankly boring, and he’ll get knocked out in his first fight with Ward, if that’s going to be the first fight. Hershman needs to be pouring money down Ward’s throat, not Bute, because Ward is the future mega star for the super middleweight division. I see Bute as just a title holder, someone keeping the IBF belt warm until Ward takes it from him.
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