By Scott Gilfoid: In a real bizarre move, the World Boxing Association is going to let #11 WBO fringe contender Roy Jones Jr. (62-8, 45 KOs) fight 2nd tier [non-top 15 contender] Enzo Maccarinelli (40-7, 32 KOs) for their vacant WBA “super” cruiserweight title on December 12th at the VTB Ice Palace in Moscow, Russia. The WBA has given Jones Jr. a great chance of winning another world title.
***Update*** Jones Jr. vs. Maccarinelli will NOT be for the WBA cruiserweight title.
The reason this is such a strange move by the WBA would seem to be fairly obvious. First of all, the 35-year-old Maccarinelli isn’t ranked in the top 15 by any of the sanctioning bodies in the cruiserweight division. Maccarinelli was given a title shot last year by WBA “regular” light heavyweight champion Juergen Brahmer and stopped in 5 rounds in April of 2014.
Since then, Maccarinelli has beaten these two over-matched and very obscure fighters in Gyorgy Novak 5-2 and Jiri Svacina 12-16. Boy, they sure do have great records, don’t they? Those aren’t exactly the type of opposition that you look for from a guy that is about to fight for a world title. Further, the WBA “Super” cruiserweight title is supposed to be for the WBA’s very best of the cruiserweight champions.
The WBA “World” cruiserweight champion is supposed to be for the WBA’s second best champion. Currently, Denis Lebedev is the WBA’s “regular” cruiserweight belt holder. As I recall, Lebedev has already knocked out by Jones Jr and Maccarinelli in the past. So why I the heck is the WBA letting two arguably inferior fighters like the 46-year-old Jones Jr and Maccarinelli fight for their WBA “super” cruiserweight title when they’ve already been beaten by Lebedev. That just seems wrong to me. I’m just saying.
“I have my job to do and that’s to knock out [Roy Jones Jr.] and win the world title,” Maccarinelli said via Fight News.
Jones Jr has won his last eight fights against absolutely horrendous opposition. We’re not even talking 2nd tier. Jones Jr has been dipping into the 3rd tier much of the time to keep winning, and it’s just so, so said to see the God awful opposition that Jones Jr is now reduced to fighting in order to keep winning.
When you remember how great Jones was in his prime when he was whipping everybody, and now seeing him fight little known fighters like Watkins, Paul Vasquez, Willie Williams, Hany Atiyo and Courtney Fry.
It’s just really disturbing. But what’s even more troubling is that Jones has been given a fringe ranking by the WBO and is now fighting for the WBA’s top cruiserweight title despite the fact that there are higher ranked fighters that are clearly more deserving than Jones Jr. and Maccarinelli.
Here are the WBA’s top 15 ranking and you tell me who deserves a shot at the WBA “Super” cruiserweight title:
1. Beibut Shumenov
2. Yunier Dorticos
3. Lateef Kayode
4. Dmitry Kudryashov
5. Mirko Larghetti
6. BJ Flores
7. Mateusz Masternak
8. Denton Daley
9. Youri Kalenga
10. Tony Bellew
11. Rakhim Chakhkiev
12. Anthony McCraken
13. Noel Gevor
14. Pedro Rodriguez
15. Isiah Thomas
Why in the heck isn’t Dmitry Kudryashov and Rakhim Chakhkiev getting a shot at the vacant WBA “Super” cruiserweight title? I consider those guys as a lot better than Jones Jr and Maccarinelli. Even Shumenov is better than those two in my estimation.
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