By Scott Gilfoid: Despite being ranked lower than the talented and much more powerful #1 WBC Ilunga Makuba (19-1, 18 KOs), #6 WBC Tony Bellew (26-2-1, 16 KOs) is looking to get their fight to be staged at Goodison Park in Liverpool, UK. In other words, Bellew is looking to get hometown advantage in this fight rather than having the fight take place in a neutral venue or the venue of the higher ranked Makuba’s preference.
Bellew lives in Liverpool. Makuba and Bellew will be fighting for the vacant WBC cruiserweight title in a fight that will likely take place on June 4. This is the WBC title that was stripped recently from champion Grigory Drozd due to him suffering a couple of injuries that prevented him from defending the WBC title against Makuba.
Rather than the WBC just flat out giving Makuba the WBC title, which you can argue that they should have done, they selected Bellew as the guy for Makuba should fight. I wonder what the fighters ranked above Bellew must be thinking right now at seeing him get picked ahead of them.
If you look at the World Boxing Council’s rankings, you’ll notice that these fighters were ranked above Bellew: #2 WBC Olanewaja Durodola, #3 WBC Marco Huck, #4 WBC Mairis Briedis, #5 WBC Oleksandr Usyk. It seems to me that at least one of those guys should be getting the fight against Makuba than Bellew. Don’t you think? I’m just saying.
It’s never good when guys get passed over for a two-time world title challenger failure like Bellew. As far as I can tell, Durodola, Briedis and Usyk have never fought for world titles before during their career. So why in the heck is a two-time world title challenger loser like Bellew getting a shot at another title when he’s already been whipped twice in world title fights by Adonis Stevenson and Nathan Cleverly? It’s just so, so sad.
“Each time I keep surprising myself and now, after the Mateusz Masternak fight, I definitely know I am good enough to be a world champion, 100 per cent,” Bellew said to skysports.com. Fingers crossed, it happens in the home of all homes, which is Goodison Park. There are a few bits and bobs that we have to go over [for the bout to happen at Goodison] but the most important thing is that everybody is fighting in the right direction.”
It’s interesting how Bellew is making a big deal about his win over fringe contender Masternak (36-4, 26 KOs) from last December. Masternak is an average fighter and far from great. Bellew really struggled against him in winning that fight. I mean, it was a really close fight. Look at the scores: 115-112, 115-112 and 115-113.
The way Bellew is talking, you’d think he went out and dominated Masternak rather than just barely beating him. Masternak is the same guy that Drozd stopped in the 11th round in 2013.
Whether Bellew gets the Makuba fight in Liverpool or not isn’t all that important. I don’t think it’s going to help Bellew any. Makuba is a knockout artist and I expect him to do to Bellew the same thing that Stevenson did to him in chopping him down in six rounds.
Makuba is a better puncher than Stevenson, and I can’t see how Bellew is going to be able to hand in there with him for any length of time before he eventually blasts him to eternity. I’m just saying. Makuba is talented and a ferocious knockout artist.
Bellew is just Bellew, an average fighter with chin issues and a frame that is really designed for the light heavyweight division. If you cut the flab off of Bellew’s midsection, he’s just a skinny light heavyweight that is the wrong division. Cleverly was wise enough to get a clue and move back down to 175 once he started struggling at cruiserweight. Bellew hasn’t faced any quality opponents yet for him to realize that he doesn’t belong in the cruiserweight division either.
I expect Makuba to be the one that lets Bellew know once and for all that he doesn’t belong in the cruiserweight division. Bellew can either learn from his likely knockout loss to Makuba by moving back down to 175, or he can stubbornly stick it out at cruiserweight and suffer additional knockout losses once his promoter Eddie Hearn starts putting him back in with solid opposition again.
I hope Bellew does the right thing and let’s the Makuba fight take place wherever Makuba wants it. Bellew has had things pretty much his own way during his career in terms of the venues he’sn fought at, and I think he should bow to his higher ranked contender Makuba and fight where he wants it. I mean, it’s not as if fighting in front of his home fans in Liverpool is going to save Bellew from Makuba’s fists. If he’s good enough to beat Makuba, which I highly doubt, then he’ll be able to beat him anywhere. The thing is if Bellew isn’t good enough to beat Makuba, then I sure as heck don’t think his fans in Liverpool are going to be able to protect him from his big shots unless they stand in front of Bellew to keep him from getting hit.
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