By Gav Duthie: Its arguably taken 20 years but the heavyweight division, the fulcrum of boxing, is something to get excited about again. It has been two decades since the all American showdown between Evander Holyfield and Mike Tyson (Nov 1996) which put Evander at the sports summit.
Heavyweights have always been the torch bearers of boxing and with todays popularity of UFC the resurgence of heavyweights can help boxing immensely. Since the Tyson era the division has been dominated by three people, Lennox Lewis and the Klitschko brothers, Vitaly and Wladimir which has lead to disenchantment with the heavy hitters.
Unlike many I’m a fan of all 3 but in any sport if one person/team dominates for too long it becomes stale. Fans need the unexpected, 50/50 fights, knockout artists, slugfests and rivalries and I think we are at the start of something great. The talent may not be the same as the 90s but the similarities are there.
American champions
It was back in the mid 90s that American heavyweights last dominated. The only Eastern European around was Andrew Golota. It shouldn’t be the case but when you have American champions the popularity increases and the network offers and PPV sales improve. Back then there was Evander Holyfield, Mike Tyson and the talented Southpaw Michael Moorer. Big George Foreman also made an amazing comeback to win a title which Shannon Briggs, who beat Foreman in 1997, is trying to do now. Today we have another slick southpaw champion in Charles Martin and a big favorite in Deontay Wilder.
Worldwide appeal
At the other side of the world there is also significant appeal as Lucas Browne became the first ever Australian heavyweight champion in winning the WBA World heavyweight title of of Ruslan Chagaev. One of the biggest sporting rivalries in Rugby and Cricket is between the Aussies and Kiwi’s (New Zealanders). With Joseph Parker being one of the best prospects around this would be a big clash in that part of the world.
British interest
Back in the mid to late 90s there were a number of British world champions including Lennox Lewis, Frank Bruno, Henry Akinwande and Herbie Hide. Tyson Fury now holds 2 (WBA, WBO) of the 4 man titles and he could be joined by Anthony Joshua next month. David Haye returning has also sparked interest and he could be a prime candidate to face Lucas Browne in the near future.
Big punchers
All the champions at present can punch. The reinvented Tyson Fury is a more defensive fighter but other than that WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder, Lucas Browne and IBF heavyweight champion Charles Martin’s knockouts are all in the 90%.
The beast
Every top era in boxing needs a bad guy, a knockout artist a fighter people are scared to face. Okay this era doesn’t have a Sonny Liston, George Foreman or Mike Tyson but there is one fighter who is starting to build a reputation. Luis ‘The Real King Kong’ Ortiz is starting to spread fear in the division with his knockouts over respectable contenders Bryant Jennings and Tony Thompson.
Unification can happen
When Wladimir Klitschlo owned most of the belts apart from Vitali Klitschko there was no chance for us to see big unification bouts. The rumblings are that the likes of Tyson Fury, Deontay Wilder and Charles Martin all want to fight each other. The worlds governing bodies seem to be working together better for unification bouts so I hope we can see some.
Rivalries
The UK can’t wait to see Fury, David Haye and Anthony Joshua mix it up, America will want to see Wilder v Martin and the Southern Hemisphere Lucas Browne v Joseph Parker. Fights between compatriots always has that little bit of spice between them.
Top 10
1. Tyson Fury
2. Wladimir Klitschko
3. Alexander Povetkin
4. Deontay Wilder
5. Luis Ortiz
6. Kubrat Pulev
7. Charles Martin
8. Lucas Browne
9. Joseph Parker
10. Anthony Joshua
Deontay Wilder winning a world title in January 2015 set the ball rolling, Tyson Fury then blew the division wide open. Hopefully we can continue this trend and bring some excitement to the sports greatest product.
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