By Jimmy James: WBO middleweight champion Demetrius Andrade has been ordered by the WBO to defend his belt against undefeated boxer Zhanibek Alimkhanuly. This mandatory is a double-edged sword for boxing as Andrade is the most avoided boxer in the past 70 years since the infamous Black Murderers’ Row, and Zhanibek is an unknown boxer with a dangerous projection that promises to remain a force.
The Kazakh’s boxing style could prove to be a nightmare for duckers like Gennady Golovkin, Jermall Charlo, and Jaime Munguia, who are only good at staying far away from difficult challenges.
This is a double edge sword fight for Andrade for two basic reasons: First, if he beats Zhanibek, all casual fans will point out that he was “another bum” and will not give any credit whatsoever to Andrade; if he loses against Zhanibek, casual Canelo Alvarez and Golovkin fans will call Andrade a “bum” saying he lost against an “unknown boxer” to discredit further the known fact he was avoided by Canelo and other middleweights in two weight classes. Canelo, Charlo, Munguia, and Golovkin still won’t fight Andrade, win or lose, regardless of the level of difficulty he faces, they simply will find another excuse to duck.
In fact, if Andrade were to destroy Zhanibek, it would even be harder for him to find any fights in the middleweight division as all other champions would be ‘scared’ to unify his belt. If Zhanibek were to beat Andrade, then the rest of the middleweight division would absolutely not want to unify against him and isolate him into a corner like they’ve done with Demetrius to avoid a loss on their record. If Zhanibek beats Andrade, do you think Munguia, Golovkin, or Charlo would take that fight? You have to be kidding me!
Now the other issue we face in the super middleweight division is just as nasty and grim as the one explained above. Canelo jumps two weight classes to fight a cruiserweight because he ducks Benavidez. Canelo most definitely will soon have to face David Morrell Jr, a dangerous Cuban that even Edgar Berlanga wants no business with in the ring. The more Canelo wants to hold the belts hostage and handpick opponents with sketchy ‘rehydration clauses,’ the more difficult it will become for Benavidez and Morrell to fight him.
No super middleweight wanted to fight Benavidez when he was the WBC champion, and they won’t do it now without belts. That means Benavidez and Morrell Jr are set on a direct collision course to trade leather; two great young talents might end up fighting each other, only to expose the quagmire behind today’s casual fans, who only praise commercial boxers. Morrell Jr vs. Benavidez would be the most dangerous fight in the super middleweight division, and if either one is to lose, no one will give credit to Benavidez or Morrell Jr: I guarantee it!
If Andrade were to beat Zhanibek and went up to super middleweight because no other champion wants to unify, the only two boxers willing to fight him are Benavidez and Morrell Jr. Once again, following the same cycle I had mentioned above, the most avoided boxers would end up fighting each other, while the rest of commercial duckers would be protected from criticism by simply repeating, again and again, they were “bums.” If Benavidez were to beat Morrell jr in a dangerous clash, he wouldn’t get any credit whatsoever, and if he fought Andrade in his own weight class, casual fans would imply “he fought a boxer that moved up in weight that Canelo would have easily beat.” Do you understand the issue? It’s sheer insanity!
Boxing has lost its ways, and common sense doesn’t prevail in the sport anymore among boxing fans. The irony of all this is that the most dangerous boxers are the ones taking the hardest challenges because they end up fighting other avoided boxers, while commercial boxers like Canelo or Golovkin, who are ‘hype jobs’ simply hand-pick their opponents having full approval by the boxing organizations, the promotional side & networks and the not “too bright” casual fans that support their actions.
The real champions nowadays seem to be the ones that are taking risks without worrying about losses. The fake “chumpions” are absolutely worried about losing ‘one fight’ because their own fanbase will abandon them. The champs and the chumps have to coexist in chaos because the boxing fans have sold out to popularity rather than remain loyal to the sport. You should not reward a boxer on the basis of wins and losses; you should reward a boxer on the basis of taking a true risk, unlike what we see with Golvkin, Charlo, Canelo, Munguia and the list goes on. Fighting a boxer worth $100M is not a risk, it is an asset; fighting a boxer worth $1M while your network is $20-100M, is truly a liability for the ducker, but fans support it with open arms!