Shouldn't Super-Middleweight be one of boxings strongest divisions?

[Sparked_1985]

I know in the divisions short history, it hasn't had wealth of top Americans or elite fighters from around the world.

But.........168 pounds or 12 stone, must surely be the natural fighting weight for an awful lot of fighters, who for whatever reason have been campaigning at Middleweight or even light Heavy.

Just saying, Mr Average is about 6' and he's in shape - 168 pounder? Surely the most natural weight.

I say this because me and my mates ( I dunno why) but we were talking about weight, and we all weigh around the 12 stone (168) mark, we're all your pretty much standard looking guys, in-shape (well kind-off), and in around 6'

So, I'm sure someone has a patently obvious answer, but: why isn't 168 stacked? I know it it decent now, but why not in the past, during Calzaghe's dominance has it been so weak?

[savorduhflavor]

Talent wise, it is. But it's just hard to get the rights made because getting Euro's and American's to fight is always a big obstacle.

Taylor-Froch is a step in the right direction though...

[Sparked_1985]

I refuse to believe, this is a rubbish thread.

[KrisSilver]

Good point. I don't think the division was ever quite as weak as sometimes made out, testament to that is the notion that it's suddenly deep now that loads of guys are fighting for Calzaghe's old belts, there top SMW fights and fighters.

Well they haven't really changed, it's just now a few have shots at being champs, holding it for awhile, possibly even unifying. Joe still canes everyone one of them today.

As for weight, yeah I guess 168 must be a common weight, but then most of them are 180+ walk around weight, some like Kessler and Joe are often more so, and have to really drain to get down to 168.

I think Americans generally haven't had a great run of things at SMW, now bear with me here. Toney lost there eventually and he didn't land some of the bigger fights with top euro's. Jones didn't stick around, Hopkins skipped it entirely. A lot now even are skipping to LHW where possible. A lot of Americans have flown over to the UK and lost, Mitchell, Brewer, Lacy, and others, some of them and others like Johnson and lost. Sometimes shadily.

So I think there might be a slight attitude of why bother, when fights at MW and LHW are much more winnable, convenient, and rewarding financially sometimes.

[Testdead]

168 is a pretty stacked division, lets hope the title holders attempt to unify.

[MANGLER]

There's good fighters there, just not a lotta names.

[Sparked_1985]

Originally Posted by KrisSilver

Good point. I don't think the division was ever quite as weak as sometimes made out, testament to that is the notion that it's suddenly deep now that loads of guys are fighting for Calzaghe's old belts, there top SMW fights and fighters.

Well they haven't really changed, it's just now a few have shots at being champs, holding it for awhile, possibly even unifying. Joe still canes everyone one of them today.

As for weight, yeah I guess 168 must be a common weight, but then most of them are 180+ walk around weight, some like Kessler and Joe are often more so, and have to really drain to get down to 168.

I think Americans generally haven't had a great run of things at SMW, now bear with me here. Toney lost there eventually and he didn't land some of the bigger fights with top euro's. Jones didn't stick around, Hopkins skipped it entirely. A lot now even are skipping to LHW where possible. A lot of Americans have flown over to the UK and lost, Mitchell, Brewer, Lacy, and others, some of them and others like Johnson and lost. Sometimes shadily.

So I think there might be a slight attitude of why bother, when fights at MW and LHW are much more winnable, convenient, and rewarding financially sometimes.

Good point,

I stupidly forgot, nobody fights at their natural weights, lol.

But guys like Pavlik, and Taylor I have no idea how they can weigh-in at 11 and half stone. Even Abraham, the guy is beast.

I mean a bonafide Middleweight is a guy like Gary Lockett - he looked like a borrower compared to Pavlik.

Froch looks too big for 168 too.

[KrisSilver]

Originally Posted by Sparked_1985

Good point,

I stupidly forgot, nobody fights at their natural weights, lol.

But guys like Pavlik, and Taylor I have no idea how they can weigh-in at 11 and half stone. Even Abraham, the guy is beast.

I mean a bonafide Middleweight is a guy like Gary Lockett - he looked like a borrower compared to Pavlik.

Froch looks too big for 168 too.

Yeah, although my feelings of weight variations undermining the weight sectioning of boxing are strong, they've dampered somewhat recently, perhaps in light of Margarcheato lol.

But yeah, some of the guys are just too big. Reading your post reminds me that guys right at the top also shrink a lot, whereas guys not earning as much don't so much, they fight more often and don't cane there bodies as much at that level.

Lockett could probably get down a fair bit further, he did look tiny against a shrunk come blown up huge body of Kelly.

There's a few guys going down to MW right now for eg, people push themselves at that level if they think it's tough at say SMW, but shrinking to MW will significantly improve their chances.

[KostyaTszyu44]

i disagree with 168 being the most common natural fighting weight

its welterweight easily, with all the draining and dieting etc, if the average man trained like a boxer and dieted like they do he'd probably be around the welterweight range

[S A M U R A I]

Isn't the average height for a guy around 5'8" - 5'10"? All except the Netherlands, they're all massive! Average height over there is about 6'0". And that's for newborn babies.

But yeah, everyone boils down, so if you're 12 stone, chances are you'd boil down to middleweight or something. I guess that's why it's called middleweight, it's in the middle, it's average.

I probably don't know what I'm talking about though. So ignore me.

PS: I once did an online test. My body fat is -7.5%. Yes, MINUS 7.5%!