To Hell With the Official Verdict: Review, Ratings Update
Oct 1, 2013 • 3:16 AM ET
By Cliff Rold
Adonis Stevenson validated his place as the Light Heavyweight Champion of the World on Saturday night. The division was in a position where the winner could have been a man who just lost; instead, Stevenson one-upped the performances of Gabriel Campillo and Bernard Hopkins against Tavoris Cloud.
He outboxed him and beat him up. No one had really seen Cloud hurt before Saturday; his toughness was a big asset. Stevenson hurt him to the head and body, cut him over both eyes, and forced surrender.
That’s a good night in Canada.
It was a bad night in California.
Brian Vera, even after all manner of chicanery about the weight, outhustled and outfought Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. for most of their fight. He won at least six, and probably more like eight rounds. Chavez had spots. Vera had rounds.
The judges scored the spots. They also scored what must have been wish fulfillment to think they saw Chavez win seven (judge Marty Denkin) or eight rounds (judge Gwen Adair) of his own.
It was a joke, the kind boxing fans are stuck with as part of their passion for the sport. The fan base that remains in the US loves boxing despite its inherent silliness. We’ll still live it after this.
But there is no reason to love Chavez.
These results, and the rest of the sports, are reflected in this BoxingScene divisional ratings update.
Ratings Changes
Heavyweight: WBC titlist Vitali Klitschko exits the ratings due to inactivity. Dereck Chisora re-enters the top ten.
Light Heavyweight: Stevenson sits in the champion’s slot with nowhere to go but down and a whole lot of interesting options among his contenders. Cloud slips in the ratings and is a shove away from exiting.
Middleweight: Chavez, who couldn’t even make Super Middleweight, exits the top ten at 160. Vera, who is really a Middleweight, gets credit for what was a win in the ring against a former division titlist and moves up for what should be seen as a career best win streak at the moment.
Jr. Welter/Lightweight: Terrence Crawford, who was originally rated at 140 off his win over Prescott, was pointed out by a reader as wrongly placed given his current state. That is amended here. Crawford enters the top ten at Lightweight and Dierry Jean enters the top ten at 140.
Report Card Picks 2013: 37-22
The full results of note and the total impact on the ratings are a click away.
Cliff Rold is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene, a founding member of the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board, and a member the Yahoo Pound for Pound voting panel, and the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be reached at roldboxing@hotmail.com
