By Tom Donelson
Sometimes in boxing, economics trump what boxing needs. Take Antonio Tarver for example. What boxing needs is for Tarver to clean up the light heavyweight division. You have the undefeated WBO champion Zsolt Erdei, IBF champion Clinton Woods, undefeated WBC champion Tomasz Adamek and WBA champion Fabrice Tiozzo. Finally, there is Glen Johnson, who may just be the second best light heavyweight in the division. The point is, there are plenty of potetntial bouts for Tarver in his own division and these are the kind of match ups that can secure Tarver's legacy.
Tarver is supposedly talking with Mike Tyson. The reason is simple. Tarver can make more money taking on Tyson than he could in pursuit of establishing his legacy in the light heavyweight division. At the age of 36, Tarver wants big paydays. Even with advanced age and eroded talent, Tyson is still a major draw when compared to the top fighters in the light heavyweight division. Tarver has two choices. He can fight Tyson and make big money or he can fight one of the other top light heavyweights for one third or even one tenth of fighting Tyson. Will economics trump what boxing needs?
Then there is the case of Jeff Lacy. Lacy has a problem. The one big fight Lacy wants is Joe Calzaghe. Calzaghe is the big dog of the Super Middleweights but his injuries delayed their anticipated match. Here is the dilemma. There are other good Super Middleweights for Lacy to fight. There is WBC champion Markus Beyer and undefeated WBA champion Mikkel Kessler. Undefeated Vitali Tsypko has unfinished business with Lacy, their fight was stopped as a result of an accidental head butt in the second round.
Lacy's dilemma is that he is risking a potential big money fight with Calzaghe, if he fights one of the other top guys. The logical thing would be Lacy to fight the other champions and have a unified champion going up against Calzaghe. By beating Kessler or Beyer, Lacy enhances his own reputation. But these are not big money fights and he may be able to earn as much staying in the States and beating American contenders. One fight that makes sense from an economic point of view is a fight with Tarver. The reason is that beating Tarver helps Lacy’s growing legacy and even if he loses; he still makes some big dollars and doesn’t put his title as risk.
Lacy could risk a major loss by fighting either Kessler or Beyer and not just his title. From a boxing point of view, I want to see Lacy fight the other Super Middleweights before moving up to light heavyweight. I do understand his reluctance. There is big money at risk.
Then there is the Heavyweight division. Don King has a major problem. He has four fighters who are champion but they are charisma challenged or not well known. Hasim Rahman may have a WBC champion but he did not win it in the ring. Rahman has lived off his one big right hand that sent Lennox Lewis to the canvas four years ago but since then, his career has had more downs than up. It is not like boxing fans are looking forward to seeing Rahman fight.
Only a boxing purist like me can enjoy watching the crafty Chris Byrd but I'm in the minority. For most folks, watching Byrd is like watching paint dry and his last fight with DaVarryl Willamson only reinforced that way of thinking. No one likes to watch John Ruiz fight and with good reason. The guy mugs and he hugs.
Ruiz does what he has to do to in order to win, but it is not pretty. The only fighter who has the right style is Lamon Brewster. Brewster is one of those exciting fighters who can pull out victory from the proverbial jaws of defeat. The problem is that very few of us know Brewster and past losses as well as a close call with Kali Meehan has clouded many fans view of him.
The most popular heavyweights at the moment are Wladimir Klitschko and Samuel Peter. And both of these fighters are capable of beating any of the champions. There are no great heavyweights and there are no heavyweights who are big pay-per-view stars. Which brings us to King’s own dilemma. While everyone is hoping for a boxing tournament, King has Ruiz fighting Nicolay Valuev in Germany. (King must feel that the best way to view a Ruiz fight is across the Atlantic and off TV.) Rahman is talking up a fight with James Toney, one of the few heavyweights with charisma. What is not being seen is a heavyweight tournament to see who is the one, true champion.
There is more money in a Toney-Rahman fight than putting together a Rahman-Byrd or a Rahman-Ruiz rematch. Of course the flip side is that as long as there are four champions, no one can truly get traction in the division and give boxing fans something to focus on. What if Brewster was to win a tournament? With his style, he could establish himself as a fighter that fans would flock to. Right now, he is but one champion in a division mired in confusion and mediocrity.
The bottom line is that money is one factor that often keeps potentially great match-ups from happening. When Mayweather fought Gatti, this was the biggest money fight for Mayweather but it was not the one of the best matchups to test his greatness. Mayweather is one of the best young fighters in the game, but greatness is built upon beating other great fighters. And in many cases, money is keeping great fights from being made and great fighters from building their legacy.