3,425 stories on BoxingScene are published under the Cliff Rold byline.
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Hyperbole is easy to fall into when writing about boxing. It’s not hyperbole to say 2022 is the best year in the history of women’s boxing. Big fights? Check. Crowds? Check. Unifications all over the scale? Check?
Women’s boxing delivered two events in 2022 that had all the ingredients one could ask for. In Katie Taylor-Amanda Serrano, and then this past weekend, fight fans could look forward to fights that had proper but not overlong builds, genuine competitive animosity, and then delivery in the ring.
By Cliff Rold - If you build it, they will come. In the context of women’s boxing, it’s not a reference to ghosts playing out their yesterday’s in an Iowa cornfield. The wide appeal of the women’s game has been inconsistent over the years. There have been individuals who gained acclaim and some pockets of popularity in various parts of the world but the feeling of genuine major fights hasn’t always been there.
Pick It: Claressa Shields vs. Savannah Marshall (Saturday, ESPN+, 2:30 PM EST) - Borrowing from a preview pick of the week gone to postponement a month ago, it’s definitely game on this time at the O2 Arena. It is the biggest women’s doubleheader arguably of all time.
By Cliff Rold - Cliches work because they’re true often enough to feel universal. One in particular comes to mind heading into the outstanding doubleheader at the O2 Arena on Saturday (ESPN+, 2:30 PM EST). Good things come to those who wait. Fans of women’s boxing have waited a long time for a year like 2022. In April, thousands packed Madison Square Garden for the superfight between lightweight champion Katie Taylor and featherweight champion Amanda Serrano. It was arguably the biggest women’s fight of all time.
Few divisions have been as intriguing, for as long, as Jr. middleweight over now more than half a decade. The cast has changed at times but it continues to reload with fun new options. After his thrilling win over Erickson Lubin, Sebastian Fundora was confirmed as a serious contender.
Anyone who wondered if Sebastian Fundora was just a physical oddity got some answers in April. 6’5 Jr. middleweights don’t grow on trees. Give them those dimensions with toughness and ability and fans have something to invest in. Whether Fundora goes on to win the world title or not, and at Jr. middleweight there is only one
By Cliff Rold - When something is so good for so long it’s easy to take for granted. Jr. bantamweight has been in the conversation for best division in boxing for more than half a decade. It doesn’t always come up in current discussions. One can call it shiny new toy syndrome. Lightweight has fresh new stars. Jr. featherweight is having a mid-90s like renaissance. Jr. welterweight is getting hot.
The first half of 2022 was as good a six months as boxing could have asked for. The last three months have been a dramatic slowdown in the pace of the year with hopes for a smashing final quarter.
It’s been a long time since the US had the best heavyweight in the world, more than a generation now. Even falling short of being the best of his time, there’s no denying Deontay Wilder has been a spark for his era, providing the thrill of wondering what will happen when his right hand lands.