When did the Heavyweight division lose it's appeal??

it could be entertaining, there a great fight to be made with entertaining fighters like vitali klitschko wladimir klitschko Sam peter lamon brewster evander holyfied alexander povetkin and many more

Ali is considered the best heavyweight of all time because he beat everyone in the best division of all time. Even if Wladimir Klitschko somehow beats all the other guys in the division he's in, it doesn't change the fact that it's the worst division ever. If he beats all of them and unifies the belts, then we can start talking like he's a potentially great fighter. If he beats them all with ease, his status as a great can't be denied.

Boxers don't need to be all time greats like Joe Louis for me to respect them, or I wouldn't be able to enjoy the sport! There does need to be some excellent fighters, like there have always been and are now in the heavyweight division. Povetkin and Wlad have been winning in rather "spectacular fashion"- Alexander's last two wins have been 2nd round KO's, Wlad's last three have been one 2nd and two 7th round stoppages. Both have very high KO percentaged, as has Vitali and Chagaev. No boxer has ever won every fight by first round KO - not Holyfield, not Ali, not Lewis nor Holmes. If Klitschko, Chagaev and Povetkin won all their fights in the first round by KO, would that be good enough for you? Or would they have to be born in America, before you would respect them... Who have any of them beat? You don't get respect for beating up the other weaklings in your division until you beat ALL of them and unify the belts until a real challenger comes along for you to defend against. Saying Wladimir or any of these other beltholders are good is like saying the dork that makes fun of the other dorks is cool. It doesn't work that way. You don't get ahead by beating up on weaklings. For me to respect Wladimir, he has to unify the titles, something he will not do whether because he knows he can't or he doesn't want to risk it.

You always resort to low blows, by calling me "coward" or "retard" or insane. You have no sense of fair play, do you? Yes, all of those heavyweights I mentioned are excellent boxers, and some of them, like Povetkin and Chagaev, will probably be ranked in the top 50 of all time when they are finished. Wladimir, with his 48 wins and 43 KO's, is already in BoxRec's all time top 50. But you'll never respect any of them, no matter what they accomplish, because you're prejudiced. that's quite an accusation. who am I prejudiced against? I'd love to know. I respect fighters of all nationalities if they are actually great fighters. All the heavyweights you are talking about might be good fighters, but none of them are great or they would be winning in spectacular fashion and fighting the best matchups available. You can't truly believe any of these current beltholders would be contenders in other heavyweight eras. I know you don't believe that, so I'll just stop listening when you insist on it.

Chagaev, Povetkin, Maskaev, Klitschko and Ibragimov are excellent heavyweights, but no matter what they do they will never be recognized by some Americans because of the Archie Bunker mentality. All they remember is Wlad's losses, not his 43 KO's and 48 wins. It's the same with Hatton and Calzaghe - top level, but get no recognition because they were born on the wrong side of the ocean. There's an old song by Bob Dylan "How many roads must a man walk down before they call him a man? The answer is blowing in the wind." If Ibragimov and Chagaev win their next 10 fights, or if Wlad unifies the division, there will still be no recognition. I'm sorry if some people's cups are half empty, but mine is completely full! That's hilarious. I seriously doubt any of them would come close to cracking a top 50 heavyweights of all time list. Maybe Wladimir by the time he's done.

You remind me of Archie Bunker. He didn't like foreigners either. Nice way to back out of the argument. Just admit you lost next time and save yourself the trouble, coward.

Regarding the Eastern European guys: I can only speak for myself, but these guys have not thus far, staked their claim as great heavyweights. Indeed Wladimir is a talented guy, but he has shown he has big problems too. If one of these guys were to be as successful as a Lennox or a Holmes then I'd have absolutely no problem whatsoever in acknowledging how great they are. What I won't do is pretend any of them are the saviour of the division or the best heavyweight out there based on no proof. People can make up their own minds and don't need to be force-fed things. If a guy, regardless of his colour or nationality, comes along and shows he has what it takes, then most people will acknowledge that.

Part of the problem is alot of the top guys from the 90's all dissapeared around the same time, so the division is kinda in a rebuilding period.

I think by the year 2010 when some of these guys are more well established and there's something to measure them against (Wlad, the current belt holders) and if they fight each other the heavyweight division will be good again.

Chagaev, Povetkin, Maskaev, Klitschko and Ibragimov are excellent heavyweights, but no matter what they do they will never be recognized by some Americans because of the Archie Bunker mentality. All they remember is Wlad's losses, not his 43 KO's and 48 wins. It's the same with Hatton and Calzaghe - top level, but get no recognition because they were born on the wrong side of the ocean. There's an old song by Bob Dylan "How many roads must a man walk down before they call him a man? The answer is blowing in the wind." If Ibragimov and Chagaev win their next 10 fights, or if Wlad unifies the division, there will still be no recognition. I'm sorry if some people's cups are half empty, but mine is completely full! They're pretty good but there was so many good heavyweights in the 90's. guys like George Foreman Tommy Morrison Riddick Bowe Evander Holyfield Tyson was around Michael Moore Andrew Golota Lennox Lewis Oliver McCall Ike Ibeabuchi David Tua Ray Mercer And there was alot of guys besides that who were good, that were maybe, were just a little past their primes like Tim Witherspoon, Michael Dokes etc.. Maskaev was around back then There was so much depth. Even a younger Shannon Briggs was another contender, Frank Bruno, just so much depth.

Holyfield Lennox Lewis I and II.

Anyone who says the heavyweight division is better than its ever been is truly a fan. Not only is the hevyweight division splintered worse than it's ever been,the quality of not only the champions,but all so the suspects are also worse than ever. I'm not a racist,and if there was a legit champ from another country that would be one thing...but to have a Maskaev,a Chagaev,an Ibragimov be considered a champ makes the entire division a joke. And I will add Shannon Briggs and Lamont Brewster to those names also. The closest we have to a real champ is Klitscho...but he has the glass chin and can be knocked out by any mediocre fighter on any day. I believe the division is in dire straights...at least in the USA.And yes part of the reason is that there are no good heavies from this country. But also...we know a joke when we see one.And we see jokes...imagine,a big goon like Value,calling himself a champ.Perhaps of the circus...even Don King and his European counterparts couldn't sell that bullshit here. Here's a point....is there any heavyweight match-up that they can put on PPV?...no there isn't. Which shows you how bad things are. I'm glad your glass is half full...cause mine is half empty. And if any of these Euro-guys were the least bit legit...they would be huge in the USA.After all,they are white...and in America,they are always looking for a 'great white hope'. But...as I said,we know a joke. Oh,to answer the post...yeah,when Lewis retired.After him there has been no one where you can look and say...he's the champ. John Ruiz was a champ...I rest my case.

no question about it, right when lewis retired

Just because you don't agree doesn't mean you have to say I'm "sick in the head" because I like the heavyweight division. I know why you're whining it being so bad - you should learn to see past your prejudice! I like Chagaev, Maskaev, Ibragimov, Povetkin and the Klitschkos even though they were born in different countries than myself. I know the real reason you don't like them - the same reason you hate Hatton and Calzaghe, right? I don't like Hatton because he turned Mayweather down twice and suddenly wants to fight him I don't like Calzaghe because he never fights anyone. But they are both pound for pound boxers, among the top 6 in the world. I would never try to deny that. But as far as the heavyweights are concerned, they are weak and none of them have anything that would help them survive in other eras. That's just a fact. Some of them are good at a lot of stuff, but none of them are great in all areas. Thus, none of them are great. Don't try to say I'm racist or nationalist because I never said Briggs had any talent either. All the heavyweight champs aside from Maskaev are better than Briggs. I don't know what you're trying to get at with these comments.

When Lewis reitered, I really enjoyed his fights and I'm sure everyone else did as well. Since he's been gone the only consistent fighter in the division has been Wlad.

When L.Lewis retired and V. Kilt couldn't stay healthy..retired..

If you mean overall in mainstream? Lewis was a great champion, but the HW division probably lost a great deal of mainstream appeal after his two fights with Holyfield.

When I was growing up, The Heavyweight division was the best to watch, because one the matches would produce some huge names, two because thats where all the talented fighters were, and lastly because that was what was being promoted like crazy, now it's all about the other divisions,:middle, light heavy etc.... At what point did the heavyweights lose their appeal and will it ever regain it's popularity as it once was??? It happened around 1999 when all the big name heavyweights got old.Now the talent in the HW division is pathetic and it doesn't look to be getting better anytime soon.

When I was growing up, The Heavyweight division was the best to watch, because one the matches would produce some huge names, two because thats where all the talented fighters were, and lastly because that was what was being promoted like crazy, now it's all about the other divisions,:middle, light heavy etc.... At what point did the heavyweights lose their appeal and will it ever regain it's popularity as it once was??? Anywhere between the time Lewis beat Evander (which i dont think he did in the second fight) and the end of his career!!!

I've been around for a long time, and I think the heavyweight division is more appealing than it's ever been! I remember hearing about Cassius Clay as a child, and watching his fight with Liston, and hearing about him changing his name to Ali. I remember the first Frazier-Ali fight, I was 15. I remember watching Tyson in the 80's, and Lewis in the 90's. Heavyweight boxing is better now than it was then! There are more good heavyweight boxers than ever before, because they're coming from 6 billion people all over the world - Ukraine, Nigeria, Russia - rather than 300 million just from the US. The real reason some people bitch and whine about it being less appealing is the titleholders are not Americans right now, and they've become used to the top boxers being Americans. But the ancestors of Americans came from other continents, so why does it matter so much? The heavyweight division is the best it's ever been, and it's going to get even better! We need new, younger sportwriters instead of all the old fogies my age, who are living in the past. We need sportswriters who are not so narrow minded and can create interest in these excellent boxers from other countries. you are sick in the head if you believe that. this is without a doubt, the worst era of heavyweight boxing anyone could imagine. zero talent, zero marketability. it's a big dud, a non-factor in boxing right now. remember the last heavyweight ppv fight that meant something? what was it, 5 years ago now?