fifth_root

I wonder who ever believed Jalolov is anything than average B-level fighter?

how soon can the boxing world forget it kabayal getting LIT up in the first round aganist the polak then kabayl lands a few shots, amd tthe know nothing german crowd goes nuts,, the referee leaps in to stop PRIME knyaba in teh 2nd round. just the 2nd, never even went down. the first round of that, was way worse for kabayel than any round for usyk vs rico and the stoppage one oft he WORST. WOW, what a turn of events this is Yeah, so it's better that Usyk defends his title against a 1-0 kickboxer, unranked, rather than the legit contender, who isn't good supposedly? Under the same referee, however.

Well said. Ali was also fighting 15 rounds, 4-6 times a year. There’s no comparison. It’s ridiculous that people compare Usyk to guys like Lennox and Holyfield let alone Ali. I have been saying this for a couple of years now - Usyk has the most insufferable fanbase out there. Their easiest and only arguments are "hater", or "Fury fanboy", regardless of the options being neither of those and a man who does not need to stick his head in his idol's *ss.

This is more than obvious so far. He is procrastinating that fight, but why? Well, Usyk has a great chin, but a glass body. Kabayel, not being the most refined boxer, is good enough, but he has some incredible skills to dismantle his opponent's body.

Dubois not being a top guy means Usyk fought two tops at HW, where both are questionable by some, yet somehow Usyk is great - that's a strong cognitive dissonance. Even though Dubois will soon have a better resume.

Again: Usyk is "the high IQ in the ring" - he didn't figure out Rico for 10 rounds? Was his team not capable of analysing Rico's movements anyway? Rico was not at a disadvantage, being against the conservatism and the fear of boxing, to admit that people from other sports could do well or even great at boxing? Wasn't it Rico transitioning to boxing, i.e. limiting his habits and skills only to improve and learn others within 6 months?

I'd like to see Daniel against other good fighters. Wardley must do a lot of work before a rematch would make sense.

So is he or is he not (what he indeed is) - a *hit referee?

It looks like Zuffa is willing to invest heavily in boxing, unlike the relatively modest pay structure in the UFC. If that financial commitment is paired with strict enforcement of rules and clear principles - something boxing’s governing bodies often lack. Zuffa Boxing could significantly disrupt the current landscape or reduce existing organisations to more minor roles, which would be acceptable. Fans would no longer joke about fighters “collecting belts” or “holding multiple titles,” but instead would see the matchups they actually want: boxer A vs. boxer B taking place within a reasonable, defined timeframe, as it should be.

Usyk could have also reviewed all the boxing skills of Rico, how he moves and stands, both overall and while exchanging with hands only. You can't make that a solid one-sided apology. Plus, what happened with his "unmatched ring IQ" - being unable to analyse what Rico was doing for 10 rounds? On the other hand, Rico was at a disadvantage for all the reasons: boxing being dirty, and in particular towards "externals", but also because all his habits, reflexes, and combinations had to be rebuilt into pure boxing.

Bum fight here.

And a stoppage literally one second before the end of the round? That is incredibly shady. It looks less like a legitimate medical or safety intervention and more like a tactical move to influence the official outcome or prevent a certain fighter from going the distance. Actually, stopped after the end of the round. Because it is shady for the very same reason.

Of all fighters out there, no matter the style, Holly is actually one of the GOATs, regardless male or female. She did amazing in UFC, despite not having the best trainers - the woman is a lioness, a powerhouse of a fighter, dominating 3 disciplines.

So if Usyk is not great, how bad are Fury, Joshua and Dubois than? How about Usyk is not great and Fury, Joshua, and Dubois (while the latter is yet to make a career, whether great or not and judging him prematurely is desperate Usyk fanboyism) are good, but nothing special? How about 80% of Usyk's cruiser best fights are just good, but nothing special boxers, because they are so? They were good within the division, which only proves this is the talent-poorest division.

What, he plans to face Floyd too?

So, (one of) the hardest forms of fighting (when not fixed) became a clowning platform for when one is greedy or bankrupt? And it has been getting worse in recent years.

Usyk is far from trashed, he's been rightfully criticised, but his fan base is the worst out there. People want him to defend against a rising boxer who deserves a shot at the title. Sure, Kabayel is yet to improve his resume (or turn out to be overrated). And after doing it, which will be after Usyk retires, it will decide how Usyk's supposed victory over him applies to his legacy (might turn out to be a very good victory, might be just he beat an average boxer, but only time will show).

I think of cruiser as OVERSIZED white boys who are too big for 175 but not quite buff enough for heavyweight hard to tell from appearance but Buff Guy Jai is only HALF Samoan!:eek: For some reason, there have been very few top-level boxers choosing to fight in that weight class, even though it is a relatively new division. It may simply need more time to gain traction, but having it in place is a good decision - just like introducing bridgerweight. The current lower limit for heavyweight (91 kg) has been outdated for at least 25 years, as people are generally bigger today. A more realistic range would be around 100-105 kg. Up to light heavyweight, weight divisions are relatively tight, usually around 2 kg for lighter divisions and 3 kg for heavier ones. However, above that, the structure becomes inconsistent. Cruiserweight starts at 79.5 kg and goes up to 91 kg, while heavyweight begins at 91 kg and has no upper limit. This creates an imbalance. Lighter fighters can move between divisions with minimal weight changes, allowing them to compete across multiple categories, which is beneficial. But above light heavyweight, the talent pool becomes more limited, and the weight gaps are much wider. These divisions don’t necessarily need to be reduced to 3-4 kg differences, but they would make more sense with the inclusion of bridgerweight. For example, cruiserweight could remain as it is, bridgerweight could cover roughly 91 to around 101.6 kg, as it currently is, but is like a division within a division at this point, and heavyweight would start above that. This would create a more balanced structure, although it’s likely that such changes will take time to be fully adopted.

Kabayel to be next remains, only that we are missing the deadline. Sulaiman practically says what everybody wants to hear and wants to happen/have happened, only to wash his dirty ***. But he says something else - Rico's contestation will have no success, which isn't surprising - boxing will not admit it is corrupt/suffers from poor professionalism and favouritism: "After looking at the replays speaking with and with a cooler state of mind, I’m certain it was a correct stoppage. However, I fully understand those who didn’t like it."

Don't need rematch even if stopped prematurely in.most opinions..It was just an exhibition. I d rather see Rico v moses or other boxers. Why did Rick get shot for title? Since it was a legit defence, it was not an exhibition, nor was declared one. But that's the first problem - why it was considered a valid defence?

Good for Moses. He belongs to the big game.

Good for Moses. He belongs to the big game.

Some finally got it "now". It wasn't because of Rico's size, Usyk fought bigger and heavier before, even more skilled. It was Rico's gameplan that was great and he executed it perfectly.

I'm hoping to make the OP realise that by comparing boxing to tennis, he is illustrating exactly why the point he's been trying to prove in this thread is wrong.. If tennis is all about talent, then why couldn't somebody with a natural talent for tennis take it up age 21 and compete with Nadal? Truth is, tennis isn't primarily about talent, it's about taking up a very basic, simple sport at a young age, then spending years and years repetitively practising the same basic moves, in the same situations, over and over again, until they become second nature and you can respond instinctively and instantly without having to think about it, to whatever your opponent does. Obviously,there is an element of natural ability, aka talent, involved, but years of repetitive practice, from childhood on, under the supervision of an experienced professional coach, is the most important factor. And if boxing is all about physical attributes, then how could somebody like Fabio Wardley take up boxing at age 21 and become a world champion in a division full of guys with the same physical attributes as him? Answer: The same reason why Usyk could first set foot in a boxing gym at the of 15 and become world amateur champ and Olympic gold medalist 6 years later. And 6 years after that, he wins his first world title as a pro. Obviously, repetitive training to build up fitness, muscle memory and instinctive reactions is also important in boxing, but talent matters more in boxing than in tennis, which is why naturally talented guys like Fabio and Usyk can progress so much faster in boxing than in tennis. I get it. I just decided to do it differently. But of course, a lot can be said, and I think you can get more practical skills from boxing than from tennis, for example. Is boxing the hardest or the most demanding sport? It depends on what defines those two. Because gymnastics is harder and more demanding on the body in one way. In another, it is boxing that is tougher for the body, because of the damage. Taekwondo also requires more skills; in the end it creates worse quality fighters than boxing, I'd say.

Whoever it is, he will surely be ranked, but not a 1-0 kickboxer. But Fury better aim at the top 15 at worst.

Going to argue about an initially wrong statement with nothing solid behind it is falling into a trap - ok, boxing is the sport that barely requires any talent at all. We like it anyway.

Good if he can arrange fights against classier opponents. He still has to prove a bit more.

Brit here. TBH, I think there's an unspoken fear in boxing over here that boxing could be banned if there was a death in the ring in a major fight. This socialist government is full of woke wannabe ministers wanting some publicity - wouldn't take much. Forgetting about everything else... Since it's kind of a political thing, if it is, as you are describing it, having the UK as the biggest supporter of Ukraine, could it be that this politics translates into protecting Ukrainian athletes? It's interesting what you are saying. But why now? True, boxing has always been through vicissitudes, but it is now regulated and well-studied. There are sports with a higher death rate.

No because the best opponents beat by Muhammad Joe Rocky Lennox are far better than Josh Daniel and Flabby Fury modern heavyweight talent pool is shallow big strong dudes pick easier and safer sports to get paid in to hammer home just how misleading labels undisputed and champ can be Oleksandr will never reach the greatness of Harry Greb Henry Armstrong Sam Langford Ezzard Charles despite all of them being screwed of at least one championship each But all went through a buncha great opponents Oleksandr has only Flabby Fury The cruiserweight division was even worse, it is still the least talented one, if we don't consider bridgerweight.

:nono: 154 and 160 aren't midgets at all It was more of a joke and generalising most people below 70 kg. I do not judge people for being short, for sure. I don't respect those who are tall, but fight at a lighter weight because of size advantage, but it's another topic. Agit isn't that good? He performed very well in his last few fights and rightfully deserved a title contender. He has yet to prove how good he actually is, yes.