Today's Heavyweight - From Child to Contender

[BIGPOPPAPUMP]

By Troy Ondrizek - It takes a lot of growth mentally and physically for a boy to become a man. Some mature faster than others based on external conditions or on the genetic mental mettle of the particular individual. Some boys are thrust into manhood too early and they don’t completely acclimate to it, then fizzle out before they ever had a chance. [details]

[HeartAttack]

Man this writer is great, he uses words I can't understand, wow. Sorry Reeno couldn't resist.

[Hitman932]

chapman sucks, but the guy he is fighting has the weakest resume ive ever seen... i read somewhere JD was being mentioned as a possible opponent for alexander povetkin... thatd be the end of him if he took that fight

travis walker is entertaining and thats about it, the last time i was in vegas i drunk as piss and wandered into a sportsbook to see his fight with jason gavern.... man i had a couple good laughs watching that.

i say this and i mean it... the best heavyeight prospects on both sides of the atlantic are fighting in the cruiserweight division... johnathon banks would KTFO of marrone, farrell, walker even if he came in at 200 pounds... banks has said that he will move up in weight after capturing a world title at cruiser... hopefully by the end of the year...

david haye is the best britsh heavyweight prosepct, he fights at cruiser also

marco huck, only 22, is fighting vadim tokarev in early may in what is a huge step forward for such a young guy... he is definately another guy to watch for steppiung up to heavy in a year or two...

bottom line... top young cruisers are far superior to top young heavyweights as far as skills and experience... and the best ones have the physical build to come in comfortably at 220-225 lbs

[HeartAttack]

Johnathon Banks isn't all that good. He isn't bad, but he's not the heavyweight hopeful you make him out to be. JD was supposed to fight Povetkin instead of Bostice, but suddenly was replaced because Bostice came cheaper. Povetkin would've blitzed Chapman. Povetkin is the future and Haye is the best British heavyweight to be. Huck is limited and Tokarev is as tough as they come, very good fight. There is no doubt that the cruisers are more talented, because the heavyweights, not super heavyweights in the amateurs are a much deeper group of fighters and have been for some time, hence the good crop of cruisers out there. The heavyweight division isn't as bleak as many make it out to be, but it is time for the prospects to step it up and eliminate one another from the realm of contenders.

[Hitman932]

Johnathon Banks isn't all that good. He isn't bad, but he's not the heavyweight hopeful you make him out to be. JD was supposed to fight Povetkin instead of Bostice, but suddenly was replaced because Bostice came cheaper. Povetkin would've blitzed Chapman. Povetkin is the future and Haye is the best British heavyweight to be. Huck is limited and Tokarev is as tough as they come, very good fight. There is no doubt that the cruisers are more talented, because the heavyweights, not super heavyweights in the amateurs are a much deeper group of fighters and have been for some time, hence the good crop of cruisers out there. The heavyweight division isn't as bleak as many make it out to be, but it is time for the prospects to step it up and eliminate one another from the realm of contenders.

banks is a beast, he is physically stronger than the young heavyweight prospects.. i may be wrong but i would bet on him to beat eddie chambers for one if they fought tomorrow...he would knock out marrone also.. banks has a solid amateur pedigree, sparring with taylor and klitschko and under the guidance of steward now, he has much more siginifcant opprutunities than the ones you pointed out that chapman has been given..

not to mention his victory over eliseo castillo mayhave been the comeback of the year for 2006.... he KTFO a guy who beat michael moorer at heavyweight.. none of the other "prospects" have near as significant win on their ledgers.... castillo is much better than derrick rossy for instance... the fact that steward took that matchup shows that he has a heckuva lot of confidence in banks abilities.. and i trust emmanuels judgement

[Derranged_]

Alot of these hw prospects this article mentions(Chapman, Chambers, etc.) are undefeated but have not fought anyone of real mention. Infact, it seems like some of these 'prospects' are fighting the safest fights in the hope that somewhere down the line they'll score a big money fight against one of the titlists.

[HeartAttack]

banks is a beast, he is physically stronger than the young heavyweight prospects.. i may be wrong but i would bet on him to beat eddie chambers for one if they fought tomorrow...he would knock out marrone also.. banks has a solid amateur pedigree, sparring with taylor and klitschko and under the guidance of steward now, he has much more siginifcant opprutunities than the ones you pointed out that chapman has been given..

not to mention his victory over eliseo castillo mayhave been the comeback of the year for 2006.... he KTFO a guy who beat michael moorer at heavyweight.. none of the other "prospects" have near as significant win on their ledgers.... castillo is much better than derrick rossy for instance... the fact that steward took that matchup shows that he has a heckuva lot of confidence in banks abilities.. and i trust emmanuels judgement

I've seen a lot of Banks for years, the kid is good, but has some major flaws. For one, I have seen him down against marginal fighters in sparring. He like most Steward fighters can't fight a lick off the ropes. He does have a decent amateur background, but the problem is, his background is against most other UDA amateurs, and he fought at a lull in talent, just like all the heavyweight prospects did. I like Banks, he is a good kid with a hell of a demeanor and work ethic. Castillo is someone I know real well and Banks beat him by not gooing down and out in the first. That was a great win for Banks, and truthfully I hope I'm qrong about Banks. However, something tells me he will find trouble in the higher ranks. Marrone for as chinny as he is, doesn't really stand in front og his opponents for extended amounts of time and Banks is most effective against stationary guys, just like that is when started to find success against Castillo. Marrone would actually be a difficult fight for Banks. And as for Chambers, he is too comfortable in there and wouldn't hurt Banks by any means, but he would counter and potshot Banks for the entire contest

[Hitman932]

I've seen a lot of Banks for years, the kid is good, but has some major flaws. For one, I have seen him down against marginal fighters in sparring. He like most Steward fighters can't fight a lick off the ropes. He does have a decent amateur background, but the problem is, his background is against most other UDA amateurs, and he fought at a lull in talent, just like all the heavyweight prospects did. I like Banks, he is a good kid with a hell of a demeanor and work ethic. Castillo is someone I know real well and Banks beat him by not gooing down and out in the first. That was a great win for Banks, and truthfully I hope I'm qrong about Banks. However, something tells me he will find trouble in the higher ranks. Marrone for as chinny as he is, doesn't really stand in front og his opponents for extended amounts of time and Banks is most effective against stationary guys, just like that is when started to find success against Castillo. Marrone would actually be a difficult fight for Banks. And as for Chambers, he is too comfortable in there and wouldn't hurt Banks by any means, but he would counter and potshot Banks for the entire contest

thats interesting about him being down agaist marginal fighters in sparring as obviously i wouldnt see that..... i like his attitude and demeanor as you pointed out.... i saw him fight awhile ago aganst some guy named shabazz i believe... it took him 15 minutes to get off the canvas.. i guess im partial cause he is local and my kind of fighter but i think he showed intangibles in that castillo fight that will definately help him when he does step it up...

he throws a slicing left hand that kinda starts off like a hook and ends up slashing through his opponents guard, kinda reminds me of lennox

he has knockout power in either hand too....

i think he should be in line to fight enzo for the WBO title, since he captured the WBO NABO against castillo he has to be ranked fairly high... hed have a good chance at winning that fight IMO... dont know if you have any insight as far as that matter is concerned

[beez721]

chapman sucks, but the guy he is fighting has the weakest resume ive ever seen... i read somewhere JD was being mentioned as a possible opponent for alexander povetkin... thatd be the end of him if he took that fight

travis walker is entertaining and thats about it, the last time i was in vegas i drunk as piss and wandered into a sportsbook to see his fight with jason gavern.... man i had a couple good laughs watching that.

i say this and i mean it... the best heavyeight prospects on both sides of the atlantic are fighting in the cruiserweight division... johnathon banks would KTFO of marrone, farrell, walker even if he came in at 200 pounds... banks has said that he will move up in weight after capturing a world title at cruiser... hopefully by the end of the year...

david haye is the best britsh heavyweight prosepct, he fights at cruiser also

marco huck, only 22, is fighting vadim tokarev in early may in what is a huge step forward for such a young guy... he is definately another guy to watch for steppiung up to heavy in a year or two...

bottom line... top young cruisers are far superior to top young heavyweights as far as skills and experience... and the best ones have the physical build to come in comfortably at 220-225 lbs

I dont think banks has the chin to compete with the heavyweights. light hitting eliseo castillo had him down and almost out. if he wasnt so sloppy he'd have probably stopped him. banks showed heart and he's a good puncher but I just cant see him taking a good heavyweight punch

[HeartAttack]

I can definitely find out more on that for you. A good friend of mine has been thinking about signing Banks on to a mangement deal alongside of Steward and I can get some info from him next time we talk. Banks though needs another high-profile win though, and some one like a BJ Flores would be a great fight, however, I have Flores out-boxing the kid in that one. But Flores was down against a very Svelte Chris Thomas. Thomas had been in camp with Wlodarcyck for seven weeks before training and caught Flores sleeping. Flores has the better amateur pedigree and fought at heavyweight for some time, but Flores told me he respects Banks, but isn't too high on him.