The IBF ordering a decent eliminator. Thought I’d never see the day. Was expecting De Mori vs Gjergaj.
they always send letters like this (though it's rarely reported as news) but usually at least one of the better ranked guys decline. that's how zhang got his shot while being #13. he was the highest available = others declined and yoka was obligated to fight bakole at the time. who's to blame then? definitely not ibf and zhang, a boxer who accepted.
The IBF ordering a decent eliminator. Thought I’d never see the day. Was expecting De Mori vs Gjergaj.
IBF has a bad habit of wanting to be different from others and as a result ranking a bunch of people thats not ranked in the other three rankings, but occasionally when they put guys who overlap with the other rankings near the top they seem to actually get a decent list.
Quite frankly, no matter who wins the rematch, I can see both Usyk and Fury retiring soon rather than fighting a hungry (relatively) young lion.
Unless he is officially retired, I see a sanctioned exhibition...I mean a fight with Joshua still a possibility if just for the cash. Not a matter of whether Joshua deserves a shot, but simply money.
IBF has a bad habit of wanting to be different from others and as a result ranking a bunch of people thats not ranked in the other three rankings, but occasionally when they put guys who overlap with the other rankings near the top they seem to actually get a decent list.
they always send letters like this (though it's rarely reported as news) but usually at least one of the better ranked guys decline. that's how zhang got his shot while being #13. he was the highest available = others declined and yoka was obligated to fight bakole at the time. who's to blame then? definitely not ibf and zhang, a boxer who accepted.
Yeah wouldn’t surprise me if we get something far worse. Could definitely see this one on a Saudi undercard too though.
Unless he is officially retired, I see a sanctioned exhibition...I mean a fight with Joshua still a possibility if just for the cash. Not a matter of whether Joshua deserves a shot, but simply money.
Yes, I can see a fight against Joshua for cash but not a fight against someone really dangerous like Bakole or Kabayel. Usyk being weak to the body would not like either of those two.
Yes, I can see a fight against Joshua for cash but not a fight against someone really dangerous like Bakole or Kabayel. Usyk being weak to the body would not like either of those two.
I'm not sure if I would say Usyk is THAT weak to the body...I think some people put too much emphasis on the low blow arguement IMO. It's certainly different from the proven fact that Joshua has a glass jaw.
Also Bakole vs Kabayel is a nice matchup but I'm not ready to claim them as the next top dog of HW yet.
I'm not sure if I would say Usyk is THAT weak to the body...I think some people put too much emphasis on the low blow arguement IMO. It's certainly different from the proven fact that Joshua has a glass jaw.
Also Bakole vs Kabayel is a nice matchup but I'm not ready to claim them as the next top dog of HW yet.
If Usyk has a weakness it is a shot to the body. In addition to the low blow argument (which slow motion replays show was not a low blow) I have seen amateur footage where Beterbiev put Usyk down with a body shot - you can look it up on YouTube. Bakole also claims that he put Usyk down and out with a body shot in sparring. One isolated "low blow" incident, I would discount but this to me looks like a pattern that so far nobody has been able to capitalize on in a real fight.
How many amateur and pro fights does he have? You listed two fights that show him hurt to the body, and a sparring partner who runs his mouth (which means nothing).
Seems like a pretty flimsy case.
Also, I think AJ tickled his jaw a bit in their first match especially. But neither that nor anything else prevented him from steamrolling through CW and HW.
So I'm not saying he's superman, but he's def impressive and I'm sure not going to theorize about his supposed weaknesses.
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