Justis Huni performed very well on Saturday against British contender Fabio Wardley, up by 88-83, 89-82, 89-82 before getting stopped in his tracks by a Wardley right hand.
Huni performed nearly as well as Wardley's countryman Frazer Clarke had done in that pair's first meeting back in March of last year, when Wardley was pressed to a draw.
Huni, though unsuccessful in his first attempt to break into the world class tier, might in fact have upped his stock, with his smooth performance, at least in the eyes of observers who insist that a fighter's accomplishments weigh more heavily toward a high ranking than do the ranker's prognostications regarding the prospect's chances in future challenges.
The staff at the old Victory Sports Series publications and Boxing Illustrated, decades ago; would often marvel at our competitor's faith in the Ring staffers ability predict the road ahead for prospects like Huni, and award them a high rating before it was earned.
The right hand of Wardley this weekend, serves as the most recent example of procedure vindication for that conservative approach, as Huni is dropped from The Ring's top 10, and replaced this morning by Wardley, and joins the long list of The Ring's top ten ranked heavyweights who were overestimated when chosen for inclusion in their top ten, as were Randy Neumann, Howard "KO" Smith, Johnny Boudreaux, Marty Monroe, Domingo D'Elia, Adilson Rodrigues, Orlin Norris, Michael Bentt, Phil Jackson, Mike "The Bounty" Hunter, Lionel Butler, Alexander Zolkin, Derrick Jefferson, Fres Oquendo, Kirk Johnson, Monty Barrett, Calvin Brock, Vladimir Virchis (Vyrchyis), Alexander Dimitrenko and Denis Boystov, in recent decades. Each one a "top 10 ranked Heavyweight"; thr term so often used here at Boxing Scene by fans groping to assign a seal of excellence. But Huni is young, and has the opportunity to use this loss productively to improve with.
Fabio Wardley, for his part, is continuing to chop away at excellent opponents, and like Kabayel and Parker, proceeds ahead on building his case amongst his contemporaries.
Huni performed nearly as well as Wardley's countryman Frazer Clarke had done in that pair's first meeting back in March of last year, when Wardley was pressed to a draw.
Huni, though unsuccessful in his first attempt to break into the world class tier, might in fact have upped his stock, with his smooth performance, at least in the eyes of observers who insist that a fighter's accomplishments weigh more heavily toward a high ranking than do the ranker's prognostications regarding the prospect's chances in future challenges.
The staff at the old Victory Sports Series publications and Boxing Illustrated, decades ago; would often marvel at our competitor's faith in the Ring staffers ability predict the road ahead for prospects like Huni, and award them a high rating before it was earned.
The right hand of Wardley this weekend, serves as the most recent example of procedure vindication for that conservative approach, as Huni is dropped from The Ring's top 10, and replaced this morning by Wardley, and joins the long list of The Ring's top ten ranked heavyweights who were overestimated when chosen for inclusion in their top ten, as were Randy Neumann, Howard "KO" Smith, Johnny Boudreaux, Marty Monroe, Domingo D'Elia, Adilson Rodrigues, Orlin Norris, Michael Bentt, Phil Jackson, Mike "The Bounty" Hunter, Lionel Butler, Alexander Zolkin, Derrick Jefferson, Fres Oquendo, Kirk Johnson, Monty Barrett, Calvin Brock, Vladimir Virchis (Vyrchyis), Alexander Dimitrenko and Denis Boystov, in recent decades. Each one a "top 10 ranked Heavyweight"; thr term so often used here at Boxing Scene by fans groping to assign a seal of excellence. But Huni is young, and has the opportunity to use this loss productively to improve with.
Fabio Wardley, for his part, is continuing to chop away at excellent opponents, and like Kabayel and Parker, proceeds ahead on building his case amongst his contemporaries.
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