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The cruiserweight division is one of boxing's best kept secrets. A division long since ignored by the public and boxing purists, who forever complain that we have too many divisions. Never mind the fact that the old divisions were established in a different era and that every other major sport has long since expanded. Cruiserweight is a logical division that sits between today’s heavyweights and light heavyweights. Since 1962, there has been only one Heavyweight champion that has weighted less than 200 pounds. (Leon Spinks was a paltry 197 pounds when he upset Ali in 1978.)
Athletes today are bigger due to training methods, diet and occasional help from pharmacology so it is only logical that new divisions be formed to recognize the new reality. In a world that has more than doubled in population and boxing, like other sports, have a wider pool to draw fighters from. The collapse of the Soviet Empire added to this pool as fighters, who were previously unable to fight professionally in the west, are now making their fortune in professional boxing. And when Fidel Castro finally join the rest of the Marxist world in the ash heap of history, then professional boxing will have yet another quality pool to draw from.
The problem is not that boxing has too many divisions but that boxing has too many champions for each division. 17 World champions for 17 divisions are not too many champions. 51 or maybe 64 champions are a little too much for 17 divisions. The Cruiserweight division is everyone's ugly stepchild and yet there are some very good fighters in that division. As Al Bernstein observed, “This division has fighters who are blessed with heavyweight power but also can throw a lot of punches, thus capable of producing some great fights.” [details]
Athletes today are bigger due to training methods, diet and occasional help from pharmacology so it is only logical that new divisions be formed to recognize the new reality. In a world that has more than doubled in population and boxing, like other sports, have a wider pool to draw fighters from. The collapse of the Soviet Empire added to this pool as fighters, who were previously unable to fight professionally in the west, are now making their fortune in professional boxing. And when Fidel Castro finally join the rest of the Marxist world in the ash heap of history, then professional boxing will have yet another quality pool to draw from.
The problem is not that boxing has too many divisions but that boxing has too many champions for each division. 17 World champions for 17 divisions are not too many champions. 51 or maybe 64 champions are a little too much for 17 divisions. The Cruiserweight division is everyone's ugly stepchild and yet there are some very good fighters in that division. As Al Bernstein observed, “This division has fighters who are blessed with heavyweight power but also can throw a lot of punches, thus capable of producing some great fights.” [details]